Mary: An Awakening of Terror is One of the Best Horror Novels I Have Read in Years

I don't normally write a separate article about books anymore, but I felt that this book deserves to be discussed. I never thought in a million years that I would find another PERFECT horror novel, that I would consider one of the best horror stories ever written. For me personally, The Season of Passage written by Christopher Pike is my most favorite horror book ever written, and I think Mary: An Awakening of Terror is a close second.

This story is expertly written, and it's pretty rare for me to praise writing within a horror story, but this one deserves an award for its craft. This story has all kinds of horror genres that you can think of, and it's all blended perfectly into this one story.

Warning: Major spoilers are going to be discussed in this article. Please read the story if you don't want to hear about the main plot points in this story!

We follow the story of a woman named Mary, who has felt alone her entire life. She is now a middle-aged woman, who is trying to get by in life, while feeling like a ghost. Mary is also experiencing horrific hallucinations that don't make any sense, every time she looks at a woman around her age, or even herself when she looks into a mirror.

The hallucinations get even worse, including the dead bodies of women with pillowcases over their heads, leaving Mary completely terrified. She eventually returns back to her childhood hometown, after life doesn't go her way. She is offered money by an old family member that didn't treat her the best, and she gives in to living with her remaining family in Arizona.

Once she returns back home, she is thrown into pure horror, as she tries to learn about the childhood that she can't remember. Mary comes to a horrible conclusion, realizing that she is possessed by a serial killer, who was killed in the town. He had taken over her body, because she had been born on the same day that the killer had been caught and killed. Mary obviously struggles to handle this twist reveal, as she learns even more about her past as a child. She had been displaying signs of evil to everyone around her, causing both death and pain to anyone that crossed her path.

She was sent to an institution by her family, hoping that she would be cured. She had disappeared for years, only to eventually return. Unfortunately, Mary's hope to beat the killer within her goes wrong, when she finds out that that killer within her is now thriving again. Several murders suddenly occur in the town, each death sending Mary into a spiral of terror.

And just when things couldn't get any worse for Mary, she learns one more thing that leaves her in complete shock. Her childhood town had worshipped the serial killer, and were secretly a cult in disguise. They had been waiting for the killer's return, and he had come back, within the body of Mary. She is sucked into their twisted world, as she struggles to find her true self. The conflict of Mary wanting to be evil or good becomes an insane roller coaster of a total bloodbath, leading down a path of a chaos where Mary will be forced to fight.

I cannot believe that this was Nat Cassidy's debut novel. This book is a total horror masterpiece. I had finished the book in three days, a new record for a horror novel that I really loved!

Every horror fan that loves all horror needs to read this book! I guarantee you will love this insane masterpiece!

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Thank you for reading!

Emy Quinn