Watchers by Dean Koontz Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Watchers
Book Review: Briillllliannnnttttttttt
Summary: 5 Stars
Watchers is the first book of Dean Koontz that i have read, and it has put a want for more of his work in me. The story is about two science projects, planned to be used as government defences, that escape from their lab.
Travis Cornell runs into the first of the two, a golden retriever with extraordinary intelligence. He keeps the dog, and soon finds out jsut how smar he is, and eventually finds a way of communicating with it.
The other is a beast! it was mixed with several animals, but i wont go further into detail because Koonts seemed to have tried to let our imaginations run away with us as to what the thing looks like in detail, then reveals it at the end.
Then theres the reclusive, beautiful woman who has been sheltered by her not too mentally stable aunt since she was a child, literally looking out on the world with fear. She meets Travis and the dog, who saves her from being raped by a man who was trying to take advantage of her ignorance. She grows to have a relationship with Travis and the dog.
Then theres the assassin. A man who kills both for immense pleasure, and for money. But mostly because he thinks he absorbs the life energy of every person he kills, thus thinks that once he hits the limit he'll be immortal. You can make your own mind up on him, ithink he's a plain wacko!
Then, last but not least, theres the cops. One about the project of the two animals, the other has suspicions. the one who knows has to try and find them both before it becomes public.
Truly a masterpiece of great proportions. The characters are all uniquely different, equally interesting, but by far the dog is my favourite. I gaurantee you you'll fall in love with it yourslef, and wish something like that would happen for real. Who knows, it might have already, as the book shows just how ignorant the world can be, and how blinding the government can be.
And, before i forget, apart from all the character dilemas, and heartfelt suspense, there is unforgetable horror. The book will have you turning on lights befreo you get into bed, looking behind when your walking down your hall or up your stairs and will have you leaping at your own shadow!
Okay, i've talked too mcuh, so just go out and buy it, sit down and take a deep breath, coz this is not a book you'll forget and one you'll most definitely read again and again....
Book Review: Brilliant
Summary: 5 Stars
Watchers is definetely Koontz's most popular and well-loved novel, but I have to admit that I was a bit skeptical at first. Koontz had never let me down before, but how exciting could it was about a genius dog? Don't get me wrong, I love dogs, but they are typically not very thrilling to read about.
I was wrong.
Travis Cornell is a miserable, lonely man. He lives the life of a loner, and he doesn't care whether he lives or dies. Nora Devon is a shy, woman who has lived a sheltered, lonely life and wears drab unflattering dresses and never does her hair, because as her mother has always told her, she'll never be anything but plain and homely anyway. Her only passion in life is her painting.
Meanwhile, two animals have escaped from a company called Banodyne. One, a golden retriever named Einstein, was created over several years of altering genetics, creating a dog with the IQ of an average man for the purpose of using as a spy for the government. The other, a monstrous creature known as The Outsider that is determined to destroy the dog for reasons which the reader eventually learns.
Travis finds Einstein and adopts him. He also, with the help of Einstein, saves the life of a stranger, Nora, from a sexual predator who has been stalking her relentlessly. The two eventually fall in love and learn to find ways to communicate with Einstein. He eventually learns to "speak" by arranging Scrabble tiles to form words and sentences. They even teach him to read and rig him up a device that turns the pages for him. Even though he is remarkably intelligent, he is still very much a dog.
After Nora and Travis learn of The Outsider and his murderous trek across California, coming ever closer to their home, they must protect themselves and Einstein from not only this mysterious, deadly creature, but from the people in high places that are determined to capture Einstein and take him back to the lab.
You really become intrigued and attactched to the characters in Watchers, even the ones that you see very little of. Nora's transformation from a frightened, sheltered mouse of a woman into a brave, strong, confident woman is amazing, as is Einstein's learning progress. The dog himself is utterly delightful and you'll long to have a dog just like him. Even The Outsider is someone to feel for when you learn more about him and why he's after Einstein. And his final scene made me shed a few tears onto the book. What a sympathetic villian he was.
Book Review: Brilliant
Summary: 5 Stars
This is the tenth Koontz book I have read. The other nine, I gave way less than a 5 for various reasons - a couple I gave a one.
Watchers deserves a 10. A masterpiece of suspense, love, intrigue, and mystery. It kept me up till the wee hours -- couldn't put it down.
A must read.
Book Review: Couldn't get past the premise
Summary: 3 Stars
My own bias, but I could not get past the hyper-intelligent dog premise that drives the book. When the dog started reading books I simply could no longer suspend my disbelief and rolled my eyes in exasperation. The idea of a golden retreiver sitting back on the couch with a good book was just too much.
Koontz achieves exactly what he wants to do in this book. The characters are sympathetic and in need of change. The villian is truly evil and relentless. The climax is logical and emotional (sort of).
If you like Koontz other books, you'll probably enjoy this. I know this is a very personal book for Koontz, who loves his dogs like children. But a novel reading dog? I just couldn't get past it.
Book Review: Couldn't put it down
Summary: 4 Stars
Another great one from Dean Koontz. I read almost all the way through. Great characters and of course loved the dog.