Frankenstein: Prodigal Son: A Novel

I read Frankenstein about twenty years ago. I always thought it was a stand alone novel. The idea of a sequel never really crossed my mind. Koontz and Anderson bring back the magic of that incredible book while also adding a new ideas to the story that makes it hard to resist and impossible to put down.

This book is incredible. It takes place in present time so you get to see what your friends from original Frankenstein are doing over 200 years later. The story centers around two detectives that are investigating a series of murder cases were body parts are being taken from the victims. They soon realize that one of the victims is not human. The other main stories centers around two men one named Victor Helious who is living in New Orleans. What kind I say? He is kind of a scientist. The other story is about a man... a rather large man who is relocating back to New Orleans once he finds out that Victor Helious is still alive.

Dean Koontz and Kevin J Anderson tell a great story that not only continues the classic story but also introduces the content to a new generation. There is also has a mystery aspect to it that could almost stand alone even without the Frankenstein element.

Grade: A

Most of us know the story of Mary Shelly's monster from the 1800's. What if the story didn't end there?

That's the basis for this series of novels from Dean Koontz.

Carson O'Connor and Micheal Maddison are homicide detectives investigating a series of murders in New Orleans. Along the way they discover that the classic story of Frankenstein and his monster lab may not be just fiction.

My husband originally borrowed an audio copy of this book from the local library. I didn't get to finish listening to it before it was returned. So, a few months later, I decided to check out the unabridged book.

The story jumps around a bit. Each chapter is written as a vignette of the characters involved: one chapter follows the detectives, the next follows Victor "Frankenstein" Helios, the next follows the murder victims, then another chapter with the detectives again. The pro for this style of writing is that the chapters read quickly, with only the minimum number of adjectives needed to express the plot. The con for this style is that some readers may have trouble tying one chapter's action into another.

. . .(in this case, 5 books), is that if you don't hook folks on the 1st one, they, probably, will not read the following four. That is the case with me. After finishing; yes, I finished!, I have no desire to keep reading. It was just way to jumbled up for my taste. And a majority of the time, I like Koontz.

Though a fan of Koontz, when I first saw the title of this book I was afraid it would be trite. But I was wrong. This is one of Koontz's best efforts in years. He does not rewrite the story of Frankenstein, rather, he builds on it.

It is the present day and Dr. Frankenstein is alive and well and continuing his efforts. His goal is more clarified. He is no tragic figure, but an evil man bent on building a race of perfect beings that will replace humanity. Over the two hundred years since the events portrayed in Mary Shelley's book (which, in an nice twist, is explained as a semi-historical account based on legends and hearsay), Dr. Frankenstein has amassed a fortune and a vast biotech empire. Through modern genetics and science, he no longer has to piece together his creations from dead humans. He grows them and programs them with directives and information. He and his creations bide their time, infiltrate humanity, and await the time to strike openly.

Opposing these efforts is Dr. Frakenstein's first creation. The Monster still lives, but has become more and more human while his creator has become less. Koontz and Anderson do a great job of portraying the monster as a suffering man, noble in spirit yet malformed in body. His path and mission cross paths with two homocide detectives on the trail of one of the New Race who has become a serial killer after he realizes that his programing and superior genetics has left him empty, missing something that humans seem to possess.

Koontz and Anderson's decision to place the story in New Orleans was a stroke of genius. They do a good job of capturing the mood of what is perhaps America's most foreign, haunted city. The food, the history, the music, the graveyards. All are effecitvely portrayed and woven into the story.

The book is a quick read, with 4-5 page chapters dealing with one sequence of events, the moving to another. Despite this, it does not come across choppy. The writers keep the pace going while making the narrative clear.

A good book. Reminscent of, though not quite at the level of, Koontz's excellent Twilight Eyes.

"Dead and Alive" by Dean Koontz is the third book in his Frankenstein series. Set in New Orleans, Victor Helios (AKA Victor Frankenstein) is about to unleash his 'New Race' on the city, and their main purpose for existing is to kill out the old race of humans.

Victor's first creation, now going by the name of Deucalion, has tracked down the old Master. He works with two detectives to destroy Frankenstein's empire of doom, before it's too late.

The characters show a deeper element of the story as they undergo a change their maker never intended. The cast includes new monsters that vary from beautiful human replicants to bizarre insect-like anomalies. I especially like Erika Five and Jocko, but you'll have to read the book to see why.

Koontz fans are going to love this book, and I'm eager to read the fourth in the series.

like I did. I picked up the first two books at the library a few months ago, and only had to wait three months for the conclusion. I would have rather waited another year if it meant the book would be better. There is none of the character development or action of the first books, which had me on the edge of my seat.
He is even lazy about describing simple action - saying a person is murdered in a "creative and monsterous" way, but not actually WRITING how they are killed. He introduces the homicidal Chameleon, then never describes it until it's (prematurely) killed, and then only through the eyes and limited vocabulary of another under-described character, Jocko, who calls it a "bug". Koontz must have been traumatized by an exterminator, because the scariest monster form to him is "insectoid".
There is no showdown between Victor and his original monster. Instead, Duecalion and the detectives who have spent two books hunting Frankenstein just stand there while some of his new monsters bury him in trash. Really? And even then, Duecalion "mercy" kills him with an electric bolt. Except - wait for it - he has already made a replicant of himself! Dr. Frankenstein is not dead!
And don't get me started on the Resurrector, another creature of "indescribable" horror (which means Koontz couldn't be bothered to find some adjectives). In fact, I don't have to get started, because miraculously, it dies along with all the other monsters, even though it was somehow not really of Victor's creation.
Blech!

SPOILER ALERT!!! Proceed at your own risk...

I devoured the first two books, but when Katrina hit, and the 3rd book was delayed (due to the hurricane?) I understood Koontz would need to make some major revisions as a new character had to be addressed (Katrina). The storm wasn't even part of the book - which leads me to ask what exactly caused the 4 year delay? Certainly it wasn't the time taken to produce the slam-bang finish I was hoping for - and in fact, the book doesn't effectively even end! Deux ex Machina was employed in the most blatant fashion; characters who should have died in the final scene didn't... and Helios wasn't killed. The introduction of Chameleon went nowhere - just like the rest of the series, Koontz provided for a superb setup, but then delivered a wimpy and lame conclusion. I asked myself (after Chameleon was killed) WHY Koontz even bothered introducing Chameleon.

A totally unsatisfying ending. Dean, I expect so much more from you.

So long in waiting.

It was my hope that Dean Koontz would go back to horror. It seems that ever since One Door Away from Heaven he's been on sappy, preachy mode, with paper-thin villains who have become ridiculous caricatures, Deus Ex Machina endings, and the exaltation of golden retrievers and autistic people to angelic god-like beings.

