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The Full List of Dean Koontz Books
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Here is the complete list of books published by Dean Koontz, screenwriter, executive producer, and one of the most prolific writers in the genre of thrillers of the '80s and '90s.
Dean Koontz's novels were often found on The New York Times Best Seller list, with 16 paperbacks and 14 hardcovers reaching the number-one spot.
Who Is Dean Koontz?
Born on July 9, 1945, in Everett, Pennsylvania, Dean Koontz suffered in his childhood years at the hands of his abusive and alcoholic father. He said in one of his interviews in the later years that his experience greatly influenced his writing.
His writing career sparked when he was a senior in college and won a fiction competition sponsored by Atlantic Monthly magazine. After graduating, he went to work as an English teacher at Mechanicsburg High School in Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania.
His first novel, Star Quest, was published in 1968. He went on and wrote several more works in his career, and fourteen of them made it at the top of the New York Times hardcover bestseller list, making him one of only a few writers ever to have achieved that milestone.
His novels are also popular in really diverse countries such as Sweden and Japan.
The New Orleans Times-Picayune said Koontz is, "at times lyrical without ever being naive or romantic. [He creates] a grotesque world, much like that of Flannery O'Conner or Walker Percy … scary, worthwhile reading." While The New York Times called his writing "psychologically complex, masterly and satisfying."
Because of his novels' success, some of them were adapted to the screen. He even wrote the screenplay of the film adaptation of Phantoms (1998). Some of his other short stories also made it into the big screen.
Dean Koontz Complete Booklist & Summary
Here is the complete list of books written by Dean Koontz, along with a short summary:
1) Star Quest – 1968
Book Summary: In a universe that had been ravaged by a thousand years of interplanetary warfare between the star-shattering Romaghins and the equally voracious Setessins, there seemed now but one thing that might bring the destruction to an end.That would be the right catalyst in the hands of the right people.The right catalyst could well be the individualist rebel, Tohm . . . he who had once been a simple peasant and who had been forcibly changed into a fearfully armored instrument of mechanical warfare–the man-tank Jumbo Ten.But the right people? Could they possibly be the hated driftwood of biological warfare–those monsters of a cosmic no-man's land–the Muties?
A fun short read of Koontz's first book. Enjoyable. Amazon Reviewer
Koontz does a great job of developing and handling this tale of mutants, bad guys, and a human brain-driven flying battle tank. Amazon Reviewer
2) The Fall of the Dream Machine – 1969
Book Summary: The fall of the dream machine: When all the world's a stage, Director Cockley will run it. The star of Cockley's popular "show" becomes the spearhead of a revolution against the system.
Both short novels were very good and entertaining. Amazon Reviewer
I love Dean Koontz' and these books are no disappointment! It was nice to experience some of his earlier works. Amazon Reviewer
3) The Dark Symphony – 1970
Book Summary: The Dark Symphony
Another of Dean Koontz' forgotten sci-fi works. You can only wish he would gather them into a collection and republish them.. Amazon Reviewer
4) Soft Come the Dragons – 1970
Book Summary: Mutilated, mutant by-products of America's "Artificial Wombs" created by attempts at producing human weapons…An American team of doctors sent to China to combat the runaway ultimate in biological warfare…The genetically mutated daughter of LSD users, hiding her powers in order to survive society…And Gabe, the vital, young man mistakenly locked in an antiseptic old-age ward…The following stories are included in this book.
"Soft Come the Dragons" (1967)
"A Third Hand" (1970) [F&SF, Jan 1970]
"The Twelfth Bed" (1968)
"A Season for Freedom" (1977)
[revised and re-issued version of "Killerbot" (1969)]
"The Psychedelic Children" (1968)
"Dragon In the Land" (1969)
"To Behold the Sun" (1967)
Love these old Dean Koontz books. Amazon Reviewer
Sometimes it's great to go back and read the early works of your favorite authors to get an idea of how they got from point A to point B. Amazon Reviewer
5) Beastchild – 1970
Book Summary: The Naoli came to Earth as conquerors, while the last men skulked through the ruins of their civilization. The two races, Human and Naoli, were the most powerful intelligences in the galaxy — and destined to be immediate and perpetual enemies! The adult Hulann met the boy Leo … and each became a traitor to his race. For it was only through treason that the future of each race could be assured!
This has to be the best one yet that I have read. Amazon Reviewer
An amazing antiwar novel than can be applied today… A hunter has no soul. Amazon Reviewer
6) Hell's Gate – 1970
Book Summary: He came out of the dark night with only another man's name…a man who would soon be found floating in a distant river. He was a man without a past, without a future; he had only a bloody mission. His first act was violent murder! He was a man…or was he? Just who was Victor Salsbury? And if he was not a man, then…what was he? And who were the unseen masters, who issue orders only on whim? What were their plans for the world… plans so horrifying that they could change an unfeeling, nonhuman creature into a frightened human!
Dean R. Koontz shines early. Enjoy all. Celebrate young Dean. He has earned it. Amazon Reviewer
You can see the style of his writing as compared to his more recent novels is very similar. Amazon Reviewer
7) The Flesh in the Furnace – 1972
Book Summary: A very early Koontz book, set in the future where a man creates living puppets for puppet shows. And they get loose.
Dean Koontz's early writing was pure science fiction. Amazon Reviewer
Love Dean Koontz!!! Amazon Reviewer
8) Warlock – 1972
Book Summary: Vintage from the 1970s Before his breakout novel INTENSITY, Dean Koontz wrote several science fiction novels, including this one. From the back cover: THE BLANK was the time, near-forgotten but for the legends that remained as fancies, when the Earth's crust shifted mightily, and towering mountains rose where no mountains had existed before. New coastal lines were formed, while jungle became desert, and desert and grassy plain became the bottom of the new seas. The old world was gone… but the legends remained. And they told of marvels hard to believe, even among men who had mastered the powers of the mind. The stories told that before the Blank men possessed marvels almost unbelievable; it was even said that the old people had conquered the skies (and, in whispers, space itself). Men like Shaker Sandow knew there was the truth in the fancies…and then a would-be master of the world uncovered a trove of pre-Blank treasures, and once more the world turned toward all-consuming war!
Was happy with with the books. Amazon Reviewer
9) A Werewolf Among Us – 1973
Book Summary: HE WAS A CYBERDETECTIVE–A SUPER-MAN… People–ordinary people–were afraid of Baker St. Cyr. Patiently the cyberdetective would explain that the computer half of his investigatory symbiosis did not "take over" when his human half joined with it. "A cyberdetective is part man and part computer, meshed as completely as the two can ever be. The highly microminiaturized components of the bio-computer remember and relate things in a perfectly mathematical manner that a human mind could never easily grasp, while the human half of the symbiote gives a perception of emotions and emotional motivations that the bio-computer could never comprehend. Together we make a precise and thorough detective unit." And also a very dangerous creature. Which St. Cyr never went on to explain…
Great read. Dean Koontz has come a long way in his writing. Amazon Reviewer
Big Dean Koontz fan. Love his science fiction as well as all his work. Amazon Reviewer
10) Writing Popular Fiction – 1973
Book Summary: Aspiring novelists are given advice on writing polishing, and marketing mysteries, suspense tales, Westerns, science fiction, and romances
I love the book by Dean Koontz. Very informative. Thank you for helping others learn to write popular fiction. Amazon Reviewer
If you want to be a writer, this is one of the best books out there. Amazon Reviewer
11) Blood Risk – 1973
Book Summary: Four men waited on the narrow mountain road for the Cadillac carrying 341,890, the biweekly taking of a Mafia cell. Four men who had never failed in a heist before, on their fourteenth operation in three years: Shirillo, watching in the long grass; Pete Harris with a submachine gun; Bachman in the getaway car; and Mike Tucker, art dealer and professional thief; the perfectionist. As the big Cadillac slewed round the bend, none of them realized that this time Tucker had made a fatal miscalcuation that would plunge them all into a blood war against the Mafia.
12) Demon Seed – 1973
Book Summary: Smart home devices provide unprecedented convenience, but one woman is about to discover the horrifying dangers of putting her trust in an artificially intelligent machine in this thriller that delves into the darkest fears of our digital age…
Susan Harris lived in self-imposed seclusion, in a mansion featuring numerous automated systems controlled by a state-of-the-art computer. Every comfort was provided. Her security was absolute.But now Susan's system has been breached—from the inside. In the privacy of her own home, and against her will, she will experience an inconceivable act of terror and become the object of the ultimate computer's consuming obsession: to cross the line between man and machine and learn everything there is know about the flesh…
Dean Koontz is a prose stylist whose lyricism heightens malevolence and tension. [He creates] characters of unusual richness and depth. Amazon Reviewer
Tumbling, hallucinogenic prose….'Serious' writers…might do well to examine his technique. Amazon Reviewer
13) Nightmare Journey – 1975
Book Summary: Nightmare Journey One hundred thousand years in the future, after man has been fatally humbled by his exploration of the stars and discovery of far more intelligent beings, civilization is struggling to return to the planet's surface. After man fled the stars, he tried to explore his own genetic frontier, creating horrible races of deformed beings- some scaled, soome furred, tiny, winged and huge. Now Jask, a Pure who retains the original human genetic code, and Tedesco, a great bear with a human brain, are thrown together by their one shared and fatal trait- telepathy. Hunted like animals by the fearful populace, they go in search of The Black Presence- which may be the key to mankind's place in the cosmos.
I am a Dean Koontz lover, and have been for years. I'm now in the process of trying to find older book of his that I have never read. This is like all his books, GREAT!! Amazon Reviewer
Great item. Amazon Reviewer
14) Invasion – 1975
Book Summary: Laser No. 9, July 1975 release. Original science fiction novels, three novels were issued per month beginning August 1975 until the line folded in February 1977. This one is an excellent alien invasion thriller, written by Dean R. Koontz under a pen name.
15) Icebound – 1976
Book Summary: The arctic night is endless. The fear is numbing. Screams freeze in the throat. Death arrives in shades of white. And cold-blooded murder seems right at home.Conducting a strange and urgent experiment on the Arctic icefield, a team of scientists has planted sixty powerful explosive charges that will detonate at midnight. Before they can withdraw to the safety of their base camp, a shattering tidal wave breaks loose the ice on which they are working. Now they are hopelessly marooned on an iceberg during a violent winter storm. The bombs beneath them are buried irretrievably deep . . . and ticking. And they discover that one of them is an assassin with a mission of his own.
A stunning chiller. Amazon Reviewer
Jammed with the tensions of imminent disaster. The whole thing unfolds with the timing of a quartz watch. Amazon Reviewer
16) Night Chills – 1976
Book Summary: #1 New York Times bestselling author Dean Koontz unleashes a contagion on a small Maine town—one that triggers the darkest desires of the soul. Designed by top scientists and unleashed in a monstrous conspiracy, night chills are seizing the men and women of Black River—driving them to acts of rape and murder. The nightmare is real. And death is the only cure…
As fast and exciting as any thriller you will ever read. Amazon Reviewer
Lyrical writing and compelling characters…Koontz stands alone. Amazon Reviewer
17) The Face of Fear – 1977
Book Summary: For one man, facing his own murder is not as terrifying as surviving it in this blistering novel of suspense from #1 New York Times bestselling author Dean Koontz. A brutal killer known as "The Butcher" is stalking women in New York City. When the police enlist the help of clairvoyant Graham Harris, the horrifying images of the Butcher's crimes replay in Harris's mind—sometimes even at the moment they are happening. Then he sees the most terrifying vision of all—that of his own murder.Harris and his girlfriend soon find themselves trapped on the fortieth floor of a deserted office building. The guards have been killed, the elevators shut down, and the stairways blocked. The only way out is to climb down the sheer face of the building. Otherwise they'll become the Butcher's next victims.
Real suspense…tension upon tension! Amazon Reviewer
[Koontz] has always had near-Dickensian powers of description, and an ability to yank us from one page to the next that few novelists can match. Amazon Reviewer
18) The Vision – 1977
Book Summary: In this terrifying novel, #1 New York Times bestselling author Dean Koontz reveals the darkness in a woman's mind—and the killer lurking there…Mary Bergen aids the police in solving crimes, those that have happened and those that are about to. Now this gifted clairvoyant is using her psychic gift to help track a serial killer. But something terrible from Mary's past has been invading her dreams and she is haunted by the sound of leathery wings. The killer knows secrets even she has locked away. Knows about the torture she was administered at the hands of a psycho when she was a little girl. And he is coming for her next.
Spine-tingling—it gives you an almost lethal shock. Amazon Reviewer
19) The Key to Midnight – 1979
Book Summary: Joanna's life in Japan is perfect. She sings in a successful nightclub that she owns. At night she's plagued by the dream of a man with a needle and feelings of being violated. She meets fellow American Alex Hunter, who helps Joanna awaken to the fact that she's not who she thinks she is.
There was a point in the book where you realize there is a major conspiracy going on Amazon Reviewer
This was a typical Koontz book. Very good,exciting, fearful, scary as well as shocking. Amazon Reviewer
20) The Funhouse – 1980
Book Summary: Evil comes in frightening and familiar forms in this terrifying novel from #1 New York Times bestselling author Dean Koontz. Once there was a girl who ran away and joined a traveling carnival. She married a man she grew to hate—and gave birth to a child she could never love. A child so monstrous that she killed it with her own hands…Twenty-five years later, Ellen Harper has a new life, a new husband, and two normal children—Joey loves monster movies and Amy is about to graduate from high school. But their mother drowns her secret guilt in alcohol and prayer. The time has come for Amy and Joey to pay for her sins, because the carnival is coming back to town…
In every industry there exist 'artists' that are not only unforgettable, but know their craft better than the rest. Dean Koontz…is among these artisans. Amazon Reviewer
21) The Voice of the Night – 1980
Book Summary: #1 New York Times bestselling author Dean Koontz gives a new meaning to "blood brothers" in this chilling novel of friendship gone awry…No one could understand why Colin and Roy were best friends. Colin was so shy; Roy was so popular. Colin was nervous around girls; Roy was a ladies' man. Colin was fascinated by Roy—and Roy was fascinated by death. Then one day Roy asked his timid friend: "You ever killed anything?" And from that moment on, the two were bound together in a game too terrifying to imagine…and too irresistible to stop.
