# Which Dean Koontz book should I read? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 23, 2012, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dean-koontz-book-should-i-read/619656 "2012-04-23T02:34:23Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![AClockworkMelon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aclockworkmelon/32/10803_2.png) [@AClockworkMelon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AClockworkMelon)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2012, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dean-koontz-book-should-i-read/619656/1 "2012-04-23T02:34:23Z")
I’m going to read a Dean Koontz book. If I like it I’ll read more. You tell me which one to read first. Don’t bother asking what I like in order to make a suggestion, just tell me. I’d tell you to base your suggestion on what you know about me from my history on the board but I don’t feel like reading a coloring book. ---
**Author:** ![armedmonkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@armedmonkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/armedmonkey)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2012, 2:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dean-koontz-book-should-i-read/619656/2 "2012-04-23T02:44:01Z")
_Watchers_ might be his best book, and will give you a good idea as to his style and the kind of things he writes. It’s about two escaped government genetic engineering experiments. ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2012, 2:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dean-koontz-book-should-i-read/619656/3 "2012-04-23T02:46:56Z")
The one with the telepathic dog. ---
**Author:** ![armedmonkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@armedmonkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/armedmonkey)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2012, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dean-koontz-book-should-i-read/619656/4 "2012-04-23T02:50:51Z")
> [@Fear\_Itself](#): > > The one with the telepathic dog. That’s _Watchers_. The dog is one of the two genetically engineered experiments that escaped from the government lab. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2012, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dean-koontz-book-should-i-read/619656/5 "2012-04-23T02:54:07Z")
> [@A Monkey With a Gun](#): > > _Watchers_ might be his best book, and will give you a good idea as to his style and the kind of things he writes. It’s about two escaped government genetic engineering experiments. _Watchers_ is good. The best advice I can give you is, don’t read too many. They start seeming all pretty much the same real fast. This has inspired me to make a new thread, because for a moment I thought, “Is Koontz the Thomas KinKade of horror novelists?” But reast assured Koontz isn’t anywhere _near_ that bad. ---
**Author:** ![Drain\_Bead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e47774/32.png) [@Drain\_Bead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drain_Bead)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2012, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dean-koontz-book-should-i-read/619656/6 "2012-04-23T03:03:32Z")
Lightning, Watchers, or Strangers. The rest are varying degrees of dreck. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2012, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dean-koontz-book-should-i-read/619656/7 "2012-04-23T03:08:09Z")
Read “Fear Nothing.” I found it in a back alley last week, and I’m curious if it’s any good. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Pork\_Rind](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pork_rind/32/111_2.png) [@Pork\_Rind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pork_Rind)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2012, 3:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dean-koontz-book-should-i-read/619656/8 "2012-04-23T03:16:17Z")
> [@Drain\_Bead](#): > > Lightning, Watchers, or Strangers. The rest are varying degrees of dreck. Lightning. My month gave me a grocery sack full of his paperbacks and that’s the only one of them that I remember at all. ---
**Author:** ![EllisDee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellisdee/32/4531_2.png) [@EllisDee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EllisDee)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2012, 3:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dean-koontz-book-should-i-read/619656/9 "2012-04-23T03:35:35Z")
That one where it starts off with really creepy, spooky supernatural stuff going on, which really freaks out the main character who was up until then leading a normal life. But then it all turns out to be a government conspiracy. I thinking there’s a Strong Woman™ in there somewhere too. ---
**Author:** ![missouri65](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/74df32/32.png) [@missouri65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/missouri65)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2012, 4:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dean-koontz-book-should-i-read/619656/10 "2012-04-23T04:23:28Z")
It’s been a while since I read it, but I liked [Strange Highways.](http://www.amazon.com/Strange-Highways-Dean-Koontz/dp/0446603392/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1335149869&sr=8-1) It’s a collection of stories, but the title story is a full novel. Watchers is one of his best and nothing at all like the movie. It is certainly the best of the telepathic dog books. There was another book I liked better, but it’s been many years and they all run together after you’ve read a few. Watchers is a pretty good start–representative, yet more distinctive than a lot of the others. I liked Fear Nothing okay, enough to read the sequel, Seize the Night. They are also about a super-smart genetically-altered dog, though. If you’re going to read one of those, go with Watchers. I would not recommend Tick Tock to anyone, ever. It is distinctive, I guess, but not really representative. I hated it so much I stopped reading Koontz, so I have no idea about anything he’s done in the past ten years. This post may not apply to his more recent work, but I suspect that the best of his work was earlier in his career. No one’s ever going to accuse Koontz of being a literary master. He won’t get anything close to the defenders that King has. He’s clearly found a formula that works for him, and he’s managed to get rich from it. I can’t fault him for that. There’s some talent buried in there, though, that shines through in Watchers, some of the stories in Strange Highways, and a few others. Beyond that, it probably doesn’t much matter which one you read. You either like the formula, or you don’t. But don’t read Tick Tock. ---
