Once you start it, you won't be able to switch it off!
How does it compare to audio works by the same author?
Not applicable
Advantages:
As good as Koontz gets - this is a real chiller
Disadvantages:
Joint lead character Neil is woefully under - used and almost ignored . . . . .
Recommend to potential buyers:
yes
Full review
Following on from my recent review of Koontz's THE HUSBAND, I decided to look over reviews of some of his previous novels as I have a tendency to do from time to time. Stumbling across a review of THE TAKING, I remembered that I had read this but had forgotten exactly what it had been about...knowing that his books are, almost without fail, light and easy reads, I decided to pick it up again and refresh my memory....
I am so glad I did!! Though it doesn't bode well that it did not linger longer in my memory, this is by far one of his most ambitious yet also most enjoyable thrillers for quite awhile.
Molly wakes up in the middle of the night to a bizarre rainstorm that glows luminesence, smells faintly of semen and generally feels unclean. Against their normal nature, a group (what is the collective term, one wonders) of coyote shelter on her front porch seeking shelter from the rain even when Molly goes out and walks amongst them. Something strange is going down and it soon becomes evident this is no ordinary rain storm!!
Waking up her husband, Molly next puts on the television. Similar mysterious weather is occurring all across the globe. In Russia, children play in blue tinted snow but it is not long before scenes of innocent tranquility turn to images of panic and mayhem. Locking their doors, Molly and her husband Neil prepare to leave their house and find out what exactly is going on...if nothing else, maybe one or more of their neighbours may need assistance.
The rain disperses but in its place comes an eerie mist that seems to hide more than meets the eye. Molly and Neil come across survivors who have all flocked together despite their differing opinions as to what they should do next, but even here things are not all they appear on the surface. It quickly becomes apparent that someone or SOMETHING is taking control of events and even people and directing them towards some kind of higher purpose. Whether that actually proves to be intentionally maevolent or simply a side effect of bigger events remains to be seen....be prepared, this novel is very unlike anything Koontz has written before...and thats without mentioning the shocking twist at the novel's climax!!
Reminiscent in places of Stephen King's novella, THE MIST, or Richard Laymon's ONE RAINY NIGHT, this is an eerie, chilling novel that keeps you puzzled, perplexed and on the edge of your seat until it's shocking climax!! It is very hard to fathom out exactly which direction the story's going until it gets there but that is part of the charm!! At times 28 DAYS LATER, at times INVASION OF THE BODYSNATCHERS but with echoes of CLOSE ENCOUNTERS and John Carpenter's THE FOG, this is typical Koontz- short-but-to-the-point, light, easy reading, with plenty of shocks, thrills and spills to keep you shaking to the end!! Typically of Koontz, opinion on this book is divided but on the whole the general consensus is that it is one of his greatest works!! Certainly it is up there with some of my favourites- even if I had forgotten it until now!!!
Someone commented recently on another of my Koontz reviews that Koontz is both the author he likes best and at times the author he likes least!! I beg to differ; whilst some of his titles are better than others, none of his books have ever really struck me as being stinkers even if some of them have not fullfilled all of their potential. Typically Koontz for me has proven to be fairly consistent in his writing even if he refuses to be "pigeon-holed" in one spefic genre.
In fact, never knowing quite what you are going to get from a Koontz novel aside from a cracking good yarn is part of his charm!! What starts off innocently never seems to last that way for long and I always find I am guaranteed value for money 99 times out of 10 when I pick up one of his vast back catalogue of novels.
In short, if you're looking for an alternative novel that doesn't fail to chill,thrill and spill whilst still being an overall light and entertaining read, then pick this up even if you've never read Koontz before. My only complaint is that lead character Molly's husband, Neil, often feels unnnessecary and under-used and often gets ignored in the the wake of Molly's shadow but this is very unusual and a one off for Koontz who normally goes into too much detail with his characters. Apart from this small slight, this as good as you can normally expect from Koontz - the only thing missing is his trademark humour but then this is not really a humourous book...it's far too dark for that!
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