The House at the End of the World

by Dean Koontz

Isolation is a wall against fear and despair. Only nature, quiet, and time for reflection can heal her. If she can be healed.

everyone needs at least one additional reason to live, a task that inspires.

‘Beauty is truth, truth beauty.’”

nihilists

-a person who believes that life ismeaninglessandrejectsall religious and moral principles.

knows that true compassion is noble and demanding, but that tenderness is a vain form of pity indulged in by those who want to feel good about themselves without being put to the inconvenience of doing something.

phalanx,

a body oftroopsor police officers standing or moving in close formation ora bone of the finger or toe.

creosote

a dark brown oildistilledfrom coaltarand used as a woodpreservative. It contains a number ofphenols,cresols, and other organic compounds.

literati

well educated people who are interested in literature.

opine

to express opinions.

This is an age when freedoms are fragile.

Those in power speak loudly, ceaselessly about compassion but rarely exhibit any.

ammoniacal

of or containingammonia.

“Do you really believe the past is past? I think the past might be our future, that we’re busy laying the groundwork for new

Of the hard lessons that humanity learns, how many are retained? How very few? The passion of angry ideologues, the ignorance of the arrogant, the ferocity of utopians—how can such people lead the world to anything but its end?”

alacrity

Alacrity derives from the Latin word alacer, meaning "lively" or "eager." It denotesphysical quickness coupled with eagerness or enthusiasm

apsidal

in the form of orresemblinganapse orrelating to anapsis.

impudence,

the quality of being rude and not showing respect, especially toward someone who is older or in a more important position

Life has taught her that it’s mentally exhausting and spiritually depressing to waste energy and time fanning the flames of anger

Patience, steadiness, and hope are healthier than anger;

oligarch

arulerin anoligarchy.

Our troubles often come from where we least expect them.

thwart

prevent (someone) fromaccomplishingsomething.

The truth of things can never be assumed. It must be confirmed by action and inquiry.

parulas.

any of several American wood warblers of the genus Parula, having bluish plumage with a yellow throat and breast.

portcullis

a strong, heavy grating that can be lowered down grooves on each side of a gateway to block it.

portent,

auguries,

a sign or warning that something, especially somethingmomentousorcalamitous, is likely to happen or an exceptional or wonderful person or thing.

allies in a righteous cause are rare in a world of self-interest. Expect deceit. Distrust is essential to survival.

Paranoia can be a serious mental illness. It can also be the proper state of mind for prey in a universe of predators.

Fear is useful when it’s on a leash, Avi once said, but it’s always a bad dog when you let it run free in your mind.

Like a muscle, courage requires constant testing to ensure it will be strong

when terror weighs heavily on it.

pellucid

translucently clear.

Idle hours are sharp; they open new wounds in the heart and prick the mind with anxiety.

When a majority of people in any society share the same array of illusions and cling passionately to them, they will encourage one another until illusion becomes delusion, until delusion becomes mass insanity. Whole societies do go mad. History is filled with chilling examples.

Loss is the basic fact of life; all flesh is grass, and withers away.

“‘I said to my soul, be still, and wait without hope, for hope would be hope for the wrong thing’”

grotto,

a smallpicturesquecave, especially an artificial one in a park or garden.

saccharine

excessivelysweet or sentimental.

megatonnage

the destructive capability especially of a collection of nuclear weapons that is expressed in megatons.

ascendance.

the act of rising or moving up: the act of ascending.

susurration

whispering,murmuring, orrustling.

You can refuse to give up, but nonetheless be broken in the process of not surrendering.

What good is genius without humility? What value does it have if it isn’t married undivorceable to kindness and empathy?

loquacious

tendingto talk a great deal; talkative.

Evil is irrational. There is no why formed so complete that it will satisfy her.

Trust is often answered with deceit.

cognate

related; connected.

Those who murder children have killed their own souls and exist rather than live, and neither live nor exist in any world to come.

fecund

nihilism.