What do you think?
Rate this book
Dean Koontz's Frankenstein, Volume 1: Prodigal Son
The Barnes & Noble Review
Dean Koontz's Frankenstein -- the author's first literary series -- is a nightmare-inspiring, modern-day retelling of Mary Shelley's 1818 horror classic. Coauthored with Kevin J. Anderson, the first installment in this four-volume saga pits a reanimated giant and two tenacious police detectives against the demented scientist who created him.
Dean Koontz's Frankenstein -- the author's first literary series -- is a nightmare-inspiring, modern-day retelling of Mary Shelley's 1818 horror classic. Coauthored with Kevin J. Anderson, the first installment in this four-volume saga pits a reanimated giant and two tenacious police detectives against the demented scientist who created him.
It's no surprise that Deucalion, at almost seven feet tall and with half his face a mangled ruin, spent time as a European carnie sideshow attraction nicknamed the Monster. After enjoying several peaceful years at a monastery in Tibet, the introspective and enigmatic giant receives dire news: The man who created him centuries earlier, Victor Frankenstein, is inexplicably alive and living in New Orleans under the name of Victor Helios, a wealthy business owner and philanthropist. When Deucalion vows to leave his Tibetan sanctuary and destroy the man who created him, he soon realizes the critical magnitude of his mission -- Helios is in the process is secretly creating a new race of posthumans to take over the world!
As is par for the course in many fiction sagas, readers should be prepared for a cliff-hanger of monumental proportions at the conclusion of Prodigal Son. Koontz and Anderson, however, masterfully set the table for a virtual feast of hideous twists and turns, nightmarish monstrosities, and nonstop action in upcoming installments. Dean Koontz's Frankenstein, in which a man transforms himself into a monster and a monster learns what it's like to be human, is an absolutely brilliant rendition of the Shelley classic -- a horror tour de force. Paul Goat Allen
144 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2005
About the author
Chuck Dixon
3,485 books1,088 followersCharles "Chuck" Dixon is an American comic book writer, perhaps best-known for long runs on Batman titles in the 1990s.
His earliest comics work was writing Evangeline first for Comico Comics in 1984 (then later for First Comics, who published the on-going series), on which he worked with his then-wife, the artist Judith Hunt. His big break came one year later, when editor Larry Hama hired him to write back-up stories for Marvel Comics' The Savage Sword of Conan.
In 1986, he began working for Eclipse Comics, writing Airboy with artist Tim Truman. Continuing to write for both Marvel and (mainly) Eclipse on these titles, as well as launching Strike! with artist Tom Lyle in August 1987 and Valkyrie with artist Paul Gulacy in October 1987, he began work on Carl Potts' Alien Legion series for Marvel's Epic Comics imprint, under editor Archie Goodwin. He also produced a three-issue adaptation of J. R. R. Tolkien's The Hobbit for Eclipse with artist David Wenzel between 1989 and 1990, and began writing Marc Spector: Moon Knight in June 1989.
His Punisher OGN Kingdom Gone (August, 1990) led to him working on the monthly The Punisher War Journal (and later, more monthly and occasional Punisher titles), and also brought him to the attention of DC Comics editor Denny O'Neil, who asked him to produce a Robin mini-series. The mini proved popular enough to spawn two sequels - The Joker's Wild (1991) and Cry of the Huntress (1992) - which led to both an ongoing monthly series (which Dixon wrote for 100 issues before leaving to work with CrossGen Comics), and to Dixon working on Detective Comics from #644-738 through the major Batman stories KnightFall & KnightsEnd (for which he helped create the key character of Bane), DC One Million , Contagion , Legacy , Cataclysm and No Man's Land . Much of his run was illustrated by Graham Nolan.
He was DC's most prolific Batman-writer in the mid-1990s (rivalled perhaps in history by Bill Finger and Dennis O'Neil) - in addition to writing Detective Comics he pioneered the individual series for Robin , Nightwing (which he wrote for 70 issues, and returned to briefly with 2005's #101) and Batgirl , as well as creating the team and book Birds of Prey .
While writing multiple Punisher and Batman comics (and October 1994's Punisher/Batman crossover), he also found time to launch Team 7 for Jim Lee's WildStorm/Image and Prophet for Rob Liefeld's Extreme Studios. He also wrote many issues of Catwoman and Green Arrow , regularly having about seven titles out each and every month between the years 1993 and 1998.
In March, 2002, Dixon turned his attention to CrossGen's output, salthough he co-wrote with Scott Beatty the origin of Barbara Gordon's Batgirl in 2003's Batgirl: Year One. For CrossGen he took over some of the comics of the out-going Mark Waid, taking over Sigil from #21, and Crux with #13. He launched Way of the Rat in June 2002, Brath (March '03), The Silken Ghost (June '03) and the pirate comic El Cazador (Oct '03), as well as editing Robert Rodi's non-Sigilverse The Crossovers. He also wrote the Ruse spin-off Archard's Agents one-shots in January and November '03 and April '04, the last released shortly before CrossGen's complete collapse forced the cancellation of all of its comics, before which Dixon wrote a single issue of Sojourn (May '04). Dixon's Way of the Rat #24, Brath #14 and El Cazador #6 were among the last comics released from the then-bankrupt publisher.
On June 10, 2008, Dixon announced on his forum that he was no longer "employed by DC Comics in any capacity."
His earliest comics work was writing Evangeline first for Comico Comics in 1984 (then later for First Comics, who published the on-going series), on which he worked with his then-wife, the artist Judith Hunt. His big break came one year later, when editor Larry Hama hired him to write back-up stories for Marvel Comics' The Savage Sword of Conan.
