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Ancient Eyes
There are communities in America that have been closeted away since the earliest European explorers arrived. They brought their families and they brought their possessions and their beliefs, both open and secret. In the mountains overlooking San Valencez, California, one such community exists. In the midst of that community there is a broken-down wooden church. Above the doorway of that church, from the alcove in which they were placed generation before, two eyes stare out across the pews toward the broken and abandoned baptismal pool. They are ancient eyes, filled with malice and they draw strength from wood and stone, from the very bones of the mountain. The head they belong to is carved of wood brought from another place and another time, preserved and revered, then shunned and feared. Alone, in that old church, this carving has spread her roots, the power embodied in the crudely carved lines of her face deepening and shifting to match more perfectly with her new home. The carved head is just the mask of her power, and she bided her time for a century or more until the time was right for another power to be recalled to the mountain.
Mysterious symbols on their doors and a siren call of irresistible force draw Silas Greene and his neighbors into the woods. Entering the trees under the cover of darkness they find a fire and in this fire Silas is reborn to something greater than he was; something darker. His neighbors flee in terror, but they are already too late. They bear his mark now and will be brought under his influence one by one as he begins his campaign of slow terror and dark control, intent on bringing the old crippled church back to life.
Once, there were two churches on the mountain. Like the first, however, the other has fallen to disrepair as well, abandoned after the death of Reverend Jonathan Carlson and the subsequent disappearance of his only son, who would have been next in line to serve. The old stone chapel has long stood against the forces behind the white wooden one, but with its hearth cold and its altars bare, there is none ready to stand against the new threat of Silas Greene and his dark designs.
Sarah Carlson, Reverend Carlson’s widow, tries, in her own way, to fight back. She sends a message to her son, Abraham, and then, alone, she climbs to the stone church, intending to make it ready for her son’s return. Sarah’s own people are not from this mountain, but she understands the ways of the thing in the white church well enough. The carved head, and the power it represents, are from an older culture, beyond the short life span of Christianity. Unfortunately, she is careless, and with her husband dead, the people of the mountain will not stand behind her. Greene thwarts her efforts easily.
Abraham, her son, has forged a new life for himself in the world beyond the mountain and has no intention of coming back. That is, he has no such intentions until he begins to have vivid nightmares that draw him back to times and places he has repressed, and it becomes increasingly difficult for him to ignore their dark warnings and symbolic terrors. His girlfriend, Katrina, has issues of her own, but she recognizes the need in Abraham, and wants to help. In the end, hearing of the disappearance of his estranged mother, Abraham makes the trip back to the mountain, leaving by night and with only a note of explanation left for Katrina.
What follows is the struggle of a boy to recover what was lost of a man – his own father – and to finish what his father left undone, cleansing the mountain of the thing in the white church and its new disciple. Unknown to Abraham, Katrina does not take well to being left behind and makes her way to the mountain on his heels, only to be captured by Silas Greene and his followers.
As the final confrontation draws near, we see a young man coming of age, a great love born, and a battle that – in the end – is more than just a struggle for the lives of a few families living isolated on a mountain. It is a struggle both with the past and with the future at once, and the conclusion is anything but certain as Greene, Abraham, Katrina, the spirits of Abraham’s past, and the inhabitants of the mountain grapple with one another and their own inner demons for control of the church, the mountain, and their lives.
Mysterious symbols on their doors and a siren call of irresistible force draw Silas Greene and his neighbors into the woods. Entering the trees under the cover of darkness they find a fire and in this fire Silas is reborn to something greater than he was; something darker. His neighbors flee in terror, but they are already too late. They bear his mark now and will be brought under his influence one by one as he begins his campaign of slow terror and dark control, intent on bringing the old crippled church back to life.
Once, there were two churches on the mountain. Like the first, however, the other has fallen to disrepair as well, abandoned after the death of Reverend Jonathan Carlson and the subsequent disappearance of his only son, who would have been next in line to serve. The old stone chapel has long stood against the forces behind the white wooden one, but with its hearth cold and its altars bare, there is none ready to stand against the new threat of Silas Greene and his dark designs.
Sarah Carlson, Reverend Carlson’s widow, tries, in her own way, to fight back. She sends a message to her son, Abraham, and then, alone, she climbs to the stone church, intending to make it ready for her son’s return. Sarah’s own people are not from this mountain, but she understands the ways of the thing in the white church well enough. The carved head, and the power it represents, are from an older culture, beyond the short life span of Christianity. Unfortunately, she is careless, and with her husband dead, the people of the mountain will not stand behind her. Greene thwarts her efforts easily.
Abraham, her son, has forged a new life for himself in the world beyond the mountain and has no intention of coming back. That is, he has no such intentions until he begins to have vivid nightmares that draw him back to times and places he has repressed, and it becomes increasingly difficult for him to ignore their dark warnings and symbolic terrors. His girlfriend, Katrina, has issues of her own, but she recognizes the need in Abraham, and wants to help. In the end, hearing of the disappearance of his estranged mother, Abraham makes the trip back to the mountain, leaving by night and with only a note of explanation left for Katrina.
