The Bad Place (original 1990; edition 2004)

Audiobook. It was a little bit confusing at the beginning. It changed perspective and narrator to introduce many different characters and I really didn't have much of an idea of what was going on. But as the threads of the stories started getting woven together, wow! It got so good! I never wanted to shut my MP3 player off. ( )

I read this book for the May group read for the Dean Koontz Group, of which I'm currently a member. Unfortunately, I can't really say that liked this one at all. It seemed to me that it was both lacking and overdone at the same time. Lacking in characterization (which is important to me), but overdone in drama and strangeness.

Dean Koontz is not the best character writer. This is a big deal for me, because characters are my vehicle to the story. I don't care how great the plot is, or how unique the story, if I can't put myself in the shoes of a character, even as an observer, it doesn't work for me. And this one didn't work for me.

I couldn't care about any of the characters for much (say like 90%) of the story. Toward the very end, I started to care about Bobby, and to a lesser extent, Julie, simply because at the very end, they seemed to become a little more than the card-board cut-outs that they had been. Not liking a character is not the end of the world for me and I can still enjoy a book with unlikeable characters, although it's difficult at times, but not caring about the characters is a deal-breaker. If I can't identify with, and at least care about ONE character, even if it's simply to wish them dead, that's a problem. You'd think that this last situation would apply to Candy Pollard, our socio- and psychopathic murderer, but no. His habits and appetites were appalling and sickening, but as I didn't care about the people they were applied to, I didn't care that he was applying them. It was too distant, too impersonal, too fictional.

On top of the missing spark of life in these characters, I was actually offended by the characterization and description of one of them, a character with Down Syndrome. I probably won't explain this well - I haven't been very eloquent today - but essentially I felt like Koontz's description/characterization of this "special" character was derogatory and old fashioned and out-dated and condescending. Thomas, the character I'm referring to, was constantly referred to as a "moron" both in the general narration and in the sections of the story that were from Thomas's point of view. Thomas also referred to himself as "dumb" so many times that I lost count. Literally. During the discussion of the book, a friend mentioned that he did not feel that this was condescending or meant in an insulting manner, but rather just as a member of a particular group refers to themselves in identification. I don't know if it is meant to be insulting or condescending (I hope not), but to me it came across that way. *shrug*

This is the second Koontz book in a row that I've read which started with a character waking up and having no idea who or where they are. I think that this could be a kind of running theme with Koontz, simply because it plays on our fears of losing our identity and our hold on reality. This loss of self is more frightening to many people than death.

Another commonality that I noticed is the undertone of religion in the book. This comes in many shapes and sizes, from religious "avengers" exploiting a perceived connection with God in order to rid the world of sinners, to people who have and are content with their (Christian based) faith, to those who are just discovering that there may be something more than nothingness, which Koontz portrays as a surety but his characters aren't yet enlightened about.

There's also more than a little supernatural stuff in this one, some that I could accept, and one thing in particular that seemed incredibly out of place to me, namely the diamond mine. What the heck? The explanation for the supernatural stuff in this book seemed mighty far-fetched as well, more like Koontz's idea of what could have caused it than any scientific proof.

I didn't care for this one, honestly. Thinking back now, I can't think of anything that I really liked about the story. *sigh* I can see how this would appeal to some people, but I'm just not one of them. ( )

My thoughts:
I read a lot of Koontz when I was younger. 13 books in a couple weeks once, had to quit reading his stories because I started to be afraid to go out in the dark by myself - I got over it! I was thrilled when I got this audio book as a gift even though I had read it during what I called my "Koontz phase." Many of the books had run together in my memory because I read so many in such a short period of time, but this one always stood out as truly scary and one of my favorites. I was shocked at how much of the story had been lost by time and I found myself driving out of my way so I could listen longer in my car.

Koontz has created a wonderfully imaginative, dark story of evil at its finest. But what stood out the most for me were the characters. Koontz has given us astounding characters, my favorite being Thomas. The development of Thomas is sheer brilliance. Thomas has Downs Syndrome and lives in a care facility. The insight and understanding that went into the creation of Thomas is incredible. All of the characters are fantastic. They are well developed, cleverly written and span such a wide scope of personalities, abilities, and characteristics that it is hard to imagine that someone could create them and they seem as if they are truly real people. The evil that is Frank's brother Candy is terrifying. His sisters are frightening on a whole other level. The doctor that we meet is evil of another kind, and I found myself revolted by his part in the family history and him as a person. Koontz has a way writing his characters so you love and hate them as readily as Bobby and Julie do in the story.

The setting of the story varies as Frank "travels" and we learn about the places that he goes. The descriptions of the people, places and things that are encountered on the travels are vivid and clever. Koontz is a master wordsmith and draws the reader into the story with his language, creativity and imagination. Well worth the read - or the listen. ( )

Believe it or not this is the first ever Koontz novel I have read. And if I were to be so shallow and regard the entire collection by one reading, I wouldn't read another again. However I am fair if not judgemental and the guy must have something as he has written and sold so many novels so I will endeavour to find another. I just hope he doesn't turn out to be a massive disappointment as Richard Laymon proved to be.

This book promised so much and yet delivered so little although it is well written in that it is easy to picture the scenes no matter how far-fetched and silly they may appear to be. But by no stretch of the imagination was this scary, and I am easily scared. in fact the only time in the whole 500 pages where I was mildly uncomfortable was the introduction of some spider-like creature (I'm a chronic arachnophobic) and even this proved to be nothing more than some semi-mechanical, GM-ed space worker-type insect. Meh.

And as Americans are want to do, there has to be a romance or love somewhere intertwined in amongst the horror and deprivation. Meh, again.

Call me cynical but I like my make-believe to actually be believable in some sort of unlikely but possible way, but this book wasn't. Even throwing in some hermaphrodite-incestual in-breeding (yep, you heard me) only served to push way beyond the realms of what is fiction and what is just 'words on a page'. I'm still uncertain if Candy (not really a name befitting the 'monster' in this book) was a vampire or just someone with a neck/blood fetish??

Listen to me, like I'm sort of story writer...maybe not, but I am still a reader and like my rants on fast foods here in NZ, I sometimes feel I have been cheated when a book is raved about only to turn out like seeing your hot sister in the buff; unacceptable and ultimately disappointing. ( )

Being as this was the 1st Koontz book I ever read and so I'm a little prejudiced and expected every book of his to be just as bizarre and fabulous and i can honestly say i don't think I have ever read aby of his book sthat I didnt like. This one is so BIZARRE that it is hard to place any store next to it and make it fair but it is a wonderful read. ( )