In 1986, he began working for Eclipse Comics, writing Airboy with artist Tim Truman. Continuing to write for both Marvel and (mainly) Eclipse on these titles, as well as launching Strike! with artist Tom Lyle in August 1987 and Valkyrie with artist Paul Gulacy in October 1987, he began work on Carl Potts' Alien Legion series for Marvel's Epic Comics imprint, under editor Archie Goodwin. He also produced a three-issue adaptation of J. R. R. Tolkien's The Hobbit for Eclipse with artist David Wenzel between 1989 and 1990, and began writing Marc Spector: Moon Knight in June 1989.
His Punisher OGN Kingdom Gone (August, 1990) led to him working on the monthly The Punisher War Journal (and later, more monthly and occasional Punisher titles), and also brought him to the attention of DC Comics editor Denny O'Neil, who asked him to produce a Robin mini-series. The mini proved popular enough to spawn two sequels - The Joker's Wild (1991) and Cry of the Huntress (1992) - which led to both an ongoing monthly series (which Dixon wrote for 100 issues before leaving to work with CrossGen Comics), and to Dixon working on Detective Comics from #644-738 through the major Batman stories KnightFall & KnightsEnd (for which he helped create the key character of Bane), DC One Million , Contagion , Legacy , Cataclysm and No Man's Land . Much of his run was illustrated by Graham Nolan.
He was DC's most prolific Batman-writer in the mid-1990s (rivalled perhaps in history by Bill Finger and Dennis O'Neil) - in addition to writing Detective Comics he pioneered the individual series for Robin , Nightwing (which he wrote for 70 issues, and returned to briefly with 2005's #101) and Batgirl , as well as creating the team and book Birds of Prey .
While writing multiple Punisher and Batman comics (and October 1994's Punisher/Batman crossover), he also found time to launch Team 7 for Jim Lee's WildStorm/Image and Prophet for Rob Liefeld's Extreme Studios. He also wrote many issues of Catwoman and Green Arrow , regularly having about seven titles out each and every month between the years 1993 and 1998.
In March, 2002, Dixon turned his attention to CrossGen's output, salthough he co-wrote with Scott Beatty the origin of Barbara Gordon's Batgirl in 2003's Batgirl: Year One. For CrossGen he took over some of the comics of the out-going Mark Waid, taking over Sigil from #21, and Crux with #13. He launched Way of the Rat in June 2002, Brath (March '03), The Silken Ghost (June '03) and the pirate comic El Cazador (Oct '03), as well as editing Robert Rodi's non-Sigilverse The Crossovers. He also wrote the Ruse spin-off Archard's Agents one-shots in January and November '03 and April '04, the last released shortly before CrossGen's complete collapse forced the cancellation of all of its comics, before which Dixon wrote a single issue of Sojourn (May '04). Dixon's Way of the Rat #24, Brath #14 and El Cazador #6 were among the last comics released from the then-bankrupt publisher.
On June 10, 2008, Dixon announced on his forum that he was no longer "employed by DC Comics in any capacity."
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 370 reviews
June 3, 2016
I do not like the original Frankenstein book. It bored me. I also do not like Koontz's books. So when a friend told me I "HAD" to read this re-imagining of the Frankenstein story, by Dean Koontz, I flatly refused. But my friend wouldn't stop nagging me about it, and once there were more books in the series out, she wore me down and I agreed to read the first book on the agreement that if I hated it, she would quit bugging me. She won!
This is absolutely one of the best books I've EVER read!! Once I started this, I literally could not put it down until I finished inhaling it. So clever, so unique, and such an intriguing re-positioning of the original characters into a present-day setting!!!
Loved, loved, LOVED this book!!! Highly recommend it to anyone who likes action/thrillers with well-written characters and a kick-ass story that will keep you on the edge of your seat from the first page to the last!!
This is absolutely one of the best books I've EVER read!! Once I started this, I literally could not put it down until I finished inhaling it. So clever, so unique, and such an intriguing re-positioning of the original characters into a present-day setting!!!
Loved, loved, LOVED this book!!! Highly recommend it to anyone who likes action/thrillers with well-written characters and a kick-ass story that will keep you on the edge of your seat from the first page to the last!!
December 7, 2022
This is a very interesting continuation of Frankenstein. It tells of what happened to him and his monster and what he is up to 200 years later.
I listened to the audiobook while I cleaned. I recommend it. I'm about to start listening to the second book in the series. Stay tuned 😉
I listened to the audiobook while I cleaned. I recommend it. I'm about to start listening to the second book in the series. Stay tuned 😉
October 17, 2017
I went into this graphic novel so freaking excited, because I fully expected to love it. It's based off of Dean Koontz's Frankenstein series, which I've read the first "version" of (if you're unfamiliar, it's a 5-book series, but Dean originally intended it as a trilogy, so I've only read the first 3 books). I digress - I really enjoyed the full novels, and thought it was such a creepy and interesting story with such fun and lovable characters.
Unfortunately, the graphic novel just really fell short of my expectations. First, the illustrations were an immediately frustration to me, because Deucalion legitimately looked like some sort of Fabio knockoff with a tattooed and scarred face, and... really? He's composed of a bunch of dead bodies. Moving on...
Besides the illustrations, it felt sooo disjointed and rushed. I haven't read the first book in many years and found myself struggling to piece together bits from my memories of it, because the graphic novel really only gives you snippets here and there. I can only imagine that anyone who hadn't read the full novels would feel fairly lost if this graphic novel was all they knew of the series.
Needless to say, I don't believe I'll be continuing the graphic novel series, but it did renew my desire to reread the novels, so I guess there's that?
Unfortunately, the graphic novel just really fell short of my expectations. First, the illustrations were an immediately frustration to me, because Deucalion legitimately looked like some sort of Fabio knockoff with a tattooed and scarred face, and... really? He's composed of a bunch of dead bodies. Moving on...
