Death of the Senses

Final Destination #9

by Andy McDermott

When homeless man Jack Curtis saves young policewoman Amy Tom from a psychopath, killing him in self-defense, he unknowingly saves six other people--all young, successful and famous figures in New York City--who had been marked for death. But Death will not be denied his prize. Jack and Amy find that they are faced with a rising body count as they try to find and save the other victims before it's too late/

Genres: Horror, Fiction

415 pages, Paperback

Published August 1, 2006

About the author

Andy McDermott was born in Halifax, West Yorkshire, and now lives in Bournemouth. As a journalist and magazine editor, amongst other titles he edited DVD Review and the iconoclastic film publication Hotdog. Andy is now a full-time writer.

Reviews

[Lizbeth Wright · Rating 4 out of 5]

Any fan of Final Destination would probably die to read this... Seriously though, this book is great. It is well written, the characters are relatable (and mostly interesting) and it's a fun spin on the series. However, this book is extremely rare, hard to find and if you do find it, very expensive. I would suggest checking out this channel to listen to the book.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZEjE...

[Michelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have been on the hunt for this book for quite some time now, and had found out (direct from the author's mouth), the reason why this book is either consistently out of print, or when one does come up on Amazon or eBay, the price is sky high. This book was written by Andy McDermott, and has the author's name on the front cover - but on the spine, the author's name is printed as Rebecca Levene, who has written other Final Destination books. Shortly before this was due to be published, the copies were recalled and pulped, and another print run couldn't go ahead. A few copies did manage to get out, but because of this, I have seen the prices run into the hundreds.

I managed to grab a copy of this through the World Of Books seller on Amazon, for less than £10, which I instantly snapped up. The condition was excellent, and I was so pleased to complete my collection of Final Destination books.

This book, Death Of The Senses, is quite intriguing, as it goes in a different direction to the previous books, by using the senses, as a way of clues, rather than the quite often in-your-face clues as the earlier books.

I also love the way that the author links back into the first film and also one of the earlier spin off books as well. An author that knows the Final Destination series inside out.

This book is quite slow going, and does suffer from some pacing issues. As I've said on other reviews, I'm surprised that more of these weren't made into film, as some of the ideas in these are brilliant. Some of the deaths in this were quite simply staggering, particularly the one you suddenly thought the person was safe, before another twist.

I do like the cover as well, while not giving too much away about the storyline itself, that eye really captivates you. It also brings you into the world of a snowy cold New York.

The two lead characters, Jack and Amy, I initially struggled with, but they soon drew me in, and thankfully, didn't jump into bed with each other straight away - I was expecting the author to go for this, and I was surprised that he thankfully didn't.

The finale of this, while keeping you on your toes, also wraps up the series, without revealing too much. It was published in 2006, and, as far as I'm aware, there have been no other books. While the others in the series have been left open ended, or tied into each other, this one is definitely the end. I can't really see them rebooting this series any time soon, as there has been no interest in the films in recent years, and these have been taken over by other horror movies.

If you see this for a reasonable price, I would definitely recommend picking it up. I doubt there will be many copies floating around, and I feel sorry for the author, as the publisher was not able to afford a new print run, despite printing the wrong name on the spine - hardly the author's fault. I would not pay much for it, as the book is quite slow paced, but if you're a completist, like me, it may be worthwhile setting up alerts on eBay or other book sites. ​

[Andrew · Rating 3 out of 5]

silly silly silly silly silly
Too rare for how silly it is

[Dc · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best books in the novel franchise. Andy Mcdermott adds a new perspective on how one could meet any unfortunate end.
Between car explosions, that you were anticipating twice prior to it happening, to the unexpected talk show fatalities that weren't due to ratings... This book takes you on an adventure.
The ending was the most effective in the series where you are cheering on the lead for finally getting ahead in life, and then see it all taken away.
Awesome book. It is extremely rare to find and it took me 12 years and several "want" alerts on an abundance of websites. I acquired my copy in May of 2018.

[Geoffrey · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the final Final Destination book that has ever been published (as of 2022) and I think that it is the one with the most interesting and unique premise. When Jack Curtis has a horrific vision one snowy night, his actions save the life of young policewoman named Amy Tom from a brutal psychopath. However, the man was supposed to have embarked on a deranged killing spree and now Death is several bodies short. As Death begins to balance his books, Jack and Amy must race to warn all of the intended victims before Death collects his due. I loved the change in the Final Destination formula by having a serial killer instead of an opening disaster. I loved the killer’s modus operandi and how it was related to the senses, it felt like a twisted version of the killer from Se7en. I thought that the idea of the killer wanting to “cleanse the senses” of the city by killing someone to represent each of the human senses (sight, smell, touch, hearing and taste) and collecting a body part (eyes, nose, fingers, ears and tongue) as trophy to represent each sense in a ritual was interesting and compelling. I loved how the killer’s motive tied back to the protagonist’s ESP as the intended final victim and representative of the sixth sense, with the killer planning to take the clairvoyant’s brain as part of the ritual. I liked the cast of characters in this book more than the previous cast of characters in previous Final Destination books. I liked how the author tied this story to the first Final Destination movie by having the characters directly discuss the Flight 180 disaster and the aftermath, and I liked how the butterfly effect concept of Final Destination 2 was also addressed here. This book felt more connected to the world of the movies than previous books, which I liked. I liked how William Bludworth made a confirmed appearance in this book, it gave this book a bit more authenticity, but I also would have accepted another mortician character serving the same role. I like the idea of people in the death industry having knowledge of Death and Death’s design, as they literally work with death, and I also think that William Bludworth constantly appearing in almost every movie and book as the wise mortician in every city begins to feel repetitive and contrived as any mortician could fit the role of that character, and it often feels like a glorified cameo rather than a naturally occurring character. With all that being said, I think his character was done well here and felt a little more natural for the story than previous appearances. I think that this book dragged a little in some parts, but I think that this story is one of the best Final Destination books overall. I think it’s a shame that this book was recalled due to a typo and that it went relatively under the radar with not many people having ever heard of it or read it even compared to the other books in the series. The ending was decent, it wasn’t my favorite resolution to a Final Destination story, but I’m not sure how the author could have made it better than it was. I highly recommend this book for fans of Final Destination and I definitely believe that this is the best book in the series next to Final Destination: End of the Line.

