''The Face in the Abyss'' is a

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction that involves supernatural or Magic (supernatural), magical elements, often including Fictional universe, imaginary places and Legendary creature, creatures. The genre's roots lie in oral traditions, ...

novel by American writer

A. Merritt Abraham Grace Merritt (January 20, 1884 – August 21, 1943) – known by his byline, A. Merritt – was an American Sunday magazine editor and a writer of fantastic fiction. The Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame inducted him in 1999, ...

. It is composed of a novelette with the same title and its sequel, "The Snake Mother". It was first published in its complete form in

1931 Events January * January 2 – South Dakota native Ernest Lawrence invents the cyclotron, used to accelerate particles to study nuclear physics. * January 4 – German pilot Elly Beinhorn begins her flight to Africa. * January 22 – Sir I ...

Horace Liveright Horace Brisbin Liveright (pronounced "LIVE-right," anglicized by Horace's father from the German ''Liebrecht;'' 10 December 1884 – 24 September 1933) was an American publisher and stage producer. With Albert Boni, he founded the Modern Libr ...

. The novelette "The Face in the Abyss" originally appeared in the magazine ''

Argosy All-Story Weekly ''Argosy'' was an American magazine, founded in 1882 as ''The Golden Argosy'', a children's weekly, edited by Frank Munsey and published by E. G. Rideout. Munsey took over as publisher when Rideout went bankrupt in 1883, and after many stru ...

'' in the September 8, 1923 issue. "The Snake Mother" was originally serialized in seven parts in '' Argosy'' beginning with the October 25, 1930 issue.

Plot introduction

The novel concerns American mining engineer Nicholas Graydon. While searching for lost

Inca The Inca Empire, officially known as the Realm of the Four Parts (, ), was the largest empire in pre-Columbian America. The administrative, political, and military center of the empire was in the city of Cusco. The History of the Incas, Inca ...

treasure in South America, he encounters Suarra,

handmaiden A handmaiden (nowadays less commonly handmaid or maidservant) is a personal maid or female servant. The term is also used metaphorically for something whose primary role is to serve or assist. Depending on culture or historical period, a handma ...

to the Snake Mother of Yu-Atlanchi. She leads Graydon to an abyss where Nimir, the Lord of Evil is imprisoned in a face of gold. While Graydon's companions are transformed by the face into globules of gold on account of their greed, he is saved by Suarra and the Snake Mother whom he joins in their struggle against Nimir.

Reception

Peter Levi has noted parallels between ''The Face in the Abyss'' and a story H.P. Lovecraft created as a ghostwriter, "

The Mound The Mound is an artificial slope and road in central Edinburgh, Scotland, which connects Edinburgh's New and Old Towns. It was formed by dumping around 1,501,000 cartloads of earth excavated from the foundations of the New Town into Nor Loc ...

References

Sources

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External links

''The Face in the Abyss''
at

Project Gutenberg Australia Project Gutenberg Australia, abbreviated as PGA, is an Internet site which was founded in 2001 by Colin Choat. It is a sister site of Project Gutenberg, though there is no formal relationship between the two organizations. The site hosts free ebo ...

* 1931 American novels 1931 fantasy novels American fantasy novels Novels about dinosaurs Novels first published in serial form Works originally published in Argosy (magazine) Novels set in South America Lost world novels {{1930s-fantasy-novel-stub