Besides the illustrations, it felt sooo disjointed and rushed. I haven't read the first book in many years and found myself struggling to piece together bits from my memories of it, because the graphic novel really only gives you snippets here and there. I can only imagine that anyone who hadn't read the full novels would feel fairly lost if this graphic novel was all they knew of the series.
Needless to say, I don't believe I'll be continuing the graphic novel series, but it did renew my desire to reread the novels, so I guess there's that?
January 10, 2018
No summary added
January 9, 2021
Frankenstein's "monster" has been alive for over 200 years and he goes by the name Deucalion. He has been living at a Monastery until he finds out that Victor Frankenstein is still alive and continuing his evil work. Deucalion travels to New Orleans and teams up with Detectives Carson O'Connor and Michael Maddison to try to stop Victor.
Wow. This book is fantastic. Carson & Michael's banter can be a little annoying at times, but they are endearing enough to make up for it. Deucalion is fabulous and determined to stop his creator and end his plans to destroy humankind.
The characters are terrific and the story is amazing. Koontz did a fabulous job bringing the story of Frankenstein into the current century. The series is 5 books long.
Wow. This book is fantastic. Carson & Michael's banter can be a little annoying at times, but they are endearing enough to make up for it. Deucalion is fabulous and determined to stop his creator and end his plans to destroy humankind.
The characters are terrific and the story is amazing. Koontz did a fabulous job bringing the story of Frankenstein into the current century. The series is 5 books long.
January 14, 2025
I was interested mostly by the character, Deucalion but he showed up in the storyline only occasionally. None of the other characters had any depth or held my interest. Perhaps I ran through being intrigued with Kootnz years ago because I was thoroughly bored with this book. I won't be continuing with the series. A bored 2 stars
April 3, 2022
Loved it. Can't wait to read Vol. 2
June 14, 2024
I was very impressed. I went into this not sure what to expect, but ended up pleasantly surprised. This is almost a direct sequel to Frankenstein, set 200 years later. Victor Frankenstein is still alive and evil, plotting to take over the world. However, the monster is still around, too. And he wants to stop Victor.
Two New Orleans detectives get caught up in things, and find out quickly they are in over their heads.
There's all kinds of twists and turns and subplots, but to me the book never got confusing. It's just a really well done take on continuing the Frankenstein story. I'm very curious to see what happens next.
Two New Orleans detectives get caught up in things, and find out quickly they are in over their heads.
There's all kinds of twists and turns and subplots, but to me the book never got confusing. It's just a really well done take on continuing the Frankenstein story. I'm very curious to see what happens next.
Read
September 26, 2018I don't read graphic novels very often - almost ever, really. But I grabbed this from the library because I thought my teenage son might like it, and it would fulfill one of his requirements for the library's summer reading program. (And, having heard good things about Dean Koontz's Frankenstein series, I was curious.)
This book raises some interesting ideas about humanity, responsibility, and ethics. I enjoyed it enough that I've added the novel to my want-to-read list.
This book raises some interesting ideas about humanity, responsibility, and ethics. I enjoyed it enough that I've added the novel to my want-to-read list.
December 30, 2024
I only read Koontz novels because my dad loves them and always recommends them, but I am just not the biggest fan. While the plots are unique and thought out, the storylines just don’t capture me, and this novel ended in a way that forces you to read the next in the series because nothing wraps up or concludes which I’m not interested in doing, so it feels like I wasted my time.
October 8, 2010
The graphic novel is based on the New York Times bestselling novel by Dean Koontz & Kevin J. Anderson. This is my first read on a Koontz work and I really enjoyed it. His update on the old story just fit together so well and made so much sense it was hard not to enjoy it. I want to share with you a few pieces of the graphic novel that I really enjoyed. Here is Dean Koontz from the intro: ”This is why it seemed to me appropriate to update the Frankenstein legend to our time. We live in a hubristic age, when politicians imagine themselves to be messiahs and when many in the sciences frankly discuss their dreams of creating a “post-human” civilization of genetically engineered superman, ignorant of the fact that like minds have often come before them and have left no legacy but death, destruction and despair.”
Powerful words and it resonates throughout the graphic novel. The spin on this from the old time story is that it is modern time and there is a serial killer loose in New Orleans, taking body parts from victims. The original Frankenstein lives now somewhere in the frozen mountains with some monks. He is summoned to New Orleans to find out what is going wrong and to solve the riddles that others cannot. Fitting in and looking normal with his immense size, rugged good looks, long flowing hair and buff body, make him look like Fabio with way too many stitches. It makes for some humorous moments. Here is a little piece of the dialogue , don’t worry, it isn’t a spoiler. Frankenstein is speaking to a detective: ” Your quarry isn’t a crazed murderer. Your real enemy is his maker-and mine. He created me from cadavers from a prison graveyard. One heart is from an arsonist, the other from a child rapist. My hands from a strangler, eyes from an axe murderer. My life force from a thunderstorm. That storm gave me gifts Victor couldn’t grant. For one thing…I’m not a monster anymore….I’m your best hope.”
The graphic novel was adapted by Chuck Dixon and illustrated by Brett Booth. I enjoy doing things backwards some times: reading the graphic novel first makes it easier for me to enjoy my first read of new writer in a genre I am not totally comfortable with. I can now relax and enjoy Koontz work having read this. I guess I can just visualize it better. It has worked for me that way with the Dresden Files, Stephen King and now Koontz. I think that no matter if you are a fan of Dean Koontz or have never read his work like me, the update tale of Frankenstein is worth the time to read. I enjoyed the twist, the viewpoint of the modern Frankenstein and the insightful narrative of the author. Pick it up and give it a try, not because it is Halloween season, but because a good novel is always in season.
