Reviews

Shattered by Dean Koontz

spersephone's review against another edition

3.0

Horrible formatting on Kindle made this difficult to read. I've read this book back in the 1980s and really enjoyed Koontz's work back then. Re-reading it now, I can see that we have all moved on. The narrative drags on until a rather unsatisfying conclusion. The presumptions made by people within the story were horrible and outdated, but this is to be expected from a book of its era. I think this could be greatly improved by a revision, including having Courtney's role as a more fleshed out and relevant person rather than the convenient female whose only role is to satisfy the men in her life. She's not really given any actual personality, purely remaining the passive and dependent female. In the 2020s her character is wholly unenjoyable to read.

farleighelse's review against another edition

hopeful mysterious tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

Thriller/horror. Dad and son go on moving trip while being chased by wife's ex-lover. Not much of a resolution at the end. Short. Courtney is lacking.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, and Stalking

Moderate: Death, Gun violence, Mental illness, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, and Murder

1stfallenangel's review against another edition

fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

kcoorey22's review against another edition

adventurous dark tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.25

posies23's review against another edition

3.0

This is a fairly generic suspense novel about a man and his step-son on a cross-country trip. Not a lot of shocks, but fairly suspenseful at times. It was probably pretty effective when it was written in 1973, but it hasn't aged particularly well.

blatdriver's review against another edition

4.0

This was great, very suspenseful, a very fast read, great characters, it has a similar feel to the short story Duel by Richard Matheson, but with a few other things going on under the surface of the mail plot.

scottcampbell's review against another edition

adventurous tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

wildgurl's review against another edition

4.0

Shattered🍒🍒🍒
By K.RDwyer (Dean R.Koontz)
1985

If you can't win 'em, chase 'em....so this story begins. Colin and Courtney have begun a new life together and have found a new place across the country. Courtney has gone ahead to get everything ready, Colin and Alex, Courtneys brother will follow driving from Philly to San Francisco.
The trip begins as fun......until they see a van, always close begin....getting closer and closer......they realize he knows their entire itinerary and he will not lose sight of them....
The man, armed with an ax and a vengeance knows following them will lead him to Courtney...whom he lost to Colin. But he only knows the city, San Francisco, not the exact address......
Will Alex and Colin male it to San Francisco? Read this page turner to.find out.

threesixtyrhi's review against another edition

3.0

Not an amazing book, especially compared to some of my Koontz favorites, but it was entertaining enough. It was decently suspenseful and the characters were okay, however I thought there were a few elements of the story that seemed like they weren't fully explained and left me with a few questions.

mxcassandrasnow's review against another edition

adventurous dark mysterious tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.0