A fearsome tour of an adolescent's psyche. Terrifying, knee-knocking suspense. Amazon Reviewer
22) Whispers – 1980
Book Summary: #1 New York Times bestselling author Dean Koontz "pulls out all the stops" (Publishers Weekly) in this haunting psychological thriller…For thirty-five years, Bruno Frye has lived in the shadow of the adopted mother who made his heart beat with constant fear. And even though she died five years ago, the whispers still haunt him in the dark…enough to make him kill—and kill again.Hilary Thomas is one of his intended victims. And she's about to learn that even death can't keep a bad man down…
23) How To Write Best Selling Fiction – 1981
Book Summary: Tells would-be novelists about the fiction market, offers advice on grammar, style, character development, and plot, and explains how to deal with agents and editors
This book is still great advice, told in a straightforward manner. Amazon Reviewer
Brillant! If I could give this book seven or eight or nine stars, I would. Amazon Reviewer
24) The Mask – 1981
Book Summary: Jane is a very good girl. But #1 New York Times bestselling author Dean Koontz shows that appearances can be deceiving—in a deadly way…She appears out of nowhere, a beautiful teenage girl in the middle of traffic on a busy day. Paul and Carol Tracy are drawn to her—she's the child they never thought they could have. But then Carol's nightmares begin—the ghastly sounds in the night…the bloody face in the mirror…the razor-sharp ax.Jane can't remember her past. And as Carol attempts to help her uncover who she was, she has no idea of the horrors that await…
Koontz hones his fearful yarns to a gleaming edge. Amazon Reviewer
Perhaps more than any other author, Koontz writes fiction perfectly suited to the mood of America…novels that acknowledge the reality and tenacity of evil but also the power of good…[and that] entertain vastly as they uplift. Amazon Reviewer
25) The Eyes of Darkness – 1981
Book Summary: The Eyes of Darkness
So riveting can put it down when you start reading. Amazon Reviewer
Very gripping book that you'll not one to put down but tried and finished it income sitting. Amazon Reviewer
26) The House of Thunder – 1982
Book Summary: #1 New York Times bestselling author Dean Koontz delivers a chilling novel of a traumatized woman and the terrifying place she'll never escape…She woke up in a hospital room, barely able to remember her own name. What secrets are hidden within Susan Thorton's mind? What terrible accident brought her here? And who are the four shadowy strangers—waiting, like death—in the darkened corridors?One by one, Susan unlocks these mysteries. And step by step, she approaches the torment of her past—a single night of violence, waged by four young men…
27) Phantoms – 1983
Book Summary: "Phantoms is gruesome and unrelenting…It's well realized, intelligent, and humane."—Stephen KingThey found the town silent, apparently abandoned. Then they found the first body, strangely swollen and still warm. One hundred fifty were dead, 350 missing. But the terror had only begun in the tiny mountain town of Snowfield, California.At first they thought it was the work of a maniac. Or terrorists. Or toxic contamination. Or a bizarre new disease.But then they found the truth. And they saw it in the flesh. And it was worse than anything any of them had ever imagined…
Scary and stylish. Amazon Reviewer
First-rate…scary and plausible. Amazon Reviewer
28) The Servants of Twilight – 1984
Book Summary: An ordinary parking lot in southern California. Christine Scavello and her six-year-old son are accosted by a strange old woman. "I know who you are," the woman snaps at the boy. "I know what you are." A scream, a threat – and then a grotesque act of violence. Suddenly Christine's pride and joy, her only son, is targeted by a group of religious fanatics. They've branded him the Antichrist. They want to kill him. And they are everywhere.
This novel is a good social experiment as to the possibilities of "what might happen" in a situation like this. Amazon Reviewer
This book is fast-paced and hard to put down. Amazon Reviewer
29) Darkfall – 1984
Book Summary: A blizzard brings a city to a standstill and ushers in an evil that defies imagination in this gripping tale from #1 New York Times bestselling author Dean Koontz.Winter gripped the city. Terror gripped it, too. They found four corpses in four days, each more hideous than the last.At first the cops thought they were dealing with a psychopath. But soon they heard eerie sounds in the ventilation system—and saw unearthly silver eyes in the snow-slashed night.In a city paralyzed by a blizzard, something watches, something stalks…
Swift, entertaining…A classic race to the rescue. Amazon Reviewer
A master storyteller, sometimes humorous, sometimes shocking, but always riveting. Amazon Reviewer
30) The Door to December – 1985
Book Summary: #1 New York Times bestselling author Dean Koontz takes readers into the darkest recesses of the human mind—and into the tempest of a father's obsession. A call in the middle of the night summoned psychiatrist Laura McCaffrey out into the rain-swept streets of Los Angeles. The police had found her husband-beaten to death. But what of her daughter, Melanie, whom he had kidnapped six years earlier? At the brutal murder scene, the police lead Laura into her husband's makeshift lab—and open the door to a rising tide of terror that has trapped Melanie in its midst…
First-rate suspense, scary and stylish. Amazon Reviewer
31) Twilight Eyes – 1985
Book Summary: In this chilling thriller from #1 New York Times bestselling author Dean Koontz, the carnival is coming to town—and it's like nothing you've ever seen.Slim MacKenzie is no ordinary man. With eyes the color of twilight, he's been blessed with a psychic gift: premonitions. He's also been cursed, for Slim can see the monsters hiding among us, feeding on our suffering…And when Slim joins a traveling carnival seeking sanctuary, what he'll find is a hunting ground—with humanity as the prey.
Chilling…superbly scary! Amazon Reviewer
A spine-chilling adventure…will keep you turning pages to the very end. Amazon Reviewer
32) Strangers – 1986
Book Summary: "The plot twists ingeniously…an engaging, often chilling book."—The New York Times Book Review
A writer in California. A doctor in Boston. A motel owner and his employee in Nevada. A priest in Chicago. A robber in New York. A little girl in Las Vegas. They're a handful of people from across the country, living through eerie variations of the same nightmare.A dark memory is calling out to them. And soon they will be drawn together, deep in the heart of a sprawling desert, where the terrifying truth awaits…
A unique spellbinder that captures the reader on the first page. Exciting, enjoyable, and an intensely satisfying read. Amazon Reviewer
Koontz is a master at constructing vivid, eerily realistic worlds that hold readers spellbound. A memorable thriller. Amazon Reviewer
33) Shadow Fires – 1987
Book Summary: A marriage ends in tragedy, forcing a woman to confront her husband's shocking secrets in this suspensful thriller from #1 New York Times bestselling author Dean Koontz. Rachael Leben thought she had let her successful husband off the hook. But her request for a quick and clean divorce—and a lot less money than she was entitled to—only enraged and humiliated Eric. Seething with anger, he stormed off, straight into the path of an oncoming vehicle.Eric is pronounced dead at the scene, but when his body disappears from the morgue, Rachael's not surprised. She knows the secrets Eric left behind. And knows that her marriage is far from over…
34) Watchers – 1987
Book Summary: A "superior thriller"(Oakland Press) about a man, a dog, and a terrifying threat that could only have come from the imagination of #1 New York Times bestselling author Dean Koontz—nominated as one of America's best-loved novels by PBS's The Great American Read.On his thirty-sixth birthday, Travis Cornell hikes into the foothills of the Santa Ana Mountains. But his path is soon blocked by a bedraggled Golden Retriever who will let him go no further into the dark woods.That morning, Travis had been desperate to find some happiness in his lonely, seemingly cursed life. What he finds is a dog of alarming intelligence that soon leads him into a relentless storm of mankind's darkest creation…
His best story yet! Cross Lassie with E.T., add a touch of The Wolfen and a dash of The Godfather, and you get a sense of some of the ingredients in this thriller….this is the sort of thoroughly frightening and entertaining tale that has its readers listening for noises in the night. Amazon Reviewer
His best ever, an imaginative and unusual blend of sense and sentiment. A fable about love and trust…with echoes of Frankenstein and The Island of Dr. Moreau. A breakthrough for Koontz. Amazon Reviewer
35) Lightning – 1988
Book Summary: #1 New York Times bestselling author Dean Koontz's brilliantly thrilling novel of suspense.In the midst of a raging blizzard, lightning struck on the night Laura Shane was born. And a mysterious blond-haired stranger showed up just in time to save her from dying.Years later, in the wake of another storm, Laura will be saved again. For someone is watching over her. Is he the guardian angel he seems? The devil in disguise? Or the master of a haunting destiny beyond all time and space?"A gripping novel…fast-paced and satisfying."—People
Brilliant…a spine-tingling tale…both challenging and entertaining. Amazon Reviewer
Romance, action, and suspense…holds the reader through the sheer momentum. Amazon Reviewer
36) Oddkins: A Fable for All Ages – 1988
Book Summary: The #1 New York Times–bestselling author's visually stunning story about a magical band of living toys who learn to overcome their fears. Toymaker Isaac Bodkins created the Oddkins, a group of living toys, for very special children who face difficulties in life and need true friends. There's Amos, the brave stuffed bear; Skippy, the rabbit who dreams of being a superstar; Butterscotch, the gentle, floppy-eared pup; Burl the elephant; the wise and scholarly Gibbons; and Patch the cat. The Oddkins are given to children to inspire, support, and love them, especially during times of adversity. Only now, the toys themselves are the ones who need help. Before he dies, Mr. Bodkins delivers a dire warning to Amos the bear: Watch out for an evil toymaker and his dangerous creations! Locked up in the dark sub-basement, another group of toys is climbing out of boxes and crates and coming to life as well. These bad toys—like Rex and Lizzie, the puppets with no strings; Gear, the vicious robot; and Stinger, the horrid buzzing bumblebee with his knife-sharp stinger—were made to hurt children, not help them. Leering, laughing, and deadly, they are let loose into the world by a terrifying force. Frightening as it may be, the Oddkins must go on a journey to find Colleen Shannon, Mr. Bodkins's chosen successor as a life-giving toymaker and the only person who can save them. The stormy night is perilous and the Oddkins face a danger that threatens not only their magic . . . but the magic in us all.
I'm a senior citizen who loves magical stories written for children but sophisticated enough to appeal to all ages. Amazon Reviewer
Dean Koontz is one of the greatest writers of our time. Amazon Reviewer
37) The Bad Place – 1990
Book Summary: #1 New York Times bestselling author Dean Koontz delivers terrifying thrills in this novel about a man caught in a never-ending nightmare.Frank Pollard is afraid to fall asleep. Every morning he awakes, he discovers something strange—like blood on his hands—a bizarre mystery that tortures his soul. Two investigators have been hired to follow the haunted man. But only one person—a young man with Down's syndrome—can imagine where their journeys might end. That terrible place from which no one ever returns…
This is white-knuckle, hair-curling-on-the-back-of-the-neck reading—as close to actual physical terror as the printed word can deliver. Amazon Reviewer
Koontz's skill at edge-of-the-seat writing has improved with each book. He can scare our socks off. Amazon Reviewer
38) Il Posto Del Buio – 1990
Book Summary: Il Posto Del Buio
39) Cold Fire – 1991
Book Summary: A man on a mission must come to terms with his forgotten past in this gripping thriller from #1 New York Times bestselling author Dean Koontz.In Portland, he saved a young boy from a drunk driver. In Boston, he rescued a child from an underground explosion. In Houston, he disarmed a man who was trying to shoot his own wife. Reporter Holly Thorne was intrigued by this strange quiet savior named Jim Ironheart. She was even falling in love with him. But what power compelled an ordinary man to save twelve lives in three months? What visions haunted his dreams? And why did he whisper in his sleep: There is an Enemy. It is coming. It'll kill us all…?
An extraordinary piece of fiction with unforgettable characters. It will be a classic. Amazon Reviewer
Gripping. Amazon Reviewer
40) Hideaway – 1992
Book Summary: Strange visions plague a man after he survives a near-death experience in this chilling thriller from #1 New York Times bestselling author Dean Koontz. Surviving a car accident on a snowy mountain road is miraculous for Lindsey Harrison, but even more so for her husband, Hatch, who was clinically dead for eighty minutes.After experimental procedures bring Hatch back to life, he awakens with the terrifying feeling that something is it out there. But it soon becomes apparent that the evil stalking Hatch is within him—a dark force of murderous rage that hides within us all…
A chiller capable of leaving emotional bruises on readers. Amazon Reviewer
This is not just a chilling novel; it's an igloo in mid-winter with the air-conditioning on. Taut…gripping…the ending is dead-solid perfect. Amazon Reviewer
41) Dragon Tears – 1993
Book Summary: A cop races against time to prevent his own death in this heart-pounding thriller from #1 New York Times bestselling author Dean Koontz.Harry Lyon is a rational man, a cop who refuses to let his job harden his soul. His partner urges him to surrender to the chaos of life. But Harry believes in order and reason. Then one fateful day, he's forced to shoot a man—and a homeless stranger with bloodshot eyes utteres the haunting words that challenge Harry Lyon's sanity…"Ticktock, ticktock. You'll be dead in sixteen hours…Dead by dawn…Dead by dawn…Dead by dawn…"
A razor-sharp, nonstop, suspenseful story. Amazon Reviewer
A great story…the most ambitious of Dean Koontz's books. Amazon Reviewer
42) Mr. Murder – 1993
Book Summary: #1 New York Times bestselling author Dean Koontz delivers a gripping novel of a man accused of stealing not just someone's identity, but his entire life…A big house. A beautiful wife. Two happy and healthy children. It's a nice life that writer Martin Stillwater has made for himself. But he can't shake this feeling of impending disaster.One bad moment on an otherwise fine day has put Marty on a collision course with a killer—a man with a mere shadow of an identity who is desperately searching for something more…Martin's home. Martin's family. Martin's life.
Koontz is a terrific what-if storyteller…the narrative pace is breathless. Amazon Reviewer
The resounding variations Mr. Koontz plays on this good story, here craftily retold…allow him to counterpoint the new horrors about us with the old horrors already inside us. Amazon Reviewer
43) Dark Rivers of the Heart – 1994
Book Summary: NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
Do you dare step through the red door? Spencer Grant had no idea what drew him to the bar with the red door. He thought he would just sit down, have a slow beer or two, and talk to a stranger. He couldn't know that it would lead to a narrow escape from a bungalow targeted by a SWAT team. Or that it would leave him a wanted man.But now Spencer is on the run from mysterious and ruthless men. He is in love with a woman he knows next to nothing about. And he is hiding from a past he can't fully remember. On his trail is a shadowy security agency that answers to no one—including the U.S. government—and a man who considers himself a compassionate Angel of Death. But worst of all, Spencer Grant is on a collision course with inner demons he thought he'd buried years ago—inner demons that could destroy him if his enemies don't first.