What are you reading today? Check us out and become our friend on Facebook & Linkedin. Go to Goodreads and become our friend there and suggest books for us to read and post on. You can also follow us on Twitter, and the Gelati’s Scoop Facebook Fan Page. Did you know you can shop directly on Amazon by clicking the Gelati’s Store Tab on our blog? Thanks for stopping by today; We will see you tomorrow. Have a great day. http://www.gelatisscoop.blogspot.com
Powerful words and it resonates throughout the graphic novel. The spin on this from the old time story is that it is modern time and there is a serial killer loose in New Orleans, taking body parts from victims. The original Frankenstein lives now somewhere in the frozen mountains with some monks. He is summoned to New Orleans to find out what is going wrong and to solve the riddles that others cannot. Fitting in and looking normal with his immense size, rugged good looks, long flowing hair and buff body, make him look like Fabio with way too many stitches. It makes for some humorous moments. Here is a little piece of the dialogue , don’t worry, it isn’t a spoiler. Frankenstein is speaking to a detective: ” Your quarry isn’t a crazed murderer. Your real enemy is his maker-and mine. He created me from cadavers from a prison graveyard. One heart is from an arsonist, the other from a child rapist. My hands from a strangler, eyes from an axe murderer. My life force from a thunderstorm. That storm gave me gifts Victor couldn’t grant. For one thing…I’m not a monster anymore….I’m your best hope.”
The graphic novel was adapted by Chuck Dixon and illustrated by Brett Booth. I enjoy doing things backwards some times: reading the graphic novel first makes it easier for me to enjoy my first read of new writer in a genre I am not totally comfortable with. I can now relax and enjoy Koontz work having read this. I guess I can just visualize it better. It has worked for me that way with the Dresden Files, Stephen King and now Koontz. I think that no matter if you are a fan of Dean Koontz or have never read his work like me, the update tale of Frankenstein is worth the time to read. I enjoyed the twist, the viewpoint of the modern Frankenstein and the insightful narrative of the author. Pick it up and give it a try, not because it is Halloween season, but because a good novel is always in season.
What are you reading today? Check us out and become our friend on Facebook & Linkedin. Go to Goodreads and become our friend there and suggest books for us to read and post on. You can also follow us on Twitter, and the Gelati’s Scoop Facebook Fan Page. Did you know you can shop directly on Amazon by clicking the Gelati’s Store Tab on our blog? Thanks for stopping by today; We will see you tomorrow. Have a great day. http://www.gelatisscoop.blogspot.com
November 21, 2021
This is the first time I remember Koontz teaming up with another author. I think they did a good job. I whipped right through it. Carson O’Connor and her partner, Michael Maddison, are cops in New Orleans. Carson has got an autistic brother who builds castles out of Legos and has got a crush on Michael. Michael also has a crush on Carson, but neither wants to make a move on it because they would have to get new partners and they really like being partners with each other. They are investigating a series of murders of young women in which the killer always takes a souvenir – eyes, lips, ears, etc. Then there is another murderer who is taking people’s internal organs. One of the killers (internal organs) ends up being one of the “New Race” developed by Victor Frankenstein. The original monster has been living in Tibet in a monastery, but when a friend of his from his carnie days dies and leaves him an old theater in New Orleans, Deucalion goes there. Deucalion was the son of Prometheus, who happened to be Atlas’s brother – got to catch up on my Greek mythology. Deucalion meets Carson and Michael and is trying to convince them that he is telling the truth. There are some people in this book who seemed so familiar to me, though, like the priest and Erika. All of these new race people are feeling incomplete so they feel they have to look for what they want inside humans. They want to see what we have that they don’t. They have no purpose, no happiness, no satisfaction from anything. One of them is autistic, Randall Six, who is after Arnie, Carson’s brother. He wants to take Arnie’s happiness and as the book ends, Randall Six is hiding underneath their house, figuring out how he is going to steal Arnie’s happiness. Deucalion is there to protect Arnie.
April 16, 2011
I am kinda surprised I had not heard of Koontz’s Frankenstein series before. I am a big, big fan of the original. I was excited to read it. However, the first book is very disappointing.
I don’t think I have read Koontz before. I am not big on pop lit. It’s a page turner for sure, the pacing from the gate is high. But I found it predictable and lacking any depth.
Spoiler alert: Who could not see that one of the other detectives would be dirty? Who could not see the we’re-partners-but-secretly-love-each-other cliché coming? For all the talk of Erica 5 waiting in the tub to be made, what a surprise that she is made!
Deucalion, the original monster, was the only character that interested me. He had some depth and mystery. No one else did. Even Dr. Frankenstein seemed a bore.
I read a number of Anne Rice’s vampire tales. Her vampires have lots of depth and her explanation of their movement in the world at least starts off seeming plausible for a couple of books. Koontz trying to bring Frankenstein into modernity fails. It is nowhere near believable. How did he get so far advanced in technology? How would he stay so far out of the media light when he doesn’t age?
Perhaps the worst storyline for me was Randal 6. For someone who is terrified of leaving his small personal space, he sure knows a lot based on what the author says he overheard others talking about. If he lives in isolation, who is he hearing?
I don’t know if I will keep reading the series or not. I probably will give the second book a try at some point, but not soon.
I don’t think I have read Koontz before. I am not big on pop lit. It’s a page turner for sure, the pacing from the gate is high. But I found it predictable and lacking any depth.
Spoiler alert: Who could not see that one of the other detectives would be dirty? Who could not see the we’re-partners-but-secretly-love-each-other cliché coming? For all the talk of Erica 5 waiting in the tub to be made, what a surprise that she is made!
Deucalion, the original monster, was the only character that interested me. He had some depth and mystery. No one else did. Even Dr. Frankenstein seemed a bore.
