The Eyes of Darkness
by Dean Koontz
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A mother's greatest wish—or worst nightmare—comes true in this chilling novel by #1 New York Times bestselling author Dean Koontz.Tina Evans has spent a year suffering from incredible heartache since her son Danny's tragic death. But now, with her Vegas show about to premiere, Tina can think of no better time for a fresh start. Maybe she can finally move on and put her grief behind her.
Only there is a message for Tina, scrawled on the chalkboard in Danny's room: NOT DEAD. Two words that show more send her on a terrifying journey from the bright lights of Las Vegas to the cold shadows of the High Sierras, where she uncovers a terrible secret... show less
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What an action packed thriller of a book. The storyline was strong and the characters were believable even in a somewhat unbelievable scenario. Without giving too much away, I found it very, very interesting that the author wrote this book in 1981 that deals with something that actually happened in 2020. It was the kind of book you didn't want to put down because you just couldn't wait to see how it would end.
Tina Evans, former Vegas showgirl and now a theatrical producer, lost her son Danny in a auto wreck in the mountains. Although she has put her life back together professionally, she hasn't begun the process of letting go personally - in fact, Danny's room is still as he left it. Tina's decision to rectify that is interrupted by strange phenomena: a chill in the air, messages written on his chalkboard (`NOT DEAD'), and objects moved in his room lead her to investigate exactly what happened during the fateful camping trip that ended in tragedy. However, by reopening old wounds, she also attracts the notice of a secretive government agency (is there any other kind?) who is determined to hide the truth.
You know when you pick up one of his show more books it will be well-written with great characteriztions and a terrific story. "The Eyes of Darkness" is no exception! show less
You know when you pick up one of his show more books it will be well-written with great characteriztions and a terrific story. "The Eyes of Darkness" is no exception! show less
I have been crazy about some of Koontz' books in the past, particularly the first of the Odd Thomas series.
This book is definitely not Odd Thomas caliber.
I'm not going to go into the many ways I found it disappointing, other than to say that virtually all of it was nonsensical. I will say that I wish I had read the afterword first (something one generally doesn't do in an ebook). There, we learn that this was a book Koontz had originally written under a pseudonym and which went through many nominally comical and frankly horrible twists of fate before dying a fairly predictable death in a travesty of screenwriting.
The real mystery to me -- and one that I find far more haunting than anything in this book -- is why there are so many people show more rabidly devoted to it. I wouldn't have checked it out without those favorable reviews.
Unless you really want a book with which to lose a few hours of your life you will never be able to get back. try one of Koontz' well-written books instead.
P.S. One of the bad guys who is talked about but never seen is a Dr. Tamaguchi. I immediately got the tamagotchi video pets in my head, and could never lose that image!
P.P.S. OK, I'll talk a little about things that I found ridiculous. First of all, the first large chunk of the book is about the main character's career as a Las Vegas show producer. Why? This has nothing to do with any aspect of the book later on, except that it gives her an excuse to know of a stage hypnotist in Reno. And why, a year after her son's death, does she suddenly come to the conclusion that he's really alive? And why do none of the scientists studying him cop to the fact that he's a universal-class psychic talent? And why, after a one-nighter with a spy-cum-attorney, does the guy rescue her and firmly believe everything she tells him? And how does this 12-year-old kid have the ability to guide everyone to him with pinpoint precision and have sophisticated enough knowledge of every possible mechanical device to foil it at a precisely convenient time and location for his mother? And why, if the mysterious Network can figure out they're in Reno -- which, frankly, isn't particularly brilliant police work -- can't it figure out that they might not go in the front door? Geez, Koontz, I get that there's never enough money, but surely some of your backlist is too bad to re-release. show less
This book is definitely not Odd Thomas caliber.
I'm not going to go into the many ways I found it disappointing, other than to say that virtually all of it was nonsensical. I will say that I wish I had read the afterword first (something one generally doesn't do in an ebook). There, we learn that this was a book Koontz had originally written under a pseudonym and which went through many nominally comical and frankly horrible twists of fate before dying a fairly predictable death in a travesty of screenwriting.