Readers will be sorely disappointed when the New Race do not make their move to conquer mankind and go on killing sprees in Hurricane Katrina-flooded New Orleans, but we do get 100 pages(!) of two nude people chasing a dog and chanting "Dog...Dog."

It was established in earlier books, the New Race couldn't kill without a direct order, but they do it anyway because Dean Koontz was too lazy to write around it.

Meanwhile Doctor Frankenstein has been reduced to a strawman atheist/bio-ethicist/sociopath/Dean Koontz's father, upon which the author can heap some more punishment because he just can't get past his childhood issues.

Finally ending in the most blatant Deus Ex Machina ending I've ever seen. SPOILER. The corpses of the New Race JUST HAPPENED to merge together into some kind of god-being, who JUST HAPPENED to have psychic powers, JUST HAPPENED to share the protagonists goals to a T, and so forth.

So the Deus Ex Machina beast cures the New Race of their evil tendencies and loyalties (WHICH WERE INGRAINED IN THEM), and allows them to make a poetic revenge on the good doctor.

He might as well have said that God came down and magically fixed all the problems, and oh but spared the only two deserving characters without explanation (Jocko and Ericka).

END SPOILER.

And then manages to plagiarize himself by ripping off the ending of Midnight. And looking back on the book, our heroes don't have to anything. The Deus Ex Machina took care of everything.

I would have given this 1 and a half star, but at least some of the details of Helios' secret empire were still interesting and the reveal at the end of what was in the jar was not terribly imaginative, but at least was trying to make Helios more competent and foresighted as a villain.

SPOILER

Though knowing how the rest of the novel was just a disappointment, and its villains became so incompetent and humiliated, I'm guessing that the clone of Helios will drive away from the exploding mansion only to crash into a tree and hit his head, losing his memory in the process, and ends up being adopted by Erika, and eats soap with Jocko while making baby noises and wearing diapers.

Now THAT's an ending that would fit right in with all the other disappointments in what could have been an awesome conclusion.

END SPOILER.

With over 40 novels to his credit, many of them bestsellers, there is little disputing that Dean Koontz is one of the world's most successful novelists. However Koontz's career has had its ups and downs. I like to look at his career as a 4-phase wave. The first phase was when Dean was still refining his chops as a novelist with early thrillers such as "Night Chills", "The Vision" and "Funhouse". These novels were highly entertaining, albeit somewhat unsophisticated works of suspense. Phase 2 of his career, which occurred during the 1980's, is the best, with an endless stream of classics, most notably "Phantoms", "Watchers", "Strangers" "Midnight" and
"Lightning". Koontz stayed in top form for nearly a decade and a half before hitting a nose-dive in the later half of the 90's with what I like to consider phase 3 of his career, where his writing started to get soft, melancholic and where Dean was constantly trying to prove to people that "I'm not a horror writer". Novels released during this period such as "From the corner of his eye", "One door away from heaven", and "The Face" while still managing to maintain commercial success were among the worst of his career. Phase 4 is what I like to refer to as the resuscitation of Dean's career, which started with the excellent "Odd Thomas" in 2003, "Velocity", the post-apocalyptic "The Taking" and now his 3-volume reworking of Frankenstein. Yep, Koontz is back at the top of his game and as a lifelong fan of his works I couldn't be any happier.

Koontz's new saga takes place in the city of New Orleans where unbeknownst to the general populace and its authority figures Victor "Frankenstein" Helios has been busy designing and developing a "New Race", a more sophisticated kind that he wants to populate the world with. Helios is certifiably mad of course, and his experiment begins to take an unexpected turn when some of his subjects start to malfunction and rebel against their commands by brutally murdering civilians around the city. Investigating the case are detectives Carson O'Connor and her cynical partner Michael. Once it becomes apparent that the murders are not the mere work of a serial killer but that there are more mysterious forces behind them, they enlist the help of Deucalion, Victor Helios' first creation who has now rebelled against his maker and his kind.

Apparently this novel is co-written by Kevin J. Anderson although it's unclear to me what part he had in writing the novel since this story has Koontz's signature stamp and style all over it. He is finally returning to the type of thriller that elevated his career to new heights, which is the technology run amok theme with a vicious god-complex serial killer and other horrific elements thrown into the mix. The city of New Orleans, with its traditions of voodoo and the macabre, provides the perfect backdrop for what Koontz sets out to achieve.

I found it to be a refreshing idea that this time around it's police detectives, usually portrayed as the most cynical of species in popular fiction, that would believe in a supernatural entity. The female detective is the believer, the male one is the skeptic, kind of like a reversed Mulder & Scully. Once the two finally get over their cynicism, start to believe and go after Helios and his ghouls is when the book gets really interesting.

I must admit to agreeing with the several reviewers who have noted that this feels incomplete and ends abruptly and that's why I am awarding this a 4-*star review. When all is said and done, this series as a whole might merit 5 stars but as a stand-alone novel I can only give this one a 4. It takes too much time
setting up its premise and when it finally picks up steam, the novel ends.

Still, Dean Koontz's Frankenstein is shaping up to be an excellent series. This doesn't feel like a Mary Shelley rehash at all. I'm familiar with her tale yet was consistently surprised with the unexpected turns and directions Koontz went with this story. This definitely feels more like classic Koontz then what Shelley wrote. And with its short chapters (97 in all) it's great reading for commuters and/or those who don't usually have enough time to read fiction.

I enjoyed this book but not until the end. The second book was a full lead into this one and it even picked up exactly where the other left off. The plot has kept me interested but this almost ended that. This more I read the more this story gets weirder and weirder as it goes on. Each chapter seemed to take this story from a plausible idea to absolute ridiculousness. Now I know it is fiction and far from possible, but Koontz wrote the first novel with Victor Frankenstein not only mastering reanimation, but with his superior intellect he was able to solve the problem of mortality. This became so weird that I had lost hope for the story until the end. The ending was very well written and actually brought this installment to a conclusion. I am looking forward to the next chapter in Koontz's Frankenstein.

From crossword puzzles to sugar pecans, Koontz creates, and triumphs! I got the book because it was just a regular paperback, planning on reading it much later in the year than now. But when you hear all the hype about this, for once just believe it and find out for yourself! Approach with caution, it'll grip you from the first page! Then the nouns, verbs, adjectives, all that good stuff just falls into place. The excitement Koontz serves up is very electrifying in more than one way! OK!

Join EVERYBODY from Deucalion, the tattooed man, Carson O'Connor, the NO-FEAR detective, her partner, the arrogant, yet somewhat laid back, Michael Maddison. How long has Deucalion been dealing with his situation? What is his purpose? Maybe ask yourself how long this dude's actually been around for! You'll find out.

