The Works of Dean Koontz

[Sukie]

The Mysteries/Thrillers thread inspired me. Anyone else a fan? I am always reading his books. They are pretty engaging

Some of my favorites are Lightning, From the Corner of His Eye, and Watchers

He tells a pretty good story and it is entertainment reading for me.

[ernestine]

I really like this guy, I do. I always get sucked right into a compicated, interesting plot. But... his characterization SUCKS. Every damn book is about the exact same characters! A man and woman who are sooooo extra good, so wonderful they aren't realistic. They are almost always blessed both physically and artistically (photo-realism with a touch of Dali thrown in for kicks!) Usually one of them has suffered HORRIFIC abuse early in life and to have come out not only unscathed but with such a great attitude... that's what the other half of the couple is attracted to. They are always eternal, sunshiney optimists no matter WHAT is going on around them at the time. Ugh.

It has really made me cringe when reading, but I do love his books. Favorites are Strangers (the first time I noticed the pattern), Watchers (I love this book, but it fits the pattern again!), and two more which I forget the titles of and don't want to summarize for fear of spoiling it for someone.

One other thing, the level of violence in his books is sometimes so high that I've wondered if he's all there, not to put too fine a point on it. It's like he's working out some serious stuff through his writing.

Boy, I had no idea I was so passionate about Dean Koontz! Who knew?

[Sukie]

You are totally right about the characterization. I have noticed it too. But for some reason he just sucks me in.

His male characters are all very similar. It's no wonder I get confused with the titles of the books. I had to look them up to remember the names.

[Ripley]

But... his characterization SUCKS. Every damn book is about the exact same characters!

That's why I had to stop reading his books. I loved Lightning, but when I realized I was reading the same characters over and over, I just couldn't enjoy them anymore.

ETA: Oh! And Intensity. I did NOT see that plot twist coming. It was also one of the rare situations where the TV movie was as good as the book.

[kostgard]

I really like this guy, I do. I always get sucked right into a compicated, interesting plot. But... his characterization SUCKS. Every damn book is about the exact same characters! A man and woman who are sooooo extra good, so wonderful they aren't realistic. They are almost always blessed both physically and artistically (photo-realism with a touch of Dali thrown in for kicks!) Usually one of them has suffered HORRIFIC abuse early in life and to have come out not only unscathed but with such a great attitude... that's what the other half of the couple is attracted to. They are always eternal, sunshiney optimists no matter WHAT is going on around them at the time. Ugh.

Oh, God, yes. Like others, I loved Lightning, but then I started to realize that he was writing the same people over and over again, just with different names.

I've pretty much stopped reading his books because I have gotten to the point where I do not like those characters that he writes. They are too friggin' perfect. And when couples are involved, they are often so cutesy that I want to reach into the pages and slap them (and let's not forget the precocious children).

I can't remember the name of the book that was the last straw, but with the main couple, the woman was something like a video game designer and the guy was a house painter and one of them left a note for the other that was all Blah, blah, dinner, blah, blah, whatever and then signed off with "I love you more than tacos." After I read that I went, "Okay, that's it. I can't stand these people anymore." and I didn't even finish the book. In fact, I keep starting his books, but I never finish them because I am so friggin' sick and tired of those people.

Koontz's own history is interesting - I think I read something about how his father tried to stab him once. You'd think with that kind of background he'd be able to come up with darker, more complex characters. The "bad guys" or bad forces in his books can be pretty twisted - why can't he lend some of that to his heroes?

[Deleted]

I agree with what everyone has said. I quit reading him for the same reasons: Impossibly cutesy couple, a ridiculously precocious kid who somehow stumbles into their lives, villains so over-the-top that they actually are kind of laughable rather than scary. And there always seems to be the damned golden retriever.

[girlnamedcarl]

You all need to get out of my mind! (It's crowded enough in here as it is.) But yeah, the Koontz, he is not comfortable with the complex characters. That said, I'm STOKED for the final installment of Frankenstein this summer.

One question, though: Is he a Clam? It seemed like he was dissing psychiatrists and psychiatry in book 2 of Frankenstein, and that now automatically trips my "Scieno" alarm. Besides, what the hell is so terrible about psychiatrists? They're trying to help people understand their own feelings and behavior; what the fuck is wrong with that??

[scarlet]

sukie said:

The Mysteries/Thrillers thread inspired me. Anyone else a fan? I am always reading his books. They are pretty engaging

Some of my favorites are Lightning, From the Corner of His Eye, and Watchers

He tells a pretty good story and it is entertainment reading for me.

I've read almost all his books over the years. Watchers is, by far, my favorite. I think the first book of his I read was The Vision and it scared the Hell out of me.

[ennui]

And there always seems to be the damned golden retriever.

I really enjoyed "Fear Nothing," and "Seize the Night" -- they feature a black Labrador mix.

I've also just started "Odd Thomas," and I agree with everyone about the narrator being the same character.

[Beeelicious]

Oh, I am so glad I found this thread. Even though it hasn't been posted in for over a year. Take that, Mr. Koontz! Heh heh.
I just finished reading his newest(?) book "The Good Guy" or something like that, and then followed it with an older book of his (1993 or so) called "Mr. Murder". I am SO overly annoyed because he used the same freaking ending for each book! I don't want to spoil it for anyone who might read them, but the plot contrivances described already in the thread and now the re-use of a whole entire ending just infuriates me. Why do I care so much? I just had to get it off my chest. No more Dean Koontz for me. No siree bob.
<small voice> I really did like the first Odd Thomas book. The subsequent books in the series were boring.