The Red Mohawk
Anonymous
Black Shadow Press
May 20, 2015
Reviewed by Tim Potter
A new novel that fluctuates between page-turning fun and frustrating self-consciousness, The Red Mohawk, by Anonymous just can’t find seem to find its focus. The prose is generally sharp and the story is entertaining, but the characters are not relatable and the author tries too hard to be postmodern and self-reverential. This starts with the pseudonym, Anonymous, which is nothing more that marketing as the book doesn’t share state secrets or spill political gossip. Even the level of sexuality and gore doesn’t merit hiding behind the name.
First of all, there are things that the book gets right. The plot is streamlined and constantly moving forward, the mysteriousness and plot twists paced out well and revealed in a satisfying timeline. The prose is easy to read, clear and concise while still displaying some flair for style, and the dialogue is often fun, even genuinely amusing at times. The dialogue doesn’t always flow naturally though, and at times feels much more like words written than words spoken.
Most of the characters are entertaining if not very fleshed out. They are easy to see in the mind’s eye, especially the titular killer The Red Mohawk, even though most of them have little if any background and only serve as window dressing for the few main players. Jake Munson is the main protagonist, a drunk, washed-up operative for an unnamed government agency who is called back into service after years of sitting on the sidelines. He’s interesting enough but no different from the typical tough guy action hero and the reader doesn’t form any interest in what happens to the character. He may die in the end or he may not, but it doesn’t matter and any sense of peril is lost.
The novel’s reliance on famous film call-backs and tongue-in-cheek references is tiring even in the early stages of the story. The town where the bulk of the action happens is B Movie Hell, a name explained in a bland, uninteresting way. The characters use lines from movies, or often paraphrase from them and any reason for this is lost. Instead of letting the film references just happen as though it were an essential part of the town the author relies on half-explanations and quips that aren’t as funny as they think they are.
All things considered, the book is not without its charm. If you are looking for a silly, fun horror novel with some strong slasher film tendencies, then The Red Mohawk is a fun, if at times exasperating, read. For the more discerning reader this one merits a pass.
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