I read a number of Anne Rice’s vampire tales. Her vampires have lots of depth and her explanation of their movement in the world at least starts off seeming plausible for a couple of books. Koontz trying to bring Frankenstein into modernity fails. It is nowhere near believable. How did he get so far advanced in technology? How would he stay so far out of the media light when he doesn’t age?
Perhaps the worst storyline for me was Randal 6. For someone who is terrified of leaving his small personal space, he sure knows a lot based on what the author says he overheard others talking about. If he lives in isolation, who is he hearing?
I don’t know if I will keep reading the series or not. I probably will give the second book a try at some point, but not soon.
May 2, 2022
I enjoyed this and I'm going to have to hunt down the next one. The extra story was interesting too.
November 19, 2023
Let me start by saying that I am not a Koontz fan and haven't been for years. He's too creepy and gory. At the recommendation of my daughter I downloaded this to my reader with reservations.
It is obviously the story of the creation of a murderous monster created in a laboratory by the evil genius Victor Frankenstein. His creation is huge and grotesquely terrifyingly ugly. He escapes into the world angry and violent.
Koontz iteration is named Deucalion and he leaves his monastic sanctuary to travel to New Orleans and help two local detectives deal with current day Victor Helios (alias Frankenstein) and his inhuman creations. The story is creative and the creatures and their master are complex and darkly evil-as you would expect. The non humans will kill all the imperfect humans and at the direction of Helios take over and create a perfect world.
The detectives, Carson O'Connor and Michael Maddison make a perfect foils. Carson is tough and fearless while Michel is the supportive comic relief. With a little help from Deucalion they begin to investigate, unravel and confront the unbelievable creatures and events that make up the story. I really enjoyed the dialogue between these two. I was disappointed that Deucalion played such a small supporting role.
Overall, it is a Koontz book that captured my interest and I plan to move on the the second in the series just to see if the excitement can be maintained.
It is obviously the story of the creation of a murderous monster created in a laboratory by the evil genius Victor Frankenstein. His creation is huge and grotesquely terrifyingly ugly. He escapes into the world angry and violent.
Koontz iteration is named Deucalion and he leaves his monastic sanctuary to travel to New Orleans and help two local detectives deal with current day Victor Helios (alias Frankenstein) and his inhuman creations. The story is creative and the creatures and their master are complex and darkly evil-as you would expect. The non humans will kill all the imperfect humans and at the direction of Helios take over and create a perfect world.
The detectives, Carson O'Connor and Michael Maddison make a perfect foils. Carson is tough and fearless while Michel is the supportive comic relief. With a little help from Deucalion they begin to investigate, unravel and confront the unbelievable creatures and events that make up the story. I really enjoyed the dialogue between these two. I was disappointed that Deucalion played such a small supporting role.
Overall, it is a Koontz book that captured my interest and I plan to move on the the second in the series just to see if the excitement can be maintained.
June 29, 2020
Time taken to read - in and out over 4 days
Pages - 496
Publisher - Harper Collins
Source - Bought
Blurb from Goodreads
In the nineteenth century, Dr. Victor Frankenstein brought his notorious creation to life, but a horrible turn of events forced him to abandon it and slip away from the public eye. Two centuries later, a serial killer is on the loose in New Orleans, gruesomely salvaging body parts from each of his victims, as if trying to assemble a perfect human being.
Detective Carson O’Connor is cool, cynical, and every bit as tough as she looks. Her partner, Michael Maddison, would back her up all the way to Hell itself–and that just may be where their new case leads. For as they investigate the strange killings, O’Connor and Madison find themselves drawn into a weird underworld of deception and secrets where a man named Victor Helios has created an entire race of perfectly engineered people who are meant to take humankind’s place one day. But something is happening to some of Helios’s creations, and it may be that this bizarre serial killer is the least of the detectives’ worries.
My Review
EVERYBODY know the story of Frankenstein, rather Frankenstein's monster. A few hundred years after the legend and low and behold both where real, Frankenstien and the monster. Known in the book as Deucalion, living away in a quiet existance until he is alerted that his creator, Victor Helios, still lives. Deucalion has learned to control his anger and now he is going to complete the job he failed at, killing his "father".
On top of this we have a kick butt cop, Carson O’Connor - strong female lead who has a love interest she tries to keep at bay whilst investigating a horrific serial killer. Her partner Michael Maddison is willing to follow her anywhere, both will soon be confronted with beings that shatter their preconceptions of humanity as they know it.
I loved when we heard more from Deucalion as the movie(s) I seen growing up you didn't really get much from the monster, no insight. Here we are a few hundred years on from the version I know and you get back story, up to present day and the mad scientist is even more off his banger. He has taken his "science" so much further, money is no issue so he has free reign pretty much. He has perfected his creations so much so he know has a wife (he abuses her horrifically) and has zero value for human life. I really liked it and as soon as I finished it I ordered book two, it is a five book series so will buy the third sometime soon, 4.5/5 for me this time.
Pages - 496
Publisher - Harper Collins
Source - Bought
Blurb from Goodreads
In the nineteenth century, Dr. Victor Frankenstein brought his notorious creation to life, but a horrible turn of events forced him to abandon it and slip away from the public eye. Two centuries later, a serial killer is on the loose in New Orleans, gruesomely salvaging body parts from each of his victims, as if trying to assemble a perfect human being.
Detective Carson O’Connor is cool, cynical, and every bit as tough as she looks. Her partner, Michael Maddison, would back her up all the way to Hell itself–and that just may be where their new case leads. For as they investigate the strange killings, O’Connor and Madison find themselves drawn into a weird underworld of deception and secrets where a man named Victor Helios has created an entire race of perfectly engineered people who are meant to take humankind’s place one day. But something is happening to some of Helios’s creations, and it may be that this bizarre serial killer is the least of the detectives’ worries.
