Review: Intensity by Dean Koontz

Intensity by Dean Koontz

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Sometimes Dean Koontz surprises me. I haven't read one of his novels in awhile because I was getting to the point that it didn't feel worth reading his books anymore. They tend to be overwritten, sometimes trite and a bit repetitive. However, I was looking for something to listen to via audiobook and found this particular novel in my search of library audiobooks.

This novel was a surprise in some ways. It really freaked me out at moments. The premise and story, in and of themselves, were very compelling. The characters were fantastic. I was on the edge of my seat at certain points in the plot. The story and characters may make it one of my favorite Koontz stories to date.

There were also very severe flaws in the novel which is why I've rated it lower than I usually would for a novel that I liked as much as I did this one. First and foremost, I was not a fan of the narrator of the audio book. Her voices were not particularly effective, in my opinion, I found her more obnoxious than not. But, the biggest flaw in this book was the inane overwriting. Ugggh. There was so much unnecessary inner dialogue in the novel that I couldn't help but to feel annoyed by the barrage of flowery descriptions and overwrought emotion. It was just entirely too much for me. It went beyond descriptive into clunky and frankly awful!

I can't imagine that I'd have made it all the way through the book if I'd been reading it rather than listening. I stuck with it only because I could tune out the irritating aspects of the novel. I hear that there was a tv movie made of the book that was pretty good. I'm not sure if that is available anywhere but I can see how this story might make a good movie. The material is interesting. I just wish that Koontz hadn't taken good material and written it less than eloquently. It's a shame.

In the end, I'm not sure that I can recommend the book. It's just not that great. If you are a big Koontz fan and really do like a suspenseful novel, you may want to check it out. However, go into it knowing that it has a number of flaws.

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