Phantoms

By: Dean Koontz

Narrated by: Buck Schirner

Length: 14 hrs and 39 mins

Publisher's summary

Closer...
They found the town silent, apparently abandoned. Then they found the first body strangely swollen and still warm. One hundred fifty were dead, 350 missing. But the terror had only begun in the tiny mountain town of Snowfield, California.

...and closer...
At first, they thought it was the work of a maniac. Or terrorists. Or toxic contamination. Or a bizarre new disease.

...and closer...
But then they found the truth. And they saw it in the flesh. And it was worse than anything any of them had ever imagined.

©2008 Dean Koontz (P)2008 Brilliance Audio

Critic reviews

"First-rate suspense, scary and stylish." ( Los Angeles Times)
"Schirner's pacing and pitch respond to the story's context, and his characterizations of female characters are impressive." ( AudioFile)

Classic Koontz

I've enjoyed Dean Koontz's books for a long time. Long enough that some of the books I own call him something to the effect of, "the least know best-selling author."

It was fun to revisit Phantoms as an audio book. The narrator does a decent job with the voices, although it took some getting used to.

Takes some liberties like most 80's and 90's books

Was an entertaining read, First Dean Koontz novel, decided to check it out obviously because of the movie. Was better then said movie, though it had a few characters who were unnecessary to the plot. Worth listening to, if you're looking to kill time.

Thrilling monster story

If your into paranormal, thrillers, monster stories then this is perfect for you. The novel has a great pace and multiple point of views. I would say 7/10 and I’m not a monster story person so it was well done

Great suspense build up but ends predictably

I've read and listened to thisonce each and seen the movie quite a few times. I grew up reading his books and over 20 under my bely.

Phantoms gets into the mystery very quickly and keeps the reader/listener mostly in the dark for quite some time. This is the books strength. The mystery is compelling and interesting.

However the further it goes and the mystery gets untangled, the authors (Koontz) flaws gets more apparent. What starts off as a great horror story based loosely on real world mass dissapearances ends with narrowminded concepts of good and evil according to his very catholic worldview.

Also, what's with Koontz' almost obsessive use of perverse misogynist personas when portraying someone as a bad person?

The performance from the voice actor is solid however.

great read

I loved the story line. the characters were interesting, the plot was awesome. the ending was pretty good. the narration was excellent!

Liked it all

Was just like when I read it as a teenager, all great fun. Reader was terrific also.

Great Fun!!

I'm a big fan of Dean Koontz who writes imaginative, fast paced stories about compelling characters (likeable or not) who are often forced to re-think their world and their lives during the course of the action. "Phantoms" is one of those books. I like to listen to my audible books while I knit but I made the mistake of trying to listen to this book while knitting a very complicated sock pattern with four double pointed needles. Not a good idea. I was so involved with the story I was halfway done with a sock when I realized I totally messed up the pattern, had to rip it out and start over. Next time I knit and listen to a Dean Koontz book I think I'll stick with a simple "no brainer" knitting project, like a basic dishcloth.

Better than expected.

If you could sum up Phantoms in three words, what would they be?

Wild ass story.

Who was your favorite character and why?

The Phantom(s)

What about Buck Schirner’s performance did you like?

Very good, at times I thought there was more than one person. He does a very good job changing his tone and pitch.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

No extreme reaction, but it was a very interesting story.

If you don't figure it out, it'll get you!

What did you love best about Phantoms?

It took a long time to figure out what the monster was, and how to try and defeat it. Koontz gave clues, but not obvious ones. Made the story more interesting.

What did you like best about this story?

The pace at which it developed.

Which scene was your favorite?

When the were talking to the monster via computer terminals.

If you could take any character from Phantoms out to dinner, who would it be and why?

I'd take the English guy who wrote the book (book title "The Ancient Enemy")

Any additional comments?

Good, solid Koontz book. You can't go wrong.

Great story

Except for a slow beginning - lots of time spent with characters hovering over dead bodies - the story is great. Good suspense, scary (& sort of plausible) idea.