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3.39 AVERAGE
3.39 AVERAGE
I went into this book blind but even then it was definitely not what I was expecting. I found it to be extremely cheesy. It was my first experience with Dean Kootz and from what I’ve read in the reviews this is not his usual style so I’ll try it again but man I did not like this book. I gave points for breaking the fourth wall but that was a stretch. Felt like an adult children’s after school special
This was my first Dean Koontz book and it was....weird. I mean I've read weird books before but this was really bizarre. Are all of his books like this? I really liked the characters. 5 stars for them. Although sometimes they were long winded and used too many words and I just wanted them to stop talking. But the writing and story? I don't know. It seemed like too many different weird things fit into one book. The sidebars by the author and the titles of the chapters left me feeling like I was reading a Lemon Snickety book. I finished it feeling a little confused. But it intrigued me enough to get it read in a couple days after I really started getting into it. And it left me with some really weird dreams at night which is not at all unusual because I always have weird dreams but in this case they were about the book. But overall, in the end, even though there were things I liked about it, I don't think I can give it more than two stars.
(This was an Amazon First Reads Prime pick for me BTW)
(This was an Amazon First Reads Prime pick for me BTW)
Nope absolutely hated it. It was a dread trying to get through the first 100 pages. So many subplots and characters that did not do this book justice. It was all over the place…SKIP IT
adventurous
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
3.5 stars...I usually enjoy Dean Koontz writing but this one was extra weird but enjoyable. It was definitely chalk full of weird for sure and it follows Benny our super nice guy who's world is falling apart around him until he receives his Inheritance from a long lost uncle out of nowhere. You'll have to read it to find out what this Inheritance entails. This had a little of everything supernatural beings, crazy ladies who turn kids into bugs, a secret society of evil do-gooders, some mystery and a dash of romance. I would recommend it. I haven't read a koontz novel I wouldn't recommend yet.
funny
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
funny
hopeful
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
funny
lighthearted
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I'm torn about this book. Dean Koontz is one of those authors who when you see his name on the cover you don't care what the blurb on the back says. You just pick it up because you trust this author to tell a great story. So to say I didn't enjoy this one very much triggers my cognitive dissonance.
It falls into the "fine" category. I didn't dislike it, but didn't love it. It was not a thriller in any sense of the word. Certainly not horror, only vaguely mystery. Fantasy, perhaps, and humor definitely. It was built on snark and wit, which wasn't terrible. The witty observations were clever and funny but more in that way that makes you go, "my, that was clever and funny," rather than actually laugh out loud.
There were a lot of parentheticals, a lot of breaking the fourth wall, which I didn't quite understand. It didn't add anything to the story other than another layer of snark that I didn't think the story needed.
You can't say this was badly written, I mean you don't get where Dean Koontz is by writing badly. On paper it had all the ingredients of a story I'd be drawn to. It was creative, unique, unexpected. It was sarcastic, cheeky, cynical-but-hopeful. It just didn't catch me. I didn't particularly care about these too-clever characters, didn't think the story had enough of a payoff for the distance it went, and felt that the humor didn't have enough bite to be the main underpinning.
I think part of the problem is that there was a lot of humor for humor's sake, rather than humor that brings something deeper to the story. Like when you read Jane Austen, the humor (while not necessarily laugh-out-loud funny), exposes something about the people and culture. This book felt more slapstick - which is fine, just not as entertaining.
If this was another author I probably would have deducted another star. But I feel like if you're Dean Koontz, you get to do experimental writing and try something that feels uniquely creative without worrying too much about whether or not some random Goodreads reviewer is going to find your humor cerebral enough. I wanted to like it more. It was readable and uncomplicated, served its purpose as a quick fluff read. But it was unfortunately just not very engaging for me.
It falls into the "fine" category. I didn't dislike it, but didn't love it. It was not a thriller in any sense of the word. Certainly not horror, only vaguely mystery. Fantasy, perhaps, and humor definitely. It was built on snark and wit, which wasn't terrible. The witty observations were clever and funny but more in that way that makes you go, "my, that was clever and funny," rather than actually laugh out loud.
There were a lot of parentheticals, a lot of breaking the fourth wall, which I didn't quite understand. It didn't add anything to the story other than another layer of snark that I didn't think the story needed.
You can't say this was badly written, I mean you don't get where Dean Koontz is by writing badly. On paper it had all the ingredients of a story I'd be drawn to. It was creative, unique, unexpected. It was sarcastic, cheeky, cynical-but-hopeful. It just didn't catch me. I didn't particularly care about these too-clever characters, didn't think the story had enough of a payoff for the distance it went, and felt that the humor didn't have enough bite to be the main underpinning.
I think part of the problem is that there was a lot of humor for humor's sake, rather than humor that brings something deeper to the story. Like when you read Jane Austen, the humor (while not necessarily laugh-out-loud funny), exposes something about the people and culture. This book felt more slapstick - which is fine, just not as entertaining.
If this was another author I probably would have deducted another star. But I feel like if you're Dean Koontz, you get to do experimental writing and try something that feels uniquely creative without worrying too much about whether or not some random Goodreads reviewer is going to find your humor cerebral enough. I wanted to like it more. It was readable and uncomplicated, served its purpose as a quick fluff read. But it was unfortunately just not very engaging for me.