A humdinger of a chase novel. Amazon Reviewer
A fresh surprise on virtually every page . . . and a pyrotechnic denouement full of marvelous mayhem. Amazon Reviewer
44) Strange Highways – 1995
Book Summary: From the denizens of hell to unlikely heroes, from vengeful children to suspiciously humanlike robots, this new collection of tales from a genius of horror and suspense writing provides a hypnotic view of the strange highways of human experience. A masterful achievement–as profound as it is mesmerizing. (Ficiton–Horror)
It kept my attention very well. Amazon Reviewer
This book really made my ride to work more enjoyable. Amazon Reviewer
45) Intensity – 1995
Book Summary: #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLERPast midnight, Chyna Shepard, twenty-six, gazes out a moonlit window, unable to sleep on her first night in the Napa Valley home of her best friend's family. Instinct proves reliable. A murderous sociopath, Edgler Foreman Vess, has entered the house, intent on killing everyone inside. A self-proclaimed "homicidal adventurer," Vess lives only to satisfy all appetites as they arise, to immerse himself in sensation, to live without fear, remorse, or limits, to live with intensity. Chyna is trapped in his deadly orbit.Chyna is a survivor, toughened by a lifelong struggle for safety and self-respect. Now she will be tested as never before. At first her sole aim is to get out alive—until, by chance, she learns the identity of Vess's next intended victim, a faraway innocent only she can save. Driven by a newly discovered thirst for meaning beyond mere self-preservation, Chyna musters every inner resource she has to save an endangered girl . . . as moment by moment, the terrifying threat of Edgler Foreman Vess intensifies.
Chills the reader to the core and establishes Koontz as a master. Amazon Reviewer
A taut, nerve-tingling thriller from page one. Amazon Reviewer
46) Santa's Twin – 1996
Book Summary: In a delightful twist to the traditional Christmas tale, Charlotte and Emily must save Santa from his devilish twin, who has absconded with Santa's sleigh and has filled his toy bag with all sorts of disgusting items, in this wickedly funny story for children of all ages. Reissue.
This is a wonderful Xmas tale thet kids will delight in. It isn't scary at all, it's more comical. Amazon Reviewer
A fun read for adults and children beyond the primary grades. Amazon Reviewer
47) Ticktock – 1996
Book Summary: Tommy Phan is a 30-year-old Vietnamese-American detective and novelist living in Southern California, and a chaser of the American Dream. He drives home his brand-new Corvette one day to discover a strange doll on his doorstep. It's a rag doll made entirely of white cloth, with no face or hair or clothes. Where the eyes should be, there are two crossed stitches of black thread. Five sets of crossed black stitches mark the mouth, and another pair form an X over the heart.He brings it into the house. That night, he hears an odd little popping sound and looks up to see the crossed stitches over the doll's heart breaking apart. When he picks up the doll, he feels something pulsing in its chest. Another thread unravels to reveal a reptilian green eye –and not a doll's eye, because it blinks.
Tommy Phan pursues the thing as it scrambles away into his house — and then is pursued by it as it evolves from a terrifying and vicious minikin into a hulking and formidable opponent bent on killing him.BONUS: This edition contains an excerpt from Dean Koontz's The City.
[A] funny, chilling, supernatural suspense novel. Amazon Reviewer
Dean Koontz is not just a master of our darkest dreams, but also a literary juggler. Amazon Reviewer
48) Fear Nothing – 1997
Book Summary: If you're different enough, the night is not your enemy, the darkness is not intimidating, the shadows are not terrifying. You fear nothing.Christopher Snow is different from all the other residents of Moonlight Bay, different from anyone you've ever met. For Christopher Snow has made his peace with a very rare genetic disorder that leaves him dangerously vulnerable to light. His life is filled with the fascinating rituals of one who must embrace the dark. He knows the night as no one else can—its mystery, its beauty, its terrors, and the eerie silken rhythms that seduce one into believing anything—even freedom—is possible.Until the night Christopher Snow witnesses a series of disturbing incidents that sweep him into a violent mystery only he can solve, a mystery that will force him to rise above all fears and confront the many-layered secrets of Moonlight Bay and its strange inhabitants. A place, like all places, that looks a lot different after dark.
Fear Nothing will make you fear almost everything. Amazon Reviewer
[An] adrenaline-pumping . . . breakneck chiller . . . Fear Nothing demonstrates a master of darkness's continuing power to scare the daylights out of us. Amazon Reviewer
49) Sole Survivor – 1997
Book Summary: BONUS: This edition contains an excerpt from Dean Koontz's The City.A catastrophic, unexplainable plane crash leaves three hundred and thirty dead — no survivors. Among the victims are the wife and two daughters of Joe Carpenter, a Los Angeles Post crime reporter.A year after the crash, still gripped by an almost paralyzing grief, Joe encounters a woman named Rose, who claims to have survived the crash. She holds out the possibility of a secret that will bring Joe peace of mind. But before he can ask any questions, she slips away.Driven now by rage (have the authorities withheld information?) and a hope almost as unbearable as his grief (if there is one survivor, are there others?), Joe sets out to find the mysterious woman. His search immediately leads him into the path of a powerful and shadowy organization hell-bent on stopping Rose before she can reveal what she knows about the crash.Sole Survivor unfolds at a heart-stopping pace, as a desperate chase and a shattering emotional odyssey lead Joe to a truth that will force him to reassess everything he thought he knew about life and death — a truth that, given the chance, will rock the world and redefine the destiny of humanity.
Masterfully styled serious entertainment. These are Koontz's great years. Amazon Reviewer
This is a book about hope . . . to keep you awake reading long into the night, but for once not afraid to turn out the light. Nice one, Mr. Koontz. Amazon Reviewer
50) Seize the Night – 1998
Book Summary: NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLERThere are no rules in the dark, no place to feel safe, no escape from the shadows. But to save the day, you must seize the night.At no time does Moonlight Bay look more beautiful than at night. Yet it is precisely then that the secluded little town reveals its menace. Now children are disappearing. From their homes. From the streets. And there's nothing their families can do about it. Because in Moonlight Bay, the police work their hardest to conceal crimes and silence victims. No matter what happens in the night, their job is to ensure that nothing disturbs the peace and quiet of Moonlight Bay.Christopher Snow isn't afraid of the dark. Forced to live in the shadows because of a rare genetic disorder, he knows the night world better than anyone. He believes the lost children are still alive and that their disappearance is connected to the town's most carefully kept, most ominous secret—a secret only he can uncover, a secret that will force him to confront an adversary at one with the most dangerous darkness of all: the darkness inside the human heart.
The kind of suspense that will raise goose bumps on goose bumps. Amazon Reviewer
A rock-'em, sock-'em, knock-your-socks-off thriller that's not just a page-turner, but a page burner. Amazon Reviewer
51) False Memory – 1999
Book Summary: NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLERNo fan of Dean Koontz or of psychological suspense will want to miss this extraordinary novel of the human mind's capacity to torment—and destroy—itself.It's a fear more paralyzing than falling. More terrifying than absolute darkness. More horrifying than anything you can imagine. It's the one fear you cannot escape no matter where you run . . . no matter where you hide.It's the fear of yourself. It's real. It can happen to you. And facing it can be deadly.False Memory . . . Fear for your mind.
A masterful thriller . . . suspense worth remembering. Amazon Reviewer
Viscerally exciting . . . [a] tense tour de force . . . an expertly crafted, ornate suspenser. Amazon Reviewer
52) From the Corner of His Eye – 2000
Book Summary: #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • A thrilling and emotionally powerful novel from the author of the Jane Hawk series"A literary miracle . . . a tapestry of intrigue and suspense."—The Boston Globe
His birth was marked by wonder and tragedy. He sees beauty and terror beyond our deepest dreams. His story will change the way you see the world.
Bartholomew Lampion is born on a day of tragedy and terror that will mark his family forever. All agree that his unusual eyes are the most beautiful they have ever seen. On this same day, a thousand miles away, a ruthless man learns that he has a mortal enemy named Bartholomew. He embarks on a relentless search to find this enemy, a search that will consume his life. And a girl is born from a brutal rape, her destiny mysteriously linked to Barty and the man who stalks him.At the age of three, Barty Lampion is blinded when surgeons remove his eyes to save him from a fast-spreading cancer. As he copes with his blindness and proves to be a prodigy, his mother counsels him that all things happen for a reason and that every person's life has an effect on every other person's, in often unknowable ways.At thirteen, Bartholomew regains his sight. How he regains it, why he regains it, and what happens as his amazing life unfolds and entwines with others results in a breathtaking journey of courage, heart-stopping suspense, and high adventure.
A literary miracle . . . a tapestry of intrigue and suspense. Amazon Reviewer
Wonderful . . . a deeply satisfying, rich novel. From the Corner of His Eye is magic. Amazon Reviewer
53) One Door Away from Heaven – 2001
Book Summary: #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLERMichelina Bellsong is on a mission. She is following a missing family to the edge of America . . . to a place she never knew existed—a place of terror, wonder, and shattering revelation. What awaits her there will change her life and the life of everyone she knows—if she can find the key to survival. At stake are a young girl of extraordinary goodness, a young boy with killers on his trail, and Micky's own wounded soul. Ahead lie incredible peril, startling discoveries, and paths that lead through terrible darkness to unexpected light.
Suspense, humor and plenty of heart . . . spooky and satisfying. Amazon Reviewer
A web of intrigue . . . Koontz lets the reader glide along, turning the pages in wonder. Amazon Reviewer
54) The Book of Counted Sorrows – 2001
Book Summary: Long awaited Book of Koontz's poetry. Limited to 2500 numbered copies
I've always loved how Dean Koontz would add the poetry before some of the chapters throughout his novels. Goodreads Reviewer
Koontz's peculiar sense of humor shone once more throughout the entirety of The Book of Counted Sorrows. Goodreads Reviewer
55) By the Light of the Moon – 2002
Book Summary: BONUS: This edition contains an excerpt from Dean Koontz's The City.Dean Koontz has surpassed his longtime reputation as "America's most popular suspense novelist"(Rolling Stone) to become one of the most celebrated and successful writers of our time. Reviewers hail his boundless originality, his art, his unparalleled ability to create highly textured, riveting drama, at once viscerally familiar and utterly unique.Author of one #1 New York Times bestseller after another, Koontz is at the pinnacle of his powers, spinning mysteries and miracles, enthralling tales that speak directly to today's readers, balm for the heart and fire for the mind. In this stunning new novel, he delivers a tour de force of dark suspense and brilliant revelation that has all the Koontz trademarks: adventure, chills, riddles, humor, heartbreak, an unforgettable cast of characters, and a climax that will leave you clamoring for more.Dylan O'Connor is a gifted young artist just trying to do the right thing in life. He's on his way to an arts festival in Santa Fe when he stops to get a room for himself and his twenty-year-old autistic brother, Shep. But in a nightmarish instant, Dylan is attacked by a mysterious "doctor," injected with a strange substance, and told that he is now a carrier of something that will either kill him…or transform his life in the most remarkable way. Then he is told that he must flee–before the doctor's enemies hunt him down for the secret circulating through his body. No one can help him, the doctor says, not even the police.Stunned, disbelieving, Dylan is turned loose to run for his life…and straight into an adventure that will turn the next twenty-four hours into an odyssey of terror, mystery–and wondrous discovery. It is a journey that begins when Dylan and Shep's path intersects with that of Jillian Jackson. Before that evening Jilly was a beautiful comedian whose biggest worry was whether she would ever find a decent man. Now she too is a carrier. And even as Dylan tries to convince her that they'll be safer sticking together, cold-eyed men in a threatening pack of black Suburbans approach, only seconds before Jilly's classic Coupe DeVille explodes into thin air.Now the three are on the run together, but with no idea whom they're running from–or why. Meanwhile Shep has begun exhibiting increasingly disturbing behavior. And whatever it is that's coursing through their bodies seems to have plunged them into one waking nightmare after another. Seized by sinister premonitions, they find themselves inexplicably drawn to crime scenes–just minutes before the crimes take place.What this unfathomable power is, how they can use it to stop the evil erupting all around them, and why they have been chosen are only parts of a puzzle that reaches back into the tragic past and the dark secrets they all share: secrets of madness, pain, and untimely death. Perhaps the answer lies in the eerie, enigmatic messages that Shep, with precious time running out, begins to repeat, about an entity who does his work "by the light of the moon."By the Light of the Moon is a novel of heart-stopping suspense and transcendent beauty, of how evil can destroy us and love can redeem us–a masterwork of the imagination in which the surprises come page after page and the spell of sublime storytelling triumphs throughout.
Koontz seems to know us, our deepest foibles and fears. Amazon Reviewer
Surefire plotting and a roster of characters built out of painful tragedies make the pages move…. Koontz has a touching faith in the human spirit. Amazon Reviewer
56) The Face – 2003
Book Summary: Acknowledged as "America's most popular suspense novelist"(Rolling Stone ) and as one of today's most celebrated and successful writers, Dean Koontz has earned the devotion of millions of readers around the world and the praise of critics everywhere for tales of character, mystery, and adventure that strike to the core of what it means to be human. Now he delivers the page-turner of the season, an unforgettable journey to the heart of darkness and to the pinnacle of grace, at once chilling and wickedly funny, a brilliantly observed chronicle of good and evil in our time, of illusion and everlasting truth.He's Hollywood's most dazzling star, whose flawless countenance inspires the worship of millions and fires the hatred of one twisted soul. His perfectly ordered existence is under siege as a series of terrifying, enigmatic "messages" breaches the exquisitely calibrated security systems of his legendary Bel Air estate.The boxes arrive mysteriously, one by one, at Channing Manheim's fortified compound. The threat implicit in their bizarre, disturbing contents seems to escalate with each new delivery. Manheim's security chief, ex-cop Ethan Truman, is used to looking beneath the surface of things. But until he entered the orbit of a Hollywood icon, he had no idea just how slippery reality could be. Now this good man is all that stands in the way of an
insidious killer—and forces that eclipse the most fevered fantasies of a city where dreams and nightmares are the stuff of daily life. As a seemingly endless and ominous rain falls over southern California, Ethan will test the limits of perception and endurance in a world where the truth is as thin as celluloid and answers can be found only in the illusory intersection of shadow and light.Enter a world of marvelous invention, enchantment, and implacable intent, populated by murderous actors and the walking dead, hit men and heroes, long-buried dreams and never-dying hope.Here a magnificent mansion is presided over by a Scottish force of nature known as Mrs. McBee, before whom all men tremble. A mad French chef concocts feasts for the mighty and the malicious. Ming du Lac, spiritual adviser to the stars, has a direct line to the dead. An aptly named cop called Hazard will become Ethan's ally, an anarchist will sow discord and despair, and a young boy named Fric, imprisoned by celebrity and loneliness, will hear a voice telling him of the approach of something unimaginably evil. Traversing this extraordinary landscape, Ethan will face the secrets of his own tragic past and the unmistakable premonition of his impending violent death as he races against time to solve the macabre riddles of a modern-day beast.A riveting tour de force of suspense, mystery, and miraculous revelation, The Face is that rare novel that entertains, provokes, and uplifts at the same time. It will make you laugh. It will give you chills. It will fill you with hope.BONUS: This edition contains an excerpt from Dean Koontz's The City.
