Darkfall [Hardcover]

Dean R. Koontz (Author)

Product Details

• Hardcover: 371 pages
• Publisher: Demco Media Inc (April 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0606063099
• ISBN-13: 978-0606063098
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (109 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #6,899,152 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I was born and raised in Pennsylvania where I graduated from Shippensburg State College (now Shippensburg University). When I was a senior in college, I won an Atlantic Monthly fiction competition and have been writing ever since. My first job after graduation was with the Appalachian Poverty Program, where I was expected to counsel and tutor underprivileged children on a one-to-one basis. During my first day on the job, I discovered that the previous occupier of my position had been beaten up by the very kids he had been trying to help and had landed in the hospital for several weeks. The following year was filled with challenge but also tension, and I was more highly motivated than ever to build a career as a writer. I wrote nights and weekends, which I continued to do after leaving the poverty program and going to work as an English teacher in a suburban school district outside Harrisburg. After a year and a half in that position, my wife, Gerda, made me an offer I couldn't refuse: "I'll support you for five years," she said, "and if you can't make it as a writer in that time, you'll never make it." By the end of those five years, Gerda had quit her job to run the business end of my writing career. Gerda and I, along with our dog, Trixie, live in southern California.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

42 of 44 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Darkfall, May 26, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Darkfall (Mass Market Paperback)

Dark Fall focuses on two main characters. The first is a man from Jamaica named Baba Lavelle. Lavelle has come to New York City to get revenge on a Mafia family who was responsible for the death of his brother. Lavelle is a bocor, which means that he specializes in voodoo involving the black arts.
Four corpses have been found and they are all high ranking officials in the Mafia family. This is where the second character of the story comes in. Jack Dawson is a cop who has been working the case. All four bodies appear to have been bitten to death, and they were all behind locked doors and most of the time under security. Jack and his partner Rebecca cannot figure out what is killing these men, or how it is being done.
A lot of people that have read Dark Fall have called it one of Koontz's weaker books. In my opinion, this book has gotten a bad rep and is extremely underrated. The book drags you in from the first page and keeps you there until the very end. The amount of terror and suspense this book brings is amazing.
Jack Dawson is a very likeable hero, and you will find yourself rooting for him form the very beginning. He not only has to deal with Lavelle, but also for growing feelings for his partner. Koontz does a great job developing the romance between Rebecca and Jack.
Over all this is one of the best books that Dena Koontz has written. Few of these books have brought the kind of terror and suspense that Dark Fall does. After I finished reading Dark Fall, I kept asking myself why people do not like this book. It packs a scary and suspenseful story with outstanding characters. Ignore this book's reputation and give it a shot.

20 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars ALMOST--BY GOD, ALMOST--DEAN KOONTZ'S BEST EVER!, March 8, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Darkfall (Mass Market Paperback)

I read this shortly after Phantoms, The Funhouse, and The House of Thunder. This book is so scary, I'm afraid to go in my own basement now! I was somewhat disappointed with the explanation for the silvery eyes and noises in the ventilation system, but then again, this was only the fault of whoever wrote the synopsis for it on the inside cover of the book. Otherwise, I absolutely loved this book. DO NOT TRUST ANY OF THE REVIEWERS BELOW ME WHO SAID IT WAS NOT GOOD--IT *was* DAMN GOOD! By the way, don't read it if you have a weak stomach, if you are afraid of the dark, and if you don't believe in the unknown. If you do, you'll probably begin seeing all these silvery eyes surrounding you when you're in your bedroom... Just staring, staring, staring...

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Scare the *%^&# out of you., February 7, 1998

By 

[e-mail] (Seattle, Washington) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Darkfall (Hardcover)

After picking this book up, I couldn't put it down. I have never been soo scared in all my life. I didn't sleep for two days and had nightmares for a week. If you have a weak constitution or don't like horror at it's best, don't read this. On the other hand, if you're like me and enjoy sleepless nights, you simply must read this novel. I had real several Koontz novels before, but this one is the best I have ever read from him or anybody else. The writing makes your blood run wild. Do not read this book if you live alone. It will scare the daylights (and other things) out of you.