THE FIEND - Margaret Millar

Margaret Millar's The Fiend is a story of the mentally deranged individual, Charlie Gowen. There had been an incident in Charlie's past, involving a child, which has made him the town pariah.  Today, though, at least on the surface, he is more or less coping and the few people he does interact with consider him more or less "cured."  His brother, Ben Gowan, seems to be aware that Charlie needs constant watching and has given up his own life to keep a watchful eye on his brother. For good reason.

Charlie is slowly showing signs of returning to his old life with an unhealthy interest in children. Charlie should not be sitting in a car across from a park and watching the children. 

Charlie has fixated on one particular little girl, Jessie Brant, when he watches her scramble around a jungle gym and fall. Charlie believes it is his duty to warn her parents - that she needs protecting, from dangers like the jungle gym as well as from people like himself.

The book is not so simple, though, as a pedophile with an interest in a particular child.  Millar digs in and examines a number of people in the story, including the girl's parents and friends of the family - who also have an apparent unhealthy obsession with the neighbor's child.

While we're tempted to label Charlie as the titular 'fiend' based on what we know about him and the actions we see him engage in, Millar shows us how ugly people can be and how so many are able to hide their more unsavory sides.

This was a really engaging and surprisingly fascinating read ('surprising' because I didn't think I'd enjoy a book with a child molester at the forefront). It's a psychological thriller that really keeps the reader guessing and changing opinions.

Looking for a good book? From 1964 comes Margaret Millar's psychological thriller, The Fiend. It's a powerful novel examining the vagaries of the human psyche.

4 stars

* * * * * *

The Fiend

author: Margaret Millar

publisher: Random House

hardcover, 246 pages