My Review
EVERYBODY know the story of Frankenstein, rather Frankenstein's monster. A few hundred years after the legend and low and behold both where real, Frankenstien and the monster. Known in the book as Deucalion, living away in a quiet existance until he is alerted that his creator, Victor Helios, still lives. Deucalion has learned to control his anger and now he is going to complete the job he failed at, killing his "father".
On top of this we have a kick butt cop, Carson O’Connor - strong female lead who has a love interest she tries to keep at bay whilst investigating a horrific serial killer. Her partner Michael Maddison is willing to follow her anywhere, both will soon be confronted with beings that shatter their preconceptions of humanity as they know it.
I loved when we heard more from Deucalion as the movie(s) I seen growing up you didn't really get much from the monster, no insight. Here we are a few hundred years on from the version I know and you get back story, up to present day and the mad scientist is even more off his banger. He has taken his "science" so much further, money is no issue so he has free reign pretty much. He has perfected his creations so much so he know has a wife (he abuses her horrifically) and has zero value for human life. I really liked it and as soon as I finished it I ordered book two, it is a five book series so will buy the third sometime soon, 4.5/5 for me this time.
November 9, 2018
3+ I gave up reading Koontz 20+ years ago because he is too formulaic for me, though I read a ton of his early stuff. Whispers was the first book of his that I read, and it really got to me. I loved it, re-read it more than once, and has stayed with me. I heard good things about his recent works, so decided to read more of his work. I found this very engaging. It kept pulling me back in, and I enjoyed reading it. I will read the next next book.
November 23, 2021
Molto lontano dal l'originalità di Dean Koontz. Vuoto e banale, una scopiazzatura di cose già viste e sentite.
Pessimo e deludente!
Pessimo e deludente!
April 22, 2022
read many years ago
March 12, 2023
This is a ridiculous but fun popcorn level read.
The pacing is punchy and makes it a light and enjoyable.
The pacing is punchy and makes it a light and enjoyable.
July 10, 2025
DNF 50% Great writing, not for me though, too depressing for me . NOTE: Do not revisit
June 4, 2019
The writing was scattered but the story finally started to come together about midway. I will probably read another in the series but in no big hurry.
October 28, 2022
enjoyed this wayyy too much & could not put it down
December 14, 2022
It’s ok. I have started book 2. Will let you know!
June 22, 2025
I haven't read Dean Koontz before, but his ability to paint the picture in few words without boring you is brilliant. There have been few books that i simply inhale and refuse to put down, this being one now. Special thought and care goes into the character building, and he leads you down various trails throughout the storyline only to end in a twist you did not see coming. I am obsessed with Deucalion and where this storyline is going.
May 15, 2024
Taking off from Mary Shelly's Frankenstein, Victor Helios corrects his real story as he has created the New Race to take over the Old Race. But some of his creations have marveled the imperfections of human life and have slowly tirned away from him, their creator. Two cops try to find the serial killer chopping off parts from his victims and stumble into a more sinister plot of taking over the world.
#######
"You paid a price for taking a fast track."
"You paid a price for taking a fast track.
You paid a price for your style, too, if it wasn't traditional. And with some of the cynical marking-time-till-pension types, you paid a price if you worked as if you believed that the job was important and that justice mattered."
"Without a word they understood that in addition to years in the carnival, they shared a view of the world that was as rich with meaning as with mysteries."
"Like many a Hollywood face, this glamour had peeled and sagged."
"Few boys of twelve would have been able to create a model castle without a plan, but Arnie had put together a masterpiece: walls and wards, barbicon and bastions, ramparts and parapets, turreted towers, the barracks, the chapel, the armory, the castle keep with elaborate bulwark and battlements."
"Dickinson had been a fine poet, of course, but she had been God-besotted. Her verses could mislead the naive. Intellectual poison."
"In the formal dining room, the table was set for twelve with Pratesi linens, Buccelatti silverware, Limoges china, historic Paul Storr silver chargers, and a monumental Storr candelabrum featuring Bacchus and attendants."
"Luke's slightly protuberant eyes, long nose, and longer chin gave him a scholarly look, as if books exerted such an attraction on him that they had pulled his features toward the contents of their pages."
"He likes crosswords because there are not multiple right choices for each square; only one choice will result in the correct solution. All is predestined.
Cross YULETIDE with CHRISTMAS, cross CHRISTMAS with MYRRH… Eventually every square will be filled; all words will be complete and will intersect correctly The predestined solution will have been achieved. Order. Stasis. Peace."
"Remembering verses by Emily Dickinson could lift her out of gloom: "Hope" is the thing with feathers- / That perches in the soul- / And sings the tune without the words- /And never stops at all."
"That which is abnormal to nature is a monster, even if it might be beautiful in its way."
"In the revolutionary civilization that Victor was making, as in Aldous Huxley's Brave New World, everyone in the social order would have a rank. And all would be content, without envy."
"In the revolutionary civilization that Victor was making, as in Aldous Huxley's Brave New World, everyone in the social order would have a rank. And all would be content, without envy.
Huxley ordered his world with Alphas at the top, the ruling elite, followed by Betas and Gammas. Brute laborers were designated Epsilons, born to their positions in a designed society."
""No," he declared aloud. "That way lies madness."
Soon he would be reduced to harvesting one toe per donor and killing for mere eyelashes. A thin line separated serious homicidal purpose from buffoonery."
"the tragic lawyer who, at the end of Dickens's novel, went to the guillotine in place of another man.
The lawyer had sacrificed himself to ensure that the woman he loved would have happiness with the man she loved. That man was the one whose name the lawyer had assumed and in whose place he had been executed."
""You sound like your father's a safety engineer or something."
"You know he's a safety engineer," Michael said.
"What's a safety engineer do, anyway?"
"He engineers safety."
"Life is inherently unsafe."