Dean Koontz almost occupies a genre of his own. He is a master at building suspense and holding the reader spellbound. Amazon Reviewer
Still the DEAN of suspense…a rewarding climax…you'll enjoy the ride. Amazon Reviewer
57) Odd Thomas – 2003
Book Summary: Meet Odd Thomas, the unassuming young hero of Dean Koontz's dazzling New York Times bestseller, a gallant sentinel at the crossroads of life and death who offers up his heart in these pages and will forever capture yours."The dead don't talk. I don't know why." But they do try to communicate, with a short-order cook in a small desert town serving as their reluctant confidant. Sometimes the silent souls who seek out Odd want justice. Occasionally their otherworldly tips help him prevent a crime. But this time it's different.A stranger comes to Pico Mundo, accompanied by a horde of hyena-like shades who herald an imminent catastrophe. Aided by his soul mate, Stormy Llewellyn, and an unlikely community of allies that includes the King of Rock 'n' Roll, Odd will race against time to thwart the gathering evil. His account of these shattering hours, in which past and present, fate and destiny, converge, is a testament by which to live—an unforgettable fable for our time destined to rank among Dean Koontz's most enduring works.
A darkly humorous literary pastiche . . . one of Koontz's best novels . . . packed with plenty of original surprises. Amazon Reviewer
One of the master storytellers of this or any age. Amazon Reviewer
58) The Taking – 2004
Book Summary: #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLEROn the morning that marks the end of the world they have known, Molly and Neil Sloan awaken to the drumbeat of rain on their roof. A luminous silvery downpour is drenching their small California mountain town. It has haunted their sleep, invaded their dreams, and now, in the moody purple dawn, the young couple cannot shake the sense of something terribly wrong.As the hours pass, Molly and Neil listen to disturbing news of extreme weather phenomena across the globe. By nightfall, their little town loses all contact with the outside world. A thick fog transforms the once-friendly village into a ghostly labyrinth. And soon the Sloans and their neighbors will be forced to draw on reserves of courage and humanity they never knew they had. For within the misty gloom they will encounter something that reveals in a shattering instant what is happening to their world—something that is hunting them with ruthless efficiency.
A thrill ride. Amazon Reviewer
The book includes a meeting with the soccer great, Pele. Amazon Reviewer
59) Life Expectancy – 2004
Book Summary: With his bestselling blend of nail-biting intensity, daring artistry, and storytelling magic, Dean Koontz returns with an emotional roller coaster of a tale filled with enough twists, turns, shocks, and surprises for ten ordinary novels. Here is the story of five days in the life of an ordinary man born to an extraordinary legacy—a story that will challenge the way you look at good and evil, life and death, and everything in between. Jimmy Tock comes into the world on the very night his grandfather leaves it. As a violent storm rages outside the hospital, Rudy Tock spends long hours walking the corridors between the expectant fathers' waiting room and his dying father's bedside. It's a strange vigil made all the stranger when, at the very height of the storm's fury, Josef Tock suddenly sits up in bed and speaks coherently for the frist and last time since his stroke.What he says before he dies is that there will be five dark days in the life of his grandson—five dates whose terrible events Jimmy will have to prepare himself to face. The first is to occur in his twentieth year; the second in his twent-third year; the third in his twenty-eighth; the fourth in his twenty-ninth; the fifth in his thirtieth.Rudy is all too ready to discount his father's last words as a dying man's delusional rambling. But then he discovers that Josef also predicted the time of his grandson's birth to the minute, as well as his exact height and weight, and the fact that Jimmy would be born with syndactyly—the unexplained anomal of fused digits—on his left foot. Suddenly the old man's predictions take on a chilling significance.What terrifying events await Jimmy on these five dark days? What nightmares will he face? What challenges must he survive? As the novel unfolds, picking up Jimmy's story at each of these crisis points, the path he must follow will defy every expectation. And with each crisis he faces, he will move closer to a fate he could never have imagined. For who Jimmy Tock is and what he must accomplish on the five days when his world turns is a mystery as dangerous as it is wondrous—a struggle against an evil so dark and pervasive, only the most extraordinary of human spirits can shine through.This ebook edition contains a special preview of Dean Koontz's The Silent Corner.
A master storyteller and a daring writer… he gives readers bright hope in a dark world…. Life Expectancy pits good versus evil and carries a persuasive message, about the power of love and family and the miracle of existence… Koontz is a true original and this novel, one of his most unusual yet, will leave readers aglow. Amazon Reviewer
Thank you Dean for sharing your light with me. Amazon Reviewer
60) Velocity – 2005
If you don't take this note to the police . . . I will kill a lovely blond schoolteacher. . . . If you do . . . I will instead kill an elderly woman active in charity work. You have six hours to decide. The choice is yours.The typewritten note under his windshield seems like just a sick joke. But in less than twenty-four hours, Billy Wiles, an ordinary, hardworking guy, is about to see his life take on the speed of a nightmare. Because a young blond schoolteacher is murdered—and now Billy has another note. And another deadline. This time he knows it's no joke. He's racing a killer faster than evil itself. And Billy must accept his terrifying challenge: The choice is yours.Think fast. Fear never slows down. . . .
A good, old-fashioned, barn-burning, beat-the-clock thriller. Amazon Reviewer
Terrifying . . . Velocity will have readers turning the pages—and checking to make sure their doors are locked and bolted. Amazon Reviewer
61) Forever Odd – 2005
Book Summary: NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLERI see dead people. But then, by God, I do something about it. Odd Thomas never asked for his special ability. He's just an ordinary guy trying to live a quiet life in the small desert town of Pico Mundo. Yet he feels an obligation to do right by his otherworldly confidants, and that's why he's won hearts on both sides of the divide between life and death. But when a childhood friend disappears, Odd discovers something worse than a dead body and embarks on a heart-stopping battle of will and wits with an enemy of exceptional cunning. In the hours to come there can be no innocent bystanders, and every sacrifice can tip the balance between despair and hope.You're invited on an unforgettable journey through a world of terror and transcendence to wonders beyond imagining. And you can have no better guide than Odd Thomas.
Compelling . . . a marvelously narrated cat-and-mouse game. Amazon Reviewer
Heartfelt and provocative . . . a wonderfully rich and entertaining story. Amazon Reviewer
62) Prodigal Son – 2005 (Book 1 in the Frankenstein Series of Dean Koontz)
Book Summary: From the celebrated imagination of Dean Koontz comes a powerful reworking of one of the classic stories of all time. If you think you know the legend, you know only half the truth. Here is the mystery, the myth, the terror, and the magic of . . .Every city has its secrets. But none as terrible as this. He is Deucalion, a tattooed man of mysterious origin, a sleight-of-reality artist who has traveled the centuries with a secret worse than death. He arrives in New Orleans as a serial killer stalks the streets, a killer who carefully selects his victims for the humanity that is missing in himself. Deucalion's path will lead him to cool, tough police detective Carson O'Connor and her devoted partner, Michael Maddison, who are tracking the slayer but will soon discover signs of something far more terrifying: an entire race of killers who are much more–and less–than human and, deadliest of all, their deranged, near-immortal maker: Victor Helios–once known as Frankenstein.
This is classic Koontz at his best. The plot zips along, the characters are grotesque and funny. The basic elements of Mary Shelley's novel, though slightly altered, fit right in. Amazon Reviewer
Koontz is a superb plotter and wordsmith. He chronicles the hopes and fears of our time in broad strokes and fine detail, using popular fiction to explore the human condition [and] demonstrating that the real horror of life is found not in monsters, but within the human psyche. Amazon Reviewer
63) City of Night – 2005 (Book 2 in the Frankenstein Series of Dean Koontz)
Book Summary: From the celebrated imagination of Dean Koontz comes a powerful reworking of one of the classic stories of all time. If you think you know the legend, you know only half the truth. The mystery, the myth, the terror, and the magic continue. . . .They are stronger, heal better, and think faster than any humans ever created–and they must be destroyed. Not even Victor Helios–once Frankenstein–can stop the engineered killers he's set loose on a reign of terror through modern-day New Orleans. Only the one-time "monster" Deucalion and his all-too-human partners, Detectives Carson O'Connor and Michael Maddison, stand in their way. But as the three race to uncover the true dimensions of an age-old conspiracy, they will discover that Victor's new, improved models have infiltrated every level of the city's society . . . and far beyond.
Of all bestselling authors, Koontz may be the most underestimated by the literary establishment. Book after book, year after year, this author climbs to the top of the charts. Why? His readers know: because he is a master storyteller and a daring writer, and because, in his novels, he gives readers bright hope in a dark world. Amazon Reviewer
This book has sealed my fate: now I must get book four and book five. Amazon Reviewer
64) The Husband – 2006
Book Summary: #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • "Koontz is America's No. 1 author of thrillers [and] The Husband is one of his finest novels."—The Denver Post
We have your wife. You get her back for two million cash. On an ordinary afternoon, an ordinary man, a gardener of modest means, gets a phone call out of his worst nightmare. The caller is dead serious. He doesn't care that Mitch can't raise that kind of money. If she's everything to you, then you'll find a way.Mitch loves his wife more than life itself. He's got sixty hours to prove it. He has to find the two million by then. But he'll pay a lot more. He'll pay anything.Praise for The Husband"Breakneck speed and complexities . . . Koontz is a master of the edge-of-your-seat, paranoid thriller—and perhaps the leading American practitioner of the form."—The Star-Ledger"A pulse-pounding thriller with echoes of Hitchcock."—Publishers Weekly"[A] hair-raising thriller . . . Nothing should be given away about this sinuous nail-biter's developments . . . all help ratchet up the suspense."—Booklist (starred review)
A pulse-pounding thriller with echoes of Hitchcock. Amazon Reviewer
Moves like a roller coaster without brakes . . . Koontz is America's No. 1 author of thrillers [and] The Husband is one of his finest novels. Amazon Reviewer
65) Brother Odd – 2006
Book Summary: NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLERLoop me in, odd one. The words, spoken in the deep of night by a sleeping child, chill the young man watching over her. For this was a favorite phrase of Stormy Llewellyn, his lost love. In the haunted halls of the isolated monastery where he had sought peace, Odd Thomas is stalking spirits of an infinitely darker nature.As he steadfastly journeys toward his mysterious destiny, Odd Thomas has established himself as one of the most beloved and unique fictional heroes of our time. Now, wielding all the power and magic of a master storyteller at the pinnacle of his craft, Dean Koontz follows Odd into a singular new world where he hopes to make a fresh beginning—but where he will meet an adversary as old and inexorable as time itself.
Supernatural thrills with a side of laughs. Amazon Reviewer
Poignant but quick-moving . . . Koontz deftly mixes [in] humor . . . as he tackles the big questions: Can humans prove that God exists? And why is Elvis scared to go to Heaven? Amazon Reviewer
66) The Good Guy – 2007
Book Summary: BONUS: This edition contains an excerpt from Dean Koontz's The City.Timothy Carrier is an ordinary guy who enjoys a beer after work. But tonight is no ordinary night. Instead, Tim will face a terrifying decision: Help or run. For the jittery stranger sitting beside him at the bar has mistaken Tim for someone else—and passes him a manila envelope stuffed with cash and the photo of a pretty woman. "Ten thousand. The rest when she's gone."
Now everything Tim thinks he knows—even about himself—will be challenged. For Tim Carrier is the one man who can save an innocent life and stop a killer as relentless as evil incarnate. But first he must discover resources within himself that will transform his idea of who he is and what it takes to be the good guy.
Dark suspense leavened by just enough sentiment…. Fans of Koontz will recognize and relish his trademark, gently ironic dialogue and firmly fleshed characterizations. Amazon Reviewer
White-knuckle suspense as gripping as any Koontz has ever written. Amazon Reviewer
67) The Darkest Evening of the Year – 2007
Book Summary: BONUS: This edition contains an excerpt from Dean Koontz's The City.With each of his #1 New York Times bestsellers, Dean Koontz has displayed an unparalleled ability to entertain and enlighten readers with novels that capture the essence of our times even as they bring us to the edge of our seats. Now he delivers a heart-gripping tour de force he's been waiting years to write, at once a love story, a thrilling adventure, and a masterwork of suspense that redefines the boundaries of primal fear—and of enduring devotion.Amy Redwing has dedicated her life to the southern California organization she founded to rescue abandoned and endangered golden retrievers. Among dog lovers, she's a legend for the risks she'll take to save an animal from abuse. Among her friends, Amy's heedless devotion is often cause for concern. To widower Brian McCarthy, whose commitment she can't allow herself to return, Amy's behavior is far more puzzling and hides a shattering secret.No one is surprised when Amy risks her life to save Nickie, nor when she takes the female golden into her home. The bond between Amy and Nickie is immediate and uncanny. Even her two other goldens, Fred and Ethel, recognize Nickie as special, a natural alpha. But the instant joy Nickie brings is shadowed by a series of eerie incidents. An ominous stranger. A mysterious home invasion.And the unmistakable sense that someone is watching Amy' s every move and that, whoever it is, he's not alone.Someone has come back to turn Amy into the desperate, hunted creature she's always been there to save. But now there's no one to save Amy and those she loves. From its breathtaking opening scene to its shocking climax, The Darkest Evening of the Year is Dean Koontz at his finest, a transcendent thriller certain to have readers turning pages until dawn.