What follows is the struggle of a boy to recover what was lost of a man – his own father – and to finish what his father left undone, cleansing the mountain of the thing in the white church and its new disciple. Unknown to Abraham, Katrina does not take well to being left behind and makes her way to the mountain on his heels, only to be captured by Silas Greene and his followers.
As the final confrontation draws near, we see a young man coming of age, a great love born, and a battle that – in the end – is more than just a struggle for the lives of a few families living isolated on a mountain. It is a struggle both with the past and with the future at once, and the conclusion is anything but certain as Greene, Abraham, Katrina, the spirits of Abraham’s past, and the inhabitants of the mountain grapple with one another and their own inner demons for control of the church, the mountain, and their lives.
265 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2007
7 people are currently reading
45 people want to read
About the author
David Niall Wilson
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David Niall Wilson has been writing and publishing horror, dark fantasy, and science fiction since the mid-eighties. An ordained minister, once President of the Horror Writer 's Association and multiple recipient of the Bram Stoker Award. He lives outside Hertford, NC with the love of his life, Patricia Lee Macomber, His children Zane and Katie, occasionally their older siblings, Stephanie, who is in college, and Bill and Zach who are in the Navy, and an ever-changing assortment of pets.
David is CEO and founder of Crossroad Press, a cutting edge digital publishing company specializing in electronic novels, collections, and nonfiction, as well as unabridged audiobooks and print titles.
Join my street team on Facebook to win prizes, discuss my work with others, and get exclusive content and offers
David Niall Wilson has been writing and publishing horror, dark fantasy, and science fiction since the mid-eighties. An ordained minister, once President of the Horror Writer 's Association and multiple recipient of the Bram Stoker Award. He lives outside Hertford, NC with the love of his life, Patricia Lee Macomber, His children Zane and Katie, occasionally their older siblings, Stephanie, who is in college, and Bill and Zach who are in the Navy, and an ever-changing assortment of pets.
David is CEO and founder of Crossroad Press, a cutting edge digital publishing company specializing in electronic novels, collections, and nonfiction, as well as unabridged audiobooks and print titles.
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
May 10, 2015
This audio book was a decent read, but it didn't knock my socks off. It's your average backwoods hillbilly church on a mountain tale; with the young man who left the mountain as soon as he came of age getting sucked back in to returning to his native home.
My problem with this audio was two-fold. First, the narrator. I see that he's read some classics and more power to him, but in this book he put me to sleep.
Second, I really didn't care about anybody in this story, except for Katrina. As a result, I really didn't care when bad things happened to them.
Overall this was just an okay listen.
*I received this audio free through Audioblast, and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This is it! Thanks to you both!
My problem with this audio was two-fold. First, the narrator. I see that he's read some classics and more power to him, but in this book he put me to sleep.
Second, I really didn't care about anybody in this story, except for Katrina. As a result, I really didn't care when bad things happened to them.
Overall this was just an okay listen.
*I received this audio free through Audioblast, and the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This is it! Thanks to you both!
May 10, 2015
2.5*
I like ancient gods, ancient evils, ancient religions, other ancient stuff... but I got bored with this one. I received it from audiobookblast in exchange for a review. The writieng was overkill on the descriptive factor. I learned more about the setting than I did the plot - usually a bad thing. Adjectives were legion.
The second half picked up and I ended up enjoying this one but that was in doubt throughout our introduction. Not my favorite read of the year but still a dude I'd read again.
I like ancient gods, ancient evils, ancient religions, other ancient stuff... but I got bored with this one. I received it from audiobookblast in exchange for a review. The writieng was overkill on the descriptive factor. I learned more about the setting than I did the plot - usually a bad thing. Adjectives were legion.
The second half picked up and I ended up enjoying this one but that was in doubt throughout our introduction. Not my favorite read of the year but still a dude I'd read again.
Read
January 6, 2020i listened to 2 hours of this book and had no clue what was happening. DNF
Want to read
June 13, 2016This is copy 33 of 300 signed numbered copies, signed by David Niall Wilson.
January 20, 2012
The best word I can use to describe the novel is intense. It pulled me in every night when I sat down to read. David is a master at description and character building, without being overly verbose or repetitive. The characters and setting he created were easily imaginable and at once, familiar. I was drawn along into the story and really wasn't sure how it was going to end. Was good going to win? Or is evil unstoppable? I won't spoil it for you by saying, but I will tell you that the ending is very satisfying.
I can't say enough about how much I enjoyed David's style of writing. It was lyrical and compelling. I had no trouble dropping right back into where I'd left off and I didn't want to put the Kindle down each night (unfortunately falling asleep and dropping it on your head is rather painful) and only did so when my lids began to droop. The story is an old one- good vs. evil, light vs. dark, but he never crossed the line into preaching at the reader. The religion of the good was well done without being overdone and the evil was broodingly malevolent, without being unbelievable. At the heart of the novel are the battles we all face: the struggle between good and bad within ourselves, and the struggle to keep our roots without letting them hold us back.