At the same time, drink in the anxiety of Randall Six, with his crossword puzzles and daily routine. Yet stagger with fear while you observe Dr. Victor Helios. What kind of a man is the good doctor? Hey, is he a good doctor? How long must one endure? Enjoy the human side of all sides of this creation! Koontz quotes the great C.S. Lewis to prepare us, yet humbles even the likes of one Mary Shelley. Have I read Shelley's version? Nope? Am I likely to? Probably not. I think if Koontz were to hear that this isn't like Shelley's original, he'd probably be the first to say thank you. It wasn't meant to be.

As usual with Koontz, expect the unexpected! Be pleased with as surprises arise, yet let your heart share in small bits of sorrow. But don't be surprised if you steal a few laughs as you bite off that last fingernail! We don't know what will happen next, but I do know this. I can't wait for more! The question is, do you dare take the risk of this first book?

Dean Koontz's "Frankenstein" is based on a 60 minute TV pilot that Koontz wrote that was picked up by USA network. When USA asked him to write a two hour pilot and possibly follow it with a series he obliged. However, USA then took the script rewrote it, changing all most all of it, Koontz withdrew from the project. Now he has decided to put it in book form and while it entertaining and funny there are a few problems with it. Firstly, unlike Koontz's other books the characters aren't developed as fully as they could be. Secondly, it ends a bit abruptly, but there's a second book coming so... But the book is pretty good and is one of the better Frankenstein remakes to come out in recent years.

The chapters introduce us to a number of characters; first we have Carson O'Connor.

Carson is a girl, in case the name confused you. She's a homicide detective, with an autistic brother who is currently looking for a serial killer who calls himself The Surgeon.

The Surgeon has been tracking down women and taking the body parts that appeal to him in the hopes of compiling the perfect woman. He doesn't consider what he's going to do when he has all the parts though. Carson's partner Michael Maddison has crush on her, although due to their partnership is reluctant to admit it. Michael has the best dialogue in the book, every time he speaks it's a wisecrack and some of it is laugh-out-loud funny.

Then we're introduced to Victor Helios, a biotech tycoon who is actually Victor Frankenstein, over two hundred years old. We also have Decaulion, the original Frankenstein. A deformed, tattooed man hunting Victor to finally kill his master. And Randal Six, an autistic creation of Victor who longs for happiness and sees the chance to find it in Carson's brother Arnie. Now that I've established that, Victor is creating a race of "Frankensteins" he calls the New Race which he will eventually use to destroy us; the Old Race. Koontz has came up with a brilliant idea and the only problem with the book is the character development. Not that the characters aren't well developed, they're just not well developed for a Koontz novel. B+.

I've enjoyed all three of these Frankenstein novels and they have revealed a sense of humor I haven't seen, rather have not seen in the quantity or laugh-at-loud quality in his other works. The two detectives are especially humorous even amongst the raging battle of the New Race vs the Old Race. But these aren't books of humor.

Dr. Victor Frankenstein and his creation - now creations, are "alive" and not all is going well in the Big Easy after more than 200 years. Take a gifted but demented Dr. Frankenstein and provide him with all the power that modern science and the capitalist system can provide and you've got a very much updated horror novel.

I wouldn't have been surprised to see Odd Thomas cross their paths in New Orleans.

If you enjoyed the original Frankenstein and would like to see how a modern day Frankenstein would flourish - then you'll enjoy these. It is fast moving through all three books. Maybe Kootz will update some of Jules Verne's works.

DK

Dean Koontz is one of the best genre writers working today. I have read most of his fifty plus novels, and I think PRODIGAL SON ranks as one of his best recent efforts.

PRODIGAL SON is the first in a planned trilogy of books that retells the story of Frankenstein in modern times. Book Two was released last year and the final volume will be released next summer. Like most fans, I'm eagerly awaiting that third book, which is over a year late.

The plot of PRODIGAL SON is very enteraining and fast-paced. It has very short chapters, kind of like a James Patterson novel. This is a good book for younger readers, since it is written in a very simple, staightforward style.

If you're new to Koontz, this is a very good place to start. Some of Koontz' books are somehwat overwritten and tedious, but PRODIGAL SON does not fall into that category. This isn't a great novel, but it's tons of fun.

If you like this book, I recommend reading some of Koontz' earlier work, such as WATCHERS, ODD THOMAS, MIDNIGHT, and DRAGON TEARS.

I am a big fan of classic horror films...although not necessarily of the source material the films were based on. Add to that I've only read a few Koontz books in my lifetime and I went into this book with a lot of skepticism. In this re-imagining of the Mary Shelly works, the Frankenstein Monster, called Deucalion, has survived and is leading a quiet life in a Tibetan Monsastery. He's secreted away from the rest of the world, safe and sound. He then learns, however, that his creater Victor Frankenstein is alive and well, and living in New Orleans, mad as ever.

Frankenstein is now a rich Tycoon, and is up to his old tricks of creating life, and hell-bent on replacing mankind with his laboratory spawned creations. Unlike the Lighting created patchwork of corpses, these new creatures have been created with the latest technology and been essentially grown in the lab, and designed to be perfect. When one of these "perfect" creations escapes and becomes a serial killer, Deucalion will actually join forces with a couple of cops to hunt down the creature and Frankenstein.

This is an interesting and intriguing take on the Frankenstein mythology. It's not Karloff and James Whale to be sure. The original monster owes much more to the original Shelly story. This monster is intelligent and thoughful and it is his creator who is the true monster. The characterizations of the monster and Freankenstein are well done and interesting. I thought it was perhaps a bit overlong and bogged down in some spots but overall I enjoyed the book.

I wish that I had read the reviews before I plunked down my $10. The first book was OK, the second book made me start wondering about where Koontz could possibly go with the third book, and the third book definitely showed that Koontz isn't my kind of author. A good author doesn't need to start a book with ten pages of acclaim from book reviewers.

If you thought that there would be horror, action and suspense in this (oh I hope so) final book in the (hopefully) trilogy, then you'll definitely be disappointed. Deucalion and the two detectives really don't see much action. What little action there is centers around a couple of beserk replicants making tatters of a few neighbors. As in the second book, Koontz uses magical quantum physics to move Deucalion around, with no effort towards either action or suspense. Fact is, there is more time devoted to Deucalion's nightmares.

The story really wasn't interesting from any standpoint. A bad use of pseudo-magical science and a demented deus-ex-machina really sapped my enjoyment. I would have loved to read about the characters actually being in jeapordy. Unfortunately, it was one long "watch it all break down" winding down to a disappointing non-end.