Silence of the Lambs meets Marley & Me. Amazon Reviewer
Just barely into Koontz's thriller, I understood why he's a bookselling giant. Amazon Reviewer
68) Your Heart Belongs to Me – 2008
Book Summary: BONUS: This edition contains an excerpt from Dean Koontz's The City.From the #1 New York Times bestselling master of suspense comes a riveting thriller that probes the deepest terrors of the human psyche—and the ineffable mystery of what truly makes us who we are. Here a brilliant young man finds himself fighting for his very existence in a battle that starts with the most frightening words of all…At thirty-four, Internet entrepreneur Ryan Perry seemed to have the world in his pocket—until the first troubling symptoms appeared out of nowhere. Within days, he's diagnosed with incurable cardiomyopathy and finds himself on the waiting list for a heart transplant; it's his only hope, and it's dwindling fast. Ryan is about to lose it all…his health, his girlfriend Samantha, and his life.One year later, Ryan has never felt better. Business is good and he hopes to renew his relationship with Samantha. Then the unmarked gifts begin to appear—a box of Valentine candy hearts, a heart pendant. Most disturbing of all, a graphic heart surgery video and the chilling message: Your heart belongs to me.In a heartbeat, the medical miracle that gave Ryan a second chance at life is about to become a curse worse than death. For Ryan is being stalked by a mysterious woman who feels entitled to everything he has. She's the spitting image of the twenty-six-year-old donor of the heart beating steadily in Ryan's own chest.And she's come to take it back.
Koontz is a master of the edge-of-your-seat, paranoid thriller—and perhaps the leading American practitioner of the form. Amazon Reviewer
A fast and entertaining read. Amazon Reviewer
69) Odd Hours – 2008
Book Summary: #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLEROnly a handful of fictional characters are recognized by first name alone. Dean Koontz's Odd Thomas is one such literary hero, who has come alive in readers' imaginations as he explores the greatest mysteries of this world and the next with his inimitable wit, heart, and quiet gallantry. Now Koontz follows Odd as he is drawn onward, to a destiny he cannot imagine. Haunted by dreams of an all-encompassing red tide, Odd is pulled inexorably to the sea, to a small California coastal town where nothing is as it seems.
Koontz's most likable creation. Amazon Reviewer
Koontz forges the kind of sweeping melodrama complete with screwball laughs, nail-biting moments, and surprises that is the bedrock of American narrative fiction. Amazon Reviewer
70) In Odd We Trust – 2008
Book Summary: "Meet a young man named Odd . . . who helps the dead get even."From the infinite imagination of #1 New York Times bestselling author Dean Koontz comes the suspenseful graphic-novel debut of a natural-born hero with a supernatural twist.Odd Thomas is a regular nineteen-year-old with an unusual gift: the ability to see the lingering spirits of the dead. To Odd, it's not such a big deal. And most folks in sleepy Pico Mundo, California, are much more interested in the irresistible pancakes Odd whips up at the local diner. Still, communing with the dead can be useful. Because while some spirits only want a little company . . . others want justice.When the sad specter of a very frightened boy finds its way to him, Odd vows to root out the evil suddenly infecting the sunny streets of Pico Mundo. But even with his exceptional ability–plus the local police and his pistol-packing girlfriend, Stormy, backing him–is Odd any match for a faceless stalker who's always a step ahead . . . and determined to kill again?
"In Odd We Trust" is another great addition to the "Odd Thomas" series. Amazon Reviewer
I just love Koontz and his Odd Thomas series. This was very satisfying. Amazon Reviewer
71) Bliss to You: Trixie's Guide to a Happy Life – 2008
Book Summary: The late service dog and "co-blogger" of best-selling novelist Dean Koontz shares a whimsical and uplifting collection of lessons about living life to the fullest and finding joy in everyday experiences. By the author of Life Is Good and Christmas Is Good.
BLISS TO YOU is funny, sweet, informative and PROFOUND. Amazon Reviewer
This book makes me smile and laugh out loud on a regular basis. Amazon Reviewer
72) I, Trixie who is Dog – 2009
Book Summary: Not everyone can be a dog. Some must be people. Some must be cats, or birds, or even skunks, although it?s hard to explain why anyone would want to be a skunk. But Trixie is happy, because she does get to be a dog?the best thing there is to be. The food, the belly rubs . . . if only she could drive, her life would be perfect!Bestselling author Dean Koontz gives readers a fun, lighthearted glimpse into the imagination of Trixie, his beloved golden retriever, whose quirky narration and irrepressible spirit will delight readers young and old.
This is a cute doggie story written by one of my favorite authors. Amazon Reviewer
Another marvelous book by Trixie Koontz. Amazon Reviewer
73) Dead and Alive – 2009 (Book 3 in the Frankenstein Series of Dean Koontz)
Book Summary: From the celebrated imagination of Dean Koontz comes a powerful reworking of one of the classic stories of all time. If you think you know the legend, you know only half the truth. Now the mesmerizing saga concludes. . . .As a devastating hurricane approaches, as the benighted creations of Victor Helios begin to spin out of control, as New Orleans descends into chaos and the future of humanity hangs in the balance, the only hope rests with Victor's first, failed attempt to build the perfect human. Deucalion's centuries-old history began as the original manifestation of a soulless vision–and it is fated to end in the ultimate confrontation between a damned creature and his mad creator. But first they must face a monstrosity not even Victor's malignant mind could have conceived–an indestructible entity that steps out of humankind's collective nightmare with powers, and a purpose, beyond imagining.
A rarity among bestselling writers, Koontz continues to pursue new ways of telling stories, never content with repeating himself. He writes of hope and love in the midst of evil in profoundly inspiring and moving ways. Amazon Reviewer
Good installment in an already interesting series. Amazon Reviewer
74) A Big Little Life: A Memoir of a Joyful Dog Named Trixie – 2009
Book Summary: NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • In a profound, funny, and beautifully rendered portrait of a beloved companion, bestselling novelist Dean Koontz remembers the golden retriever who changed his life.A retired service dog, Trixie was three when Dean and his wife, Gerda, welcomed her into their home. She was superbly trained, but her greatest gifts couldn't be taught: her keen intelligence, her innate joy, and an uncanny knack for living in the moment. Whether chasing a tennis ball or protecting those she loved, Trixie gave all she had to everything she did, inspiring Dean and Gerda to trust their instincts and recapture a sense of wonder that will remain with them always. Trixie lived fewer than twelve years; in this wide world, she was a little thing. But in every way that mattered, she lived a big life.
[A] love letter to his golden retriever. Amazon Reviewer
Read this book to be entertained, uplifted and deeply moved. Amazon Reviewer
75) Breathless – 2009
Book Summary: BONUS: This edition contains an excerpt from Dean Koontz's The City.
#1 New York Times bestselling author Dean Koontz delivers a thrilling novel of suspense and adventure, as the lives of strangers converge around a mystery unfolding high in the Colorado mountains—and the balance of the world begins to tilt….In the stillness of a golden September afternoon, deep in the wilderness of the Rockies, a solitary craftsman, Grady Adams, and his magnificent Irish wolfhound Merlin step from shadow into light…and into an encounter with enchantment. That night, through the trees, under the moon, a pair of singular animals will watch Grady's isolated home, waiting to make their approach.A few miles away, Camillia Rivers, a local veterinarian, begins to unravel the threads of a puzzle that will bring all the forces of a government in peril to her door.At a nearby farm, long-estranged identical twins come together to begin a descent into darkness…In Las Vegas, a specialist in chaos theory probes the boundaries of the unknowable…On a Seattle golf course, two men make matter-of-fact arrangements for murder…Along a highway by the sea, a vagrant scarred by the past begins a trek toward his destiny…In a novel that is at once wholly of our time and timeless, fearless and funny, Dean Koontz takes readers into the moment between one turn of the world and the next, across the border between knowing and mystery. It is a journey that will leave all who take it Breathless.
Koontz is a superb plotter and wordsmith. He chronicles the hopes and fears of our time in broad strokes and fine detail, using popular fiction to explore the human condition. Amazon Reviewer
Koontz's books always thrill…. [He's] so good, he'll have readers holding their breath on one page and tearing up on the next. Amazon Reviewer
76) Trixie and Jinx – 2010
Book Summary: It's great having a best friend to do everything with-but not so great when they go away. Trixie the golden retriever longs for her buddy Jinx the dachshund when Jinx goes on vacation. Lonely Trixie tries to find new friends, but discovers that spiders have no sense of humor and mice just can't appreciate a good tail-chase. No one can compare to Jinx!Kids young and old will relate to bestselling author Dean Koontz's funny story extolling all the wonderful things about best friends.
Love any and all books by Trixie Koontz and this was no exception. Amazon Reviewer
Great story told from trixies lips. Amazon Reviewer
77) Lost Souls- 2010 (Book 4 in the Frankenstein Series of Dean Koontz)
Book Summary: #1 New York Times bestselling author Dean Koontz raises the stakes—and the suspense—taking his Frankenstein saga to a dynamic new level with the riveting story of a small town under siege, where good and evil, destruction and creation, converge as the fate of the world hangs in the balance.FRANKENSTEIN: LOST SOULSThe war against humanity has begun. In the dead hours of the night, a stranger enters the home of the mayor of Rainbow Falls, Montana. The stranger is in the vanguard of a wave of intruders who will invade other homes . . . offices . . . every local institution, assuming the identities and the lives of those they have been engineered to replace. Before the sun rises, the town will be under full assault, the opening objective in the new Victor Frankenstein's trajectory of ultimate destruction. Deucalion—Victor's first, haunted creation—saw his maker die in New Orleans two years earlier. Yet an unshakable intuition tells him that Victor lives—and is at work again. Within hours Deucalion will come together with his old allies, detectives Carson O'Connor and Michael Maddison, Victor's engineered wife, Erika Five, and her companion Jocko to confront new peril. Others will gather around them. But this time Victor has a mysterious, powerful new backer, and he and his army are more formidable, their means and intentions infinitely more deadly, than ever before.BONUS: This edition contains an excerpt from Dean Koontz's The City.
The odd juxtaposition of a police procedural with a neo-gothic mad scientist plot gives this novel a wickedly unusual and intriguing feel… Compelling…elegant. Amazon Reviewer
Smart dialogue and cutting-edge scientific notions are the oh-so-sweet icing on this delectable thriller's irresistible, devourable cake. Amazon Reviewer
78) Odd Is on Our Side – 2010
Book Summary: When things get scary, it's nice to know that Odd is on our side.The one and only Odd Thomas is back—in his second edgy and enthralling graphic-novel adventure from #1 New York Times bestselling suspense master Dean Koontz.It's Halloween in Pico Mundo, California, and there's a whiff of something wicked in the autumn air. While the town prepares for its annual festivities, young fry cook Odd Thomas can't shake the feeling that make-believe goblins and ghouls aren't the only things on the prowl. And he should know, since he can see what others cannot: the spirits of the restless dead. But even his frequent visitor, the specter of Elvis Presley, can't seem to point Odd in the right direction.
With the help of his gun-toting girlfriend, Stormy, Odd is out to uncover the terrible truth. Is something sinister afoot in the remote barn guarded by devilish masked men? Has All Hallows Eve mischief taken a malevolent turn? Or is the pleading ghost of a trick-or-treater a frightening omen of doom?
These books are a must for both new and old fans of Koontz's titular hero, Odd Thomas.
Amazon Reviewer
The odd series are my favorite really good read. Amazon Reviewer
79) Darkness Under the Sun – 2010
Book Summary: The chilling account of a pivotal encounter between innocence and ultimate malice, Darkness Under the Sun is the perfect read for Halloween—or for any haunted night—and reveals a secret, fateful turning point in the career of Alton Turner Blackwood, the killer at the dark heart of What the Night Knows, the forthcoming novel by #1 New York Times bestselling author Dean Koontz.There once was a killer who knew the night, its secrets and rhythms. How to hide within its shadows. When to hunt.
He roamed from town to town, city to city, choosing his prey for their beauty and innocence. His cruelties were infinite, his humanity long since forfeit. But still . . . he had not yet discovered how to make his special mark among monsters, how to come fully alive as Death.
This is the story of how he learned those things, and of what we might do to ensure that he does not visit us.
The evil is truly evil and the suspense is as gripping as ever. Amazon Reviewer
Koontz can raise your hackles in an economy of pages and does so here with aplomb. Amazon Reviewer
80) What the Night Knows – 2010
Book Summary: #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLERIn the late summer of a long-ago year, Alton Turner Blackwood brutally murdered four families. His savage spree ended only when he himself was killed by the last survivor of the last family, a fourteen-year-old boy.Half a continent away and two decades later, someone is murdering families again, re-creating in detail Blackwood's crimes. Homicide detective John Calvino is certain that his own family—his wife and three children—will be targets, just as his parents and sisters were victims on that distant night when he was fourteen and killed their slayer.As a detective, John is a man of reason who deals in cold facts. But an extraordinary experience convinces him that sometimes death is not a one-way journey, that sometimes the dead return.Includes the bonus novella Darkness Under the Sun and an excerpt from Dean Koontz's The City!
Compelling, terrifying and fresh . . . one of the best horror novels in years. Amazon Reviewer
81) The Dead Town – 2011 (Book 5 in the Frankenstein Series of Dean Koontz)
Book Summary: The war against humanity is raging. As the small town of Rainbow Falls, Montana, comes under siege, scattered survivors come together to weather the onslaught of the creatures set loose upon the world. As they ready for battle against overwhelming odds, they will learn the full scope of Victor Frankenstein's nihilistic plan to remake the future—and the terrifying reach of his shadowy, powerful supporters.Now the good will make their last, best stand. In a climax that will shatter every expectation, their destinies and the fate of humanity hang in the balance.Dean Koontz's enthralling Frankenstein series has redefined the classic legend of infernal ambition and harrowing retribution for a new century and a new age. Now the master of suspense delivers an unforgettable novel that is at once a thrilling adventure in itself and a mesmerizing conclusion to his saga of the modern monsters among us.
