The Face in the Abyss
#9013.56 adjusted 3.85 for sample size in the official ranking · full ranking
Books 1 book Status Complete 1931 Reading commitment Low A. Merritt Last reviewed 2026-11-02
Overview
A. Merritt's The Face in the Abyss was published as a novel by Horace Liveright in 1931. It joins his 1923 magazine novelette of the same name with its sequel, The Snake Mother, serialized in Argosy in 1930. American adventurer Nicholas Graydon searches the South American Andes for lost Inca treasure and finds a hidden land with the city of Yu-Atlanchi, the Snake Mother and her handmaiden Suarra, and a carved face above an abyss that imprisons the evil being Nimir. The story is a single standalone novel.
Mythic fantasy · For Adult
Core Canon: Reading Order (1 work) counts toward ranking
The Face in the Abyss A. Merritt
| Work | Year | Internal chron. | Canon | Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Face in the Abyss; Combines the 1923 novelette and its sequel The Snake Mother (serialized 1930); first book edition 1931. | 1931 | 1 | core | 3.56 (332 ratings) |
A standalone lost-world fantasy novel set in a hidden land of the Andes.
Quick answers
- How many books are in The Face in the Abyss? The Face in the Abyss's Core Canon is 1 book.
- Is The Face in the Abyss finished? Complete (1931).
- How much reading does The Face in the Abyss take? Low reading commitment (estimated from 1 Core Canon book).
- How is The Face in the Abyss ranked? #901 in this site's official ranking, based on 332 reader ratings across 1 Core Canon book. See the full ranking for how this is calculated.
Why is it ranked #901?
Ranked #901 in the official ranking.
- Average reader rating of 3.56 across 1 core book.
- A smaller readership (332 ratings), so the score carries less weight of numbers.
- 0.14 behind #900, Djinn Rummy.
- Below the top-10 average of 4.46.
Why explore this universe?
Modestly rated · 1 book · Complete · 332 ratings · Ranks #901 overall
Good choice if you want a quick, low-commitment mythic fantasy universe that's already finished, so there's no wait for the next book.
Reading order
A single Core Canon work: no sequencing question to resolve.
Awards (verified)
- No awards found for this universe.
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Official resources
Research details
Ranking metrics: weighted average 3.56 across 332 ratings on 1 Core Canon book. See Why is it ranked here? above for the full breakdown, or the full ranking.
How do we know this?
Admission: Canon Extension: 29 universes; Inda widened to Sartorias-deles; 5 candidates ruled out accepted 2026-11-02
Sources: (see source tier definitions)
- Wikipedia Tier 2
- Metaphorosis Reviews Tier 2
Last reviewed: 2026-11-02
Rule: Core Canon = The Face in the Abyss (1931), the combined novel including the 1923 novelette and The Snake Mother.