Seize the Night (Mass Market Paperback)

by Dean Koontz (Author)
Key Phrases: forensic pathology, muddy red light, animal eyeshine, Moonlight Bay, Dead Town, Father Tom (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review
Chris Snow, the light-phobic, oddball hero of Dean Koontz's Fear Nothing, is once again caught in the middle of something ugly. The children (and pets) of Moonlight Bay, California, are disappearing. The first to go is Jimmy Wing, the son of Snow's former girlfriend, Lilly. Then Snow's own hyper-intelligent dog goes missing. Snow decides that he will find them, but what he uncovers is more than just a simple kidnapping; before he can turn back, he's up against an age-old vendetta, an active time machine, and a genetic experiment gone awry.

Seize the Night offers up the same eclectic mix of characters that appeared in Fear Nothing: boardhead Bobby, disc jockey Sasha, Snow, and all of their friends band together to find the missing kids and figure out why the people of Moonlight Bay are morphing into demonic versions of their former selves. They outsmart corrupt cops, outrun genetically enhanced monkeys, and outlive a time warp with a vengeance--all between nightfall and sunrise, the only time that Snow can be outside.

Though the premise is a little bit hard to believe, and the surf lingo occasionally irritating, Seize the Night is ultimately fun to read. Koontz successfully draws you in and keeps you entertained through an unexpected climax and an enlightening resolution. --Mara Friedman --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Publishers Weekly
No bestselling suspense novelist creates magnetic characters as consistently as Koontz does. In last year's Fear Nothing, this veteran author presented his most memorable figures yet: hero/narrator Christopher Snow, whose genetic affliction forces him to shun light; Chris's sidekick, the ultracool surfing dude Bobby; and ultrasmart dog Orson, a product of scientific experiments gone awry at Fort Wyvern in Chris's coastal California town. In this independent-minded sequel, the second novel of a trilogy, the wonderfully delineated loyalties among these characters and others will win readers' hearts as Koontz plunges his cast into terror. Koontz moves the trilogy's overarching plot in a wholly unexpected direction, pursuing not the experiments that begat Orson but a parallel time-travel/disruption experiment. The gambit feels a bit arbitrary, but it voids the attenuation that plagues many middle volumes. The story begins right after that of Fear Nothing, when Chris learns that children have been abducted to the Fort. Soon Orson is gone as well, but he's replaced smartly by Mungojerrie, the clever cat introduced in volume one. Set mostly at the abandoned Fort, as Chris and company search for the missing kids and dog, the novel proves supernally spooky (and, at times, surprisingly?deliberately?humorous). The suspense soars, culminating in a volcanic if somewhat confusing eruption of action climaxes. A principal villain makes a late appearance, but he's not as menacing as Fear Nothing's fiendish monkey troops, who also show up. Though not as seamlessly constructed as Fear Nothing, this novel stands as vintage Koontz, a rousing crowd-pleaser that recapitulates some of his recurrent themes?the pain of the outsider; the power of love; the threat of scientism?while sturdily continuing a trilogy that's shaping up as his masterwork. Simultaneous BDD audio. (Feb.; on sale 12/29).
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 480 pages
• Publisher: Bantam (November 30, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0553580191
• ISBN-13: 978-0553580198
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.2 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (356 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #175,562 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Review of unabridge audiobook = Really a 3.5 star rating, January 20, 2004

By	Paladin08 (Folsom, CA) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

Rating System:
1 star = abysmal; some books deserve to be forgotten
2 star = poor; a total waste of time
3 star = good; worth the effort
4 star = very good; what writing should be
5 star = fantastic; must own it and share it with others

STORY: More of Christopher Snow and his pals in this "sequel" to Fear Nothing. Again Snow is confronted with a mystery and crimes of the local military base as he tracks down the kidnapped five-year-old son of his former sweetheart.

