Dean R. Koontz - Sole Survivor: Signed by Author

Pros: Gripping, suspenseful story
Cons: Too mystic and contrived at the end

There's a lot ot be said for expectations ruining a story. Dean Koontz' "Sole Survivor" might have been enjoyable if I'd been expecting a science fiction novel or a supernatural thriller.

Certainly, the writing was terse and the...

Pros: This is a great story with many twists.
Cons: The ending doesn't really satisfy.

Sole Survivor is only the second book written by Dean Koontz that I have read. I got started reading Dean Koontz work when someone mentioned doing a write off on the author’s works. I checked out two different books at the library, the only two of his...

Pros: Great Characters and pacing
Cons: Reliance on near-omnipotent conspiracies for conflict

Sole Survivor
Joe Carpenter has had his wife and daughters taken from him in a tragic plane crash. Once a very successful reporter, he has spent the last year waiting to die, barely able to move without experiencing paralyzing...

Pros: very well developed characters
Cons: incredibly sad story, not as scary as usual.

Rather than scaring me to death, this story about a husband and father who loses his whole family in a plane crash depressed me. Don't misunderstand me...it is very a well written story, but I expected it to evoke a didn't emotion from me, other than...

Pros: Interesting story line, unpredictable plot, tear jerker
Cons: Ending weak (but not a reason to skip this book)

Dean Koontz's best writing is in full effect in this novel. A master of a the SCI-fi/suspense novel, he has done it again!
Plot
The book centers on a grief stricken man who has recently lost his wife and two daughters in a commercial...

Pros: Presents a theme that is filled with hope.
Cons: Scientifically implausible, poor plot structure.

You simply can not read this book and not in some way be touched by it. The scientific plausibility is stretched quite a bit, and the plot is pretty unremarkable. However, the basic premise, which you won't be able to grasp until you're almost finished...

Pros: Wonderful message, great read
Cons: unrealistic at parts

I have read many of Dean Koontz's novels, and have enjoyed some more than others. I do not care so much for the Stephen King-ish horror writing, which has such dark overtones. But because I have read a few of his that are uplifting and have true...

Pros: sheer briiliance, horror of the human kind
Cons: None. This is a brilliant piece of work

There are forces at work behind the scenes that deliberately cause wholesale slaughter and carnage, but arranges it to look as if a random accident occurred. These forces consist of both corporate megalomaniacs and government officials, who believe that...

Pros: Riveting story, a real page-turner.
Cons: Weak ending, heavy-handed at times.

This is one of the most riveting novels I've read by Dean Koontz, but the ending feels hurried and weak compared to the carefully crafted body of the work. You'll have a hard time putting this book down as you read the story of a man who lost his entire ...

Pros: Fast paced and clever
Cons: Fails to deliver a conclusion

I was very disappointed in this novel. I have read a great number of Koontz' books and have found them all to be high energy knuckle biting page turners. This book is no different. However, after reading this, biting my knuckles, and turning pages like...

Pros: Some thought-provoking concepts
Cons: VERY SLOW at times

Being a Dean Koontz fan it is with much surprise that I write this opinion. This is the first DEAN KOONTZ book I was not overjoyed about.
As you know by now my book reviewing method is to never reveal the plot or key details. I feel doing this...

Pros: Solid plot and characters, touches upon more sensitive issues not usually addressed in suspense novels, heart warming ending
Cons: none

As I've said before in other Koontz reviews, every book of his is a masterpiece, but there are maybe four or five that shine above all the rest. This is one of the Koontz greats. It's full of mystery, suspense, thrilling moments... but most uniquely to...

Pros: Good suspense at points throughout, good descriptions
Cons: Overwritten descriptions slowed the pace, mystical elements felt more preachy than enlightening

With a good plot and high suspense, you would think this was a clear winner, but the writing was the main downfall. Strength becomes weakness when poorly implemented, as you see especially in the first part of this novel.

After a while, I had to skip the massively, excessively, heavily overwritten descriptions and tenuous literary devices that buried a nice story under the weight of its own words.

The main example was the grief of the main character, Joe Carpenter. At first I was sympathetic, but after the fifth lengthy diatribe on his poor wife and daughters I started to lose my patience.

I would still recommend the book despite this annoyance, but the outcome was just not strong enough to carry the story. The pace moved fast enough to keep me entertained, despite the writing, but the cop-out ending seemed poorly thought out and more like a TV ad for a psychic hotline than a natural outcome of the story.