Sadly this was a DNF for me due to personal triggers. Apologies - the beginning was really promising and I may well return at a later date if I can.

I was second guessing requesting this ARC once I started reading the incoming reviews, but I’m so glad I went in with an open mind and just enjoyed the ride. I liked the unique writing style: Mostly 3rd person POV with italicized 1st person POV interspersed.

This is a gory horror, paranormal/sci-fi, psychological spiral. I appreciate a good melt of reality with a nightmare feel. I was constantly wondering what was real, what wasn’t, and if it even mattered in the end. Would it all get wrapped up with a plausible ending or leave me questioning everything?

Thank you NetGalley and Fox Point Books for this ARC. This review will be shared on NetGalley and Goodreads.

Pub Date Sep 30 2025

It was a wild book. Had me guessing which direction it would fo. Long chapters which I hate but felt like every chapter ended on a cliffhanger which I love. Lots of twists.

I really wanted to like this book but I’ve picked it up and put it down so many times…
The concept/ plot was really interesting. The ghost of Josie’s dead dad turns up to warn her of danger and doom. Then it all gets very confusing..

Unfortunately this was a DNF book for me, I got about 1/4 of the way in and just couldn't click with it!

The ghost of Josie’s father appears just after her high school graduation. That night the terrifying Glass-Face Man breaks into her home and utters only a single word, a warning. Then her mom goes missing. The search for the truth and her mom takes Josie and her girlfriends to Kentucky where they meet up with her Uncle Don, who may hold the key to it all. Together, they unravel the truth, yet the truth unravels like a drug-induced, psychotic episode and not in a good way.

The plot collapses into an unintended (?) fever dream, which equally mystified and frustrated me.

Yet the writing itself is so very good. The concepts, horror, and imagery are disturbing, compelling, and effectively horrid at times.

I really tried to overcome the convoluted, messy plot, which left me ruminating on the importance of having a very strong developmental editor.

Due to the strength of the writing itself 3/5.

The ghost of Josie’s dead dad shows up again, this time at her graduation to warn her of a prehistoric evil. She doesn’t believe him. Until a disfigured glass-face man breaks into her home and her mum goes missing. As Josie and her girlfriend desperately search for her, they discover the world is indeed heading towards a mass extinction event as her father warned, with an ancient evil tied to her family for decades.

Glass-face man was a whirlwind. Immediately enticing but quickly becomes convoluted. This was partly evocative and partly what the fuck is going on. I had to reread some passages to try to make sense of it, and to be honest the ending make me think my copy was broken and I went back to NetGalley for another format to check, but no it was just that abrupt. Plot wise it was predictable but the wording felt like it had cut off a couple of words/sentences/something to finish the ending (though plot wise it could be anticipating a sequel). A lot of elements were convenient or forgotten about until they could serve the plot - why wouldn't you read all of your dead dad's notes on the issue you're facing immediately?

I really enjoyed the relationships (though was the weird potential break up at the start necessary?), and parts of the mystery were done so well, for example the flashback to when Josie was a kid was a great way to give us more lore/explanation without a tonne of exposition, and I loved the lucky fossil. However, sometimes there were long meandering sections and then leaps that left me like a nintendog with question marks above my head. The horror/gore was decent but under-utilised, as was the unreliable psychological tricks to doubt what was real, though the biggest occurrence was reminiscent of popping the bubble in labyrinth. Despite the imminent 'world ending', the stakes didn't really feel that high, we had few glimpses into the world outside of what Josie was doing, and I didn't feel that any main character was at risk and no death was impactful for me. Other reviews have pointed out the discrepancies in tense, written from Josie's perspective in a mix of first and third person which added to the confusing narrative.

I did enjoy parts of this but others felt convoluted, meandering, or like a chore; this imbalance is making it hard to rate, and I think I wanted to like it more than I did. It was more fantasy mystery than horror, unfortunately. Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC.

The story started out at a breakneck pace with twists and turns along the way. However, the more I got into it, I was left feeling quite perplexed as to what was happening in regards to the plot and as a result it took me out of the story. I really wanted to like this book but unfortunately it just didn't land for me as a reader.
Thankyou to both Netgalley and Fox Point Books for the opportunity to read this ARC book.

The Glass Faced man is a horror novel by Michael Park. After reading the blurb, I was intrigued and interested in giving this book a chance. This was an interesting and new concept for a horror book. I thought the descriptions of the monsters were creepy. I appreciate the fact that the writing style was chaotic to match the unreliable narrator; but that same writing style made it difficult for me to follow the plot. The plot was choppy, and towards the end of the book I was confused. Thanks NetGalley for giving me an opportunity to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

A haunting blend of psychological horror and apocalyptic suspense, The Glass-Face Man follows Josie, a recent high school graduate, who encounters her deceased father’s ghost warning her of impending doom. Soon after, a disfigured intruder with a glass-like face breaks into her home, uttering a single word—“burn”—before her mother disappears. Josie’s frantic search leads her from New York to Kentucky, uncovering a world unraveling into chaos and confronting ancient malevolent forces.