The real mystery to me -- and one that I find far more haunting than anything in this book -- is why there are so many people show more rabidly devoted to it. I wouldn't have checked it out without those favorable reviews.
Unless you really want a book with which to lose a few hours of your life you will never be able to get back. try one of Koontz' well-written books instead.
P.S. One of the bad guys who is talked about but never seen is a Dr. Tamaguchi. I immediately got the tamagotchi video pets in my head, and could never lose that image!
P.P.S. OK, I'll talk a little about things that I found ridiculous. First of all, the first large chunk of the book is about the main character's career as a Las Vegas show producer. Why? This has nothing to do with any aspect of the book later on, except that it gives her an excuse to know of a stage hypnotist in Reno. And why, a year after her son's death, does she suddenly come to the conclusion that he's really alive? And why do none of the scientists studying him cop to the fact that he's a universal-class psychic talent? And why, after a one-nighter with a spy-cum-attorney, does the guy rescue her and firmly believe everything she tells him? And how does this 12-year-old kid have the ability to guide everyone to him with pinpoint precision and have sophisticated enough knowledge of every possible mechanical device to foil it at a precisely convenient time and location for his mother? And why, if the mysterious Network can figure out they're in Reno -- which, frankly, isn't particularly brilliant police work -- can't it figure out that they might not go in the front door? Geez, Koontz, I get that there's never enough money, but surely some of your backlist is too bad to re-release. show less
When I was in 10th grade, I started to devour my step-dad's collection of John Saul and Dean Koontz books. They were like candy and great for traveling. I remember reading this one in a hotel in Vegas on a family trip. After a while, all of the Koontz books were all the same. The plot always follows the same pattern and the romantic scenes were even predictable and narrated with the same words! So, I recommend this if you haven't already tired of Koontz. I remember it being an exciting plot that kept me turning the pages frantically.
Wrapping up 2020 with the book that “predicted” the pandemic of 2020! Boy, I wish I had this copy back at the beginning of the Covid outbreak when folks were dropping a hundred bucks for it! I guess I should just be glad that I wasn’t one of them! Anyway...
The book neither predicts the Covid, or coronavirus, nor does in mention 2020. The only "connection" is that we finally get to the Wuhan-400 on page 353... of 366! Yup, 13 pages before the end! So, I guess the 'big' deal was that it says Wuhan. I think someone on Koontz's marketing team deserves a HUGE raise! And I am SOOOOOO glad that I didn't pay $100 to read this book, as it wasn't a very good one anyway. This book really disappointed me, just like the rest of 2020 has. show more Hmmm... maybe that's the connection!!!... show less
The book neither predicts the Covid, or coronavirus, nor does in mention 2020. The only "connection" is that we finally get to the Wuhan-400 on page 353... of 366! Yup, 13 pages before the end! So, I guess the 'big' deal was that it says Wuhan. I think someone on Koontz's marketing team deserves a HUGE raise! And I am SOOOOOO glad that I didn't pay $100 to read this book, as it wasn't a very good one anyway. This book really disappointed me, just like the rest of 2020 has. show more Hmmm... maybe that's the connection!!!... show less
Dean Koontz is one of my favourite contemporary authors, so it was a major let down for me to discover that The Eyes of Darkness was a disappointing read.
The story begins with the death of young Danny Evans in an accident that also took the lives of many other school aged boys while on an excursion in the mountains. A year later, his Mum Tina begins to receive messages that say 'not dead'. Meanwhile, Tina meets a new love interest Elliot and together they try and untangle the mystery to get to the truth.
The novel took a while to get going, with way too much emphasis on Tina's career, which later turned out to be irrelevant to the plot. I found Elliot's background and history way too much of a stretch, and their slow acceptance of the show more subtle supernatural theme quite frustrating.
The book lacked the multiple plot lines and twists and turns of many of Koontz' more recent novels, and I discovered the reason for this at the end. In the Afterword, the Koontz writes that The Eyes of Darkness was one of six novels he wrote under the pen name of Leigh Nichols in the 80s. Now that Koontz is no longer using this pen name, he began to review and improve these earlier novels and publish them under his own name.
