Koontzland - Dean Koontz discussion

This topic is about
Twilight Eyes
Stand Alone Novels 1980-1985
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Twilight Eyes (Group Read - September 2011)

Amy S wrote: "Wasn't this book 1st released with a different title under a psuedo author? (Dean Koontz writting as _______)? Or maybe I'm thinking of a different "carnival"story?"
I don't so with Twilight Eyes. There's nothing on the cover, in the copyright information or afterword that mentions originally using a pen name.
I don't so with Twilight Eyes. There's nothing on the cover, in the copyright information or afterword that mentions originally using a pen name.

You may have heard about only Part 1 being released originally; later Koontz continued the story and it was published as one book.
Nora wrote: "I am so excited that this got picked."
Me too :-) I haven't read it. Hope it's a good one :-)
Me too :-) I haven't read it. Hope it's a good one :-)
Amy S wrote: "Wasn't this book 1st released with a different title under a psuedo author? (Dean Koontz writting as _______)? Or maybe I'm thinking of a different "carnival"story?"
Maybe you're thinking of The Fun House? Dean Koontz was writing as Owen West.
Maybe you're thinking of The Fun House? Dean Koontz was writing as Owen West.



I really hate when that happens!!
If you have a Borders Bookstore closing near you, check there, that's where I found mine :-) I am also getting the audiobook of Twilight Eyes through inter library loan :-)


Maybe you're thi..."
You are so right, it is Funhouse I was thinking of. Thanks for catching that for me.
Shannon wrote: "Hi all- Just joined the group a few minutes ago. Thinking about grabbing this one on my Kindle and participating in the reading. I'm on Part 4 of the Frankenstein series this week and plan to hav..."
You should join us for Life Expectancy too - that's our August Group Read and it has clowns. You could have the clowns and then the carnival with all of us - doesn't that sound like a whole lot of fun?
You should join us for Life Expectancy too - that's our August Group Read and it has clowns. You could have the clowns and then the carnival with all of us - doesn't that sound like a whole lot of fun?
Shannon wrote: "I checked the page count on Amazon and found an old listing at about 260 pages, but a newer edition was over 400 pages long. "
I just don't think page count is a very reliable source. There are so many different editions and sometimes Amazon/Goodreads page counts don't match with each other, let alone the actual book. New afterwords will add more pages and depending on the type chosen etc, but anyway that's beside the point because I'm certain (although I am indeed sometimes wrong) it was FUNHOUSE that Masha was thinking about.
I just don't think page count is a very reliable source. There are so many different editions and sometimes Amazon/Goodreads page counts don't match with each other, let alone the actual book. New afterwords will add more pages and depending on the type chosen etc, but anyway that's beside the point because I'm certain (although I am indeed sometimes wrong) it was FUNHOUSE that Masha was thinking about.




TE arrived today. Yay. Almost tempted to start it now. :) Total cost with shipping was $4.00

You don't have to wait until the first of the month to start reading or discussing a group read--you may start anytime you'd like.


Never thought of comparing Slim and Odd. Slim seems so much darker as a character.


As for October's selection, I think that's the book I just loaned my mom and I know she hasn't even started it yet. I'm not sure how she'll feel when I ask for it back. lol

I'm not sure what you mean by this. We won't even begin the nominating process for October's group read until tomorrow and the resulting poll will not end until 9/8 to determine a winner.



Hey Shannon, I noticed you were half way through. What do you think?


You may start discussing it any time, Jen, just be sure to use spoiler alerts where appropriate, so as not to spoil the story for those who aren't as far in it. Thanks for joining in!


1. Years ago I read a book (and I swear it was Koontz) where there was a comment about only the sane being able to question their sanity, i.e. only the crazy would so vehemently proclaim their sanity "I'm not crazy! I'm not crazy" and they'd never wonder if they were in fact a few fries short of a happy meal. It's funny that a teenager (I'll get back to this) who sees "goblins" never stops to ponder if in fact what he sees is real.
2. Botulism again! The last group read I participated in was Velocity. Apparently that botulism bacteria is some killer stuff!
3. Carl Slim does not speak as a 17 year old would. Yes, wise beyond his years because he's a killer and all; all alone in the world, but I don't know, there are a few things that come out of this mouth that are too old.
4. 1963 - I've forgotten if this actual plays a role in story line. And it is 1963 right, or is it '64? I only ask because there's mention of Kennedy dying, but I was thinking this was a summer fair, and Kennedy didn't die until November.
5. Enough with Rya's perfect breasts. You can definitely see Koontz's early erotic writings coming out in Rya's overblown descriptions. Though it's funny, like I said I read this years ago, and in my mind Rya had dark hair. Don't know why, but she did.
Okay more to add later. :)

1. Slim did see the things goblins DO as he had one in his family, that's probably why it was easy for him to accept. Plus you don't really know if back then he had doubts before he got proof.
3. All of Koontz kids are wise beyond their years, and considering Slim's unique position that did not bother me in his case. On the other hand...
5. He IS 17, so can you blame him for obsessing with breasts?
Y'all are bringing up some interesting points - Thanks for getting such a lively discussion going.
I haven't started yet :-) I've been reading The Dead Town but I'll catch up to y'all.
I haven't started yet :-) I've been reading The Dead Town but I'll catch up to y'all.