"That's why we need safety engineers."
"You sound like probably your mother was obsessed with safe toys when you were growing up."
“As you know perfectly well, she's a product-safety analyst."
"God, you must have had a boring childhood. No wonder you wanted to be a cop, get shot at, shoot back.""
"Romance was a delicate thing. It needed tender care to grow and mature into something wonderful."
"They also suffer intense anxiety because they come to full consciousness with the immediate understanding that, as Victor's chattel, they do not control the primary issues of their lives and possess no free will; therefore, in their beginning is their end, and their lives are mapped without hope of mystery."
"They are sterile but vigorous. In them, sex has been divorced entirely from the purpose of procreation and functions solely as a vent for stress.
They copulate in groups, tangled and writhing, and it seems to Randal Six, whose autism makes him different from them, that these thrusts provide them no pleasure, only release from tension.
The sounds issuing from these orgiastic groups have no quality of joy, no suggestion of tenderness. These are bestial noises, low and rough, insistent almost to the point of violence, eager to the point of desperation."
"Ugliness has the momentum of a tsunami. It is the handmaiden to entropy. One man's resistance, while admirable, cannot turn back the most titanic forces of nature."
"Wise men had long warned that books corrupted."
""Because you see so much in life that disturbs you, the cruelty, the hatred," Deucalion said. "You armor yourself with humor.""
""Grow a soul? Like… gallstones? I've never thought about it."
"Have you seen Pinocchio?"
"I've never had patience for their movies."
"This marionette is made of wood," Father Duchaine said, "but he wants to be a real boy."
Harker nodded, downed half his drink, and said, "Like Winnie the Pooh wants to be a real bear."
"No. Pooh is delusional. He already thinks he's a real bear. He eats honey. He's afraid of bees."
"Does Pinocchio become a real boy?"
Father Duchaine said, “After a lot of struggle, yes."
"That's inspiring," Harker decided.
"It is. It really is.""
""He would embrace any philosophy that filled the void in him.""
""He would embrace any philosophy that filled the void in him.""
""Under all these faces of traditional gods is another god that failed him," Deucalion said. "A god of violent social change and racial purity. There are so many of those.""
""The unique despair of a creature without a soul eventually leads to desperation, and desperation fosters obsession. In Harker's case, this is only the surface of it.""
"You might find gods and goddesses again. When new hopes fail, old hopes return in the endless cycle of desperation.""
""Rorschach. Psychiatrists, psychologists. The most useless gods of all.""
""I've lived as an outsider in your world. I've learned to treasure flawed humanity for its optimism in spite of its flaws, for its hope in the face of ceaseless struggle.""
#######
"You paid a price for taking a fast track."
"You paid a price for taking a fast track.
You paid a price for your style, too, if it wasn't traditional. And with some of the cynical marking-time-till-pension types, you paid a price if you worked as if you believed that the job was important and that justice mattered."
"Without a word they understood that in addition to years in the carnival, they shared a view of the world that was as rich with meaning as with mysteries."
"Like many a Hollywood face, this glamour had peeled and sagged."
"Few boys of twelve would have been able to create a model castle without a plan, but Arnie had put together a masterpiece: walls and wards, barbicon and bastions, ramparts and parapets, turreted towers, the barracks, the chapel, the armory, the castle keep with elaborate bulwark and battlements."
"Dickinson had been a fine poet, of course, but she had been God-besotted. Her verses could mislead the naive. Intellectual poison."
"In the formal dining room, the table was set for twelve with Pratesi linens, Buccelatti silverware, Limoges china, historic Paul Storr silver chargers, and a monumental Storr candelabrum featuring Bacchus and attendants."
"Luke's slightly protuberant eyes, long nose, and longer chin gave him a scholarly look, as if books exerted such an attraction on him that they had pulled his features toward the contents of their pages."
"He likes crosswords because there are not multiple right choices for each square; only one choice will result in the correct solution. All is predestined.
Cross YULETIDE with CHRISTMAS, cross CHRISTMAS with MYRRH… Eventually every square will be filled; all words will be complete and will intersect correctly The predestined solution will have been achieved. Order. Stasis. Peace."
"Remembering verses by Emily Dickinson could lift her out of gloom: "Hope" is the thing with feathers- / That perches in the soul- / And sings the tune without the words- /And never stops at all."
"That which is abnormal to nature is a monster, even if it might be beautiful in its way."
"In the revolutionary civilization that Victor was making, as in Aldous Huxley's Brave New World, everyone in the social order would have a rank. And all would be content, without envy."
"In the revolutionary civilization that Victor was making, as in Aldous Huxley's Brave New World, everyone in the social order would have a rank. And all would be content, without envy.
Huxley ordered his world with Alphas at the top, the ruling elite, followed by Betas and Gammas. Brute laborers were designated Epsilons, born to their positions in a designed society."
""No," he declared aloud. "That way lies madness."
Soon he would be reduced to harvesting one toe per donor and killing for mere eyelashes. A thin line separated serious homicidal purpose from buffoonery."
"the tragic lawyer who, at the end of Dickens's novel, went to the guillotine in place of another man.
The lawyer had sacrificed himself to ensure that the woman he loved would have happiness with the man she loved. That man was the one whose name the lawyer had assumed and in whose place he had been executed."
""You sound like your father's a safety engineer or something."
"You know he's a safety engineer," Michael said.
"What's a safety engineer do, anyway?"
"He engineers safety."
"Life is inherently unsafe."
"That's why we need safety engineers."
"You sound like probably your mother was obsessed with safe toys when you were growing up."
“As you know perfectly well, she's a product-safety analyst."
"God, you must have had a boring childhood. No wonder you wanted to be a cop, get shot at, shoot back.""
"Romance was a delicate thing. It needed tender care to grow and mature into something wonderful."
