Hyong-Bae Bang

The Mary Mask Hyong-Bae Bang

Be forewarned, this story is very dark and disturbing. Those who are faint of heart need not apply. Mary got pregnant as a result of a traumatically dark event. She is so traumatized that she thinks she can carry on conversations with her unborn baby. She repeatedly tells her baby that she hates it, which in truth is a manifestation of her own self-hate because she blames herself for what happened to her. Dr. Turner is a psychoanalyst working with Mary who is also pregnant, by choice. She must deal with an internal conflict between her unexplainable, almost fanatic desire to help Mary and her vague feelings of resentment that plague her attempts to help Mary. This novella length, intimate story centers around the developing relationship between these two women and how it changes each of them forever. Add into this the villain, Thomas Moyer, the man who so viciously attacked Mary. He's an artist who makes beautiful glass masks. What made him commit such a monstrous act of vengeance upon Mary and how will he and Mary both find atonement? Or can they? How far does forgiveness extend? And by whom, and to whom, is it offered? The story does not preach any particular philosophy. Instead, it asks questions by delving into the modern day notion of good and evil, forgiveness and atonement.