Okay, I picked up this series on Book 3 and feel the need to read Books 1 & 2 to see what I missed. Book 3's interesting ending lead me to purchase Book 4. I found Book 4 quite lame, but that's another review. :) As far as Book 3 goes, it hooked me onto the series. He made the killings by the replicants seem almost humorous. I don't frankly get all of the hate for this book. It's simple, humorous, horrific and it has an ending that most of the reviewers appear to have missed.

Let's look at the ending since a lot of you have focused on it in such a negative way. Deucalion realizing that Victor intends to go to the farm, sets up a trap for him with some of his discarded replicants and a strange beast at the junkyard that's right before the barn. Helios/Frankenstein goes there and finally meets his ending there, while also releasing the signal that kills all of the replicants...which somehow do not kill Erika 5 and Jocko. Jocko wouldn't have been killed by the signal anyways since he doesn't contain the evil programming that Victor has entered into the minds of all of the replicants - save for the Erika's. Erika wasn't killed due to what I can only call circumstance. Being in the suv has nothing to do with it. It was her programming that was erroneous. How else could she alive otherwise? Nothing else really makes sense. I have to wonder if the people who don't understand or like the ending actually read it or merely skimmed it. And did no one really figure out what was in that gelatinous red tank? If not, shame on you! Victor's ego and vanity would never allow him to truly "die".

This was a fast paced read for me (and not many are these days). Koontz takes the two pivotal characters from Shelly's "Frankenstein" and brings them forward to modern times. Dr. Frankenstein is still up to his unethical tricks and has managed to prolong his own life through various methods (and oodles of $) while his first creation patch-worked from various body parts "Deucalion" has also survived. Deucalion has spent many years searching for purpose and has quietly been living among monks to find peace. He is brought out of his world of tranquility when he learns that Dr. Frankenstein is still creating monsters (though this time via modern methods). One of Dr. F's creations has gone renegade and become a serial killer (and collector of various body parts). Deucalion, because he knows Dr. F's motives so well, joins forces with the police to help find the killer. This book held my attention from beginning to end with an interesting story as well as interesting characters. It's humorous and horrifying and a very good read.

When I first heard about this book, I wonderded if it was going to be a new story or a continuation. Fortunately, a continuation.

I had read reviews about the book here and after the local library did not ever have a copy in sock, I bought it. I read it in 4 days, reading each night after work. I can say it was a good read. Steady flowing action, no real dull moments, no unnecessary story lines, etc. I was not disappointed at all.

I gave it only 4 stars, much for the same reason others have, the ending was rushed and abrupt. But, never fear, there is to be 3 more books before the real ending. So, we all have something to look forward to.

This is only the second Koontz book I have read, so I was unable to distinguish where he was writing and the other author was writing. More die hard Koontz fans may be able to tell the difference.

So, overall a good, smooth, never dull, read. Highly recommend it to anyone looking for a different take on the classic tale of a mad scientist.

I'll say up front that I am not a Dean Koontz fan. I loved Watchers but the next couple of Koontz books left me cold and so I stopped reading him after that. I say this not to bash him as an author, but to establish that my praise for this book is based on its own merits and not any admiration for the author in general.

When I saw that this book was based on the Frankenstein mythos, it grabbed my attention and I decided to take a chance on Prodigal Son. While the book starts off a touch slow as it introduces a number of characters and subplots, it quickly builds tension and speed. Detective Carson O'Conner is the central character but Victor Frankenstein and his perspective are also prevalent throughout the story. There are two serial killers at work and for very different reasons both the police and Victor want to find one of the murderers. I don't want to spoil the plot so I'll stay away from the details but the characters are very well handled and I found it to be more and more of a page turner as I went along. There are also some enjoyable scenes featuring Victor's creations as they use their superhuman strength and speed if you enjoy a good monster fest.

I only had a couple of quibbles with this book. First, it is only the first of a planned series of three so it doesn't have a true ending. Many of the threads are tied up but there is a real cliffhanger on the last page. I would prefer that the story be more self-contained even if there is a larger tale to continue in later novels. Second, one of the serial killers takes up a large part of the first half of the book and then his part of the story comes to a screeching halt with no real payoff. While his presence makes a somewhat interesting contrast and parallel to Victor, it's hard to say that the character really needed half the space he was given, so it almost seems like filler in hindsight. Still, his story was fairly interesting so it's far from devastating to the book.

Taken as a whole, I definitely enjoyed Prodigal Son. I have not yet decided if I'll buy the next two chapters (only the second book is even available as I write this) but this was a good read and may even convince me to try another Koontz book at some point.

What the HELL happened? Where did the Koontz we all know and love go?

Unfortunately... this make me REALLY worry what the third book of Christopher Snow is going to be like (IF he ever gets around to writing it)!! It has been so long I forget what was going on!!! That's ridiculous to start a series and then keep putting off finishing it FOR 11+ FRIGGIN' YEARS!!!!!!!
Will that be another failed trilogy? After two great books about Snow.... is that going to turn out to be a waste of time too?

I think he has succumbed to what James F. David did. Religion ruined his writing.

I HATE writing bad reviews... but I have to be honest. It's not about the author, it's about the book.

CONCENTRATE DEAN!! CONCENTRATE!!! MORE COFFEE, SEX, AND WHATEVER YOU NEED TO MAKE IT WORTHWHILE FOR YOUR FANS!!!

I have to agree with most of the other reviews I have read. While this book was a decent read, it was not a good conclusion to the series, nor was it worth the 3 year wait we went through when Koontz kept pushing back the release of the the book. Back in 2005 I came across the first book by accident. I flew through both it and the sequel in no time flat. I was so happy to read in the back cover of "City of Night" that the final book was to be released in the summer of 2006. When it wasn't released, I contacted Koontz's official website and inquired about the delay. A week later I got a response in the form of a link to a page saying how it was being delayed a bit while he tries to finish it and the "delaying due to the hurricane." Three years later I contacted the same site again. You know what they told me? The same exact thing they told me 3 years earlier. So you can imagine how excited I was to finally find it on the shelf. Then came the let-down.

I'm no expert story writer, but it seems to be that it would be a bad idea to try to introduce new characters and develop them in the last book of a series, especially when this final book is shorter than the previous installments, and yet here we have Jocko, his relationship with Erika, the junkyard creature, and the mysterious thing in the tank. I won't spoil what it is, but it doesn't get revealed until something like the last 5 pages of the book. It almost seems like Koontz went "oops! Forgot about that, how can I wrap this loose end up?" And what about the creature in the junkyard? In most of the Koontz books with weird creatures, the creature is given at least some sort of an explanation, but the only explanation Koontz gives for this one is "it's an experiment gone wrong." Huh? Jocko can see camouflaged things? What?