When I purchased this book I found it in a bargain bin, and didn't realise it was a 'improved' version of an earlier novel, so I feel a little duped. Nevertheless, it was a quick read, and I was able to swiftly move onto something else.
Unfortunately I wouldn't recommend this book to anyone; unless they are a dedicated Koontz fan who is keen to read every book in his repertoire. show less
The story begins with the death of young Danny Evans in an accident that also took the lives of many other school aged boys while on an excursion in the mountains. A year later, his Mum Tina begins to receive messages that say 'not dead'. Meanwhile, Tina meets a new love interest Elliot and together they try and untangle the mystery to get to the truth.
The novel took a while to get going, with way too much emphasis on Tina's career, which later turned out to be irrelevant to the plot. I found Elliot's background and history way too much of a stretch, and their slow acceptance of the show more subtle supernatural theme quite frustrating.
The book lacked the multiple plot lines and twists and turns of many of Koontz' more recent novels, and I discovered the reason for this at the end. In the Afterword, the Koontz writes that The Eyes of Darkness was one of six novels he wrote under the pen name of Leigh Nichols in the 80s. Now that Koontz is no longer using this pen name, he began to review and improve these earlier novels and publish them under his own name.
When I purchased this book I found it in a bargain bin, and didn't realise it was a 'improved' version of an earlier novel, so I feel a little duped. Nevertheless, it was a quick read, and I was able to swiftly move onto something else.
Unfortunately I wouldn't recommend this book to anyone; unless they are a dedicated Koontz fan who is keen to read every book in his repertoire. show less
A re-read, this book reminds me of why I’ve been a longtime reader of this author whose work is best described as supernatural thrillers. Though sludgy in places plot-wise with a few coincidences this is solid plotting. More than that, Koontz must be one of the first in this genre who regularly started producing drop-kick heroines. More recent reviews seem to connect this book as being precognitive considering the troubles of 2020, but this is simply coincidence, and a subject written about by many authors; would be a pity if this happenstance puts anyone off an excellent read, although this novel is one to read for the journey more than the outcome. My only negatives is a wish to have connected to the character of Danny more and the show more ending feels a little abrupt after the investment of a great build-up. show less
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525+ Works 227,466 Members
Dean Koontz was born on July 9, 1945 in Everett, Pennsylvania. He received a degree in education from Shippensburg State College in 1967. A former high school English teacher as well as a teacher-counselor with the Appalachian Poverty Program, he began writing as a child to escape an ugly home life caused by his alcoholic father. A prolific writer show more at a young age, he had sold a dozen novels by the age of 25. Early in his career, he wrote under numerous pen names including David Axton, Brian Coffey, K. R. Dwyer, Leigh Nichols, Richard Paige, and Owen West. He is best known for the books written under his own name, many of which are bestsellers, including Midnight, Cold Fire, The Bad Place, Hideaway, The Husband, Odd Hours, 77 Shadow Street, Innocence, The City, Saint Odd, and The Silent Corner. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
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Common Knowledge
- Canonical title
- The Eyes of Darkness
- Original title
- The Eyes of Darkness
- Alternate titles*
- Ogen van angst
- Original publication date
- 1981 ; 1989
- People/Characters
- Tina Evans; Elliot Stryker; Danny Evans
- Important places
- Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Reno, Nevada, U.S.A.
- Dedication
- This better version is for Gerda, with love. After five years of work, now that I'm nearly finished improving these early novels first published under pen names, I intend to start improving myself. Considering all that need... (show all)s to be done, this new project will henceforth be known as the hundred-year plan.
- First words
- At six minutes past midnight, Tuesday morning, on the way home from a late rehearsal of her new stage show, Tina Evans saw her son, Danny, in a stranger's car.
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)She wondered what lay ahead for them.
- Disambiguation notice
- Originally published under the pseudonym "Leigh Nichols"
*Some information comes from Common Knowledge in other languages. Click "Edit" for more information.
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