Koontz writes first-rate suspense, scary and stylish. Amazon Reviewer
82) Nevermore – 2011
Book Summary: (W) Dean Koontz, Keith Champagne (A) Andy Smith Love makes us do crazy things. Meet Robert Godric, who in a desperate attempt to bring back his wife, Nora, who died of an aggressive brain cancer, invents a way to travel to parallel earths and searches for a living Nora on the infinite number of Earths. Inadvertently, he and his team encounter an alien hivelike race – the Hydra – that is conquering Earth after Earth after Earth. If the Hydra find our version by following Godric back to it, our civilization will not survive the invasion! Created exclusively for comics, Nevermore is a brand-new story from the masterful pen of the New York Times-bestselling author Dean Koontz and Keith Champagne, with gorgeous illustrations by artist Andy Smith.
No reviews. Amazon Reviewer
83) The Moonlit Mind: A Tale of Suspense- 2011
Book Summary: In this chilling original stand-alone novella, available exclusively as an eBook, #1 New York Times bestselling author Dean Koontz offers a taste of what's to come in his new novel, 77 Shadow Street, with a mesmerizing tale of a homeless boy at large in a city fraught with threats . . . both human and otherwise.Twelve-year-old Crispin has lived on the streets since he was nine—with only his wits and his daring to sustain him, and only his silent dog, Harley, to call his friend. He is always on the move, never lingering in any one place long enough to risk being discovered. Still, there are certain places he returns to. In the midst of the tumultuous city, they are havens of solitude: like the hushed environs of St. Mary Salome Cemetery, a place where Crispin can feel at peace—safe, at least for a while, from the fearsome memories that plague him . . . and seep into his darkest nightmares. But not only his dreams are haunted. The city he roams with Harley has secrets and mysteries, things unexplainable and maybe unimaginable. Crispin has seen ghosts in the dead of night, and sensed dimensions beyond reason in broad daylight. Hints of things disturbing and strange nibble at the edges of his existence, even as dangers wholly natural and earthbound cast their shadows across his path. Alone, drifting, and scavenging to survive is no life for a boy. But the life Crispin has left behind, and is still running scared from, is an unspeakable alternative . . . that may yet catch up with him.There is more to this world, and its darkest corners yet to be encountered, in this eBook's special bonus: a spine-tingling excerpt from Dean Koontz's forthcoming novel, 77 Shadow Street.
Every scene was not spoon fed to the reader, but rather painted with words so descriptive and well written that you are aware you are seeing exactly what Mr. Koontz wants you to see, not something your own mind creates for lack of good writing. Amazon Reviewer
84) 77 Shadow Street – 2011
Book Summary: #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLERWelcome to the Pendleton. Built as a tycoon's dream home in the 1880s and converted to luxury condominiums not quite a century later, the Gilded Age palace at the summit of Shadow Hill is a sanctuary for its fortunate residents. Scant traces remain of the episodes of madness, suicide, mass murder—and whispers of things far worse—that have scarred its grandeur almost from the beginning.But now inexplicable shadows caper across walls, security cameras relay impossible images, phantom voices mutter in strange tongues, not-quite-human figures lurk in the basement, elevators plunge into unknown depths. With each passing hour a terrifying certainty grows: Whatever drove the Pendleton's past occupants to their unspeakable fates is at work again. And as nightmare visions become real, as a deadly tide begins to engulf them, the people at 77 Shadow Street will find the key to humanity's future . . . if they can survive to use it.Includes the bonus novella The Moonlit Mind and an excerpt from Dean Koontz's The City.
Dean Koontz's 77 SHADOW STREET is not an easy book to describe. Amazon Reviewer
As always, a page turner. Amazon Reviewer
85) House of Odd – 2012
Book Summary: Could there really be such a thing as hell on earth? Odd only knows.
#1 New York Times bestselling maestro of macabre suspense Dean Koontz plunges everyone's favorite spirit-spotting fry cook into his most frightening encounter yet, in the thrill-packed third Odd Thomas graphic novel.Transforming a ramshackle mansion into a dream house has become a nightmare for onetime Hollywood producer Nedra Nolan, whose newly purchased fixer-upper in Pico Mundo has sent a string of spooked contractors scurrying off the job, claiming the place is haunted. Who's she gonna call? Her friend recommends Odd Thomas, the mild-mannered young man with a gift for communing with ghosts who won't rest in peace. With his soul mate and sidekick, Stormy Llewellyn, in tow, Odd agrees to investigate the eerie incidents. But his spirit-seeking style is cramped by the obnoxious TV ghost hunters Nedra hires to flush out the troublesome phantoms with elaborate gadgets.As night falls and a raging storm traps them all in the mazelike manse, Odd tries in vain to scare up some lost souls. But instead, something more terrifying than any apparition—something with flesh, blood, and teeth—makes its sinister presence known. And with nowhere to hide, Odd and his fellow hunters suddenly become the prey.
Enjoyed the story. Amazon Reviewer
This was a fun and engaging prequel to the events of the first Odd Thomas novel. Amazon Reviewer
86) Odd Apocalypse – 2012
Book Summary: "Koontz gives [Odd Thomas] wit, good humor, a familiarity with the dark side of humanity—and moral outrage."—USA Today
Once presided over by a Roaring '20s Hollywood mogul, the magnificent West Coast estate known as Roseland now harbors a reclusive billionaire financier and his faithful servants—and their guests: Odd Thomas, the young fry cook who sees the dead and tries to help them, and Annamaria, his inscrutably charming traveling companion. Fresh from a harrowing clash with lethal adversaries, they welcome their host's hospitality. But Odd's extraordinary eye for the uncanny detects disturbing secrets that could make Roseland more hell than haven.Soon enough the house serves up a taste of its terrors, as Odd begins to unravel the darkest mystery of his curious career. What consequences await those who confront evil at its most profound? Odd only knows."Odd Thomas is the greatest character Dean Koontz has ever created. He's funny, humble, immensely likable, courageous, and just a joy to read about."—Seattle Post-Intelligencer
"[Odd Thomas is] one of the most remarkable and appealing characters in current fiction."—The Virginian-Pilot
"Supernatural thrills with a side of laughs."—The Denver Post
Includes a preview of the next novel in the Odd Thomas series: Deeply Odd!
An inventive . . . mix of suspense, whimsy and uplift. It's refreshing to come across a character as good-hearted as Odd. Amazon Reviewer
If Stephen King is the Rolling Stones of novels, Koontz is the Beatles. Amazon Reviewer
87) Odd Interlude: A Special Odd Thomas Adventure – 2012
Book Summary: Odd Interlude, Dean Koontz's New York Times bestselling three-part digital series—now in one volume for the first time
THERE'S ROOM AT THE INN. BUT YOU MIGHT NOT GET OUT.
Nestled on a lonely stretch along the Pacific coast, quaint roadside outpost Harmony Corner offers everything a weary traveler needs—a cozy diner, a handy service station, a cluster of cottages . . . and the Harmony family homestead presiding over it all. But when Odd Thomas and company stop to spend the night, they discover that there's more to this secluded haven than meets the eye—and that between life and death, there is something more frightening than either.Includes a preview of the next novel in the Odd Thomas series: Deeply Odd!
"An inventive . . . mix of suspense, whimsy and uplift."—The Washington Post"Odd Thomas is the greatest character Dean Koontz has ever created. He's funny, humble, immensely likable, courageous, and just a joy to read about."—Seattle Post-Intelligencer
"Koontz gives [Odd Thomas] wit, good humor, a familiarity with the dark side of humanity—and moral outrage."—USA Today
[Odd Thomas is] one of the most remarkable and appealing characters in current fiction. Amazon Reviewer
Odd Thomas is the greatest character Dean Koontz has ever created. He's funny, humble, immensely likable, courageous, and just a joy to read about. Amazon Reviewer
88) Deeply Odd – 2013
Book Summary: NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLERThe pistol appeared in his hand the way a dove appears in the hand of a good magician, as if it materialized out of thin air. "You think I won't do it right here in the open. But you'd be surprised. . . . You'll drop before you get the breath to scream."
The truck driver is decked out like a rhinestone cowboy, only instead of a guitar he's slinging a gun—and Odd Thomas is on the wrong end of the barrel. Though he narrowly dodges a bullet, Odd can't outrun the shocking vision burned into his mind . . . or the destiny that will drive him into a harrowing showdown with absolute evil.DEEPLY ODD
How do you make sure a crime that hasn't happened yet, never does? That's the critical question facing Odd Thomas, the young man with a unique ability to commune with restless spirits and help them find justice and peace. But this time, it's the living who desperately need Odd on their side. Three helpless innocents will be brutally executed unless Odd can intervene in time. Who the potential victims are and where they can be found remain a mystery. The only thing Odd knows for sure is who the killer will be: the homicidal stranger who tried to shoot him dead in a small-town parking lot.With the ghost of Alfred Hitchcock riding shotgun and a network of unlikely allies providing help along the way, Odd embarks on an interstate game of cat and mouse with his sinister quarry. He will soon learn that his adversary possesses abilities that may surpass his own and operates in service to infinitely more formidable foes, with murder a mere prelude to much deeper designs. Traveling across a landscape haunted by portents of impending catastrophe, Odd will do what he must and go where his path leads him, drawing ever closer to the dark heart of his long journey—and, perhaps, to the bright light beyond.Praise for Deeply Odd and Dean Koontz's Odd Thomas series
"Not since Watchers has Dean Koontz created such an endearing and enduring character as Odd Thomas. . . . One of our contemporary masters."—San Antonio Express-News
"[A] popular series . . . Koontz asks real questions about the nature of good and evil."—The New York Times Book Review"Odd evokes the homespun wisdom of Forrest Gump amid the mind-spinning adventures of a Jack Bauer. . . . The ultimate Everyman . . . an avatar of hope and honor and courage for all of us—the linchpin of a rollicking good tale."—BookPage
"There's never anything predictable about an Odd Thomas adventure. Another satisfying entry in this wildly popular series. It's Koontz, and it's Odd. Class dismissed."—Booklist
Not since Watchers has Dean Koontz created such an endearing and enduring character as Odd Thomas. . . . One of our contemporary masters. Amazon Reviewer
There's never anything predictable about an Odd Thomas adventure. Another satisfying entry in this wildly popular series. It's Koontz, and it's Odd. Class dismissed. Amazon Reviewer
89) Wilderness – 2013
Book Summary: NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLERWith this darkly intriguing original e-short story, Dean Koontz sets the stage for his masterly new novel of mystery, suspense, and strange wonder—Innocence.
"The world is a machine that produces endless surprises and mysteries layered on mysteries."
Addison Goodheart is a mystery even to himself. He was born in an isolated home surrounded by a deep forest, never known to his father, kept secret from everyone but his mother, who barely accepts him. She is haunted by private demons and keeps many secrets—none of which she dreads more than the young son who adores her.Only in the woods, among the wildlife, is Addison truly welcome. Only there can he be at peace. Until the day he first knows terror, the day when his life changes radically and forever . . .
Acclaim for Dean Koontz
"A rarity among bestselling writers, Koontz continues to pursue new ways of telling stories, never content with repeating himself."—Chicago Sun-Times
"Tumbling, hallucinogenic prose. 'Serious' writers . . . might do well to examine his technique."—The New York Times Book Review
"[Koontz] has always had near-Dickensian powers of description, and an ability to yank us from one page to the next that few novelists can match."—Los Angeles Times
"Koontz is a superb plotter and wordsmith. He chronicles the hopes and fears of our time in broad strokes and fine detail, using popular fiction to explore the human condition."—USA Today
"Characters and the search for meaning, exquisitely crafted, are the soul of [Koontz's] work. . . . One of the master storytellers of this or any age."—The Tampa Tribune
"A literary juggler."—The Times (London)
This short piece is very well-written and captivating. Amazon Reviewer
It's Koontz, so the writing is fantastic. Amazon Reviewer
90) The Neighbor – 2014
Book Summary: NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLEREvery city has its wonders and mysteries. For the Pomerantz family, the most disturbing mystery at the moment is the identity and the intentions of their new neighbor, in this eBook original short story—a prequel to The City, the gripping and moving new novel by Dean Koontz.The year is 1967. Malcolm Pomerantz is twelve, geeky and socially awkward, while his seriously bright sister, Amalia, is spirited and beautiful. Each is the other's best friend, united by a boundless interest in the world beyond their dysfunctional parents' unhappy home. But even the troubled Pomerantz household will seem to be a haven compared to the house next door, after an enigmatic and very secretive new neighbor takes up residence in the darkest hours of the night.Acclaim for Dean Koontz
THE NEIGHBOR is billed as the prequel to Koontz's soon-to-be-released novel THE CITY. Amazon Reviewer
If you've ever wondered how good a short story can be, Dean Koontz reminds us in The Neighbor. Amazon Reviewer
91) The City – 2014
Book Summary: NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • Includes Dean Koontz's short story "The Neighbor"!This ebook edition contains a special preview of Dean Koontz's The Silent Corner.Dean Koontz is at the peak of his acclaimed powers with this major new novel.A young boy, a musical prodigy, discovering life's wonders—and mortal dangers.
His best friend, also a gifted musician, who will share his journey into destiny.
His remarkable family, tested by the extremes of evil and bound by the depths of love . . . on a collision course with a band of killers about to unleash anarchy.