And what about the main characters of the story? Where are they in all of this? Deucalion, who is the first person we meet in the series is mainly in the background for this story. He pops up here and there, but doesn't really do anything of importance. My memory could be wrong, but I think the detectives have a higher body count then he does, and I only remember them taking out 2 'people' in the whole book. Maddison and O'Connor, who spent a few chapters in the previous book acquiring new weapons for the upcoming battle against the new race, and they get in one fight in the whole book.

I will admit that this book kept me spellbound. My wife and I do a lot of driving, and while she drives I read to her. I read the first two to her, and everyday on our way to work I read the last one to her. We hated having to put it down and go in to work. It is decently fast paced, and enchanting. But that is about it. Once I reached the end and said so, we both looked at each other, surprised and disappointed with abrupt ending. There really should have been more.

This was a decent read, but for being on hold for at least 3 years from when it was supposed to be released, Dead and Alive was a let down. Dean Koontz should be ashamed of himself for turning this in for publication when he had 3 extra years. When I was in college if a professor extended a deadline he or she would expect a project or paper of quality. Not a rough draft.

This novel brings a classic legend up to date by replacing Victor Frankenstein's previously crude monster creation techniques with biotech engineering, cloning, and computer programming. Victor has learned the secret of long life and is still alive and well in 21st century New Orleans. Now a respected scientist and wealthy member of high society by day, Victor practices his high-tech life creation projects by night in order to create perfect beings, totally obedient to his will. He seeds his creations throughout the city so that they can undermine, and eventually replace, humanity and lead to a perfect New Age society. In the meanwhile, Frankenstein's original monster, now called Deucalion, is also gifted with immortality. He learns of his creator's existence and sets off for New Orleans to seek revenge. When a series of gruesome murders occur where body parts are removed from the victims, two police detectives try to track down the killer. Is one of Frankenstein's creations to blame?

The portrayal of Frankenstein's creatures is especially interesting. Created with a carefully controlled blend of human emotion and programmed behavior, they are at times confused about their feelings. Sometimes their human component fights against their artificial one, with interesting results. In a clever turnabout, Victor Frankenstein is portrayed as a monster and Deucalion has evolved to show more human traits than his creator. At first I was amused by the fact that immortality has become a popular pursuit, and that others in the story besides Frankenstein and his creations are capable of prolonged lives and physical perfection. Yet the real-world popularity of plastic surgery, nutritional supplements, and health clubs does prove that art imitates life.

Koontz originally wrote this story as a two-hour script for a television series pilot for the USA Network. When the producer requested major changes, Koontz pulled out of the project and decided to rewrite the story in book form in order to preserve the original concept. This book is only the first in a series of novels about Frankenstein and his progeny. Although I was expecting the story to have a few loose ends to pave the way for the next in the series, the ending could have been a bit less abrupt. Nevertheless, I enjoyed the story and am eagerly awaiting the next in the series.

Eileen Rieback

No plot, no character development- just a sad, feeble-minded rant against technology.

I now see Helios as a parody of Koontz, with visions of Koontz alternating between admiring himself in the mirror and devolving into madness as he reads reviews of this book.

A shame that Koontz doesn't like collaborating- Frankenstein 1 and 2 were his only good books in nearly a decade. Odd Thomas 1 and 3 were okay. 2 and 4 not so much.

Usually I wouldn't be so harsh, and respect an author more but Koontz's arrogant proselytizing in his book notes make me want to whack him and tell him to smarten up. Write well- which you have proven you can do many times- or stop writing.

I have to conclude his publication pace and lack of quality means he's chasing some weird dream like surpassing books sold from some other author.

If you have read a Koontz before, you will pretty much already know the story line to this tale. The only difference is that here Koontz takes in Frankenstein and turns him into a Marvel Comic book character out to save the day.

I think that I have read just about every Koontz book. He has a plot that he uses over and over again shifting characters and situations just slightly in order to write something new, but it's really not often new. The reason that I read or listen to Koontz is that every once and a while he almost produces an astounding book. Back in the early 1990's it seems to me that he wrote two or three tales of horror that was really engrossing. But since then he has written close to 20 books that are just goofy. They are silly in that they go so over the top with a bad guy who is so purely evil pitted against a couple that is falling in love and as pure as can be. And the ending always is a lesson in Christian morality that makes you wants to call up the author and offer some editorial advice. The only difference with Frankenstein as opposed to most of Koontz earlier work is that this one is three times more complex and three times as long. I have not read the last two books in the series yet, but I hope that they don't become three times as sappy.

Koontz has the ability to write a great novel. His imagination and ability to push a story along are not in question. What is in question in my opinion is his need for pat resolutions. At the outset of this newest book, he talks of meeting with Phillip K Dick, an author who inspired many a twilight zone episode in the 60's. Dick's stories were strange and odd tales that harbor a mood I think Koontz strives for in his work. I wish that Koontz would pick up a few of Dick's books and see that if his happy endings were applied to them, they would fall apart, just as Koontz's do. I wish that Koontz's main characters were either more flawed if on the good side or less evil if on the bad. At times when you are reading one of Koontz's books, you feel very much like you are in the middle of one of the better X-file episodes and wonder why Koontz doesn't grab a hold of these moments and expound.

(...)

Dean Koontz's Frankenstein is a somewhat twist on Mary Shelley's Frankenstein except the characters are known on a more superfical and macabred level. This book, although clearly fictious, raised a lot of poignant questions concerning human meaning and purpose to the point of being disturbing. Victor Frankenstein was portrayed, not as a helpless man who accidently created a monster, but as an evil-doer whose purpose and aim in creating the "New Race", similar to that of Huxley in "Brave New World." All in all an interesting novel that seemed to get a lot of its ideas from Shelley's novel although creatively distanced itself from her confine. There was one part of the book I did not see the relevance of- the part concerning Roy Pribeaux. He seems to take up a good deal of the first half of the novel and if his soul purpose was just to introduce the character of Harker, it seems a bit unneccessary. I do not plan on reading the second novel in Koontz's series but, as expected, the ending was not an ending at all but an introduction to the second book, so dont expect much. All in all a quick enjoyable read that does have its scintillating parts.

In Dead and Alive: A Novel, Dean Koontz's logical extension of the, "what ifs" possible had there been truth to the story of Frankenstein continues to unfold. Mary Shelley's story of the creature created by a man who shirks his responsibility toward his creation explores relevant issues that should be thoroughly debated by those working so hard to perfect cloning. Just as Shelley explored the psychology of a mere man having the hubris to take on the role of God and how his lack of humanity toward his creation turns a blank slate into an evil monster, Koontz explores what may have happened had not only the creature, but Victor, lived. Brilliantly written, logically construed, and interwoven with timeless themes, each of the Frankenstein series I have read, so far, has surpassed expectation.

