Odd Thomas?

Ah, my favorite topic. I'm a HUGE DK fan!

I enjoyed Odd Thomas. Not my favorite, but I think it was closer to his older work. (Lately, I've found his novels a bit mainstream for my taste.) My favorite DK book has to be Phantoms. I read it in highschool and have been addicted to Koontz since.

I liked Odd Thomas. I hadn't read Koontz in about ten years, since I read one of his books and it gave me nightmares. I thought it was a very good read-loved the breaking into the house of the bad guy scene- but not as scary as I remembered him as a novelist. That was the same year I quit horror for awhile. Reason was simple enough: I read IT by Stephen King and I lived on Pennywise Lane, in Derry, NH and my bus stop location required me to step over a sewer gate. That was also the year I took down all the artsy clown photos my Dad had in the living room!

Blue Texas, I gotta know. What was the Koontz novel that gave you nightmares?

I wish I could remember. It was ten years ago at least, and shortly thereafter the house burned down, so I no longer have a copy. I'll peruse Amazon and see if I can come up with it.

Went and looked; pretty sure it was Demon Seed.

I love Demon Seed. Yes, that one is creepy.

I think I like Koontz's wriitng so much because his story lines are just beyond relality. It's really hard for me to pick a favorite of his. He's so creative.

BlueTexas said:

That was the same year I quit horror for awhile. Reason was simple enough: I read IT by Stephen King and I lived on Pennywise Lane, in Derry, NH and my bus stop location required me to step over a sewer gate. That was also the year I took down all the artsy clown photos my Dad had in the living room!

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Oh, you have got to be kidding!! Now that's just downright icky. LOL

Big fan of DK here. I loved Mr. Murder.

Spookster said:

I love Demon Seed. Yes, that one is creepy.

I think I like Koontz's wriitng so much because his story lines are just beyond relality. It's really hard for me to pick a favorite of his. He's so creative.

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The scariest horror to me is the almost plausible kind, like you said above. I need to read more of his novels.

The first Koontz book I read was From The Corner of His Eye and it blew me out of the water.

For years I've read aloud to my wife for an hour or two before bed. That book was terribly fun to read out loud. It just flows off the tongue. It prompted me to buy or borrow everything else by him I could get my hands on, and they're all easy to read that way. I have trouble following many books if I read them aloud, because I read much faster than I speak, and the speed difference throws my brain into a loop of some sort. Something about Koontz's moody writing forces me to slow down my eyes, just to soak in the atmosphere.

Corner is still my favorite, but maybe that's because it was my first. I was excited about Odd Thomas because I'd sort of hoped the title referred to Det. Thomas Vanadium, who was decidedly odd, from Corner. It doesn't, of course, but it's still a darned good book.

Koontz has a few niggly habits that drive me a bit crazy after seeing them too many times (insert dog, chuffing at bougainvillea in the preternatural darkness, here), but of all the Big Names out there he is by far my favorite.

Has anybody read the Frankenstein book yet? I haven't, and I'm sort of put off by the idea of him doing a series. I have no idea why that might be.

Mac, I'd have to agree about the Chris Snow books. They definately fall more into the "mainstream" category. Horror/Suspense maybe? I'm drawn to the soon-to-be trilogy more for the characters than the plotline.

Did you not like Intensity? I found it quite captivating. Through the entire story, I kept putting myself in the character's position. What would I do in that situation?


Galoot, I've not read the Frankenstien books yet. I have heard both positive and negative reviews from fellow DK fans. It's going to be hit or miss on this one. He's taking a chance, for sure. I think fans have certain expectations of him and I'm not sure the Frankenstein series will meet fan approval. With that said, I will attempt to read it and go from there. I'll let you know what I thought of it.

If you haven't read it yet, try False Memory. It's well written, great storyline, but leans more toward suspense than horror. The storyline revolves around a couple, so it should be fun to read to your wife.

Spookster said:

If you haven't read it yet, try False Memory. It's well written, great storyline, but leans more toward suspense than horror. The storyline revolves around a couple, so it should be fun to read to your wife.

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She read that one before we met and, unlike me, hates a repeated book. But it's on my own to-read list.

Intensity had me screaming at the main character. She was doing things for no reason other than to advance the plot. There were a ton of places where she could have removed herself from the situation, noted the tag numbers, then called the cops after he was gone. Still, it was a great read.

I loved the Chris Snow books. The plot was... okay. The characters were great! Reading those books even prompted me to reconsider my earlier opinion of Tom Waits long enough to listen to a full song. I moved the file to the recycle bin afterwards, but I did try.

DK's Frankenstein series was set in motion because USA network asked him to write a script for a movie they were doing. Now, as happens with DK, the deal fell through and USA had someone else write the script and made it a made for TV movie. DK felt the need to write the book(s) though. I am reading it now. So far it is OK, but not his best. The next book is being writen with horror great Ed Gorman and will be released this summer. He also has a new book called "Velocity" coming out this summer and I think it might be like "Intensity", or so they say.

DK is a great writer, but a bit wordy for me. Plus, he has a great story and then lets it fall at the end. Bentley Little does this as well and it makes me mad.

The Bad Place was one of his best though

I recently finished Odd Thomas and I have to say without a doubt (and only concerning the dozen or so Koontz novels I've read), that Odd Thomas is by far the best he's yet produced. I've always admired Koontz for his characters, his hook, even his interpretations, but his ending ... well, let's just say that his endings have traditionally left me feeling wanting and somewhat cheated by the abrupt and sudden manner in which everything achieves resolution. Sort of a Dues Ex Machina on caffine. Or maybe crack. In fact, save Lightning and Watchers, for the most part I avoided Koontz's novels after the crushing disappointment time and again I felt when concluding one of his novels. I always had the uncanny sensation that somebody tapped Koontz on the shoulder and either pointed to the page number or reminded him that the deadline was in three days .. or something. That being said, there was NOTHING like that in Odd Thomas. Hopefully Koontz has turned a corner, so to speak, and this will become a trend, rather than an exception to an otherwise stunning talent.

After all these great comments about Odd Thomas, I went out and bought it the other day. I have two other books in my "to be read" pile, but I'm really looking forward to reading OT.
Joanne