Koontzland - Dean Koontz discussion

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Stand Alone Novels 1968-1979 > Out of Print Novels (Has anyone read them?)

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message 1: by Scribblescribe (new)

Scribblescribe I haven't read any of his out of print novels. Would you have any interest in doing so? I know his earliest novel is called StarQuest.

He has like 30 out of print and claims he keeps them out of print because the writing is so bad, but honestly, I am not convinced they are as terrible as he makes them out to be because I don't trust his judgement on whether his writing is good or not. Sometimes, he will say "I hated this book!" and *I* thought his book was good.

So, yeah. Anyone read any of his out of print novels?


message 2: by Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado (new)

Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl (dustpancrazy) | 6121 comments Mod
I haven't read any of them, but if I ever get my hands on a copy of any of them, then I would be interested :-)


message 3: by Scribblescribe (new)

Scribblescribe Dustin Crazy little brown owl wrote: "I haven't read any of them, but if I ever get my hands on a copy of any of them, then I would be interested :-)"

You may have to go to a used book store or amazon to do so.


message 4: by Cameron (new)

Cameron | 3 comments I have read nightmare journey. It's more a sci-fi book, set hundreds of thousands of years in the future. Forgotten cities, Pures/geneticially modified creatures, telepathy, space travel. I really enjoyed the story and thought it was quite well written. Some of these earlier titles are on eBay etc and used bookshops.


message 5: by Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado (new)

Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl (dustpancrazy) | 6121 comments Mod
Guess I'll have to start looking for these :-)


message 6: by Tony (new)

Tony Talbot Alibris has "Beastchild":

http://www.alibris.co.uk/booksearch?q...


message 7: by Jim (new)

Jim C (avsfaninboston) | 161 comments I would try your library. I was amazed that my library had "After the Last Race" sitting on its shelf. It wasn't typical Koontz but I enjoyed it. I know my library has another out of print one that I have not checked out yet.


message 8: by PF (new)

PF O'Friar (wineamyhouse) it seems that the most rare to find is
"The Wall of Masks"
anyone read that? does it worth 50 bucks? :D


message 9: by Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado (new)

Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl (dustpancrazy) | 6121 comments Mod
Never heard of it.


message 10: by Bill (new)

Bill Wilson | 4 comments I've read all but two of his first 30 books. I paid up to $20 for used copies. One book I could not find and another one was listed for $500. I thoughts they were decent reads and should be released.


message 11: by Jerry (new)

Jerry (jazzlsnr) | 55 comments I have many of the early science fiction in the short story digest form as well as the novels. Some worked for me, others didn't. I enjoyed the ones written as Brian Coffey & David Axton. I even prefer the early books over his recent fiction. If you can find them in the library, by all means. But the value of his books has lessened so hard to say if $50 is worth it. Regardless, the fiction stands up to worthy reading even today.


message 12: by Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado (new)

Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl (dustpancrazy) | 6121 comments Mod
A friend I met on Goodreads sent me a copy of The Haunted Earth so I hope to read that one in 2017.

I read Gerda's A Darker Heritage in 2016.


message 13: by Matthew (new)

Matthew | 183 comments Thanks to various libraries around my city I have gotten to read Hanging On (a comic novel set during WWII) and Dragonfly (a James Bond-ish government conspiracy thriller). Hanging On was very funny. In fact, there's a sex scene it that makes me laugh just thinking about it. Dragonfly is a decent read but felt fairly standard for it's genre, if I recall right. OH! And Oddkins…almost for got about that one…it's an excellent kids book with great illustrations. Thanks to a used bookstore I have also read Nightmare Journey which is a decent little sci-fi book.


message 14: by Jordan (last edited May 08, 2017 06:39AM) (new)

Jordan Lombard (jslombard) I've read Star Quest! For a first book it was pretty good. But that's it as far as his out of print sci-fi books go.