I would recommend this book to anyone. It pulls quite a bit from Shelley's version, but still has it's uniqueness. The book is one, that with each chapter, skips from one character to another until the end, where it culminates into nearly all the characters coming together in a final moment of suspense.

Koontz has totally lost it. He's gone over the edge.
First. Frank 3 was a borefest, okay? No way you can deny it. I wanted to like it, but could not fool myself. And I really do believe, that anyone who says that he/she liked it is fooling him/herself. But, to each his own...

My main gripe with the book (aside from being badly written, suspenseless, anticlimactic and nonsensical) is on page 219-220, when Carson is talking to Erika Four on the phone and Michael sits next to her.
Some quotes:

"All he wanted was to build a utopia."
"Paradise on Earth. Nothing wrong with that."
"A one-nation world without war," Carson said.
"All of humanity united in pursuit of a glorious future."
"The New Race wouldn't pollute like the Old Race."
...
"No greed, less waste, a willingness to sacrifice."
"They'd save the polar bears," Michael said.
Carson said, "They'd save the oceans."
"They'd save the planet."

All this from their conversation, and it's written in a mocking way, as if wanting to build a paradise, ending wars, waste and greed, saving the polar bears, the ocean and the planet are bad things.
Is Koontz so gone now, that he thinks that only dogs and humans are allowed to live?

I know it's all fiction and that he sometimes has a wicked sense of humour, but mocking things that would actually be good...? Now, I don't really find it funny the way he did it here, mainly because I know that he always lets his own beliefs shine through in his books (which, sometimes, can be extremely annoying and preachy), so I have to wonder if he really thinks that it's not worth saving the oceans and the polar bears, and not worth stopping wars. Oh, and the only mention he has of anything gay in it, is a clone gone wrong. Thanks, Koontz.

Oh well, from what I've learned lately, he was a Bush supporter. I lose more and more respect for him. I just finished it today, it took me two months. Granted, I didn't bring it on my vacation, instead I read (in 3 weeks) Just After Sunset and Man in the Dark in that time. Waaaay better choices. And I didn't miss Frank 3 in this period. I'm looking forward to the next Stephen King, less so the next Koontz.

. . . to get something so poorly thought out and even more poorly written is a huge disappointment. Introducing a new important character 70 pages before the end? Bad form after so much plot and character development.

I was a huge fan of the first two books in the series and contacted both the publisher and Mr. Koontz directly to get some idea of when to expect this book, only to get silence in response. My excited anticipation was only matched by new Chricton books (God rest his soul, he couldn't pump them out like Koontz).

I could go on, but there are many others who have already done a good job of skewering this piece of trash on this site. I'm only posting to drop down the overall rating for this book.

Anybody want a free copy? It's yours for the asking.

I waited so long, so patiently for book three to come out. Reread the first two, even listened to them on audio CD to get a new perspective (totally recommend the Audio-CDs!) Finally Dean Koontz decides to give us the ending to the trilogy and it turns out that all my anticipation and baited breath was for nothing.

It's a terrible thing for a reader to have such great books to start off with and when the finale comes you are left holding what basically surmises as a soggy disjointed disappointing confusing mess of an ending.

With such amazing characters as Deucalion and Erika 4 and 5 and Helios, with such potential in the New Race versus the Old race, with such a buildup with the first two books and you JUST KNOW the third is going to blow your socks off!!, to end up with it being at the bottom, literally the bottom of a trash heap? It is inexcusable and lazy writing.

I should have know when I saw the 4 or 5 pages of GLOWING reviews for Dean Koontz and his writings in the beginning of the book that something was terribly amiss. No one that toots their horn that much has anything good to say.

I would say to anyone who has read the first two, to not read the third, to use your imagination instead and make the final book come to life in your own head, because believe me when I say that whatever you come up with will be 100% more satisfying than the real thing.

the store and my reviewing colleagues have summarized this plot very well permitting me to exercise some laziness and post a few bullet points in this review.

- Victor Frankenstein lives, and with his ego and penchant for playing God intact is given 21st century technology for his experiments.

- Deucalion is Frankenstein's monster from the nineteenth century, also surviving over 200 years and naming himself after mythological Prometheus's son.

- Deucalion tracks Victor to New Orleans (a very suitable locale for a neo-gothic remake.) in order to finally rebel against his programming and destroy his creator.

-There could easily be half a dozen sub-plots spiraling around inside the larger retelling of the Frankenstein mythos here.

Kevin J. Anderson is going to fairly or unfairly gain some kudos and credit for this story's crispness. I commented to any that would listen that although I am a fairly large Koontz fan I found the latter offerings I have read by him to be overly verbiose. I thought while reading BY THE LIGHT OF THE MOON for example "Ok Mr. Koontz we realize you enjoy and have fine grasp of English language I see no need for every second paragraph to me metaphorical, or other wordplay". However in this novel the writing is sharp and succinct, doing an admirable job of being clever yet seamlessly interweaving and sewing a huge tapestry of plots and sub-plots into one very compelling suspenseful tale. So yes Koontz gets his lion share of credit for this excellent horror/suspense novel as well perhaps being reminded to return to his roots (before his language got a little flowery) and telling the story he had to tell and readers virtually have to read.

Also as in all good multi-part suspense novels this was ended perfectly with a cliff-hanger making me at least eager for the conclussion.

Wow, what a horrendous ending to a series that started out good. To start, the book had about ten pages worth of Koontz's acclaims before you could get to the story. Its almost as if he was trying to prove something, and in doing so, lost sight of how to write a decent story. He also had no co-authors for this edition of the trilogy and maybe that's why it was so different as the coauthors must have been pulling all the weight before. There are two books that come before this, and they're both pretty good, and the series should be read in order. For those unfamiliar with the tale (and possibly a spoiler, you are warned), Deucalion (Frankenstein's monster) has discovered his creator still lives and is in New Orleans. He travels there and discovers that Victor has created many more beings and they are slowly taking over the city. Cops Michael and Carson have been trailing a serial killer and when they meet Deucalion, they realize there's a much bigger threat to the city in the form of Victor's creations and the penchant they have started to have for going out of control and crazy. They struggle to keep alive despite assassins and bring us to this book, Dead and Alive.

Dead and Alive takes place shortly after the 2nd book and there is so much going on and it's all over the place that its hard to describe the plot. Carson and Michael drive around a lot and meet up with Deucalion when they discover there's something at the dump that could help them out in ways unimaginable. Mostly the book focuses on Victor and his creations that are losing their minds and going against their programming.

The characters were horrendous in this book. We barely see the main characters of Deucalion, Michael, and Carson, which is surprising considering they were the main focus in the first two books. Victor goes even more and more unbelievable, and his creations are even stranger. There is a glimmer of light in Jocko, but really, his character didn't actually fit with the story.

