77 Shadow Street

If I saw decent reviews. I've always liked his work, with the exception of the Odd Thomas books. This one had not yet been reviewed when I got it. Big Mistake.....Looks like he threw something together just to have something to release.It was long, repetitive and boring...I just kept hoping it would end soon. I finally just quit without finishing it.

Everything. I'm not sure he really wrote this sad attempt.

Disappointment.

Until now, I've always bought Dean Koontz books with no second thought. Will think twice (or more) in the future before wasting a credit on him.

As with most Dean Koontz books they are hit or miss this is a hit, not a 5 star but a solid 3 plus so i gave it a 4, some parts are pretty funny, in that D.K sort of way.

sort of like the Langoliers by s. King

If you are a fan you will like the book,

I'm admittedly, a huge Koontz fan, readily downloading his latest books as soon as they're available. 77 Shadow Street, however, fails to live up to his normal edge of your seat style. There are far too many characters, a strange scientific twist that's all too reminiscent of Michael Crichton's "Prey" and in the end, the book labors over description with far too much detail.

Sure, it's got some great lines and the normal Koontz morality about good and evil. Sadly missing was a canine protagonist. All in all, fairly disappointing. Sorry Dean!

The story just goes on and on about the same thing with a number of characters - I just wanted to go

I've been a Dean Koontz fan for years but it seems this story was something he threw together just because his editors told him it was time for another book.

I will try another book by Dean Koontz. I have read all his previous ones

He could have at least tried to follow some kind of a story line

Dick Hill

I would cut nearly all of them because they added nothing to the storyline.

The best I can tell this is totally worthless. I can hardly believe Dean Koontz even wrote this!!

The story just goes on and on about the same thing with a number of characters - I just wanted to go

I've been a Dean Koontz fan for years but it seems this story was something he threw together just because his editors told him it was time for another book.

I have been reading Koontz books since he began writing them. Even back to his previous pen names and I don't remember a worse book! There are too many characters, so I didn't relate to any of them. Too much gore, just for the sake of gore, that didn't add to the story.
I have idolized Dean Koontz for his writing prowess, but maybe he's written too many now and just getting lazy or just running out of ideas. Do read his other books, especially the Odd Thomas ones if this was your first. He really is a terrific author.

Fewer characters. Develop one or two main characters so that the reader cares what happens to them. Use the monster element less so that it is an effective shock or surprise to the reader.

Maybe he is why this book was so bad. No soul to the book at all.

About half the book. It was twice too long. In fact I skipped about five hours toward the end and just listened to the end. I thought I might have to go back and listen to see what happened, but it wasn't necessary! That alone should tell about the lack of interesting story line.

Dean Koontz spins a horror story that does not require a dog to save the world!

The poor (well, not too poor) residents of an old building encounter odd goings on. Are they hallucinating when the building appears to change? Have alien beings descended? Are those other-worldly ghosts or tricks of the mind?

77 Shadow Street is a book for the masses and will likely shovel in quite a few new Koontz readers. The book seems reminiscent of another Koontz titled The Taking but it is certainly not a re-hash. Sadly though, I kept comparing 77 Shadow to The Taking and it started getting on my nerves because so many strange things happen in this book that were just enough alike for me to keep doing a comparison.

Likely Koontz wanted people to be more scared and unnerved by the goings-on in the building and while I did get that eery claustrophobic feeling a few times it did not scare me as much as I would have liked.

Peter Berkrot read for the audiobook and was not the right choice as he did not bring that sense of forboding required to bring 77 Shadow Street to life. This is one of those books where I wonder "If I read it would I like it more?". Likely I would have liked it more but it's too late now.

If you are a Dean Koontz fan, you will like it. It has all the trimmings with unique characters, some fun evil people, a fast-paced storyline and a very unique plot. Trixie fans will still like the book with the lack of dogs since the cats are naturally quite evil, proving Labrador Retrievers are still the best companion when all hell is breaking loose.

-Bill

This book was so boring that I could not finish it. Usually, Koontz's books, although not amazing books (except for a few select titles), are still fun to read and often really funny. Not this one. After about two hours, I decided that I have beeter things to do with my limited time. Disappointing!

A story that could make you shiver.

Definitely.

There was no problem with his performance. The problem lies with the story.

The One,

How many times can mold, mildew, fungi be described before the only emotion left is one of repulsion. It's hard to believe that anyone would find this story remotely scary. Dean Koontz should stick to wraiths and the spiritual realm rather than depicting monsters and ghouls. The only redeeming features are the experience through a child's eyes and the final chapter with its benign insanity.