Frankenstein, Book Five: The Dead Town

This was a great end to a great series. Hopefully, we will get to see these characters again. Exceptionally well read (again) by Christopher Lane and well written (again) by Dean Koontz. If you haven't read all the other installments in the series you will probably be lost. I just finished rereading Book 4, so moving to Book 5 was really enjoyable since the final book is simply a continuation of the 4th. I highly recommend this book and the entire series. It contains great characters that grow with the books and also presents a very unique Frankenstein concept.

I started with Frankenstein, Lost Souls, which I thoroughly enjoyed, except that it left the reader in the middle of the story. That book led me into this one, which was, basically, a continuation of the same book.

I enjoyed book five, but must disagree with other commentators about the conslusion. I thought Dean could have been a little more "edgy,", "creative," or whatever you want to call it to bring this series to a conclusion.

No offense to the others and certainly no offense to Dean Koontz, but the depth and breath of this story could have generated more to bring it to a close. The story had all kinds of threads that I thought would lead to an end.

Still, I was satisfied with the book and would certainly recommend it .

I am going back to listen to the first three books in the series. I guess, I'll consider it a "prequel."

JAY NIEDERMAN
Manchester, NH

LOVE THAT LIL TUMOR!!!!! I wish there was a Jocko website..... he makes me laugh, Dean, thank you for Jocko!

Dean Koontz is unquestionably a master. This series is outstanding; on par with Fear Nothing / Seize the Night, Dragon Tears, and the darkly hilarious and oddly uplifting Tick Tock. This is where Koontz shines- action and humor that can not be separated, but work in perfect harmony. Characters are easy to invest in... especially Jocko! he might be the most entertaining Koontz character ever. I hope we will see more of this genius on display, and less of the sermons with no discernible point such as in 'The Darkest Evening of the Year' and 'Your Heart Belongs to Me'. I am a pastor, so I know what a vague sermon sounds like! These were not bad work, just bad by Dean's own high standard. I actually rate Frankenstein at 4.5 stars, only because it is not my absolute favorite (Seize the Night).

I think this was the best book in the series. Yes, it was a continuation of book four. I'm still not sure of the end. He says he'll be back, so I don't know if this was really the last in the series. We'll just have to wait and see, but Koontz left the door open for another story. I also love Jocko, he is a great character. The narration was excellent as well. I highly recommend it.

Although I enjoyed the first three Frankenstein books in this five-book series, I found book four to be a rip-off of a credit (because it was a rehash of the previous plot, then just kinda ended), and book five to be filled with too many one-liners and unlikely behavior. Sometimes it felt like I was a fly on the wall of some good old boy's poker night. For example, the "on-air talent pep-talk" discussion happening while the world is being invaded seemed ridiculous.

Also, annoying and disappointing was using a southern accent for nearly half the characters who are suppose to reside in Colorado. Either change the venue or the accents next time, please.

I consider myself a Dean Koontz fan since I have well over 25 books and/or audio, but these last two books motivated me to write a review. Sorry.

I really enjoyed the Frankenstein series by Koontz, this book provided a good way to finish the story. After reading book 4 I was on the edge of my seat for book 5. I did feel that the ending was a bit rushed and some of the plot lines did not intersect as I would have expected they would Some interesting characters could have met and interacted. Overall this was a character driven story and the author does an excellent job describing them and you feel that you know them. Highly recommended.

I like the audiobook verse because I am able to listen to it while I am driving or otherwise occuppied without having to wait till I have time enough to back to the book.

Yes

I am sad to see this series end. This book was the best of what was a great series, but you do not want to start here. Don't worry, all the books are great.

I am constantly amazed at what Koontz can cram into one book. Most authors would be happy to write a book about one of these things. Here is a short list of ideas and people mentioned in this book; Alien Invasion, Johnny Depp, nano animals,cocoons, Robert A. Heinlein, Orson Wells, H.G. Wells, War of the Worlds, Black Holes, The Big Bang, Jules Verne, Stephen Hunter, angels, Armageddon, lots of guns, hive people, clones, replicas, Village of the Damned, Prophesy, tongue with an eye, ear with teeth, Louis L' Amour, telaportation, pulp fiction hero, cyber cowboy and Mary Shelly.

With all that, the characters make the story. My favorite was Jocko, who started life as a tumor. He likes to pirouette. Then there is the smart mouth Hobo, who says he is so smart that every two months they have to open his skull and take out some brain so new brain can grow. He says if you make him mad he will cut you open and rearrange your insides to the point that you will have to piss out your left ear. He has a million of these and he is teamed up with a Forrest Gump like character who serves as his straight man. There are plenty more, those were just my favorite two.

There is also wisdom in the book, such as the story of the spider and the fly, which I really liked. On change Koontz says that some people can't tell the difference between constructive and deconstructive change.

There is lost more that I just don't have room for here.

The Narrator is excellent, excellent, excellent. I have no doubt that he made the book even better then it was written, which was excellent.

Yes, but not right away, I like time to lapse between.

The other Frankenstein books are very comparable. You don't have to listen/read the other 4 books, but it helps to understand it better.

I'm sure I have, but I never remember the names, his voice was compelling and he made it interesting.