Rating: 
Summary: Vintage Koontz
Review: In WATCHERS, Dean Koontz weaves some of his most powerful, recurring themes into a story so compelling it demands to be read again--and again! Dangerous government experiments run amok; characters tortured by terrible childhoods and fears of losing those they love most; and the redemptive power of love and hope. These themes serve to give this novel an emotional punch that few thrillers can match these days.Perhaps Koontz's greatest accomplishment with this novel is that the story succeeds on so many levels. Readers who appreciate finely-tuned phrases and scalpel-clean, lyrical prose can delight in the prowess of a master wordsmith. Other readers, seeking only a story that delivers an entertaining plot, will be riveted by the twists and turns and "Oh, My God" moments that this story delivers. Lastly, those readers who have followed Koontz's career for many years can read WATCHERS simply to appreciate the spectacular progression of this author's skill. I've read WATCHERS many times, and every time, I pick up a technique that I can apply to my own suspense novels. Needless to say, this book has gained the "must read, then re-read" status on my personal reading list!
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Summary: Amazing tale!! Amazing dog!!
Review: After reading this book, I wanted to go out and buy a dog. The dog in this story is amazing. The way Koontz describes the dog's actions are terrific. It is so in debth that it makes you see it, and after that, you want to go out and buy a golden retriever. This book has to be one of the better books I've read. It is filled with edge of your seat suspence, horror, love, and most importantly, how to depend on your loved ones. This book has about four different story lines that all come together at the end. There is the "Travis, Einstein, and Nora" story line that shows how Einstein, the amazing dog, befriends Travis and Nora and brings them together. The "Vince" story line is about an insane hitman who has been hired by the Soviets to assasinate several scientists. He then learns about the amazing golden retriever and decides to kidnap the dog. The "Lemuel" story line tells the story of Lemuel Johnson, an NSA officer, who is the lead investigator looking for the dog and the outsider. "The Outsider" story line is so suspenceful. It is the brutal death of several people by "The Outsider" a genetically engineered killing monster that has a pure hatred for the Golden Retriever. The story is amazing. The writing style grabs your heart. "Watchers" is a winner.
Rating: 
Summary: One of Dean Koontz's best!
Review: This was a thoroughly enjoyable read. As with most of Dean Koontz'sbooks, I do not recommend reading it at home alone at night. In thisbook Dean Koontz manages to make the characters three dimensional, even the non-human characters. As with many of his books, he has included a dog as one of the main characters in this book, and his ability to explain canine behavior is very enjoyable. This book focuses on the escape of two very different creatures from a laboratory conducting DNA research. One is a golden retriever with near human intelligence. The other is a vicious hybrid creature genetically engineered to be a terrifying force on the battlefield. The creature is stalking the dog and killing anything that comes in its path. The dog teams up with a paralysingly shy young woman and a depressed man and turns their life around. The dog and the couple are then hunted by the NSA, the creature and a crazed psycopath.
Rating:
Summary: A THOROUGHLY ENJOYABLE STORY
Review: One of my favorite books is Nightfall by Isaac Asimov. I recently loaned the book to someone and in return she gave me a copy of Watchers. I hope she enjoys Nightfall as much as I enjoyed Watchers. One thing I like about sci-fi is the fact that make a leap of faith to create the scenario for a great story, be it time travel, contact with aliens, interstellar travel, or in this case genetic engineering taken to perhaps impossible extremes. No matter how enticing the scenario may be, the story is not going to work unless you have believable and interesting characters, a good plot and a good writing style, all of which this book has. I had never read anything by Koontz, but this story began with a very eerie fear of the something lurking in the dark that certainly got my attention. The rest of the story continued to hold my attention, with very human characters and their relationships to others, as well as the sense of the hunt and a final confrontation. About the only thing that didn't appeal to me that much was the fact that Einstein's intelligence seemed at times to be a bit too developed and too far-fetched, but, what the heck, it still made for a great story. When I finish the book I'm currently reading, I think I'll go look for another Dean Koontz book.
Rating:
Summary: Koontz does it again!
Review: I 've never been really too interested in Dean Koontz books but this book made me realize what I was missing. It starts out kind of slow with vivid details and descriptions of every little thing to set the mood just right. After about 100 pages into the book, I was hooked. This book is full of romance and action. It made me feel sorry for the dog and the monster. I felt as if I were there and they were talking and interacting with me. The main character, Einstien (a golden retriever) is a geniuos dog and he really touched my heart. Even the most dreadful character in the book gives you feelings of sadness, thanks to Koontz. Nora and Travis (the owners) had to overcome many obstacles to fight for what they believed and in the end, they did thier best. The ending leads you to start to think one thing and then, a final surprise. I loved this book and would recommend it to anyone who can read.
