Fear Nothing

Rating:
Summary: First Person Narrative Never Works
Review: I am a big Dean Koontz but Fear Nothing was a disappointment. The lead character (Chris Snow) has some real potential and will hopefully be brought back in a better future novel. The first person narrative can be very difficult to write as well as read and Dean Koontz could not pull this one off. I could not feel the passion or intensity that Snow was supposed to be feeling. The climatic ending was anything but climatic as you only saw through Snow's eyes and his thoughts kept getting in the way of the action. Lastly, I felt that the "surfer" dialogue was too phoney and contrieved and definitely not to be believed. Bring Snow and his friends back but Koontz needs to return to the style of writing he does so well.

Rating:
Summary: Beatter heard than read
Review: Although I have read several of Dean Koontz's other novels, I went out and bought the audiotape version because of the reader, Keith Szarabajka. I admit it. I'm a big fan of his. The story is quite exciting since it's in the present tense and moves along briskly. Koontz has a way of drawing word pictures that made me back up and listen again. And there's a lot of sublet humor and nuance in there if you listen carefully. Can't think of another book I've heard or read lately that made me sorry to have to leave the car! Hope he works this into a series and uses Keith Szarabajka's WONDERFU L voice again (please, please, please).

Rating:
Summary: The best book Dean Koontz has written in years!
Review: I was never more pleasantly suprised in my life! Completely original, obviously researched, thoroughly obsessive reading. I struggled through Intensity (hard reading) and cruised through Sole Survivor (mindless reading). I am so pleased that Mr. Koontz still has a superior imagination.

Rating:
Summary: Dean is on his way down
Review: This worst book that Dean has written, I have all of his books and enjoyed most of them. His last three books don't hold my interest the way his earlier ones did. I'm not sure if I will read any more of his books or not.

Rating:
Summary: Boooorrrinngggg
Review: Slightly too detailed...how many pages does it take to explain that Snowman walked 20 feet? How many monkeys does it take to write a novel??? I love his books, but spare me the time and spare earth the trees!

Rating:
Summary: NOTHING TO FEAR
Review: I've given this book a rating of 4, and that's because I'm a fan of Dean Koontz books. Lately he hasn't been writing compelling tales. The story is very long in telling. Once you realize who the bad guys are, you really don't care to finish the story (I did).

Rating:
Summary: The worst.
Review: I would give this book a negative 10 if it was possible. This is arguably the worst novel I have read by anyone, for that matter. I have read every single Koontz's novel in print and Fear Nothing is by far the worst of the worst in the history of book printing. First, the style was in first person narrative. Konntz wanted his readers to feel what the hero was feeling but he forgot that the story of the novel made first person narrative impossible. It definitely contributed to its being termed unrealistic. Chris Snow was smacked right in the middle of a conspiracy but it seems totally implausible that he still has the time to describe to the readers who, what, where Moonlight Bay and its inhabitants are when he, himself, is investigating. For pete's sake, the town is about to go under but yet, Chris and his friends still have the mood to eat tacos, sip beer, and talk about surfing? Other characters also seemed very nonchalent about the whole crisis. That guy on the boat seemed very urgent to talk to Chris but when they met, he dally for 20 pages before revealing something of no significance. And what does communicating with cats and dogs have to do with the plot? Also, the pace of ths book is remarkably slow. Talk about putting you to sleep! It takes 10 pages of describing Snow walking around in the attic of the church and 20 pages of him escasping from a buring house. Talk about being pretentious!

Rating:
Summary: Don't Waste Your Money
Review: Like many of the readers who reviewed this book, I'm a great fan of Dean's (at least 20 paperbacks from half-priced books). However, this book seems to continue a disturbing downhill trend in his writing (& I paid $20 for this at the supermarket); books like "Tick Tock" and "Sole Survivor" were also badly written. There is hardly any character development other than that of Snow's in this latest book; I've always enjoyed the insights into the characters of his villains in his older books --- nothing here however. I'll give my hardcover away to anyone who wants it. A poorly written book.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent prose, but lacking originality...
Review: With "Fear Nothing" Koontz has infiltrated an unusual spectacle of the human condition. This time he focuses on an individual who is genetically predisposed to a life in darkness. The author creates some of his most noteworthy characters (including a canine) whose relationships with one other truly allure the reader into the mysterious predicament they face in Moonlight Bay, CA. While the character development and detail mark what I believe some of his best writing, the story lacks the originality I have come to expect from Koontz. The plot of the character driven novel felt recycled; like too many other "genetic tampering run amok" scenarios. It was unfortunate irony that such an original and unique character was juxtaposed against an unoriginal and uninspired theme.

Rating:
Summary: Is Dean too busy to crank the best novels anymore?
Review: Are my tastes changing or have Dean's last two novels petered out after gripping starts? Intensity was so riveting. However, Sole Survivor and Fear Nothing have been relatively unsatisfying. The clever dialogue and good characters are there. The familiar elements of Koontz's other stories are there as well. I guess it's some predictability of the plot, as well as unsatisfying resolution of the plot. Is Dean too busy with his movie script writing to write great books instead of good ones, or is his heart involved too much now in the screen writing to really pour his soul into his novels? Let's hope that he can make a new beginning with his next book. I'm not particularly in love with these characters and wouldn't mind discarding them in favor of new ones. The threat to see them in future novels makes me uneasy.