Shattered is the next earliest book of his that I own and have read. I have a lot of his earlier works from the 70's, 80's, and 90's, some I've read, but many I haven't.


message 15: by Jordan (new)

Jordan Lombard (jslombard) Speaking of public libraries, you really do never know what you'll find, even if you've worked in one for 9 years. lol. I just found a copy of How to Write Best Selling Fiction. I know he says it's out of date, but as a writer, I'm still curious to know what he had to say. It can't all be out of date!

I also found a copy of Hanging On at another library near here. I might have to request that someday before it gets weeded.


message 16: by Tony (new)

Tony Talbot There's quite a comprehensive list of OOPs in The Dean Koontz companion:

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...


message 17: by Jordan (new)

Jordan Lombard (jslombard) I take that back, Demon Seed was the next earliest I've read. I actually have a printed list of his earlier works that I've been updating with whether or not I own or have read a book. It's not up to date though with his recent works and I haven't looked at it in forever. I think it needs dusting off. Literally. Lol.


message 18: by Jordan (new)

Jordan Lombard (jslombard) I don't yet have the companion book. Thanks for linking it! That would be a great resource to have.


message 19: by Tony (new)

Tony Talbot The DK companion is definitely worth reading!


message 20: by Jamie (new)

Jamie Girard (pebelz) | 2 comments http://www.deankoontz.com/about-dean/...

This link has all of his pen names and books written under each


message 21: by Matthew (new)

Matthew | 183 comments I just read a copy of the graphic novel version of Dean's terrific short story Trapped. The story (found in the Strange Highways collection) is great…the comic…ehhh, not so much. I was not impressed with the art work in it. The publisher of the graphic novel has been out of business for years so the book is definitely a novelty.


message 22: by Jordan (new)

Jordan Lombard (jslombard) I just ordered a copy of Beastchild and Hanging On, though it's going to be ages until I get around to reading them.


message 23: by Mike (new)

Mike Marsbergen (mikemarsbergen) | 19 comments I don't have any of his out-of-print sci-fi books, but I do have Dragonfly, and I found it surprisingly good. Don't know why he doesn't put it back into circulation, maybe with some revisions.


message 24: by Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado (new)

Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl (dustpancrazy) | 6121 comments Mod
Good to know. I haven't read Dragonfly, so when I attempt to delve into those older titles, I will make Dragonfly a priority. Thanks for the recommendation.


message 25: by Barbara (new)

Barbara | 486 comments I've not heard of Dragonfly either...will have to try and find it


message 26: by Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado (new)

Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl (dustpancrazy) | 6121 comments Mod
Dragonfly was written under a different name. I will have to check on Amazon :-)
Dragonfly by K.R. Dwyer
Dragonfly


message 27: by Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado (new)

Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl (dustpancrazy) | 6121 comments Mod
Yes. There are several copies available on Amazon. Expect to pay $5-30. Let me know if you are interested in a Group Read featuring this title and we can set it up as a Fall Group Read.


message 28: by Jerry (new)

Jerry (jazzlsnr) | 55 comments Under KR Dwyer - Dragonfly. David Axton - Prison of Ice; Richard Paige - Door to December; Brian Coffey - Voice of the Night & 3 others. Owen West - 2 books since re-printed Funhouse & Mask.


message 29: by Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado (new)

Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl (dustpancrazy) | 6121 comments Mod
I absolutely love The Voice of the Night :-)


message 30: by Annie (new)

Annie | 4 comments I've read a lot of his older books. I really enjoyed them and that's why he's one of my favourite authors.

Once I've read all the newer books, I would like to reread the older ones. Sadly, I no longer keep print books once they have been read, so looks like I may struggle getting hold of some of them.


message 31: by Lori (new)

Lori (lkaumans) | 12 comments Jordan wrote: "I take that back, Demon Seed was the next earliest I've read. I actually have a printed list of his earlier works that I've been updating with whether or not I own or have read a book. It's not up ..."