Okay so just finished up with Part 1.
A couple thanks to those of you who replied to my earlier ramblings. @Masha, your reply to my point #5 actually made me laugh out loud, so thanks. But your reply to comment 1, begs the question that he never actually "saw" Uncle Denton do anything. He had flashes/a 6th sense as to the bad things that Denton did, but he never actually saw a goblin do anything bad. It still strikes me as a little strange that he doesn't stop to ponder his own sanity.
@Shannon, I think my question about 1963 more had to do with when it actually was. Obviously "Slim" is telling the story from the future *so he survives?! ;) I just couldn't get a grasp on whether Kennedy was dead or not yet, but I get your point on it being important for the innocence of the country and the Freak Show aspect.
Okay, but now on to the rest of Part 1.
1. The goblin under Joel Tuck's chair. I thought Mr. Tuck scouted the surroundings. He didn't think it was weird to bury a goblin under his little part of the carnival?
2. Um how abrupt were the final scenes in Part 1?! Look Kelsko! Stab! Shoot! Run! Chase! Cemetary! Stab! Forgive! Now lets hide in Florida!
3. (actually part 2 I think) Now I know why I remember/imagine Rya having dark hair! :)
4. The love scenes are so TMI. It's out of place to have all the descriptions of fluids. I mean I'm no prude, but come on! Ew!
5. Okay so let's get this straight about the pre-nuclear (yeah I probably spelled that wrong) war society, from a couple thousand years back? Um that is just too weird for me. Space I'd accept, a Hitler experiment, okay, but a super society from the not so distant past that destroyed themselves and disappeared from the earth, not so much.
That's all for now. More to come. :)

the fact that the goblins he saw did not look the same is why Slim decided he wasn't crazy, he figured if he was crazy the goblins would all look identical.
does that help?

the fact that the goblins he saw did not look the same is why Slim decided he wasn't crazy, he figured if he was crazy the goblins would all look identical.
does that help?"
Oh I get that he's not crazy. It just struck me as kind of crazy in the beginning that he didn't really express any doubt (or there just wasn't any part of it that I remember) when as a kid he said "whoa, I'm seeing weird things. Glowy eyes and stuff. Am I bonkers?!" It was just fact to him. As I said earlier, I swear I read in a book a long time ago, that only the sane can doubt their sanity. A person who never stops to ponder "am I going crazy?!" is the one who is in fact crazy. I've always liked this theory, it makes a lot of sense to be. Thus that's why I remember thinking that Slim never stopped (at least in the beginning) to wonder about his own mental health. :)


Anyway, I still think it made sense that after he had already lived with psychic visions that it would not seem strange to also see the goblins. Like his psychic ability had advanced some.

Welcome. Jen!

I've gotten a little bit further...
SPOILERS
I'm wondering how far apart Parts 1 and 2 were written..
They kind of read like two different books. It's almost like Koontz forgot that he gave certain characteristics to Rya, and now Slim has them.
Or Slim would have a theory about why a Goblin acted a certain way and Rya would be all surprised about it. It seems to me that Rya should be stating these facts to Slim as she's the one that was teamed up with them and has read their past... I dunno.
I don't recall this part of the book all that much.
In my mind I keep imagining something along the lines of a quarry.
OH and I finally get the definitive reason for the year. The whole Kitty Genovese thing. I just couldn't remember why it was 1964 verses, 1955, or 1971.
And, totally off topic, in fact this may have been discussed elsewhere, but have you noticed that Koontz likes to use certain terms and you almost expect them to pop up someplace in the story?
Best examples: bougainvillea, Sodium vapour lights, macadam. In TE macadam has shown up, as has the sodium vapour lights. I suppose the story will need to get back to Florida before we'll see the bougainvillea though. :)
Though a side note to the above, I get why Koontz says macadam rather than asphalt or the like, it's a regional thing. It's where he's from. I mean even Wikipedia used the sentence "Due to uses of macadam as a road surface in former times, roads in some parts of the United States (as parts of Pennsylvania) are often referred to as macadam, even though they might be made of asphalt or concrete."
I guess it's kind of like the way some people call pop/soda/Coke. But it still strikese me as funny, and it's something I always used to look for in Koontz books. He doesn't do it so much anymore (well except the bougainvillea, as most of his books take place in California, and any discription of a yard contains their bougainvillea tree), but the books from the 80s and 90s you could almost guarantee it! :)
Books mentioned in this topic
The Funhouse (other topics)Twilight Eyes (other topics)
Twilight Eyes: A Thriller (other topics)
Twilight Eyes (other topics)
Twilight Eyes by Dean Koontz