The writing was pretty awful as well. Koontz jumps all over the place and adds things that don't need adding. He also unleashes a pretty big, definitely inappropriate, deux ex machina in his story that just made me groan and shake my head in disbelief. But hey, at least there weren't too many pop culture references in this book (something that drives me nuts in the first two). This book abounds with tons of gore and violence and murders and may be a little too much for more sensitive readers.

This book definitely doesn't inspire me to go read anything else by Koontz for awhile. Its amazing that he could take such a good series and turn it into a deplorable book like this.

Dead and Alive
Copyright 2009
352 pages

Review by M. Reynard 2011

I've been a fan of Dean's writing for some time now. He never disappoints and he surprised me when I first discovered his work. I was use to the 'genre writer' -authors who produced the same type of book each time. Dean's writing continues to evolve -and grow and branch- in new and interesting ways.

Likewise this series has evolved. The flavor of this last book is slightly different to me but a fitting end(?) to the series. If you haven't read them yet I highly recommend you do. It is a re-imagination of the original Frankenstein tale wrought through time to our current day. It is also more than that. He touches on several themes of science, and values and even faith but at its core the same engine pumps - interesting characters, a bit of wisdom, creativity and a word master's craftsmanship.

Back in the 70s Dean Koontz was asked to write a TV script about the famous monster. It never panned out, but the Frankenstein series of novels shows a more developed version of this treatment,( and would have made a great TV movie miniseries Hear that, Hollywood? ) This is the first, and sets the stage for a story of madness, monsters, and a couple of heroes. Read the book , I recommend all five volumes!

I've just started it.
Koontz plays to our prejudices. People who are out to appeal to a LOT of people probably have to. Not too much subtlety. 2nd chapter, we meet a tough, gorgeous, career-driven homicide detective in New Orleans. She has an encounter with thugs conducting a shakedown of drivers at a city stoplight. And, while most of the rest of us would be pretty much helpless, she's too tough, has a gun and plenty of backup she can call in. She wins the encounter, and we are satisfied. We get to read about somebody who wouldn't have to take it .

The next chapter starts off with comments about onlookers at a homicide scene who come across as ghoulish. We like to see them described that way because it allows us to feel superior. We forget that we're pretty ghoulish - the kind of people who are entertained by reading about homicide scenes, and the ghouls who flock to view them. I got to that point and saw how obvious is the manipulation that Koontz engages in, and I wanted to point it out to any reader who might be looking for something less obvious..

It's like TV. The writers have to play to our emotions, to absorb us. I watch TV and I think so often that it wouldn't go that way in real life. There wouldn't be that much artificially-created drama, put there for the sole purpose of causing us to react emotionally. After all, they only have so much time to generate interest.

That's the difference between literature and pulp fiction - pulp fiction is far more removed from reality, and it entertains a lot more people, because it has all the subtlety and art of a board to the face.

After enjoying the first Koontz Frankenstein then finding the second a bit of a trudge, I was hoping for something worth my time, energy and money. This book isn't it. Dean Koontz has written some marvelous books which, for me, culminated in VELOCITY, an absolute triumph of a book. Since then, even counting ODD THOMAS, his writing's really gone downhill and this is only the latest example. The book was plodding, bloated, pedantic, and florid, and even listening to this as an audiobook doesn't improve it. In fact, Dean Koontz would be well-served to actually LISTEN to his own sentences so he could hear how his dialogue is so stilted, so trite, and the descriptions nothing but a jumble of disparate metaphors. I can't figure out, for the life of me, what he was thinking unless he was just SO SICK of the whole enterprise, he wanted a quick out and a quick buck. This is not the Dean Koontz that held me, spellbound, for hours in years past. Every new book of his I keep swearing will be my last, and I think I've finally reached the point where I gotta say: Save your money. Go to the library. Better yet, pick up the latest Stephen King.

10/15/09: Just learned through PW that Bantam's signed Koontz to do three MORE Frankenstein books, the first picking up where this clunker leaves off but in a new setting with a new villain. What's head-shaking about all this? Doesn't anyone at Bantam read these reviews or care about what we think? There are many readers who feel that Koontz is not on his game and hasn't been for the last several books. I'm not sure how Bantam--or Koontz--thinks we need another series, but I do know that I will not be spending my money on it. I'll wait for the library, thanks. Taxes, I can't do anything about. Think about the money being wasted on yet more dead trees and drivel.

I've wanted to start this series for over a year now, so the anticipation could have led to my disappointment.

While the ending of the book was pretty good, it took a long time to get there. There were a lot of characters introduced and I spent most of the book trying to figure out why. It became apparent towards the end, but the journey was a little disappointing to me. I wanted more of Deucalion as he was a very vivid character to me, but he was barely in the book. I have a feeling that the next book in the series may be a little more exciting so I'm going to give it read. I just hope that we've had enough back ground information given in Prodigal Son so that City of Night can be the page turner I'm hoping for.

Dean Koontz’s Frankenstein, Prodigal Son, #1 by Chuck Dixon (adapter), Dean Koontz (author), Brett Booth (illustrator), et al. – This is the first volume of a very interesting and keenly illustrated graphic novel adaptation of Koontz’s Frankenstein Prodigal Son. It provides very interesting, mysterious and ruthless characters and much violent action. How can you go wrong with gruesome bodies with missing body parts and organs? I will be reading the other volumes.

Frankenstein movies and books have been out and around since the original novel was written by Mary Shelly. While I'm not a hardcore fan of Frankenstein I have to admit the idea of where a new storyline with it and its characters would go. Although, I was worried when I picked this book up from this book at a library book sale for 25 cents.

This book is very good because it never focus's on one character and all of the on going plots are very interesting. Although, their are a lot of them so sometimes I felt confused on what was going on.

Also, at times the book seemed pretty long (despite it only being around 470 pages) but overall it was a good book. I would recommend it, even if its not the kind of book that's for everyone.

In Dead and Alive: A Novel, Dean Koontz's logical extension of the, "what ifs" possible had there been truth to the story of Frankenstein continues to unfold. Mary Shelley's story of the creature created by a man who shirks his responsibility toward his creation explores relevant issues that should be thoroughly debated by those working so hard to perfect cloning. Just as Shelley explored the psychology of a mere man having the hubris to take on the role of God and how his lack of humanity toward his creation turns a blank slate into an evil monster, Koontz explores what may have happened had not only the creature, but Victor, lived. Brilliantly written, logically construed, and interwoven with timeless themes, each of the Frankenstein series I have read, so far, has surpassed expectation.

I would recommend this book to anyone. It pulls quite a bit from Shelley's version, but still has it's uniqueness. The book is one, that with each chapter, skips from one character to another until the end, where it culminates into nearly all the characters coming together in a final moment of suspense.

