The mark of the monsterJack WilliamsonOmniClassics · Literature
The mark of the monster
Jack WilliamsonA young man's return to marry his sweetheart meets a warning that something monstrous lies within his own nature.
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About the book
After seven years away, Claiborne Coe returns to Creston with savings and a plan to take Valyne Kirk away from the decaying mountain town. A letter from his adoptive father, Doctor Kyle, has warned that the marriage would bring terrible harm, without explaining why. Familiar streets and childhood memories now seem charged with an old threat, while the townspeople's reactions deepen Clay's fear that others know something about him he does not understand. Williamson builds the story around the pressure exerted by a supposedly authoritative account of one's own origins. The frightening suggestion of inherited monstrosity competes with Clay's love for Valyne and his determination to question it. Its suspense depends on how deeply fear can disturb a person's confidence in both memory and identity.
- Fear and manipulation
- Personal identity
- Love and courage
Why read it
The threat is directed at Clay's understanding of himself, making the Gothic setting part of a closely focused psychological ordeal.
English story from Weird Tales, May 1937