[Geo · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the final Final Destination book that has ever been published (as of 2022) and I think that it is the one with the most interesting and unique premise. When Jack Curtis has a horrific vision one snowy night, his actions save the life of young policewoman named Amy Tom from a brutal psychopath. However, the man was supposed to have embarked on a deranged killing spree and now Death is several bodies short. As Death begins to balance his books, Jack and Amy must race to warn all of the intended victims before Death collects his due. I loved the change in the Final Destination formula by having a serial killer instead of an opening disaster. I loved the killer’s modus operandi and how it was related to the senses, it felt like a twisted version of the killer from Se7en. I thought that the idea of the killer wanting to “cleanse the senses” of the city by killing someone to represent each of the human senses (sight, smell, touch, hearing and taste) and collecting a body part (eyes, nose, fingers, ears and tongue) as trophy to represent each sense in a ritual was interesting and compelling. I loved how the killer’s motive tied back to the protagonist’s ESP as the intended final victim and representative of the sixth sense, with the killer planning to take the clairvoyant’s brain as part of the ritual. I liked the cast of characters in this book more than the previous cast of characters in previous Final Destination books. I liked how the author tied this story to the first Final Destination movie by having the characters directly discuss the Flight 180 disaster and the aftermath, and I liked how the butterfly effect concept of Final Destination 2 was also addressed here. This book felt more connected to the world of the movies than previous books, which I liked. I liked how William Bludworth made a confirmed appearance in this book, it gave this book a bit more authenticity, but I also would have accepted another mortician character serving the same role. I like the idea of people in the death industry having knowledge of Death and Death’s design, as they literally work with death, and I also think that William Bludworth constantly appearing in almost every movie and book as the wise mortician in every city begins to feel repetitive and contrived as any mortician could fit the role of that character, and it often feels like a glorified cameo rather than a naturally occurring character. With all that being said, I think his character was done well here and felt a little more natural for the story than previous appearances. I think that this book dragged a little in some parts, but I think that this story is one of the best Final Destination books overall. I think it’s a shame that this book was recalled due to a typo and that it went relatively under the radar with not many people having ever heard of it or read it even compared to the other books in the series. The ending was decent, it wasn’t my favorite resolution to a Final Destination story, but I’m not sure how the author could have made it better than it was. I highly recommend this book for fans of Final Destination and I definitely believe that this is the best book in the series next to Final Destination: End of the Line.

[RikuRoxas · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic rush through New York that fits perfectly in with the film series.

Andy McDermott, the author of the incredible Wilde & Chase series, pens a fast paced novel that kept me turning each page faster and faster at points.

It's a shame that not only did the publisher go bust, but the book was pulled due to an error on the spine showing the wrong author. This is a fantastic book in its own right but fits perfectly in with the series it could have been made into a movie easily.

With links and unexpected but appreciated ties to the film series, the novel expands on the premise of death having a plan and adds the human senses into the mix.

The chain reactions set in place by death are described so well it's almost possible to see them playing out and the cold setting of snowy New York can almost be felt.

A definite must read for fans of both the Final Destination series and Andy McDermott.

[Jasmine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Surprisingly good! Could have done with a little less exposition. Though 407 pages isn’t long by any means, some scenes describing diner trips and filler felt a tad bit tiring. I greatly appreciate McDermott’s ability to describe the chain reactions. You can visualize them in great detail, something a lot of fans appreciate about the films. In contrast to the comics, I was quite pleased with how McDermott could give you all the details pertaining to “deaths path”. As well as graphically describing the outcomes!

He was also clever with how was able to trick the reader. Like the films, he was able to create cheeky scenarios that leave you saying “Wow, I though X was going to get them, but it ended up being Y.”

This was the first Final Destination novel I had read, and so far it remains my favorite.

[Bailey Wakeling · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome is the only word I can use for this sadly last book in the series. so in this book a homeless man called jack saves a policewoman called amy from a serial killer. but of course they along with some other people were meant to be murdered and you know the rest. the way andy has injected the deaths in with the scenes was done really cleaverly as you get the sense of these red herrings. the description of the deaths are also very gnarly which makes them wrote well. the characters are good and you do actually end up liking some of them, overall very pleased with this closing chapter

[Hazel Mae · Rating 4 out of 5]

as a lover of final destination movie franchise, i was excited to finally read these books. the “opening” death scene was different since it wasn’t everyone at once and instead a bunch of small deaths in the vision/premonition. it took about 1/3 to 1/2 thru the book to finally get into it. as a love of FD, i knew what was going to eventually happen but ive got to say, the ending was so disappointing.

[Erin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely adore this book. Out of the other Final Destination books I’ve read, which is almost all of them, this has to be my favorite. The characters are (shockingly) interesting, the deaths are awesome and I felt engrossed in the plot. I also did like the twist of who Jack was, no spoilers but that has to be one of my favorite moments in the book. Heavily recommend if you’re debating reading this.