Wednesday, September 29, 2010

My Love/Hate Relationship with Dean Koontz

I read my first Dean Koontz novel when I was in high school.  It was one of his older releases from the 80's and I was hooked.  I don't remember the storyline, but I remember not being able to guess the ending, and for that reason, I loved it.  I also loved the wittiness of the narrator.  Koontz has the ability to weave words and create a dreamscape in my imagination.
From that point forward, I started to read all of his novels.  I loved many of his older ones.  Not all, but most.  Then I ran into Christopher Snow.  Chris is a character in two books..  Fear Nothing & Seize the Night.  I can honestly say that I love these books.  The characters are fun and even flawed.
The next character I fell in love with is Odd Thomas.  He's too humble for his own good.  He saves people's lives, for goodness sake!  And he's a sweetie to boot. :)
Well, as of late, I have noticed a decrease in quality that has actually made me confused.  Sometimes I flip the novel over to check and see if Dean & Trixie are indeed on the back cover.  Is this Dean's less-than-amazing brother and his dog, Misty??  I have no idea. 
Sometimes I think business contracts have a way of squashing creativity.  I wonder if Dean had more time to give to just one novel, would it be better?  I'm gonna say yes.

Anyway, before I get flamed on this, I do realize that it takes a certain kind of person to churn out novels on a regular basis.  I have yet to write one.  So clearly it's not as easy as he makes it look. :)

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