Intensity

Compassion: that inner need urging you to serve others even when it may cost you personally, and self-preservation: the need to avoid harm to self. These are feelings that most people have to some degree every day. You willingly give up a seat to a woman hobbling with a cane entering your subway car. But you later exit the car first because a suspicious person is eyeing your briefcase. These likely happen every day. But what if these two competing forces were brought to a climax at the same time? What if internally your conscience was screaming at you to help someone, but your self-preservation is also screaming that you must find a way to save yourself? This brings you to the height of internal intensity, after all survival is the only show more way to ensure you can execute the need to save.

This is, in my opinion, the premise of this pulse driving thriller. What is a person capable of when compassion and self-preservation reach such an intensity that both are relentlessly pushing you on? You must save. You must survive. Oh, and the force you're doing battle with? It is also intensely driven by pure evil without any apparent compassion or concern for self-preservation.

This is a book you do not want to put down. In the end you will feel a sense of both exhilaration and exhaustion. Then, finally triumph, but not the triumph you expected throughout the book. show less

I used to read Koontz a lot in my early 20's but every time I have tried one recently, I have been disappointed. I have been waffling on trying anymore but saw a lot of people recommend this one so I thought I'd give him another chance. And I definitely shouldn't have. I don't think there is one thing I liked about this book. It was preposterous to the extreme and, at the same time, tedious beyond belief. It had so many elements I dislike in a book that I am astounded he could fit that many in. I pushed myself to finish it because I've been in a book slump and keep DNFing books but this just made me realize how important DNFing a bad book is. I can't tell you how much I loved his book Watchers that I read in the late 80's but I guess I show more was quite a different person then and I won't ever re-read it for fear my memory of it will be ruined but, alas, his books are just not for me anymore. show less

I originally read this book as part of a BookCrossing ring in 2002.

Great book, I was hanging on every word and actually sarificed sleep in order to find out what came next. I adore horror/suspense novels that manage to employ realistic (i.e., non-supernatural) antagonists in well-written, original plots -- unfortunately such works are few and far between, but this book measured up nicely.

I was literally on the edge of my seat reading this story. The title sums up both the book itself, *and* the experience of reading it. :)

When I was younger, I devoured Koontz's novels, reading close to a dozen, although it has been over a decade since I had last read his books. I remember the plot and characters of very few of them. Two stand out to me. One is my favorite, Watchers, whose most memorable character is a golden retriever. The other is Intensity, with one of Koontz's most sinister villains in Edgler Vess and most courageous heroine in Chyna Shepherd.

What's so striking about this suspense novel (and boy does it deserve that name) is that this is structured as a duel between these two characters whose perspective we share, both at different times stalking the other. And they're interesting in their differences and similarities. Both feel they make their own show more fate, Chyna believes that you choose whether or not to be a victim. Vess's philosophy is reminiscent of Skinner; he believes humans are "motivated and formed solely of sensory stimuli." He craves intensity and cares little if it's pain or pleasure he experiences. Chyna, having escaped the chaotic and violent childhood her psychotic mother gave her, craves safety--her fervent prayer is to be "untouched and alive." But events in the novel push her beyond fighting for only personal survival.

Reading this made me think about why I can enjoy Koontz, and yet found I have no taste for noir. I think it's that for all the horrific elements in Koontz's novels, he's not cynical. He's not afraid to create heroes--sympathetic characters willing to take risks for others. Somehow Koontz misses impressing me the way, say, Stephen King does. There's something a bit formulaic about his plots and flat about his characterizations--he's very black and white--but the part of me that craves heroes in fiction is satisfied by his novels.

While this is no literary classic, Koontz is definitely a cut above the usual thriller writer. I never feel like reading him is an insult to my intelligence. His prose often has a lyrical quality and this is one of the rare novels where I needed to frequently consult a dictionary: tenebrous, pule, cornichons, lagniappe, carabiner. If you're looking for a gripping read, a tautly written intelligent thriller, this novel shouldn't disappoint. show less

When Chyna Shepherd crosses paths with a killer, she has to fight for more than her own life. A re-read for me I’m pleased to say I would still rate among the author’s best books. While I might not have thought this was as perfect as I did on my first read many years ago, much of this book remains intense. Yes, the antagonist possibly feels excessive, but not as caricatured as some famous criminals real or invented. Whatever writers can dream up, reality often trumps. But I recall the protagonist being among the first truly strong female characters despite her making one or two stupid mistakes. Being human and ‘not thinking’ makes for a more realistic person. She’s not superhuman. There are spiritual elements, which is often show more the case in Koontz books, but there’s no reason to buy into these if the reader doesn’t want to. The same elements could be coincidence yet give Chyna strength and determination. Only her belief in them is important. There is some animal injury and death, so that may be a trigger warning for some; I could deal because ultimately what happened is still the killer’s fault, but realistic in context, and not gratuitous. show less

I'm a true crime junkie, so I'm used to very gruesome crimes. But this novel chilled me to the bone. I started reading this book a year and a half ago but, I put the book down because I was overwhelmed and picked it up again a few months later. It is a horror-thriller in every sense.

Chyna is such a strong-willed character. I was so afraid for her. The writing was so vivid that I was petrified as if it was all happening to me in real life.

I have gotten up screaming in the middle of the night multiple times this week. ( I couldn't remember why but I think it's because of the book)

Nothing has given me so many chills in my life. I felt very alive reading this. Highly recommend.

Well, I will start by saying that the killer, Edgler Foreman Vess, is one of the more terrifying psychopaths that have appeared in the books I've read! Just completely gonzo! Meticulous, calculating, and perfectly content in the world he has created. A true horror!

But this book spends much too much time on the other side, the heroine, Chyna Shepherd. To explain her actions, the author tells us about her childhood. Over, and over, and over again. So much so, that I began to have the damn story memorized! I'm not sure what the purpose of this receptiveness was, but for me, it just annoyed the hell out of me! Each decision Chyna made "had" to be reinforced with a retelling of her childhood trauma. I thought for sure there would be a part show more where Chyna chose to put on a sweatshirt and then I'd be re-told that the reason she did so was due to what happened when she grew up! Dude, we don't all have the attention span of gnats!

Oh, and I liked the fact this book took place in parts, near where I live. And I liked the elk. show less