MY FEEDBACK:
1) I so liked Christopher Snow, his dog Orson, his "dream" girlfriend Sasha, and his funny buddy Bobby that I had to come back for seconds. Each of the characters has a sense of humor and enjoyable qualities that make the reader connect and care for them.
2) The first-person told story works pretty well and kept my attention more than if this were told in the third person. I had an immediate bond with the protagonist and this allowed Koontz to keep the reader in the dark as much as he keeps Christopher Snow in the dark on a lot of issues. It added to the mysteriousness of the mystery, if you know what I mean.
3) Problem with this story is that Koontz goes on and on with every bit of setting description and tangents through the thoughts of the character. Though some of the thoughts are funny and entertaining, the story extends a typical 5 page scene into a 25+ page scene.
At some points I was screaming, "Get to the point". While at other points the drawing out of the scene added to an extended sense of suspense that became intense and like eating raw lemons there is a part that says in your mind, "Why am I doing this to myself", and another part that thoroughly enjoys it no matter how much it makes your face pucker.
4) Keith Szarabajka did a great job of acting out this book, which probably added to some of the moments of suspense and well delivery of humor. Great job, Keith.
5) I think I like the story better in this second book than the first. Both are entertaining and not a waste of time though.

OVERALL: I still think Watchers is the scariest book not only from Koontz by the scariest book I've ever read. With that said, this book isn't in the same category but with its believable and entertaining characters this was a fun story.

16 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wild night ride with the Moonlight Bay adventurers, March 16, 2000

By	Sue-Ann Cooper (Johannesburg, South Africa) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Seize the Night (Audio Cassette)

Continuing the adventures of Christopher Snow, Orson, Bobby and Sasha, "Seize the Night" moved so quickly I read it in one sitting. It was like a movie, experiencing everything in one night, but Koontz, as ever, goes beyond the mere adventure/thriller/horror theme.
Its predecessor, "Fear Nothing", brought us the story of what's happening in Moonlight Bay. "Seize the Night" focuses more on the friendship and emotions of the characters; we get to know them better (except Orson, who's kidnapped and hidden for most of the book). And these definitely are people I'd like to know, and have as friends!
The geek-speak and general banter worked for me - that's basically how my friends and I speak to each other, and that made the whole story more real. The surfer lingo was a plus. It made their conversations much more fun.
Koontz's message that love, friendship and caring for one's fellow man are the most important things in life is familiar to most of his readers - it's a theme he's carried through many of his books, such as "Watchers", "Strangers", "Intensity", "Mr Murder", etc. And his characterisation is as wonderful as ever.
As with his other books, I felt really comfortable with the characters, and I was concerned about what would happen to them. And the pace of the book, the scary situations, the action and adventure added to the thrill!
The monkeys are back and as aggressive as ever, if not more so, while the mysterious figure from "Fear Nothing" shows itself, although it's as much of a mystery as ever (and a reminder of the Outsider in "Watchers". The way in which the residents of Moonlight Bay are changing is described more fully, and the way in which it's changing people who were "good" guys in "Fear Nothing" into villains is made chillingly clear.
In fact, this book seems more like a movie on paper!
I can't wait to see what the third installment will bring, and how the world will end in Mr Koontz's hands.
One thing, though - try to read "Fear Nothing" before you read this book. That's where the characters are developed. "Seize the Night" is written with the understanding that the reader has met them all before, and has learned the basis of the story. Trust me, it'll make far more sense!

14 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Part 2 in a great continuing series--Bring on Part 3!, January 11, 1999

By	Craig Larson (Maple Grove, MN USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Seize the Night (Hardcover)

This is actually the second book in a projected trilogy, but one of the neat things Mr. Koontz does here is that he writes it in such a way that it stands alone. Yet, if you've had the chance to read the first installment, _Fear Nothing_, this only enhances the experience further.

Chris Snow, the protagonist, is limited to a night-time existence by the presence of a gene for XP, a condition that makes exposure to sunlight potentially lethal. This hasn't limited him or his amazingly positive outlook on life any. He has a collection of friends that anyone would be proud to have.

In _Seize the Night_, we get a chance to explore more deeply into the abandoned army base at Fort Wyvern, wherein all manner of sinister, secret government projects were apparently underway, with some suggestion that they haven't all been abandoned. Wyvern is a great creation--an eerie place haunted by the genetically altered results of an experiment gone wrong.

The entire town of Moonlight Bay is a memorable setting for these stories--government men and their local toadies have clamped down on all attempts to get the story out to the world at large. Indeed, it sometimes seems like armageddon may have been loosed upon the world from the seemingly peaceful area.

The book is very highly recommended. If you have the chance, by all means read _Fear Nothing_ first, however.