Halloween Review: Phantoms by Dean Koontz

Recently, I reread an early Dean Koontz thriller, Phantoms. I found the book still captivated me.

Since it's Halloween, I thought I'd tell you why Phantoms by Dean Koontz is my favorite spooky book.

The Premise

I've read most of Mr. Koontz's booklist because I particularly enjoy his blend of mystery, emotion, intellectualism, and captivating characters. Phantoms is a perfect example of this. He takes centuries-old mass disappearances from every culture and creates a sinister entity who suddenly decides to reveal itself in the high country town of Snowfield, California.

No one is better at setting a mood than Dean Koontz, and in the too-silent town of Snowfield as Dr. Jenny Paige returns with her orphaned younger sister, the mood is creepy. The encroaching darkness seems to have smothered all sound.

No kids laughing as they play. No teens listening to loud music. No traffic. Nothing. As Jenny and her sister go from business to business in search of someone--anyone--what they find is enough to strike terror into the heart of the bravest man or woman.

Her call for help brings the county Sheriff and his deputies, but that's only the beginning of the violence and horror that lurks in the town. True to Koontz's intellectualism, the solution to the mystery is a crackpot writer with a universally ridiculed theory.

Koontz Makes You Believe

Koontz is one of the few male authors who can develop a believable romantic relationship, and he does it adeptly with Jenny and the Sheriff.

Takeaway Truth

Phantoms is a superb thriller that works on many levels. Readers of mystery, horror, romance, and suspense should find it riveting.

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