And two unlikely allies, an everyday hero tempered by the past and a woman of mystery who holds the key to the future.These are the people of The City, a place where enchantment and malice entwine, courage and honor are found in the most unexpected quarters, and the way forward lies buried deep inside the heart. Brilliantly illumined by magic dark and light, their unforgettable story is a riveting, soul-stirring saga that speaks to everyone, a major milestone in the celebrated career of #1 New York Times bestselling author Dean Koontz and a dazzling realization of the evergreen dreams we all share.Praise for The City"Beautifully crafted and poignant . . . The City is many things: serious, lighthearted, nostalgic, courageous, scary, and mysterious. . . . [It] will have readers staying up late at night."—New York Journal of Books"[Koontz] can flat-out write. . . . The message of hope and depiction of how the choices you make can change your life ring true and will remain with you once the book has been closed."—BookreporterAcclaim for Dean Koontz
"Perhaps more than any other author, Koontz writes fiction perfectly suited to the mood of America: novels that acknowledge the reality and tenacity of evil but also the power of good . . . that entertain vastly as they uplift."—Publishers Weekly"A rarity among bestselling writers, Koontz continues to pursue new ways of telling stories, never content with repeating himself."—Chicago Sun-Times
Beautifully crafted and poignant . . . The City is many things: serious, lighthearted, nostalgic, courageous, scary, and mysterious. . . . [It] will have readers staying up late at night." Amazon Reviewer
Perhaps more than any other author, Koontz writes fiction perfectly suited to the mood of America: novels that acknowledge the reality and tenacity of evil but also the power of good . . . that entertain vastly as they uplift. Amazon Reviewer
92) Ask Anna: Advice for the Furry and Forlorn – 2014
Book Summary: Title: Ask Anna( Advice for the Furry and Forlorn) Binding: Hardcover Author: AnnaKoontz Publisher: CenterStreet
This book does not disappoint. Koontz explains in the beginning who Anna is, his golden retriever. Amazon Reviewer
Love these books! A smile in every page. Amazon Reviewer
93) Odd Thomas: You Are Destined to Be Together Forever – 2014
Book Summary: This exclusive audiobook short story looks back – way back – to where it all began for Odd Thomas and Stormy Llewellyn, two souls who are destined to be together forever.Amid the dizzying rides, tantalizing games of chance, and fanciful attractions of a state fair, two teenage sweethearts on the cusp of life and love's pleasures find their way to a shadowy carnival tent brimming with curiosities. There, from the bizarre and enthralling Gypsy Mummy, a mechanized merchant of dreams and prognosticator of tomorrows, the young couple learns what fate promises for them. But fate, for Odd Thomas and Stormy Llewellyn, is something altogether different: full of dark corners, sharp edges, and things no seer or soothsayer could ever anticipate.And for Odd Thomas, a gallant fry cook from a sleepy California desert town, the future beckons – to listen to unquiet spirits, pursue unsettling mysteries, and learn shocking truths…for a purpose far greater than himself.
94) Saint Odd – 2015
Book Summary: NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY SUSPENSE MAGAZINE • Includes Dean Koontz's short story "You Are Destined to Be Together Forever"—its first time in print!From "one of the master storytellers of this or any age" (The Tampa Tribune) comes the stunning final adventure of "one of the most remarkable and appealing characters in current fiction"(The Virginian-Pilot)—as Dean Koontz brings the unforgettable odyssey of Odd Thomas to its dazzling conclusion.
Odd Thomas is back where it all started . . . because the time has come to finish it. Since he left his simple life in the small town of Pico Mundo, California, his journey has taken him to places strange and wonderful, mysterious and terrifying. Across the land, in the company of mortals and spirits alike, he has known kindness and cruelty, felt love and loss, saved lives and taken them—as he's borne witness to humanity's greatest good and darkest evil. Again and again, he has gone where he must and done what he had to do—for better or worse—with his courage and devotion sorely tested, and his soul forever changed. Every triumph has been hard won. Each sacrifice has taken its toll.Now, whatever destiny drives him has finally steered his steps home, where those he cares for most surround him, the memory of his tragically lost true love haunts him, and one last challenge—vast and dreadful—awaits him. For Odd Thomas, born to serve a purpose far greater than himself, the wandering is done. Only the reckoning remains.Praise for Saint Odd"Equal parts supernatural thriller, cultural satire, character study, bildungsroman, offbeat love story, road trip, spiritual meditation, and apocalyptic adventure, the Odd Thomas books . . . are more than irresistible page-turners. They are intimate, haunting, often heartrending, exhilarating, and beautifully composed."—Biography.com
"Odd Thomas is such an endearing and likable character and, more than anything else, has been the reason for the success of the series. . . . For readers who have been with Odd all along, Saint Odd will satisfy."—BookreporterAcclaim for Dean Koontz and his Odd Thomas novels"Odd's strange gifts, coupled with his intelligence and self-effacing humor, make him one of the most quietly authoritative characters in recent popular fiction."—Publishers Weekly"Koontz gives his character wit, good humor, a familiarity with the dark side of humanity—and moral outrage."—USA Today
"The ultimate Everyman . . . an avatar of hope and honor and courage for all of us—the linchpin of a rollicking good tale . . . Odd evokes the homespun wisdom of Forrest Gump amid the mind-spinning adventures of a Jack Bauer."—BookPage
"There's never anything predictable about an Odd Thomas adventure."—Booklist
"The nice young fry cook with the occult powers is [Koontz's] most likable creation . . . candid, upright, amusing and sometimes withering."—The New York Times
"An inventive . . . mix of suspense, whimsy and uplift."—The Washington Post
"Heartfelt and provocative . . . a wonderfully rich and entertaining story."—Chicago Sun-Times
Odd's strange gifts, coupled with his intelligence and self-effacing humor, make him one of the most quietly authoritative characters in recent popular fiction. Amazon Reviewer
Koontz gives his character wit, good humor, a familiarity with the dark side of humanity—and moral outrage. Amazon Reviewer
95) Innocence by Dean Koontz Summary – 2015
96) Last Light – 2015
Book Summary: From bestselling author Dean Koontz comes an eBook original novella, the first of two tales that pave the way for Ashley Bell, his new novel of dark suspense! A woman with a good heart and a troubling gift. A man with a twisted soul and a terrifying talent. In this literal war of wills, only one can survive.
With just a touch, Makani Hisoka-O'Brien can see the deepest secrets that others conceal—and it frightens her. There's danger in the terrible knowledge that floods her mind and haunts her conscience.With just a touch, Rainer Sparks can learn the biggest problems that others bear—and it thrills him. There's profit to be made making problems go away, by any means . . . including murder.In a place as big as Southern California, these two might have never met and discovered one another's chilling abilities. But good and evil have a way of colliding . . . with shattering consequences.
"Dean Koontz is a prose stylist whose lyricism heightens malevolence and tension. [He creates] characters of unusual richness and depth . . . with a level of perception and sensitivity that is not merely convincing; it's astonishing."—The Seattle Times
"Demanding much of itself, Koontz's style bleaches out clichés while showing a genius for details. He leaves his competitors buried in the dust."—Kirkus Reviews
It's good vs. evil, surfer style. Amazon Reviewer
That's how I remember Dean Koontz. No pages long descriptive prose, but suspenseful developments that force you to keep on reading. Amazon Reviewer
97) Final Hour – 2015
Book Summary: NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • Following Last Light comes Final Hour, the second of two standalone eBook original novellas leading in to Ashley Bell, the highly anticipated new novel of suspense from Dean Koontz!
Just by touching others, Makani Hisoka-O'Brien can see the darkest secrets they keep. The troubling talent has made the Southern California surfer wary of casual contact. But while impulsively saving a stranger from an accident, she experiences her most disturbing vision.With only a good friend to help her, and mere traces of information to guide her, Makani must track down two mysterious women—one of them innocent, one not.But Makani is stepping into the path of an adversary more dangerous than she can imagine: a brutal predator behind a pretty face, who won't go down without drawing blood.Acclaim for Dean Koontz
Final Hour, though brief, is a perfect vehicle for Koontz to paint a story in the starkest contrasts of innocence and pure evil as possible. His prose vividly display this contrast. Amazon Reviewer
As is this author's wonderful characterization trademark, the heroine is a good person we root for, as is her ally, and the villain is REALLY bad. Good vs evil in graceful, metaphor-jammed Koontzian prose. Amazon Reviewer
98) Ashley Bell – 2015
Book Summary: #1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY BOOKPAGE • The must-read thriller of the year, for readers of dark psychological suspense and modern classics of mystery and adventure. Don't miss a special preview of Dean Koontz's upcoming novel, The Silent Corner, in the back of the book.
The girl who said no to death.Bibi Blair is a fierce, funny, dauntless young woman—whose doctor says she has one year to live.She replies, "We'll see."Her sudden recovery astonishes medical science.An enigmatic woman convinces Bibi that she escaped death so that she can save someone else. Someone named Ashley Bell.But save her from what, from whom? And who is Ashley Bell? Where is she?Bibi's obsession with finding Ashley sends her on the run from threats both mystical and worldly, including a rich and charismatic cult leader with terrifying ambitions.Here is an eloquent, riveting, brilliantly paced story with an exhilarating heroine and a twisting, ingenious plot filled with staggering surprises. Ashley Bell is a new milestone in literary suspense from the long-acclaimed master.Praise for Ashley Bell"A mind-bender filled with satisfying surprises."—People (book of the week)"[With] lyrical writing and compelling characters . . . Koontz stands alone, and this novel is a prime example of literary suspense. . . . One of his best."—Associated Press"Grabs you on page one and keeps you enthralled with ever widening loops of intrigue, spine-tingling plot twists, absorbing characters and emotional involvement . . . extraordinary."—Bookreporter"Heart-pounding and mind boggling . . . a rarity of a thriller—one that asks big questions about life and destiny while succeeding in creating [an] eerie sense of reality."—Shelf Awareness
"Strap in and hold on. . . . When a writer has managed to catch this kind of lightning in a bottle, every reader should experience the full jolt."—BookPage
Expertly blending the mystical and the everyday, [Dean] Koontz creates alternate universes for his characters while playing hide-and-seek with the truth. . . . A mind-bender filled with satisfying surprises. Amazon Reviewer
Dean Koontz outdoes himself with his latest journey, which solidifies his reputation as one of the best storytellers in the book business. . . . [With] lyrical writing and compelling characters . . . Koontz stands alone, and this novel is a prime example of literary suspense. . . . [He] knows what he's doing, and the baffling story with the stellar character of Bibi Blair makes this thriller one of his best. Amazon Reviewer
99) The Silent Corner – 2017 (First Book in the Jane Hawk Series of Dean Koontz)
Book Summary: A dazzling new series, a pure adrenaline rush, debuts with Jane Hawk, a remarkable heroine certain to become an icon of suspense"I very much need to be dead."These are the chilling words left behind by a man who had everything to live for—but took his own life. In the aftermath, his widow, Jane Hawk, does what all her grief, fear, and fury demand: find the truth, no matter what.People of talent and accomplishment, people admired and happy and sound of mind, have been committing suicide in surprising numbers. When Jane seeks to learn why, she becomes the most-wanted fugitive in America. Her powerful enemies are protecting a secret so important—so terrifying—that they will exterminate anyone in their way.But all their power and viciousness may not be enough to stop a woman as clever as they are cold-blooded, as relentless as they are ruthless—and who is driven by a righteous rage they can never comprehend. Because it is born of love.Look for a special preview of Dean Koontz's next Jane Hawk novel, The Whispering Room, in the back of the book.Don't miss any of Dean Koontz's gripping Jane Hawk thrillers:
THE SILENT CORNER • THE WHISPERING ROOM • THE CROOKED STAIRCASEPraise for The Silent Corner"Gripping . . . The paranoia and mystery increase as the story unfolds. . . . Koontz has created such a wonderful character in Jane Hawk that . . . readers will clamor for more tales involving Hawk and her quest for justice. Koontz rocks it again."—Associated Press"The latest page-turner by Dean Koontz introduces readers to Jane Hawk . . . an inspired choice for a protagonist, by far the strongest part of a reliably entertaining book by the perennial bestselling author. . . . Action, zippy dialogue and a winning character at the center of the book, part of a new series by Koontz."—Minneapolis Star-Tribune"In this era of stingy text-message prose, Mr. Koontz is practically Shakespeare. . . . The Silent Corner brims with both action and emotion."—Pittsburgh Post-Gazette"Vintage Dean Koontz: paranoia-fueled suspense . . . sleek and highly realized action, developed characters, and more twists and turns than any two ordinary novels combined. . . . Amongst Dean Koontz's finest contemporary work."—Mystery Scene
Gripping . . . The paranoia and mystery increase as the story unfolds. . . . Koontz has created [a] wonderful character in Jane Hawk. . . . Koontz rocks it again. Amazon Reviewer
A proven specialist in action scenes, Koontz pulls off some doozies here. . . . The book is full of neat touches. . . . And the prose, as always in a Koontz novel, is first-rate. Perhaps Koontz's leanest, meanest thriller, this initial entry in a new series introduces a smart, appealing heroine who can outthink as well as outshoot the baddest of bad dudes. Amazon Reviewer
100) The Whispering Room – 2017 (Second Book in the Jane Hawk Series of Dean Koontz)
Book Summary: NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • Jane Hawk—fiction's most relentless, resourceful, stunning new heroine—continues her battle against a murderous conspiracy in the riveting sequel to The Silent Corner."No time to delay. Do what you were born to do. Fame will be yours when you do this."These are the words that ring in the mind of mild-mannered, beloved schoolteacher Cora Gundersun—just before she takes her own life, and many others', in a shocking act of carnage. When the disturbing contents of her secret journal are discovered, it seems certain that she must have been insane. But Jane Hawk knows better.In the wake of her husband's inexplicable suicide—and the equally mysterious deaths of scores of other exemplary individuals—Jane picks up the trail of a secret cabal of powerful players who think themselves above the law and beyond punishment. But the ruthless people bent on hijacking America's future for their own monstrous ends never banked on a highly trained FBI agent willing to go rogue—and become the nation's most wanted fugitive—in order to derail their insidious plans to gain absolute power with a terrifying technological breakthrough.Driven by love for her lost husband and by fear for the five-year-old son she has sent into hiding, Jane Hawk has become an unstoppable predator. Those she is hunting will have nowhere to run when her shadow falls across them.Don't miss any of Dean Koontz's gripping Jane Hawk thrillers:
THE SILENT CORNER • THE WHISPERING ROOM • THE CROOKED STAIRCASE • THE FORBIDDEN DOOR • THE NIGHT WINDOW Praise for The Whispering Room"Koontz has never exactly shied away from complex characters or situations. And this situation gets very complex indeed, as Jane pursues the people behind the conspiracy with the kind of single-minded relentlessness that makes the book absolutely spellbinding. As good as The Silent Corner was, this one's even better. . . . Koontz is on another roll with a new series that boasts a juicy premise and a compelling star. . . . Pure gold."—Booklist (starred review)"A deeply layered, satisfying thriller that is character-driven and nearly impossible to put down . . . grounded in many real-world, current issues . . . [The Whispering Room] never loses sight of the classic political/sci-fi/thriller elements that make it so much fun to read."—Bookreporter
A deeply layered, satisfying thriller that is character-driven and nearly impossible to put down . . . grounded in many real-world, current issues . . . [The Whispering Room] never loses sight of the classic political/sci-fi/thriller elements that make it so much fun to read. Amazon Reviewer
From exciting to overdrive, there's something dangerous around every corner that will have readers loving the thrills and chills. . . . Hawk is one of those rare characters that quickly became a favorite with readers and, thankfully, will continue for a long time to come. Amazon Reviewer
101) Ricochet Joe – 2018
Book Summary: Can an ordinary guy make extraordinary choices in a battle between humanity and unearthly evil?Joe Mandel is a perfectly ordinary guy from a perfectly ordinary town—a college student and community volunteer who dreams of one day publishing a novel. When a series of strange intuitions leads him to a crime in progress, Joe jumps headlong into danger without hesitation. In the aftermath, he wonders about the uncanny impulse that suddenly swept over him.Until new friend Portia Montclair, the strangely wise daughter of the local police chief, explains to him what sent him ricocheting around town like a crazy pinball. Portia tells of another reality, a reality more thrilling—and terrifying—than Joe ever imagined. Timeless, elemental forces of good and evil have come to the quiet town of Little City: a cosmic entity capable of infecting human beings, and the seeker who has chosen Joe to find it.To stop the malevolent invader, this average Joe must be braver than he ever thought possible…and face the hardest decisions of his life.The author of more than one hundred novels, Dean Koontz has sold more than 500 million copies and been published in thirty-eight languages. Fourteen novels have risen to number one on the New York Times hardcover bestseller list. Koontz's 2003 thriller Odd Thomas was adapted into the 2013 film, one of many film adaptations of his work. Koontz was born and raised in Pennsylvania and graduated from Shippensburg University. He lives in Southern California with his wife, Gerda, and their golden retriever, Elsa.American oddball illustrator and designer Oliver Barrett grew up in Ohio on a steady diet of science fiction, role-playing games, and below-average athletics. He cut his teeth working as an art director at advertising and branding agencies before setting off on his own to make his mark on the world. This background set the stage for a career of clever concepts, frenetic line work, and engaging imagery that's sought after by the Nikes, Amazons, and Netflixes of the globe, to name a few. He can also deadlift almost four hundred pounds.
