Twilight Eyes (Hardcover)

Dean Koontz's " Twilight Eyes " is a literary masterpiece that any fan of fiction should read. There are two things about the novel that really set it apart from the rest. The first being the carnival atmosphere and " carnies". The carnies are almost like a seperate society that lives as one big family. Koontz makes you feel like you are a part of it with his beautiful description of the lifestyle. It is also entertaining the way that Koontz describes how the games are run and how they are always looking for easy "marks". This is the second carnival tale that Koontz has written, with "The Funhouse" being the first. "Twilight Eyes" manages to be even better than its predecessor. The novel also provides for some twists and turns that will definately shock you, and the ending is very satisfying unlike the ending in "The Funhouse".

The second thing that I love about this book is the characters themselves. The three main characters are Slim Mackenzie, Joel Truck, and a woman named Rya. Slim Mackenzie is one of the best hero characters I have ever seen. His leadership and overall determination is amazing. Joel Truck is another example of Koontz's masterful character development skills. He is a giant of man that possesses superhuman strength and the ability to see the Goblins. He is however disfigured which is why he seeks refuge in the carnival. Joel and Slim make a great team. Then there is Rya. Koontz's writing is so descriptive, you can almost see how beautiful she is. But Rya also has inner demons that has caused her to spend the majority of her life in the carnival. Koontz paints a beautiful romantic picture between Slim and Rya. You can tell they are meant to be together, but there is many obstacles and nothing is cut and dry.

Dean Koontz is one of the best authors around right now. Twilight Eyes showcases his ability to create realistic and emotional dialogue, an original and entertaining story, and wonderful characters. If you are a fan of Koontz, I highly recommend this book. I also recommend this book to anyone who enjoyed the film "Frailty". Twilight Eyes features a similar theme.

In Twilight Eyes the setting takes place in the era of JFK's death and the prelude of the Vietnam war where a young man under the alias of Slim Mackenzie is fleeing authorities who want him for the murder of his uncle. Only Slim killed him for a reason, as Slim has the gift of Twilight Eyes that give him visions of the future and past as well as allow him to see the through the human disguises that the evil goblins are using to reap terror, murder and mayhem against the human race. His uncle was one of those goblins. Becoming a carnie and joining the nomadic Sombra Brothers Carnival is the only place he can safely hide.

His boss the beautiful Rya is impressed with the way he gets every cent out of the marks, Jelly the manager of the carnival knows his faith in hiring him will pay off and the side show freaks and other carnies know he is a great worker and trustworthy guy. He only knows he has seen visions with Rya and Jelly both covered in blood and that the goblins have a major attack planned for the ferris wheel which he must stop. The war against the goblins will rage on unless he can work out how to stop them all. Sensational novel!