**Author:** ![charmstr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/53a042/32.png) [@charmstr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/charmstr)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2012, 4:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dean-koontz-book-should-i-read/619656/11 "2012-04-23T04:29:43Z")
Dean Koontz novels are easy reads. The pages turn quickly and before you know it, you’re done. He’s a technically proficient but pedestrian writer. His earlier books are better than his later ones, probably because his editors were able to curb some of his more annoying habits. I wouldn’t recommend you read anything by him, but if you’re going to, then I guess I too would recommend the one about the dog. He does love dogs and it shows. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2012, 4:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dean-koontz-book-should-i-read/619656/12 "2012-04-23T04:41:28Z")
Lightning is his best, but I also enjoyed The Bad Place, Dragon Tears, and Cold Fire. ---
**Author:** ![Gagundathar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a183cd/32.png) [@Gagundathar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gagundathar)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2012, 4:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dean-koontz-book-should-i-read/619656/13 "2012-04-23T04:45:56Z")
_Fear Nothing_ and _Seize the Night_ are quite good if you don’t want anything deep and meaningful. Creepy horror/SF with a lovable dog (required for all Koontz books). There is a third part of this series coming out sometime in the future. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2012, 4:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dean-koontz-book-should-i-read/619656/14 "2012-04-23T04:55:00Z")
Read _The Taking_. The last person I advised to didn’t regret it. ---
**Author:** ![shantih](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f6c823/32.png) [@shantih](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/shantih)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2012, 5:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dean-koontz-book-should-i-read/619656/15 "2012-04-23T05:54:04Z")
> [@Drain\_Bead](#): > > Lightning, Watchers, or Strangers. The rest are varying degrees of dreck. Any of these, and I would add Phantoms to that list. ---
**Author:** ![Charley](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/97f17d/32.png) [@Charley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charley)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2012, 6:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dean-koontz-book-should-i-read/619656/16 "2012-04-23T06:46:48Z")
I’ll read Koontz for an easy, fairly entertaining read. The exception is The Bad Place, which really got under my skin for some reason. I love that book, and I’ve reread it probably a couple of dozen times, which most Koontz doesn’t stand up to, IMO. So, that’s my recommendation. ---
**Author:** ![Idle\_Thoughts](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/838e76/32.png) [@Idle\_Thoughts](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Idle_Thoughts)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2012, 6:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dean-koontz-book-should-i-read/619656/17 "2012-04-23T06:52:53Z")
Clockwork, I consider myself DK’s biggest fan. I have all of his books, have read them all at least three times, and have a few autographed copies. Not that that makes my opinion worth any more…but if anyone knows DK’s books, it’s me. That said, heh, I’ll have to pretty much echo what’s already been said here. I love Strangers, Lightning, and Watchers. Most of his books are good, though. If you want some suggestions beyond what everyone has said in here (which is mostly the same three), I’d go with One Door Away From Heaven, By the Light of the Moon, The Face, and–my favorite DK book of all of them–From the Corner of His Eye. I would NOT suggest Midnight, The Sight, Funhouse, or The Taking…while I think DK hasn’t written a bad book (yet), I’d say these four got about as close as you could come to a bad book. ---
**Author:** ![Fenris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fenris/32/498_2.png) [@Fenris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fenris)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2012, 11:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dean-koontz-book-should-i-read/619656/18 "2012-04-23T11:13:23Z")
> [@AClockworkMelon](#): > > I’m going to read a Dean Koontz book. If I like it I’ll read more. You tell me which one to read first. > > Don’t bother asking what I like in order to make a suggestion, just tell me. I’d tell you to base your suggestion on what you know about me from my history on the board but I don’t feel like reading a coloring book. Depends on your mood…not what you like, what “flavor” of book you want. _Watchers, Strangers or Lightning._ _Strangers_ has an Alfred Hitchcock feel: something’s going on, and our heroes are caught in the middle of a series of webs of lies and murder (Think “North by Northwest”) _Watchers_ has a more"family" feel, lotsa heartwarming stuff, punctuated by occasional horror. Vaguely “Spider-Man 1” flavor. _Lightning_ feels like a James Cameron (early Cameron before he became preachy and annoying) flick. Think “Terminator”. Hell, I’ve always pictured the main male character as being Arnold. Any of the three are a really good read. Most of Koontz’s other stuff is schlock. ---
**Author:** ![Fenris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fenris/32/498_2.png) [@Fenris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fenris)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2012, 11:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dean-koontz-book-should-i-read/619656/19 "2012-04-23T11:22:53Z")
> [@Idle\_Thoughts](#): > > …while I think DK hasn’t written a bad book (yet), Oh yeah? 😃 Anti-Men The Crimson Witch Hanging On and about a half-dozen others from that period. And (God have mercy on us all), his “Deanna Dwyer” books: Children of the Storm (which I’ve tried to read) The Doctor’s Office (which I’ve tried to read) and the other three Dwyer books (which I’ve never actually seen) \* Justify THOSE, mister! 😉 \*For those not in the know, in the late '60s, early '70s, Koontz wrote 5(?) Romance novels under the pen-name Deanna Dwyer. To say that the writing is tragically bad doesn’t begin to cover the badness. He also ground out a cubic fuckton of schlock (of varying degrees of badness) under a bunch of pseudonyms. It wasn’t until about 1977 or so (When did _Night Chills_ come out?) that he really found his voice, IMO. ---
**Author:** ![Fenris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fenris/32/498_2.png) [@Fenris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fenris)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2012, 11:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dean-koontz-book-should-i-read/619656/20 "2012-04-23T11:24:25Z")
> [@charmstr](#): > > His earlier books are better than his later ones, I’d disagree. His middle books, say 1980-2000m are better than his earlier or later ones. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-dean-koontz-book-should-i-read/619656.md?page=2)