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magicaltats's review against another edition
3.0
I was surprised to find that I actually kind of liked this book. I don't usually go for thrillers, but it was part of a genre challenge to read a thriller and I thought that I might as well read one of the Koontz books that I have. And then I found that I liked the characters, but I didn't like what happened to the characters. I also liked the vague bits of paranormal and how they all came together in the end. But I still didn't like what happened to all of the characters. It's a very well written book and I might read other books by him, but I don't know if I will ever read this book over again.
klop's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
prairiewolf's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
scottschluter's review against another edition
3.0
There's a great story here, but it felt like this was a bunch of books put into one, a series may have been more appropriate imho.
meghan_oflynn's review against another edition
5.0
Can one child overcome a relentless killer?
So many elements in this story, it's difficult to know where to begin. Intricate, courageous, whimsical and haunting, running the gamut from sci-fi to literary, every piece works together to create a world where the impossible becomes real. If you're a fan of speculative fiction, this is worth the read.
So many elements in this story, it's difficult to know where to begin. Intricate, courageous, whimsical and haunting, running the gamut from sci-fi to literary, every piece works together to create a world where the impossible becomes real. If you're a fan of speculative fiction, this is worth the read.
leventmolla's review against another edition
4.0
If I were to guess who could write a fantastic novel that explains the parallel universes theory embedded in quantum physics without using a single scientific reference but still making it believable, I would probably have said Dean Koontz. This extraordinary novel published around 10 years ago has somehow missed my attention and I discovered it lately.
It uses the technique of parallel and seemingly independent flows about seemingly unrelated people, only to join their fates together and bringing the book to an ending that is extremely full of hope.
The book is narrating the story of Junior, who suddenly kills his wife who he loved almost to a degree of worship; the story of Seraphim who was raped and could not tell anyone and now has to go through a soon-to-be-revealed, secret pregnancy and Agnes, who has to raise his newborn child without her husband who just perished in a car accident trying to get her to the hospital. Along with these three main streams of narrative, there are various side characters who take on a much greater role later, such as the rogue cop Vanadium who can literally make coins (quarters) disappear.
Koontz has an interesting style that is sometimes difficult with his references forward and backward in time. The style reminds me of another Koontz book, Life Expectancy, published in 2004.
This is one of his books I enjoyed most, possibly because of the parallel universes link, but in general it is a well-developed story with its share of scary psychos and genuinely "good" people.
It uses the technique of parallel and seemingly independent flows about seemingly unrelated people, only to join their fates together and bringing the book to an ending that is extremely full of hope.
The book is narrating the story of Junior, who suddenly kills his wife who he loved almost to a degree of worship; the story of Seraphim who was raped and could not tell anyone and now has to go through a soon-to-be-revealed, secret pregnancy and Agnes, who has to raise his newborn child without her husband who just perished in a car accident trying to get her to the hospital. Along with these three main streams of narrative, there are various side characters who take on a much greater role later, such as the rogue cop Vanadium who can literally make coins (quarters) disappear.
Koontz has an interesting style that is sometimes difficult with his references forward and backward in time. The style reminds me of another Koontz book, Life Expectancy, published in 2004.
This is one of his books I enjoyed most, possibly because of the parallel universes link, but in general it is a well-developed story with its share of scary psychos and genuinely "good" people.
jubnub's review against another edition
4.0
This is actually my first Dean Koontz novel. I rather enjoyed the build up of the characters. The only disappointment was that to me the ending felt a bit rushed. Otherwise I did enjoy it.
kurban's review against another edition
4.0
Yet another Koontz novel that I had in my possession and attempted to read several times before finally plowing through it. I just love how Koontz writes in the perspective of the antagonist and protagonist, and how all of the characters meet up at the end of the novel.
ionsquareatkreuzberg's review against another edition
2.0
Oof.
In case you can’t tell simply from how long it took me to read this novel, this was not a good book. This is the second Dean Koontz novel I’ve read and he’s now 0-2.
I’ve already wasted too much of my reading time on this weak story, so my review won’t be long. Let me just say these few things: the main villain is not compelling at all, and there are zero ways that readers could sympathize with him, one thing that is often key in making great villains; what happens to Thomas Vanadium is so illogical and dumb and purely unrealistic that I cannot believe Koontz’s editors were okay with it; the flowery prose was so overdone that it often took me out of the story; the main characters of the Lampions are way too pious to even be considered half-realistic; and the ending might’ve been the laziest ending I’ve ever read in a book. Complete garbage in regards to what happens with Enoch Cain. Maybe Koontz got a pass with it because he’s a big name author, but I cannot believe I wasted 600 pages to get to that end.
In case you can’t tell simply from how long it took me to read this novel, this was not a good book. This is the second Dean Koontz novel I’ve read and he’s now 0-2.
I’ve already wasted too much of my reading time on this weak story, so my review won’t be long. Let me just say these few things: the main villain is not compelling at all, and there are zero ways that readers could sympathize with him, one thing that is often key in making great villains; what happens to Thomas Vanadium is so illogical and dumb and purely unrealistic that I cannot believe Koontz’s editors were okay with it; the flowery prose was so overdone that it often took me out of the story; the main characters of the Lampions are way too pious to even be considered half-realistic; and the ending might’ve been the laziest ending I’ve ever read in a book. Complete garbage in regards to what happens with Enoch Cain. Maybe Koontz got a pass with it because he’s a big name author, but I cannot believe I wasted 600 pages to get to that end.
sinimini's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25