Michael Park crafts a narrative rich in atmosphere and dread, with critics noting that he “succeeds in creating a feeling of disquiet that pervades every sentence” . The novel’s Southern Gothic elements and psychological depth make it a standout in contemporary horror fiction.

~thank you to NetGalley & fox point books for giving me a chance to read and review this book~


I wanted to enjoy this as much as I thought I would. At first, I was hooked. But then towards the middle, I kept question myself like “what is the point of this book?” “What is even happening?” It got a little confusing for me and I just couldn’t care about how it ended

I absolutely enjoyed reading this. Will definitely be recommending. Kept me really hooked I'll love to reread again

The story took off pretty quick, sometimes I felt like scenes were a little drawn out which made for some very long chapters. There were a lot of twists throughout which kept me wanting to read more. This was a medium to paced and a unique and intriguing storyline overall. I enjoyed not knowing what was real or not along with the characters. At some point however it just became a fever dream with no end in sight and no answers.

Thank you to the publisher and to NetGalley.

Well, that was an adventure. This was an absolutely unique apocalypse story. We follow Josie, who, at times questions her own sanity as she has to save the world from a very creepy and seemingly unstoppable threat. It was creepy, surreal and definitely unpredictable. 2.5 stars rounded up to 3.

The Appalachian setting definitely added to the ethereal and ancient creep factor of the book. There were definitely times of the book that the reader questioned Josie’s sanity right along with her. I think those were the most compelling parts of the book.

I did enjoy this book, but I did find parts seemed choppy to me. There were even times the narration seems inconsistent. Perhaps this was intentional, but it did make it more challenging to absorb as the story itself is a chaotic (I mean the apocalypse would be chaotic, right?).

Other parts seemed to slog on and had me questioning things. I think the meat of the story was fantastic but there are just the inconsistent or vague events that don’t seem to get cleared up at the end.

If you want a unique take on the apocalypse, you like unreliable narrators and are attracted to Appalachian lore, this is the book for you.

I just could not get into this one. It was all over the place and just didn't connect with any of the characters or story line.

This book was wild! I wasn’t sure what direction it was going to go.. categorized as horror with an unreliable narrator? (Maybe, but that drew me in). The story took off pretty quick, sometimes I felt like scenes were a little drawn out which made for some very LONG chapters which, personally, I hate. There were a lot of twists throughout which kept me wanting to read more. The author also does do a really great job at creating the images and building the world in your mind! Definitely creepy at times, medium to face paced and a unique and intriguing storyline overall

This was an odd read not going to lie. It wasn’t really for me BUT that doesn’t mean it wasn’t a good story.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC!

Sadly, I don't think that this book worked very well. We get presented with our protagonist, Josie, who is clearly in a state where she's not quite dipping more than just her toes in our reality, and it's turning out quite badly for her. I anticipated that this book would be a really tightly-woven horror novel, with some really good imagery and scares, but it was dramatically middle of the line for me, to the point of frustration.

The plot meandered and was definitely unclear, and I just found that I didn't care enough for Josie to make this interesting. In fact, none of the characters here are overly compelling, and it makes for a bit of a sad book. There was just nowhere for it to go, and given that almost all the characters were not written in the best of ways, it just made things even more difficult.

Another trope that I am desperately tired of at the moment is 'crazy girl sees her own reality, everyone around her thinks she's nuts'. It was a cute trope for a while, especially in thrillers, but unfortunately, it doesn't work everywhere (everywhere being here). The tense, tone, and the approach to the whole of the story was also just not quite right, and sadly, this one was not a good read for me.

A chaotic, mind-warping fever dream, but not in the “this is so fascinating that I can’t look away” way. More like the “I have no idea what I just read so I have to go back and read the thing I just read again” way. I was not a fan of this book, and never once felt connected to it in any way. I don’t mean to diminish the author’s skill because it’s clearly present, but this was not the book for me, and definitely not the one I thought I was undertaking when I started. I appreciate the chance to read an advanced copy, and I believe there is an audience for this book, but it was just wrong book, wrong time for me.

Josie can see things that other people can't. Her dead dad. Creatures of nightmares. A Glass-Faced man. When her Mom goes missing, she sets off with her girlfriend to find her, and figure out what these creatures want from her family and the world.
I enjoyed the first third of this book a lot. The pacing and action and reveal of information was intriguing. I enjoyed not knowing what was real or not along with the characters. At some point however it just became a fever dream with no end in sight and no answers. I was waiting for it to eventually make some sense and it never really did.
Also, for a teenager seeing some messed up things, including things done to family/friends, I feel like most of the time she did not care/showed very little emotion. It was written in third person, with a lot of first person thoughts from Josie in italics, which felt often very unnecessary.
I rated it 2/5 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and Victory Editing for the ARC!
Review will be posted on Goodreads 4/15/25.