Rating: Summary: Okay . . . but not great Review: First of all I'd like to quote from a previous reviewer: "(1 star) = Unbelievable!, April 7, 2000 Reviewer: A reader In reading the reviews of this so-called, awful novel, I don't see where these people get off stating that it was a good book. I could'nt even get past the 2nd chapter, cause I did not understand the message Koontz was getting at. Very, very confusing" There is absolutly nothing confusing about this book, that review must have been 9 years old. And reviewing it after not getting to the 2nd chapter is pathetic. Now, my side of the story. This book is very well written, however . . . the plot is rather predictiable, zero horror, and at times you will want to stop at every perspective change, tiime change, and/or chapter. I really don't suggest reading this apposed to other Koontz books, but for any hardcore Koontz fan this is a must read (if not just for the cover alone :)
Rating: Summary: Typical Review: Entertaining but once again typical of Koontz's novels. This will be my last read by him.
Rating: Summary: Read Roger D. More review if you want to have NO surprises! Review: The Roger D. More review might as well summarize the plot line of this thriller. It significantly deflates the value of a thriller if substantial pieces of the plot are revealed.
Rating: Summary: A succesful pastiche Review: "Icebound" may take a little while to really get started, but once it does, it's a fine read. Not a great literary classic by any means, but definately one of the more well-written of Koontz' countless novels. Just don't expect a traditional Koontz novel with supernatural beings, strong heroines, heroic dogs and highly advanced aliens. This is not a horror novel, it is a thriller, and an obvious Alistair MacLean-pastiche. And as such it works very well. MacLean would have had no reason to be ashamed had he written it.
Rating: Summary: FROZEN FROLICS Review: Of course we all know that this book was written eons ago when Koontz was pretty much unknown. It was even written under a pseudonymn, David Axton? At any rate, once he soared to his incredible heights of popularity, Koontz went back and revised this okay "thriller." When one considers the "Ice Limit," by Preston and Childs, and Matt Reilly's adventure books, "Icebound" pales in comparison. We have this collection of adventurers who are in the Arctic to blow up and iceberg and set it sailing south so that it can be used to replenish the earth's vanishing water supply. But, nature doesn't cooperate at all, sending the snowstorm from hell to disrupt everything. Add to that there's a psychotic killer on the loose, and a Russian submarine that wants to rescue the team because one of their members is the nephew of an assassinated US President, and that'll make the Russians look good. The hero's wife has an incredible phobia of ice, snow and cold. The characters are pretty much cliche, and the presence of the killer adds little or no suspense, as it's never clear why he or she wants to kill the aforementioned nephew. It's all handled in pretty pedestrian fashion, and in the aftermath of everything, all the characters' fates are cleaned up...EXCEPT that aforementioned nephew. Why 3 stars? It held my interest and it certainly isn't a horrible novel; it's just way below the standards of the writer we now know as Dean Koontz. RECOMMENDED ONLY FOR KOONTZ FANS AND PEOPLE WHO LOVE THE COLD
Rating: Summary: A Great Book Review: Dean Koontz is known for his horror/suspense novels. Well, this book is a true page-turner. Once I started it I couldn't put it down. I read the large print edition and I went through it fast! I definitely recommend this book to anyone who likes fast-paced adventures.
Rating: Summary: not the best but allright Review: ok ive read about 7 of koontz's books and this one was my least favorite. it never really grabbed my attention like his others. this book is just all about describeing how cold it is and this guys wife not likeing cold weather. but anyways i guess this book wasent bad and if you like koontz books you should go and read this one anyway. but if you really want a good koontz book go read something like intensity, tick tock, dragon tears, or watchers. now those are good books
Rating: Summary: Dean Koontz--Icebound Review: Copyright: 1995 Pages: 408 Koontz basically sleepwalks readers through the first half of this arctic thriller and will leave many out cold with boredom. Scientists Harry and Rita Carpenter are head of a project to study the feasibility of towing huge icecaps south from Greenland, where they can be tapped for the irrigation of crops. In order to do so, the Carpenters and their crew have to detonate a series of explosives to separate a huge iceberg that can be transported and used to cure a global water shortage. However, earthquakes tear their icy research stations apart and they are stranded in the middle of an awful snow storm and won't be able to get off the island before it is blown up by the bombs...unless they are saved by a Russian spy submarine. The novel has an interesting premise, but unfortunately, Koontz tries to incorporate a psycho-killer plot and it fails miserably. "Icebound" is disappointing novel with undeveloped characters and a far-fetched storyline that sways too far away from what is really important--and thats a story that can be believed.
Rating: Summary: couldn't finish it! Review: I've read 20+ Koontz novels over the last few years. He has had his highs and lows, in fact at one point I stopped reading him altogether since his plots had become stale. There was always 1. orphaned kid, or kid raised by one parent/guardian, 2. highly intelligent dog, (once, instead of a dog, there was a highly intelligent(?) retarded kid... orphaned, of course) 3. man and woman meet and end up taking care of the orphaned kid or smart dog at the end, 4. man and woman who get along so well since they both can hurl smart-mouthed quips at each other for pages on end, 5. you get the point. That period in his career lasted for almost ten books in a row, and I got to a point where enough was enough. I gave Koontz another try recently, and thankfully his newer works (Sole Survivor, False Memory, Christopher Snow, From the Corner...) are far superior to his likeable yet formulaic late 80s / early 90's stuff (The Bad Place, Cold Fire, Twilight Eyes etc.). So I'm still a fan, and a big one. However, Icebound rots. I always give a novel 100 pages to grab my attention, and after that, forget it. This one made it to page 101. I didn't care one bit about the characters, the setting, the "plot", or anything else for that matter. I'm not sure if this is a re-worked older novel or a direct-to-paperback work, but this is the worst Koontz novel in my library. Tick-Tock is a literary masterpiece compared to this! Books like this make me consider being a tree-hugger...
Rating: Summary: Awful Review: Icebound is a re-write from an earlier published 'Koontz-pseudonym' novel published in the 70's. This premise is farfetched, the re-write is extremely poor and it seems to me that this book is just a re-released money making opportunity. Come on Dean, you can do better than that!
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