Have you read the 1973 version of Demon Seed, or the re-write he did in 1997? I just finished both and would love a discussion about both versions.


message 32: by Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado (new)

Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl (dustpancrazy) | 6121 comments Mod
Selu, have you read A Darker Heritage by Gerda? You might like it.
A Darker Heritage by Gerda Ann Cerra


message 33: by Tommye. (new)

Tommye. Schoenberger (tommyenv) | 28 comments Idk if it’s in print or not but has anyone read his “Santa’s Twin”? I’d never heard of it. A friend gave me all her son’s (who has gone off to college and beyond) Koontz books and his King books as well. The Santa one was really a surprise.


message 34: by Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl, Colorful Colorado (new)

Dustin the wind Crazy little brown owl (dustpancrazy) | 6121 comments Mod
Tommye. wrote: "Idk if it’s in print or not but has anyone read his “Santa’s Twin”? I’d never heard of it. A friend gave me all her son’s (who has gone off to college and beyond) Koontz books and his King books as..."

You should be able to borrow it from many public libraries. If your library doesn't have it, ask the librarian about inter-library loan. These childrens picture books should also be available to purchase online.
Santa's Twin (Santa's Twin, #1) by Dean Koontz Robot Santa The Further Adventures of Santa's Twin by Dean Koontz


message 35: by Tommye. (new)

Tommye. Schoenberger (tommyenv) | 28 comments I meant I got it in the batch from my friend, I was just wondering how many people had seen/read it. It was new to me. And are there others similar?


message 36: by Charissa (new)

Charissa Wilkinson (lilmizflashythang) | 271 comments I've read the first.


message 37: by Barbara (new)

Barbara | 486 comments I’ve read Bad Santa. Years ago


message 38: by Benjamin (new)

Benjamin Weirich | 4 comments Currently looking for Wall of Masks. It’s not in my library system and the cheapest I’ve found it is $275. I’m struggling to find available downloads (I found one but it’s all in German, not sure my German is good enough for that). Any help/suggestions is appreciated.


message 39: by Shirley (new)

Shirley Hartman-Rozee | 5 comments I read Door to December and gave it four stars.


message 40: by Willa (new)

Willa | 25 comments Benjamin wrote: "Currently looking for Wall of Masks. It’s not in my library system and the cheapest I’ve found it is $275. I’m struggling to find available downloads (I found one but it’s all in German, not sure m..."

Wow, thanks for this info. I've never heard of this book and went to search for it and you're right, can't find it anywhere for purchase at a reasonable price. Never knew there was a series of the three books either.

My suggestion would be to write an actual physical letter to Mr. Koontz. His address is at the back of many of his novels, It's a post office box in Newport Beach, California. I've written to him twice and he wrote me back both times. If anyone would know how to get a copy of that book, he would.


message 41: by Willa (new)

Willa | 25 comments Benjamin wrote: "Currently looking for Wall of Masks. It’s not in my library system and the cheapest I’ve found it is $275. I’m struggling to find available downloads (I found one but it’s all in German, not sure m..."

As an addendum to my previous reply, I found this on Mr. Koontz's website:
https://www.deankoontz.com/books/coll...

It doesn't help find the book but is interesting.


message 42: by Willa (new)

Willa | 25 comments Don't mean to spam you but I found it at the Los Angeles Public Library, they have three copies for checkout. I found it on WorldCat, so if you're not near Los Angeles, you may be able to find it for checkout at a library near you.

https://ls2pac.lapl.org/?section=reso...


message 43: by Benjamin (new)

Benjamin Weirich | 4 comments Thanks. I’ll start looking on WorldCat and see if there are any copies in my area. I’m up in New England so LA is a bit of a hike. I’m currently reading Nightmare Journey but I was surprised Wall of Masks is so hard to find. Thanks for the help!


message 44: by Benjamin (new)

Benjamin Weirich | 4 comments So after the Wall of Masks adventure, which I’m currently halfway through the translated version, I’m wondering if the group knows of anymore challenges with upcoming books. I’ve got three more to read from 1975, so it would be from 1975 and later.

Thanks for any help/suggestions!


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