I am aware that it was an intentional trait used by Jones to give his main character more depth, however, for me, it disrupted the flow and took me out of the story. Sawyer’s narration is annoying at times, he often gets carried away and is a bit too “philosophical” for my taste. The novella’s written as if the main character were narrating (verbally) the events to us, the readers after all the events took place. Night of the Mannequins is a character-focused story, all of the tension and atmosphere are created by Sawyer’s internal monologues. The character is well-rounded and complex and, even though the novella is written in the first person, we get to know Sawyer slowly, as we would an actual person. Sawyer (the main character), is clearly an unreliable narrator, a trope that I usually dislike, however, Jones pulled it off brilliantly. I always become completely immersed in the character’s minds and am able to feel what they’re feeling. What I love most about his writing is how well he navigates the first-person POV (Point of View). I got so entranced by the story that it became impossible to stop. I read this in one day, pretty much in one sitting, which goes to show how Jones’ prose is gripping and alluring. After reading Jones’ short story All the Things He Called Memories, featured in Dark Stars: New Tales of Darkest Horror, I knew I was going to enjoy this novella.
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