Watchers

Rating:
Summary: Koontz' Best Book
Review: Dean really pulled out all the stops in this one. This book has every genre: horror, science fiction, humor, mystery, political thriller, romance, social satire, etc. And, somehow he makes it all work in a way no one else has ever duplicated. The book is so much better than the pathetic Watchers movies Hollywood churned out in the 80s. They all took elements of the original book, but, none of them followed the plot very closely.
The author took the idea of a genetically altered golden retreiver, named Einstein by the lead charactor, and ran with it. He threw in an incredibly repugnant creature, also genetically altered, a hero with a suspicious past, and had them all being pursued by an implacable government agent and his agency. The result is one of the most exciting, thrill rides imaginable. It is also hysterically funny in an intelligent and thoughtfull way. This book put Dean at the very top of horror writers, as well as creating his own genre that combined all the elements of all the other genres in a Mainstream style. Don't miss this one!

Rating:
Summary: SPECTACULAR!
Review: Koontz is AMAZING! This novel is AMAZING! I don't think i can express it clearly enough for everyone to understand just how spellbinding this book is! Koontz writes his characters (even the nonhuman ones) SO well that you'll find it impossible to put it down! If you have ever heard anything about ANY of the movie versions of this book QUICKLY forget them! They were depressingly awful and I believe that they should all be destroyed...BUT THIS NOVEL IS OUTSTANDING! READ IT! NOW!

Rating:
Summary: Riveting
Review: I put down a Stephen King to read this one, and I wasn't sorry.

From the first chapter I knew this book was a great effort by Dean Koontz. The plot is almost believable, the characters well developed, and the suspense spine tingling.
I even felt sorry for the Outsider, hoping that things would work out for it in the end.

I'm not a dog person, and obviously Dean Koontz is a golden retriever fan, but it's a good breed for Einstein to be. Couldn't imagine him as a Rottweiler, Corgi or Pit Bull.

Can't wait for the movie version!

Rating:
Summary: A true favorite
Review: Possibly my favorite book of all time. I heard about it in class, and to be honest, the only reason I was interested was the dog. So I picked it up from the library, and thought - this guy is good. I loved the characters, Koontz's beautiful writing, everything about the book. I can't remember how many times I've read it. I have been an avid Koontz fan since then. I think it is a great first Koontz, or if you're a Koontz fan and haven't read it, then shame on you! I would recommend to anyone.

Rating:
Summary: He terrorizes you with real life.
Review: The reason I am such a diehard Koontz fan is that he can take the ordinary daily routines in life and create something that will absolutely terrorize you. He does not reach into a parallel universe or develop some unimaginable creature. Instead, he uses the characters that would surround you in your daily activities. To me, that is much more terrifying that a spaceship or a genetically altered, mutant space creature. The Koontz style is total psychological terror instead of slice N dice, blood and gore.

I have most of Koontz' books and have yet to be disappointed by one. They are all stories that I enjoy reading over and over. It seems that I pick up different details with each reading.

Get this book and see what I mean. It will make you look over your shoulder! Before you see the movie, read the book. It will make you enjoy the movie much more. I am glad to see movies from the Koontz books. Check out "Sole Survivor."

Rating:
Summary: Like Dean Koontz? Ok.. well, give this book a chance.
Review: I am not a liar when it comes to novels, at least how they are seen in my eyes, nor do I cheer on an author I can't stand. I will not become a follower to a popular author and will admit every writer that i think is a hack or awful.

Dean Koontz has written countless books, like Stephen King, and the majority of them are bad, unlike Stephen King. He has a few I love, such as this book, Whispers, Strangers and Dragon Tears, and he has a lot I despise for their boring qualities and predictable plots, such as EVERY other novel he has written. It seems the only thing this guy CAN write well is a serial killer.