Rating:
Summary: A dazzling combination of suspense, horror, and romance
Review: You have not read a book until you have read Watchers by Dean Koontz. Why? I will try to be brief.. no book can ever match the powerful beginning of this novel. It was gripping, thrilling, from page 3. There is a lot of description, but Dean has a way of making every description useful and enjoyoyable - unlike some authors who bore you to death with totally irrelevant paragraphs. His characters may be extreme in some ways, nevertheless, they were painted into realistic people that can indeed exist in real life. For the first few chapters.. you will be intrigued at how different incidents can be connected.. then slowly and with a lot of mystery, the story begins to connect and become clearer. Travis, Nora, Einstein, and Vince are the main characters in the book. Dean allows you to see the world from their eyes, which can be fascinating because they are fascinating characters! Einstein, the dog, will capture your heart. Even the evil presence in the story will have you sympathize with it. The plot is structured so well that there is no spot where the action slows down. Given the long time within which the story takes place, this novel is very fast paced and will leave you at the edge of your seat. And I have to confess that Koontz does not leave you unsatisfied or frustrated at any point. The characters will ask the questions that you have in your mind, and the action will keep you fully aware of the current situation. The suspense will leave you shuddering, and the romance will warm your heart. This is a story that is full of emotion.. where there is a lesson at the end for mankind. It will stay in my heart to the end of my life.
Rating:
Summary: One of Dean Koontz's best!
Review: This was a thoroughly enjoyable read. As with most of Dean Koontz's
books, I do not recommend reading it at home alone at night. In this
book Dean Koontz manages to make the characters three dimensional, even
the non-human characters. As with many of his books, he has included
a dog as one of the main characters in this book, and his ability to
explain canine behavior is very enjoyable.
This book focuses on the escape of two very different creatures from
a laboratory conducting DNA research. One is a golden retriever with
near human intelligence. The other is a vicious hybrid creature genetically engineered to be a terrifying force on the battlefield.
The creature is stalking the dog and killing anything that comes in its path. The dog teams up with a paralysingly shy young woman and a depressed man and turns their life around. The dog and the couple
are then hunted by the NSA, the creature and a crazed psycopath.
Rating:
Summary: Watchers
Review: When the Russians sabotage a genetic research project in California, two mutated creatures escape from the lab. One is a golden retriever with high enough intelligence to think and communicate with humans; the other is the Outsider, a vicious monster created from a baboon and bred to kill. Both the man who befriends and adopts the dog and his new bride find themselves stalked by government agents anxious to find the dog, a particularly repulsive Mafia hit man intent on stealing him, and the Outsider, with whom the dog is linked telepathically. Koontz ( Strangers ) is truly a master at creating suspense, and his opening and closing scenes are full of delicious tension. Only in the middle does the chase seem a bit long. But Koontz is in top form with an exciting premise, likable heroes, and the most endearing nonhuman since E.T. For all popular fiction collections.
Rating:
Summary: Any Book I Regret Finishing
Review: I wanted to know the ending, but reached that 3 days ago, yet I'm feeling lost now that I've finished it. A great read that put's you in such harmony with the protagonists that you feel a part of their story. I loved it and wish the author had seen fit to produce a sequel.
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Summary: SUSPENSE LEADS TO AN EXPLOSIVE CONCLUSION
Review: Voice performer J. Charles has read a number of books for Brilliance Audio, all of them performances of the highest caliber. Some of my personal favorites are "The Hunt For Red October," "Medusa Stone." and "Golden Buddha." Actually, the list could go on and on as Charles is one of the best, a reader whose voice is capable of conveying the full range of human emotion. This ability comes to the fore in Dean Koontz's terrifying "Watchers" in which we meet two different life forms, mutated creatures who have gotten away from a top secret, tightly guarded laboratory. Something in the experiment went awry resulting in the creation of two polar opposites - one unimaginable evil, the other good. Both of these life forms are able to think and communicate with humans. A newly married couple adopt the good creature that is in the form of a dog, and then the chase is on as the evil mutant seeks to destroy everything in his path. Leave it to Koontz to open with a grabber, take you along on a suspense laced road, and then pen an explosive conclusion. Leave it to J. Charles to read it with skillful drama. - Gail Cooke
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