Twilight Eyes by Dean Koontz Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Twilight Eyes
Book Review: Classic Koontz
Summary: 3 Stars
The heroin, Slim Mackenzie, has Twilight Eyes. He can see things in people - at least everyone thinks they're people - that terrify him. After killing his Uncle, who was one of - them - he runs from the law and joins the Sombra Brothers Carnival. As he gains the carnies trust, they reveal that he is not imagining what he sees, and joins them in a war against the Goblins. These creatures, creations of an extinct civilization of man, plan to exterminate the human element of the earth and take it for themselves. Even his girlfriend Rya is working with them. Slim's plan is to infiltrate their operations bunker before they have a chance to start a nuclear war.
Although not his finest work, if you are a Koontz fan, it is a must read. The only weakness of this book is the overzealous wordiness in some of the scenes.
J. P. Landry, author of Hazard 666
Book Review: This is one of Koontz' Better Books
Summary: 4 Stars
TWILIGHT EYES is considered by many people to be one of Dean Koontz' best books. I'm a big Koontz fan, and found this novel very well crafted, but I don't consider it a masterpiece like WATCHERS or ODD THOMAS.
The hero of TWILIGHT EYES is Slim MacKenzie, who believes he has the ability to see goblins where most other people will only see normal looking people. Slim eventually gets a job at a carnival, and the first half of this book is devoted to the carnival life. I thought this first half was really superb. Koontz does a great job of painting the atmosphere of carnival life in the mid-1960s. Apparently, a lot of this is based on Koontz' own real life experience with carnivals as a kid, so you get a very authentic picture of what carnivals were like back then.
Unfortunately, the second half of this novel takes place outside the carnival and merely consists of a series of drawn out action sequences. These scenes are well done, but Koontz has a tendency to write too much detail and exposition into some of his books, and in TWILIGHT EYES he takes a long time to get the action moving. He could have easily made this novel 30,000 words shorter without damaging the storyline. Also, the ending of this book is somewhat open ended, which may disappoint readers who want more closure.
I also found Slim MacKenzie character to be somewhat unrealistic. He is a 17-year old kid, but talks and thinks like a 40-year old adult (which was how old Koontz was when he wrote this book). It's not a fatal problem, but MacKenzie seems to be smarter and more thoughtful than most middle-aged people I know. In the end, I found him a little too good to be true.
Overall, TWILIGHT EYES is an enjoyable read, and is definitely one of Koontz' better novels. My advice, thought, is to start with WATCHERS or ODD THOMAS if you've never read Koontz before.
Book Review: A new species just under the skin of everyday people
Summary: 5 Stars
Carl Stanfeuss was born with Twilight Eyes, a color his grandmother said foretold of psychic abilities. After murdering his uncle Denton at the tender age of seventeen, Carl flees Oregon, shedding his name to become Slim MacKenzie, and join up with the Sombra Brothers Carnival. Of course, it wasn't bad that he murdered his uncle ... because his uncle was one of Them. The goblins.
From his psychic abilities, Slim can see the piggish, doggish faces of the goblins hiding underneath the fa?ade of normal humans. They live off the pain and suffering of others, gathering with glee at fires, accidents, shootings, and disasters.
Once with Sombra Brothers, Slim goes to work for concessionaire Rya Raines running the High-Striker, and falls in love with the icy beauty. Among the others he meets is enigmatic freak Joel Tuck (the most compelling character in the book), and after discovering both Joel and Rya can see the "goblins" also, they set a plan in motion to infiltrate one of the horrid monster's nests in the town of Yontsdown. Unsure if they can actually rid the world of the beasts, Slim and Rya plan to extract vengeance from them for the death of Jelly Jordan, one of their friends.
The book has an explosive culmination that won't leave you disappointed. The "goblins" are all too easy to imagine from Koontz's descriptions, and the depictions of carnival life well fleshed out without being overdone. Joel Tuck is my favorite character, Koontz describing the freak's appearance as "God having a bad day" or, worse, "fun with molding flesh".
Koontz doesn't usually write in first person, which makes this a unique novel among all the others he's done. Its also an earlier novel of his, written before he developed a 'Stephen King' predilection for 'verbal diarrhea', overwriting his stories to the point where prose overcame the actual story. 'Twilight Eyes' is an adventuresome novel with a unique storyline and well written enough to keep you up all night long. I highly recommend it. Enjoy!
Book Review: A real shriek of a book
Summary: 5 Stars
This was the very first Koontz book I had ever read... many moons ago! I have read every one since! Koontz has yet to let me down except for keeping me up very late while not wanting to put his latest book down!Book Review: Let me explain as if part of the book Twilight Eyes...
Summary: 2 Stars
...That every possible item, each character, all emotions and every action is repeatedly examined in excruciating detail from all possible angles and then reiterated at least twice. That nothing is ever left un-spoken (or un-written). That the descriptions of even the most inconsequential events continue for page, after page, after page. That the character dialogue and conversational banter chatter on and on like a mountain stream endlessly flowing to become the mighty Amazon before dumping its long winded babble into an ocean of excessive words...
...If this was actually a excerpt from the book, the verb-age concerning TOO MANY WORDS would go on for at least 5 or 6 more pages...
Get the massage?... No?... Then read the book. All will be explained... IN DETAIL.