"Ricochet Joe" has strong echoes from "Tick Tock" in its' unmistakable Koontzian humor. Amazon Reviewer
Dean Koontz still has it, whatever it is. He can still make me feel like I am in the story. Amazon Reviewer
102) The Crooked Staircase – 2018 (Third Book in the Jane Hawk Series of Dean Koontz)
Book Summary: NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • Jane Hawk—who dazzled readers in The Silent Corner and The Whispering Room—faces the fight of her life, against the threat of a lifetime, in this electrifying thriller by #1 New York Times bestselling suspense master Dean Koontz."I could be dead tomorrow. Or something worse than dead."Jane Hawk knows she may be living on borrowed time. But as long as she's breathing, she'll never cease her one-woman war against the terrifying conspiracy that threatens the freedom—and free will—of millions. Battling the strange epidemic of murder-suicides that claimed Jane's husband, and is escalating across the country, has made the rogue FBI agent a wanted fugitive, relentlessly hunted not only by the government but by the secret cabal behind the plot. Deploying every resource their malign nexus of power and technology commands, Jane's enemies are determined to see her dead . . . or make her wish she was.Jane's ruthless pursuers can't stop her from drawing a bead on her prey: a cunning man with connections in high places, a twisted soul of unspeakable depths with an army of professional killers on call. Propelled by her righteous fury and implacable insistence on justice, Jane will make her way from southern Southern California to the snow-swept slopes of Lake Tahoe to confront head-on the lethal forces arrayed against her. But nothing can prepare her for the chilling truth that awaits when she descends the crooked staircase to the dark and dreadful place where her long nightmare was born.Don't miss any of Dean Koontz's gripping Jane Hawk thrillers:
THE SILENT CORNER • THE WHISPERING ROOM • THE CROOKED STAIRCASE • THE FORBIDDEN DOOR • THE NIGHT WINDOW
Praise for The Crooked Staircase"An absorbing thriller full of fresh touches . . . Writing his unusual heroine, Koontz keeps the pages alive with attitude as well as action. . . . For Hawk, who is as fearless as she is beautiful, no obstacle is too great, especially with the well-being of her hidden-away five-year-old son on her mind."—Kirkus Reviews"Spellbinding . . . Beautifully plotted and written with notable care and flare . . . The Hawk series . . . is among [Koontz's] best work."—Booklist (starred review)"Unrelenting . . . [Jane] rivets readers' attention. . . . Michael Crichton fans and thriller aficionados who appreciate a fierce female protagonist . . . should be urged to meet Jane Hawk."—Library Journal
An absorbing thriller full of fresh touches . . . Writing his unusual heroine, [Dean] Koontz keeps the pages alive with attitude as well as action. . . . For [Jane] Hawk, who is as fearless as she is beautiful, no obstacle is too great, especially with the well-being of her hidden-away five-year-old son on her mind. Amazon Reviewer
Unrelenting . . . [Jane] rivets readers' attention. . . . Michael Crichton fans and thriller aficionados who appreciate a fierce female protagonist . . . should be urged to meet Jane Hawk. Amazon Reviewer
103) Darkest Desires – 2018
Book Summary: From best-selling author Dean Koontz, a trilogy of original novellas, "Last Light", "Final Hour", and "Troubled Times", about an extraordinary heroine – Makani Hisoka-O'Brien – a Southern California surfer and clairvoyant."Last Light"
Makani is a young woman with a good heart and the gift of touch – a troubling gift, and sometime curse, that separates her from others, from her family, friends, and lovers – a gift that makes her wary of casual contact. For when Makani touches others, their darkest thoughts and secret deeds are revealed to her. But her exile from the world at large comes to an end when she meets a "gifted" man with a talent of his own – a talent guided by a twisted soul. In a war of wills, only one will survive."Final Hour"
Makani saves a stranger from an accident in the park and experiences a most disturbing vision. With her friend Pogo, her dog Bob, and mere traces of information to guide her, Makani must track down two mysterious sisters – one of them innocent, one not."Troubled Times"
A friend reveals that he is under attack from a man with supernatural talents – a malevolent man with the power to manipulate time. The power was meant for good – to save humanity – but it was usurped by this man of insatiable greed and lust. Makani must use her gift, yet again, not only to save her friend, but the world as well. Has Makani finally met her match? Can her good heart stand up to such evil? Someone's time is up, and only time will tell whose time that is.
Dean Knootz does it again. Amazon Reviewer
Great book series, great characters by my favorite author. Amazon Reviewer
104) The Forbidden Door – 2018 (Fourth Book in the Jane Hawk Series of Dean Koontz)
Book Summary: Her enemies will learn the true meaning of fearThe No.1 New York Times bestseller and master of suspense Dean Koontz returns with the new Jane Hawk blockbuster.I will come for you. Nothing can stop me!Rogue FBI agent Jane Hawk is on the trail of the members of a murderous organization who drove her husband and scores of other fine individuals to commit suicide for no explicable reason.Now the secret cabal behind the plot is closing in on her beloved five-year-old son, whom she sent into protective hiding with her dearest friends.Jane will stop at nothing to save him. But even if she can get to him in time there's still the risk that the forbidden door will be opened and an unimaginable terror unleashed.
The author really gets his kicks writing about the sadistic ways you can dehumanize, torture and kill people in the worst way turning family members against each other in a killing frenzy. Amazon Reviewer
Dean Koontz has always had a special ability to make insightful commentary on the world around us with his fictive dream. Amazon Reviewer
105) The Night Window – 2019 (Fifth Book in the Jane Hawk Series of Dean Koontz)
Book Summary: NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • Jane Hawk's one-woman war comes to an explosive climax as the rogue FBI agent gambles everything against a terrifying conspiracy, for vengeance, for justice, and for humanity's freedom—from the author of The Silent Corner."Jane Hawk is arguably the best character Koontz has created. . . . Simply put, wow."—Associated PressA visionary young filmmaker hunted for sport across a vast Colorado ranch by the celebrated billionaire at the heart of a monstrous cabal . . .A brilliant computer hacker slipping through top-secret databases a whisper ahead of security trackers, gathering the facts to fight the all-powerful perpetrators of mass murder . . .A pair of brutal operators, methodically shadowing their targets with every cutting-edge tool in the arsenal of today's surveillance state . . .A sequence of quiet heroes—everyday citizens—stepping up, stepping forward, intent on countering the advancing darkness . . .A Vegas mob boss teamed with a homicidal sociopath, circling a beloved boy and his protectors, aiming to secure him as leverage against his fugitive mother . . .And that fugitive mother herself, ex-agent Jane Hawk, closing in on the malevolent architects of ruin she has stalked as they stalk her, prepared to sacrifice herself to finally bring them down.These are the people and circumstances of The Night Window, the thrilling new novel in Dean Koontz's acclaimed Jane Hawk series. Replete—and then some—with the ingenious twists, the spellbinding action, the resonant themes, the sheer heart that have characterized Jane's journey from the start, The Night Window follows its extraordinary heroine to her long-sought objective, in a stunning, unforgettable finale.Don't miss any of Dean Koontz's gripping Jane Hawk thrillers:
"The spectacular finale to Jane's story . . . will hit series fans with all the impact of a carefully calibrated hammer blow."—Booklist (starred review)
"The best installment in the series since the first . . . [Koontz] revs it up with entertaining encounters and offbeat humor."—Kirkus Reviews
The spectacular finale to Jane's story . . . will hit series fans with all the impact of a carefully calibrated hammer blow. Amazon Reviewer
The best installment in the series since the first . . . [Koontz] revs it up with entertaining encounters and offbeat humor. Amazon Reviewer
106) Exit Wounds – 2019
Book Summary: Exit Wounds is a thrilling anthology of crime stories written by masters of the genre, including Dean Koontz, Val McDermid, Lee Child, Jeffery Deaver, Elly Griffiths, Dennis Lehane, Joe R. Lansdale, and others.After an introduction by the editors, Paul B. Kane and Marie O'Regan, this collection includes the following stories:
"The Bully" by Jeffery Deaver
"Dead Weight" by Fiona Cummins
"Like a Glass Jaw" by Mark Billingham
"On The Anatomization of an Unknown Man (1637) by Frans Mier" by John Connolly
"The Pitcher" by Sarah Hilary
"Disciplined" by Martyn Waites
"The Consumers" by Dennis Lehane
"Voices Through the Wall" by Alex Gray
"Wet with Rain" by Lee Child
"Happy Holidays" by Val McDermid
"Fool You Twice" by Steph Broadribb
"Lebensraum" by Christopher Fowler
"Dancing Towards the Blade" by Mark Billingham
"Kittens" by Dean Koontz
"Take My Hand" by A. K. Benedict
"Dressed to Kill" by James Oswald
"Booty and the Beast" by Joe R. Lansdale
"The New Lad" by Paul Finch
"The Recipe" by Louise Jensen
The full list of narrators includes Kate Reading, Austin Rising, Marisa Calin, Matthew Lloyd Davies, Alan Smyth, Peter Noble, Derek Perkins, Courtney Patterson, Alison Larkin, Robert Fass, Justine Eyre, Jennifer Woodward, Helen Lloyd, Ron Butler, Rachel Jacobs, Shiromi Arserio, Ralph Lister, Ralph Lister, and James Langton.
"Voices Through the Wall" 2009 by Alex Gray. Originally published in Shattered: Every Crime Has a Victim. Reprinted by permission of the author. "Wet with Rain" 2014 by Lee Child. Originally published in Belfast Noir. Reprinted by permission of the author. "Happy Holidays" 2008 by Val McDermid. Originally published in the Daily Mail. Reprinted by permission of the author. "Fool You Twice" 2019 by Marland Broadribb, Ltd. "Lebensraum" 2019 by Christopher Fowler. "Dancing Towards the Blade" Mark Billingham, Ltd. A version of this story was first published in Men from Boys, edited by John Harvey. Published by William Heinemann, Ltd., 2003. Reprinted by permission of the author. "Kittens" 1966 by Dean Koontz. Originally published in The Reflector, Shippensburg University, Shippensburg, Pennsylvania; revised edition 1995 by Dean R. Koontz. Reprinted by permission of the author. "Take My Hand" 2019 by A. K. Benedict. "Dressed to Kill" 2019 by James Oswald. "Booty and the Beast" 1995 by Joe R. Lansdale. Originally published in Archon Gaming. Reprinted by permission of the author. "The New Lad" 2019 by Paul Finch. "The Recipe" 2019 by Louise Jensen.
Interesting short stories, twists & turns. Amazon Reviewer
Compelling characters, sinister plots, and crackling atmosphere can all be found in the short stories nestled among the pages of EXIT WOUNDS and I highly recommend it to all fiction readers, especially those who are unsure about short stories because this collection is sure to change your mind. Amazon Reviewer
107) Devoted – 2020
Book Summary: An Amazon Charts, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today bestseller.From Dean Koontz, the master of suspense, comes an epic thriller about a terrifying killer and the singular compassion it will take to defeat him."Canine or human, it is hard to find a more lovable character in fiction than Kipp. Devoted has every mark of a classic." —Associated PressWoody Bookman hasn't spoken a word in his eleven years of life. Not when his father died in a freak accident. Not when his mother, Megan, tells him she loves him. For Megan, keeping her boy safe and happy is what matters. But Woody believes a monstrous evil was behind his father's death and now threatens him and his mother. And he's not alone in his thoughts. An ally unknown to him is listening.A uniquely gifted dog with a heart as golden as his breed, Kipp is devoted beyond reason to people. When he hears the boy who communicates like he does, without speaking, Kipp knows he needs to find him before it's too late.Woody's fearful suspicions are taking shape. A man driven by a malicious evil has set a depraved plan into motion. And he's coming after Woody and his mother. The reasons are primal. His powers are growing. And he's not alone. Only a force greater than evil can stop what's coming next.
Readers who were wondering how Koontz could possibly follow up his remarkable Jane Hawk series can breathe a sigh of relief. His new novel finds him still at the top of his game…Scary, sickening (in that good way), and touching, this is a novel that will delight both the author's legion of fans and those who finally decide it's time to find out what this guy Koontz is all about. Amazon Reviewer
If you're a dog person, you'll love Devoted. Amazon Reviewer
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