"They also suffer intense anxiety because they come to full consciousness with the immediate understanding that, as Victor's chattel, they do not control the primary issues of their lives and possess no free will; therefore, in their beginning is their end, and their lives are mapped without hope of mystery."
"They are sterile but vigorous. In them, sex has been divorced entirely from the purpose of procreation and functions solely as a vent for stress.
They copulate in groups, tangled and writhing, and it seems to Randal Six, whose autism makes him different from them, that these thrusts provide them no pleasure, only release from tension.
The sounds issuing from these orgiastic groups have no quality of joy, no suggestion of tenderness. These are bestial noises, low and rough, insistent almost to the point of violence, eager to the point of desperation."
"Ugliness has the momentum of a tsunami. It is the handmaiden to entropy. One man's resistance, while admirable, cannot turn back the most titanic forces of nature."
"Wise men had long warned that books corrupted."
""Because you see so much in life that disturbs you, the cruelty, the hatred," Deucalion said. "You armor yourself with humor.""
""Grow a soul? Like… gallstones? I've never thought about it."
"Have you seen Pinocchio?"
"I've never had patience for their movies."
"This marionette is made of wood," Father Duchaine said, "but he wants to be a real boy."
Harker nodded, downed half his drink, and said, "Like Winnie the Pooh wants to be a real bear."
"No. Pooh is delusional. He already thinks he's a real bear. He eats honey. He's afraid of bees."
"Does Pinocchio become a real boy?"
Father Duchaine said, “After a lot of struggle, yes."
"That's inspiring," Harker decided.
"It is. It really is.""
""He would embrace any philosophy that filled the void in him.""
""He would embrace any philosophy that filled the void in him.""
""Under all these faces of traditional gods is another god that failed him," Deucalion said. "A god of violent social change and racial purity. There are so many of those.""
""The unique despair of a creature without a soul eventually leads to desperation, and desperation fosters obsession. In Harker's case, this is only the surface of it.""
"You might find gods and goddesses again. When new hopes fail, old hopes return in the endless cycle of desperation.""
""Rorschach. Psychiatrists, psychologists. The most useless gods of all.""
""I've lived as an outsider in your world. I've learned to treasure flawed humanity for its optimism in spite of its flaws, for its hope in the face of ceaseless struggle.""
September 23, 2012
This is my review of the whole series.
for me Koontz is "Stephen King for grownups"
This series picks up an alternate reality to Shelley's novel about the creation of a new man by a mad scientist.
In this one, Dr. Frankenstein lives on, &, through funding by various megalomaniacs through the ages, & his discovery of a means to personal longevity, has perfected his new race & the assembly line type system for creating these new humans, who self-heal, have no emotions(when no malfunctions), & are programmed to fit the role they were created for.
In this series the role is still focused on the taking over of humanity & replacing them with these new humans.
The one exception to emotionlessness was programmed by the evil doctor: these new men delight in those opportunities to slaughter old humansm wehn the doctor gives them the opportunity.
The protagonists not only have to survive, but need to figure out how to kill the seemingly unharmable new species, if they get in the way of tracking down Dr. Frankenstein to his lair & manufacturing plant.
Defionitely worth having to read it in multiple volumes.
for me Koontz is "Stephen King for grownups"
This series picks up an alternate reality to Shelley's novel about the creation of a new man by a mad scientist.
In this one, Dr. Frankenstein lives on, &, through funding by various megalomaniacs through the ages, & his discovery of a means to personal longevity, has perfected his new race & the assembly line type system for creating these new humans, who self-heal, have no emotions(when no malfunctions), & are programmed to fit the role they were created for.
In this series the role is still focused on the taking over of humanity & replacing them with these new humans.
The one exception to emotionlessness was programmed by the evil doctor: these new men delight in those opportunities to slaughter old humansm wehn the doctor gives them the opportunity.
The protagonists not only have to survive, but need to figure out how to kill the seemingly unharmable new species, if they get in the way of tracking down Dr. Frankenstein to his lair & manufacturing plant.
Defionitely worth having to read it in multiple volumes.
September 25, 2009
I had heard of the book (the novel this is based on), but I did not give it much thought, figuring it was just another Frankenstein remake or such. I picked up the graphic novel on a whim, and I am glad I did. This is not just a remake, but a very thoughtful look at the classic in a new way. It is framed as a mystery/detective story, but it has a lot more. Who are the detectives really chasing? The homicidal serial killer, or the doctor who made him? And what does Deucalion, the mysterious tattooed man with a long past have to do with everything? This book is engaging. It catches you from the start, and it does not let go. I read this in one sitting. I have not found the second part yet, but I will certainly pick it up when I do. Definitely a very good graphic novel. Who knows? I may go back and pick up the novel as well.
April 25, 2018
Nothing much I need to say here. Prodigal Son was a good novel and it translates pretty well here.
I can't really critique on the quality of the artwork. I can write, but if you put my visual art up against a grade schooler's, there's a good chance I would lose. The art seems more of the "Western superhero" kind rather than the Japanese graphic novel. I especially love the illustrations of Deucalion and my boy Randall Six!
My only criticism is that it's too short. I haven't read the novel version of Prodigal Son in over a decade. Volume 1 stops after a member of the New Race murders a serial killer, which I think happen around the halfway point. I want more!
I can't really critique on the quality of the artwork. I can write, but if you put my visual art up against a grade schooler's, there's a good chance I would lose. The art seems more of the "Western superhero" kind rather than the Japanese graphic novel. I especially love the illustrations of Deucalion and my boy Randall Six!
My only criticism is that it's too short. I haven't read the novel version of Prodigal Son in over a decade. Volume 1 stops after a member of the New Race murders a serial killer, which I think happen around the halfway point. I want more!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 370 reviews