The Face

A Novel

By: Dean Koontz

Narrated by: Dylan Baker

Length: 19 hrs and 32 mins

Publisher's summary

Acknowledged as “America’s most popular suspense novelist”(Rolling Stone ) and as one of today’s most celebrated and successful writers, Dean Koontz has earned the devotion of millions of readers and listeners around the world and the praise of critics everywhere for tales of character, mystery, and adventure that strike to the core of what it means to be human. Now he delivers the thriller of the season, an unforgettable journey to the heart of darkness and to the pinnacle of grace, at once chilling and wickedly funny, a brilliantly observed chronicle of good and evil in our time, of illusion and everlasting truth. He’s Hollywood’s most dazzling star, whose flawless countenance inspires the worship of millions and fires the hatred of one twisted soul. His perfectly ordered existence is under siege as a series of terrifying, enigmatic “messages” breaches the exquisitely calibrated security systems of his legendary Bel Air estate.

The boxes arrive mysteriously, one by one, at Channing Manheim’s fortified compound. The threat implicit in their bizarre, disturbing contents seems to escalate with each new delivery. Manheim’s security chief, ex-cop Ethan Truman, is used to looking beneath the surface of things. But until he entered the orbit of a Hollywood icon, he had no idea just how slippery reality could be. Now this good man is all that stands in the way of an insidious killer—and forces that eclipse the most fevered fantasies of a city where dreams and nightmares are the stuff of daily life. As a seemingly endless and ominous rain falls over southern California, Ethan will test the limits of perception and endurance in a world where the truth is as thin as celluloid and answers can be found only in the illusory intersection of shadow and light.

Enter a world of marvelous invention, enchantment, and implacable intent, populated by murderous actors and the walking dead, hit men and heroes, long-buried dreams and never-dying hope. Here a magnificent mansion is presided over by a Scottish force of nature known as Mrs. McBee, before whom all men tremble. A mad French chef concocts feasts for the mighty and the malicious. Ming du Lac, spiritual adviser to the stars, has a direct line to the dead. An aptly named cop called Hazard will become Ethan’s ally, an anarchist will sow discord and despair, and a young boy named Fric, imprisoned by celebrity and loneliness, will hear a voice telling him of the approach of something unimaginably evil. Traversing this extraordinary landscape, Ethan will face the secrets of his own tragic past and the unmistakable premonition of his impending violent death as he races against time to solve the macabre riddles of a modern-day beast.

A riveting tour de force of suspense, mystery, and miraculous revelation, The Face is that rare novel that entertains, provokes, and uplifts at the same time. It will make you laugh. It will give you chills. It will fill you with hope.

©2003 Dean Koontz (P)2003 Random House, Inc. Random House Audio, a division of Random House, Inc.

Critic reviews

"...The suspense builds smoothly and steadily in [narrator Dylan] Baker's hands." —AudioFile

“Koontz has always had near-Dickensian powers of description, and an ability to yank us from one page to the next that few novelists can match.”—Los Angeles Times

"Both terrifying and amusing, The Face is classic Dean Koontz—a blend of murder, mystery and wit...Koontz's dialogue is sharp, his characters multidimensional, and the plot is tight."—New York Daily News

Excellent!

One of the best Koontz books, if that's possible! Loved the twists and turns! Excellent!

ALWAYS Wonderful Storytelling With Koontz

I enjoyed this novel immensely and it is definitely one of the most unique in the Koontz Canon. The character development and lead-up to the conclusion will keep you listening until the very end. It is actually a magical story in some aspects with a mixture of the gritty characters that keep it real and keep it that much more interesting. You won't be disappointed in this one just as with all Koontz novels. I recommend it to anyone.

Dynamite!!

Best book I've ever read! The story was great, plot was great. Had me on edge almost from the beginning. I lost two days of sleep listening. I recommend it to anyone who likes suspense.

One of Dean Koontz’s best work!

I found the story Mr Koontz wrote titled “The Face” to be frightening, riveting and heart warming all in one. Bravo!!!

Entertaining

Amazing to me is the reviews are so opposite. It appears you either really enjoy this book (as I did) or you really don't. I like unabridged books and I found the Face to be a good length, entertaining, suspenseful, but a little bit of a weak ending.

Some reviewers mention the book is too wordy. From my prospective, not at all. I love the development of a story, analogies, wordsmiths and conjure up pictures in your mind. Koontz does a masterful job at this. The narrator is excellent, and, IMHO, the kid steals the book! Koontz develops this character the best, making you laugh, cry and feel his loneliness.

Toonsville

In this novel Koontz managed to eliminate all suspense and mystery by having his characters become cartoon equivilents. He even went as far as having a black detective saying to himself while entering a perps house "Feets don't fail me now" in true Amos and Andy style. While the use of supernatural phenomena has been used successfully in many novels, an author has to be very careful as to the extent of it's use so as not to totally damage the storyline. At this he was not terribly successful. All told a mildly interesting work that somewhat holds your interest, but could have been much better.

Excellent

This is a fast-paced, addictive story with great characters. I don't think I've read anything with such an utterly evil and frightening an antagonist. The reader is perfect for this book and brings the characters easily to life. Highly, highly recommended.

not bad

This is a pretty good Koontz tale. It gets a little flakey and the ending doesn't really satitisfy but Frick is really cool.

What an incredible adventure!!!!

Admittedly the beginning of the story as well as the performance itself is hard to get into at first (I owned the paper back book years ago, struggled and failed to get hooked) but it was BEYOND worth it. By the end you realize that this is Koontz at his very very best! Extracting from me genuine laugh out loud moments, burst of sheer frustration, yelps of triumph and even tears all of which earned me looks that questioned weather or not I was in my right mind but I couldn’t care. As previously started this is Koontz at his very best leaving me the reader with the feeling that I have just made new life long friends and that I didn’t just read along with these characters but actually went through this adventure with them! Be Wary of this book because it may start slow but once you start to get hooked you won’t be able to do or think of anything else until you’ve reached its conclusion!

He did it again!

Another great story from Mr. Koontz, interesting twists and unexpected turns with an undercurrent of sadness and loneliness triumphing over the evil deeds of evil men with a little supernatural help!