Deathwalker

Patrick Whalen

The wendigo, as a horror novel bad guy, isn't used nearly enough. Patrick Whalen's Deathwalker is one of the few novels that gives the old guy his due. And, for once in the annals of horror literature, Whalen almost gets it right.

The wendigo, found here under the spelling variant Witiko, makes a great villain-- a Native American spirit with a truly frightening description that every wendigo tale I've read manages to screw up in some major way. Whalen's take on the creature gives it an extra power or two, but gets the physical description spot-on. (I'll leave you to read the book to uncover the full horror of the Witiko.)

Here, he's up against John Winter, a dying government hit man on the run from his star pupil, whom the government has sent to make sure Winter doesn't spill the beans about the super-secret department he works for. Winter, who after the first attempt on his life fled his home in Maine, drove across the country with Buddha, his massive dog, and on a whim ended up settling in the town of Avalon. Unfortunately, just as he did so, the Witiko, trapped in a mountain near the town, escaped after an earthquake dislodged the boulders plugging the opening to his cave.

For about ninety-nine percent of this novel, it's a good genre piece; a bit overwritten at times, with zero subtlety in foreshadowing; about what you'd expect from a straight genre horror novel. It's fun to read, interesting, ultimately safe, but that's part of the attraction. Then, however, you hit the book's final few pages. It's in the back of your mind that they're coming, but you keep telling yourself that no one could be that cheesy. You are, unfortunately, wrong.

Still, it'd be wrong to trash an otherwise fun book for one painfully bad section. You'll probably get a kick out of this novel. Just be prepared for the ending.