Dean Koontz born in Everett, PA
Dean Ray Koontz is born in Everett, Pennsylvania and grows up in Bedford, PA. He is the only child of Ray and Florence Koontz. His alcoholic father and abusive childhood lead to an early love of books:
When I was a kid, writers were my heroes because they took me out of that awful house. Books were an escape from the violence of the household and the poverty.
Blood Risk
0 CommentsUnder the pseudonym Brian Coffey, Koontz publishes Blood Risk. Professional thief, Mike Tucker, along with three others, prepares to complete their 14th operation. However, after the heist goes wrong, they find themselves in a war against the Mafia. Tucker must then perform a rescue mission. Koontz on the style of the book:
The Brian Coffey books were done in a lean, fast-paced style that employed an unusual amount of brisk dialogue.
Surrounded
0 CommentsUnder the Brian Coffey pseudonym, Kontz publishes a sequel to Blood Risk. Mike Tucker joins a crew to rob a bank and jewelry store in a shopping mall. During the heist, the crew leader changes the plans, which interrupts the operation. The police become involved and Tucker must figure out how to escape with the money.
The Wall of Masks
0 CommentsThe Bobbs-Merrill Company publishes the final novel under the Brian Coffey pseudonym. Mike Tucker and his team plan to steal mask relics, found in a Mayan ruin. During the heist, a local general unexpectedly appears and kills several heist crew. Tucker and a few surviving flee and must find their way out of the Mexican jungle.
Fear Nothing
0 CommentsKoontz publishes Fear Nothing, the first book in the Moonlight Bay Trilogy. The novel follows the life of Christopher Snow, who has a rare disease called Xeroderma Pigmento. Snow goes on an adventure to uncover a conspiracy within the Fort Wyven military base that involves intelligent animals and mutations who have escaped from captivity. On why he decided to tackle a trilogy:
The characters came alive for me to such an extent that I did not want to let them go. Apparently readers feel the same way, because our mail has jumped from thirty letters a day to about seventy, at least for the past month, and all of the increase is about Fear Nothing…
Seize the Night
0 CommentsCemetary Dance Publications releases two limited edition hard covers of Seize the Night. The book is the second in the Moonlight Bay Trilogy. Christoper Snow works to uncover the mystery of children disappearing in the town of Moonlight Bay. He believes the disappearances are connected to a town secret and investigates without cooperation from the local police.
I look at books like Fear Nothing…and I can see progression that’s led almost inevitably to this book, but then again, it was probably the most fun writing experience I’ve ever had. I never had a moment in it where I was beating my head against the wall, which is the usual process.
Odd Thomas
0 CommentsThe novel’s main character, Odd Thomas, is a short order cook who has the ability to communicate with the dead. Odd believes that a major catastrophe is about to occur and uses his supernatural abilities to investigate and try to prevent it.
I wanted to write a story about someone who lives a very simple life–and lives a very simple life because they must.
Prodigal Son
0 CommentsProdigal Son is published as the first book in Koontz’s Frankenstein series. The character, Deucalion, is a reanimated seven-foot tall giant created by Victor Frankenstein. He sets out to find and destroy his creator, who changes his name to Victor Helios. On his mission, he finds that Helios is attempting to create a new race of those like himself, in order to take over the world. Two local detectives encounter Deucalion and they partner to prevent the rise of Victor’s creations.
City of Night
Koontz and Gorman collaborate to publish City of Night, the second novel in the Frankenstein series. Victor’s creations, that are similar to Deucalion, are born stronger and faster than imagined. One of the creations wants to replace human kind, so they overpower Victor and set loose on the town of modern-day New Orleans. Deucalion must set aside his mission of killing Victor and works with the detectives to save the town. Koontz:
Gorman’s writing is strong, fast and sleek as a bullet.
Brother Odd
0 CommentsKoontz publishes Brother Odd, the third installment of the Odd Thomas series. Seven months after Forever Odd, Thomas finds himself at the monastery in an attempt to find peace. However, a monk goes missing and Thomas must use his special ability to find him and prevent a foreseen disaster.
Before writing Brother Odd, bioethicist Wesley Smith tells Koontz that through Odd Thomas, he is writing the life of a Saint. Koontz initially denies this, then after beginning the writing of Brother Odd, he has a realization:
I sat at the screen and called Wesley…I remember I had originally denied it and had to tell him he was right.