Watchers has a killer, which is standard in his novels, as well as a lot of descriptions of house decorations, a masculine and troubled hero and a troubled and beautiful heroine (Koontz really has a perfection complex in all his writing as to how his characters look; they can't be average-looking or, God forbid, ugly), but it does not begin with Dean Koontz's traditional beginnings, which are descriptions of the environment. This novel begins with the description of a man, Travis Cornell, and the items he brought along for his trip to shoot snakes and link back to his past, where he was happy. This is a deeply depressed man without any point to living until he meets a canine companion named Einstein and all that his ownership of the golden retriever entails; an assassin named Vince Nasco, argueably the most interesting character in the novel, a woman with a fear of other people named Nora Devon, a government man who wants the dog back, for reasons I do not think are worth revealing to the virgin reader of the novel, named Lemuel Johnson, and a disturbing creature called the Watcher, who wants to kill the dog and can track it to wherever it goes.

I did not reveal a large amount of the plot for the sole reason that I believe this is a novel I can do no wrong with suggesting. It is excellent, beyond some novels of Stephen King, and I feel that almost any reader will enjoy this book. It was my first of Koontz, and was sadly his best, so he never struck me as a brilliant writer ever again, but that is life.

I do not only recommend the immediate check-out or buying of this novel, I encourage it with all the enthusiasm it is possible to summon up when talking about a book. Read this and you will be entertained.

Rating:
Summary: three and a half
Review: I don't understand why the rating on this book is so high... in my opinion (to each their own), the plot was, for lack of a better word, silly, and the dialogue was somewhat laughable at times. The reason that I give it a higher rating than 2 or so stars is the dog. He's just pretty cool. A dog that can communicate via scrabble pieces is pretty original and comes up with some cool plot devices. Theres actually a few good moments of suspense, as well.
It just feels so B-Movie like to me.

Rating:
Summary: Dean Koontz's BEST book!
Review: I started reading this book on a business trip because I didn't have anything else to read. I'd been told by several people to read this book, but somehow could never get interested in it. However, within the first 10 pages I was totally hooked. This book succeeds on so many levels! It's a funny story about an extremely intelligent dog (Einstein), it's a story about the redemption of a woman (Nora) who is only beginning to discover life, it's the story of a man (Travis) who is learning how to live again (and the relationship he develops with the woman), and most of all it's a thoroughly creepy and scary horror novel. The Outsider is a genetically created monster, bred for warfare, that escapes in Southern California and goes on a murderous rampage while the government tries to stop it. Add to this a rogue assassin seeking to profit from the situation, and the fact that the Outsider is hunting for Einstien, who is also a genetically engineered marvel from the same lab that created the Outsider. Put it all together, and you've got one of the best books you'll ever read. It's a fast-paced story you'll lose sleep over. If this is the type of quality that Dean Koontz typically puts out, then I'm a Dean Koontz fan for life!

Rating:
Summary: Lassie was never as good the dog watching you
Review: This is a sensational book for all animal lovers and even I guess for those who don't like them. Imagine if dogs were a lot more intelligent then they actually are and you've got the main character of this book. He escapes from some lab and becomes attached to a kind man (with a past that wants to catch up to him) and a beautiful shy woman. He of course being a dog knows he should be their best friend and confronts those trying to do them harm. Being a good dog isn't everyone's cup of tea and the same lab he escaped from has a creature hell bent on finding him and ripping him apart.

A human creature who doesn't know about the dog is determined to find the man he has accompanied and kill him. I particularly liked this evil man who believes each person he kills take him closer to immortality and there are only a few more to go until he can never be killed himself.

With the way genetic engineering is going this is an extremely believable book. You won't be watching TV once you've opened the front cover until you've turned the last page so buy some blank video tapes while you're online as well.

Rating:
Summary: Great
Review: This is about the 8th Koontz novel I have read and it really was a great book to read. The action keeps you from beginning to end and does not get tiresome. You can basically get an idea what the book is about from above and from other reviews, so I am just going to recommend to read this book if you haven't. If you haven't read Koontz, start with this one. I also highly recommend BY Light of the Moon, and also Tick Tock if you are looking for a more humorous, lighter read.