It may have been the first novel of his I've read, but it will not be the last. I'll hungrily devour more. One last word of warning- if you don't like snakes, prepare to be extremely uncomfortable, because there are a lot of them in the book (obviously representing temptation and evil). I hate snakes. Loathe them. But I made it through with only mild squirming.
I rarely give 5 stars- but this deserves them.
I can't say enough about how much I enjoyed David's style of writing. It was lyrical and compelling. I had no trouble dropping right back into where I'd left off and I didn't want to put the Kindle down each night (unfortunately falling asleep and dropping it on your head is rather painful) and only did so when my lids began to droop. The story is an old one- good vs. evil, light vs. dark, but he never crossed the line into preaching at the reader. The religion of the good was well done without being overdone and the evil was broodingly malevolent, without being unbelievable. At the heart of the novel are the battles we all face: the struggle between good and bad within ourselves, and the struggle to keep our roots without letting them hold us back.
It may have been the first novel of his I've read, but it will not be the last. I'll hungrily devour more. One last word of warning- if you don't like snakes, prepare to be extremely uncomfortable, because there are a lot of them in the book (obviously representing temptation and evil). I hate snakes. Loathe them. But I made it through with only mild squirming.
I rarely give 5 stars- but this deserves them.
July 22, 2015
This book is fast paced and full of rituals and mystery.Abe is getting mail and phone calls telling him to go home.Home is a place where there are two churches, one good and one evil.Abe is descended from the keeper of the good church and when evil awakens he is the only one with any chance of saving the day.A fantastic read...or listen as the case may be.
John Lee narrates with wonderful success!
"I was provided this audiobook at no charge by the author, publisher and/or narrator in exchange for an unbiased review via AudiobookBlast dot com"
John Lee narrates with wonderful success!
"I was provided this audiobook at no charge by the author, publisher and/or narrator in exchange for an unbiased review via AudiobookBlast dot com"
April 17, 2020
This was okay, but nothing different from all the stories about an 'ancient evil in isolated, primitive town'
That wasn't the problem, though. I can deal with plots less than original if the characters are interesting, but they weren't :/
Add to that that the narration wasn't particularly good either, and the end result is mediocre at best.
Oh, well, let's hope the next will be better :P
That wasn't the problem, though. I can deal with plots less than original if the characters are interesting, but they weren't :/
Add to that that the narration wasn't particularly good either, and the end result is mediocre at best.
Oh, well, let's hope the next will be better :P
May 9, 2015
Ancient Eyes is a small town supernatural horror tale, about a creepy backwoods town and a fight between good and evil, a resumed battle which was left unfinished many years before.
The main and side characters were well explored I felt, and at many times in the story it digressed to backstory flashbacks, covering significant events of the past, some personal/character related, some wider story. The story covered various character views and plot lines, including the wife of the main protagonist, who gets involved in a nasty substory when coming to support her husband, unbeknown to him.
And John Lee as the narrator. What more can I say? He could read a shopping list and make it sound spectacular. He is one of my favourite narrators, all the Peter F Hamilton novels, the Jo Nesbo books, and I'm eagerly awaiting his performance on Clive Barker's new book The Scarlet Gospels. A well deserved narrating powerhouse.
I thoroughly enjoyed the book, and I feel the audio performance made it even more enjoyable.
The main and side characters were well explored I felt, and at many times in the story it digressed to backstory flashbacks, covering significant events of the past, some personal/character related, some wider story. The story covered various character views and plot lines, including the wife of the main protagonist, who gets involved in a nasty substory when coming to support her husband, unbeknown to him.
And John Lee as the narrator. What more can I say? He could read a shopping list and make it sound spectacular. He is one of my favourite narrators, all the Peter F Hamilton novels, the Jo Nesbo books, and I'm eagerly awaiting his performance on Clive Barker's new book The Scarlet Gospels. A well deserved narrating powerhouse.
I thoroughly enjoyed the book, and I feel the audio performance made it even more enjoyable.
March 16, 2013
This book was your classic good vs. evil story with a lot of supernatural thrown in for good measure. I enjoyed the story but the ending was a little bit of a disappointment. The finale should always include fire, brimstone, heraldry and a brilliant sunrise after the dust settles. While the story kept me interested until the very end I was still left feeling a little cheated. Regardless, it is worth taking the time to read it.
March 18, 2011
I love a well-written tale of backwoods darkness, and Wilson delivered just that in this tale of a black sheep son returning home to finish a job his father began.
Creepy atmosphere, superb characterizations and beautifully dark description made this such an engrossing read that I didn't even notice my surroundings while finishing the book!
Creepy atmosphere, superb characterizations and beautifully dark description made this such an engrossing read that I didn't even notice my surroundings while finishing the book!
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews