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3.72 AVERAGE
3.72 AVERAGE
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
It was like Stephen King's "The Mist" but no Mist and no crazy preachy lady.
This is one of my all-time favourite books. I remember being twelve and my mother telling me under no circumstances was I to read any of her Dean Koontz books, because they 'were not suitable for a girl my age'. So of course, the minute I had the chance, I grabbed a bunch of his books and got to reading!
Phantoms is the only one that really resonated with me. Over the years, whenever I'm bored and at a loss as to what to read, I find myself drawn back to this book. My copy is positively ancient-looking - it's falling apart, the back cover is missing, and one or two pages are taped together. It's been with me everywhere: on school camp, on overseas trips... it's almost become a security blanket for me.
Personally, I think it's a great story. It's got everything - there's romance, there are awesome background characters (and pretty great main characters too). And there's a genuinely scary evil thing that still gives me the heebie jeebies when I think about it. The whole of idea of terrified me when I first read it, and still does if I'm being honest! I completely and totally blame this book for my current obsession with horror stories!
Phantoms is the only one that really resonated with me. Over the years, whenever I'm bored and at a loss as to what to read, I find myself drawn back to this book. My copy is positively ancient-looking - it's falling apart, the back cover is missing, and one or two pages are taped together. It's been with me everywhere: on school camp, on overseas trips... it's almost become a security blanket for me.
Personally, I think it's a great story. It's got everything - there's romance, there are awesome background characters (and pretty great main characters too). And there's a genuinely scary evil thing that still gives me the heebie jeebies when I think about it. The whole of idea of
Spoiler
an evil so ancient that it's essentially THE DEVIL deciding to just destroy a small town for no other reason than because it can
Poor man’s Stephen King.
Phantoms started interesting enough to catch my attention, but it failed to keep it until the end. Highly reminiscent of Stephen King’s The Mist, it starts very strong, with an interesting and eerie premise – the inhabitants of a small, isolated town disappear without trace, in a matter of minutes. Just a few bloated bodies are left behind, but they can’t tell the horrific story which took place in this idyllic setting.
Drawing from real events, like the Mary Celeste mystery and the Roanoke Colony vanishing, the novel tries to come with an explanation for mass disappearances throughout recorded history. The final reveal of the “ancient enemy” that committed these atrocities felt unsatisfying and it made me think of the Blob.
The novel had some problems in keeping a steady tense atmosphere, and the alternating scenes of peace and quiet versus “here comes Johnny”, quickly became a habit. Sometimes, it’s ok to give the reader some relief, but it’s not ok to do it in such a programmed manner. Another problem of the novel was how predictable it was, in terms of who’s going to die. You could’ve easily figured out who was next, by looking at the way the characters were built. If they were not developed enough, clearly, they were expendable.
** stars
Phantoms started interesting enough to catch my attention, but it failed to keep it until the end. Highly reminiscent of Stephen King’s The Mist, it starts very strong, with an interesting and eerie premise – the inhabitants of a small, isolated town disappear without trace, in a matter of minutes. Just a few bloated bodies are left behind, but they can’t tell the horrific story which took place in this idyllic setting.
Drawing from real events, like the Mary Celeste mystery and the Roanoke Colony vanishing, the novel tries to come with an explanation for mass disappearances throughout recorded history. The final reveal of the “ancient enemy” that committed these atrocities felt unsatisfying and it made me think of the Blob.
The novel had some problems in keeping a steady tense atmosphere, and the alternating scenes of peace and quiet versus “here comes Johnny”, quickly became a habit. Sometimes, it’s ok to give the reader some relief, but it’s not ok to do it in such a programmed manner. Another problem of the novel was how predictable it was, in terms of who’s going to die. You could’ve easily figured out who was next, by looking at the way the characters were built. If they were not developed enough, clearly, they were expendable.
** stars
This is the one that got me started on Dean Koontz. I loved reading before I picked this one up (in high school, if I remember correctly) and it furthered my love for reading even more. There is so much in this book that creeps you out, makes you gasp and holds you until the very end that it's hard to put into words. I highly recommend this as one of the first Koontz books to read for someone who is new to the author.
Oh Mr K you frustrate me so much!
How do you make really good, suspenseful, scary, oh my word, books like this, so full of character and depth, and then go and write some of your other stuff?! *eyes slide towards 'taken' and 'innocence'*
THIS is what a scary story should be!
This will give you the willies and goosebumps and make you feel you really should check the door's locked - again...for all the good it will do!
Recommended for folk who like a good scare!
(But this time in the proper way, not because of awful writing!)
How do you make really good, suspenseful, scary, oh my word, books like this, so full of character and depth, and then go and write some of your other stuff?! *eyes slide towards 'taken' and 'innocence'*
THIS is what a scary story should be!
This will give you the willies and goosebumps and make you feel you really should check the door's locked - again...for all the good it will do!
Recommended for folk who like a good scare!
(But this time in the proper way, not because of awful writing!)
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Story jumps straight to the action. With a captivating first chapter that ends on an ominous cliff hanger and the second chapter beginning to tease at the mystery to come.
Particularly gruesome writing as our protagonist seems to find various people in the town dead and Koontz goes into quite a bit of detail about the state the bodies are found in
Very descriptive sort of writing, from characters to location Koontz makes sure you get a very clear picture. Things continue to get stranger and stranger, pulling you deeper into the mystery of what has happened in the small town
Seems to be some creature horror going on along with massive sized bugs( a personal fear of mine)
Things continue continue to get stranger and more sinister as the dead seem to be just straight up disappearing
Some great and bone chilling tense and horrifying scenes that really capture the horror of this novel.
Particularly gruesome writing as our protagonist seems to find various people in the town dead and Koontz goes into quite a bit of detail about the state the bodies are found in
Very descriptive sort of writing, from characters to location Koontz makes sure you get a very clear picture. Things continue to get stranger and stranger, pulling you deeper into the mystery of what has happened in the small town
Seems to be some creature horror going on along with massive sized bugs( a personal fear of mine)
Things continue continue to get stranger and more sinister as the dead seem to be just straight up disappearing
Some great and bone chilling tense and horrifying scenes that really capture the horror of this novel.
I really enjoyed this book. The scary horror thrill of it kept me on my toes and afraid of the dark!
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
The atmosphere in this story was chilling and incredible! It really sucks you in and makes you keep reading for hours at a time.
The characters were so-so to me personally, but the atmosphere, plot, and over all...idea of the story was just...wow!
If anyone enjoys horror novels, this is up there on the must read list!
The characters were so-so to me personally, but the atmosphere, plot, and over all...idea of the story was just...wow!
If anyone enjoys horror novels, this is up there on the must read list!