Forever Odd
0 CommentsKoontz releases the sequel to Odd Thomas, which takes place six months later. Odd’s childhood friend is kidnapped and Odd uses his psychic magnetism to track him down. The kidnappers are admirers of Odd, yet Odd finds them dangerous and plans an escape. Koontz says that as the book progressed, many themes arose. These include the power of friendship, the beauty of humility and the strength to endure.
One of those evolving themes grew so interesting to me, it became the core of the second Odd novel, Forever Odd, and it is best expressed by a quote from Martin Luther King, Jr. ‘Unearned suffering is redemptive.’
Odd Hours
0 CommentsAfter leaving the monastery, Thomas moves to Magic Beach. While there, he encounters a young, pregnant woman, Annamaria, who he’s been seeing in his dreams. Shortly after, they are pursued by two large men, who assault Thomas. Thomas flees to a local church and seeks the help of a Sheriff, yet finds himself in the middle of a scheme to traffic nuclear weapons.
I received a lot of reader mail that said the Sinatra-as-poltergeist sequence in Odd Hours was the funniest thing they’d ever read, and I almost wished I hadn’t let him go to the Other Side.
In Odd We Trust
0 CommentsIn Odd We Trust, written by Koontz and Queenie Chan, is Koontz’s first Odd Thomas graphic novel. The novel is a prequel to the first Odd Thomas book. It follows Thomas as a 19-year old in California, who has psychic supernatural abilities that he keeps to himself until a child’s ghost reaches out to warn him of an impending evil upon the town. He works with local police and his girlfriend, Stormy, to try to prevent the evil and defend his town.
Ride the Storm delay
0 CommentsKoontz announces that the final book of the Moon Bay Trilogy will be Ride the Storm, yet there is a delay in the release date.
The third Chris Snow novel – after Fear Nothing and Seize The Night – will be written, God willing, but has been delayed because other ideas demand attention first. Ride The Storm, the third Snow, has been cooking for a long time, but it’s a delicate dish to develop.
Odd is on Our Side
0 CommentsOdd is on Our Side is the second Odd Thomas graphic novel, written by Koontz, Fred Van Lente and Queenie Chan. As Halloween festivities approach, Odd Thomas feels negative energy setting on the town. With the help of his girlfriend Stormy, Odd investigates whether the evil is simple mischief or malicious.
Odd Interlude
0 CommentsOdd Interlude is a three part e-book series, picking up after Odd Hours. After leaving Magic Beach, Thomas and companion, Annamaria, venture to the Pacific Coast. While there, all is well, until they encounter evil and lurking spirits among the town. Thomas investigates and finds that most of the townfolk are held under the control of a mad scientist with psychic abilities. He takes on the scientist, with the aid of a local girl and an Artificial Intelligence machine.
Odd Interlude was a sidestep, having nothing to do with lingering spirits of the dead. Odd is now back on his road to redemption, learning by going where he has to go…As a reader, I’ve always enjoyed novels in which characters are on the move a lot. There’s a sense of freedom in them.
House of Odd
Koontz, Walker and illustrator Chan collaborate on the third Odd Thomas graphic novel. In this installment, a Hollywood producer is recommended to Odd Thomas after a series of haunting events occur in his new home. As Stormy and Odd investigate the incidences, they clash with obnoxious TV ghost hunters, They eventually work together after a sinister presence appears and starts to pursue them.
Odd Apocalypse
0 CommentsKoontz publishes the fifth novel in the Odd Thomas series. Thomas and his female companion are invited as guests to a billionaire’s estate. While there, they notice strange behavior from the staff. The companion, who has supernatural abilities of her own, informs Thomas that the estate is very evil and someone within desperately needs his help.
Odd Apocalypse is probably the darkest story thus far in the series, but Odd keeps his sense of humor, as he always will. This is also in some ways the most over-the-top Odd story, stretching the element of the fantastic about as far as I could without breaking my compact with the reader.
Deeply Odd
0 CommentsA month after the events of Odd Apocalypse, Odd Thomas starts to receive visions of a future homicide. The visions are brought on after an encounter with a truck driver during his travels. He then investigates the truck driver to attempt to prevent the murders. Along the way, he meets various travelers who aid him on his mission to strop the truck driver and the team of murderers who plan to commit heinous crimes.
Deeply Odd is the sixth in a 7-book life arc for Odd….I’ve always enjoyed novels in which characters are on the move a lot. There’s a sense of freedom in them, a constant freshening of the narrative. I’ve written a few of them myself–Dark Rivers of the Heart Relentless, By the Light of the Moon, to name a few–but this is the only one in the Odd series.