Koontz has totally lost it. He's gone over the edge.
First. Frank 3 was a borefest, okay? No way you can deny it. I wanted to like it, but could not fool myself. And I really do believe, that anyone who says that he/she liked it is fooling him/herself. But, to each his own...

My main gripe with the book (aside from being badly written, suspenseless, anticlimactic and nonsensical) is on page 219-220, when Carson is talking to Erika Four on the phone and Michael sits next to her.
Some quotes:

"All he wanted was to build a utopia."
"Paradise on Earth. Nothing wrong with that."
"A one-nation world without war," Carson said.
"All of humanity united in pursuit of a glorious future."
"The New Race wouldn't pollute like the Old Race."
...
"No greed, less waste, a willingness to sacrifice."
"They'd save the polar bears," Michael said.
Carson said, "They'd save the oceans."
"They'd save the planet."

All this from their conversation, and it's written in a mocking way, as if wanting to build a paradise, ending wars, waste and greed, saving the polar bears, the ocean and the planet are bad things.
Is Koontz so gone now, that he thinks that only dogs and humans are allowed to live?

I know it's all fiction and that he sometimes has a wicked sense of humour, but mocking things that would actually be good...? Now, I don't really find it funny the way he did it here, mainly because I know that he always lets his own beliefs shine through in his books (which, sometimes, can be extremely annoying and preachy), so I have to wonder if he really thinks that it's not worth saving the oceans and the polar bears, and not worth stopping wars. Oh, and the only mention he has of anything gay in it, is a clone gone wrong. Thanks, Koontz.

Oh well, from what I've learned lately, he was a Bush supporter. I lose more and more respect for him. I just finished it today, it took me two months. Granted, I didn't bring it on my vacation, instead I read (in 3 weeks) Just After Sunset and Man in the Dark in that time. Waaaay better choices. And I didn't miss Frank 3 in this period. I'm looking forward to the next Stephen King, less so the next Koontz.

. . . to get something so poorly thought out and even more poorly written is a huge disappointment. Introducing a new important character 70 pages before the end? Bad form after so much plot and character development.

I was a huge fan of the first two books in the series and contacted both the publisher and Mr. Koontz directly to get some idea of when to expect this book, only to get silence in response. My excited anticipation was only matched by new Chricton books (God rest his soul, he couldn't pump them out like Koontz).

I could go on, but there are many others who have already done a good job of skewering this piece of trash on this site. I'm only posting to drop down the overall rating for this book.

Anybody want a free copy? It's yours for the asking.

I waited so long, so patiently for book three to come out. Reread the first two, even listened to them on audio CD to get a new perspective (totally recommend the Audio-CDs!) Finally Dean Koontz decides to give us the ending to the trilogy and it turns out that all my anticipation and baited breath was for nothing.

It's a terrible thing for a reader to have such great books to start off with and when the finale comes you are left holding what basically surmises as a soggy disjointed disappointing confusing mess of an ending.

With such amazing characters as Deucalion and Erika 4 and 5 and Helios, with such potential in the New Race versus the Old race, with such a buildup with the first two books and you JUST KNOW the third is going to blow your socks off!!, to end up with it being at the bottom, literally the bottom of a trash heap? It is inexcusable and lazy writing.

I should have know when I saw the 4 or 5 pages of GLOWING reviews for Dean Koontz and his writings in the beginning of the book that something was terribly amiss. No one that toots their horn that much has anything good to say.

I would say to anyone who has read the first two, to not read the third, to use your imagination instead and make the final book come to life in your own head, because believe me when I say that whatever you come up with will be 100% more satisfying than the real thing.

the store and my reviewing colleagues have summarized this plot very well permitting me to exercise some laziness and post a few bullet points in this review.

- Victor Frankenstein lives, and with his ego and penchant for playing God intact is given 21st century technology for his experiments.

- Deucalion is Frankenstein's monster from the nineteenth century, also surviving over 200 years and naming himself after mythological Prometheus's son.

- Deucalion tracks Victor to New Orleans (a very suitable locale for a neo-gothic remake.) in order to finally rebel against his programming and destroy his creator.

-There could easily be half a dozen sub-plots spiraling around inside the larger retelling of the Frankenstein mythos here.

Kevin J. Anderson is going to fairly or unfairly gain some kudos and credit for this story's crispness. I commented to any that would listen that although I am a fairly large Koontz fan I found the latter offerings I have read by him to be overly verbiose. I thought while reading BY THE LIGHT OF THE MOON for example "Ok Mr. Koontz we realize you enjoy and have fine grasp of English language I see no need for every second paragraph to me metaphorical, or other wordplay". However in this novel the writing is sharp and succinct, doing an admirable job of being clever yet seamlessly interweaving and sewing a huge tapestry of plots and sub-plots into one very compelling suspenseful tale. So yes Koontz gets his lion share of credit for this excellent horror/suspense novel as well perhaps being reminded to return to his roots (before his language got a little flowery) and telling the story he had to tell and readers virtually have to read.

Also as in all good multi-part suspense novels this was ended perfectly with a cliff-hanger making me at least eager for the conclussion.

Wow, what a horrendous ending to a series that started out good. To start, the book had about ten pages worth of Koontz's acclaims before you could get to the story. Its almost as if he was trying to prove something, and in doing so, lost sight of how to write a decent story. He also had no co-authors for this edition of the trilogy and maybe that's why it was so different as the coauthors must have been pulling all the weight before. There are two books that come before this, and they're both pretty good, and the series should be read in order. For those unfamiliar with the tale (and possibly a spoiler, you are warned), Deucalion (Frankenstein's monster) has discovered his creator still lives and is in New Orleans. He travels there and discovers that Victor has created many more beings and they are slowly taking over the city. Cops Michael and Carson have been trailing a serial killer and when they meet Deucalion, they realize there's a much bigger threat to the city in the form of Victor's creations and the penchant they have started to have for going out of control and crazy. They struggle to keep alive despite assassins and bring us to this book, Dead and Alive.

Dead and Alive takes place shortly after the 2nd book and there is so much going on and it's all over the place that its hard to describe the plot. Carson and Michael drive around a lot and meet up with Deucalion when they discover there's something at the dump that could help them out in ways unimaginable. Mostly the book focuses on Victor and his creations that are losing their minds and going against their programming.

The characters were horrendous in this book. We barely see the main characters of Deucalion, Michael, and Carson, which is surprising considering they were the main focus in the first two books. Victor goes even more and more unbelievable, and his creations are even stranger. There is a glimmer of light in Jocko, but really, his character didn't actually fit with the story.

The writing was pretty awful as well. Koontz jumps all over the place and adds things that don't need adding. He also unleashes a pretty big, definitely inappropriate, deux ex machina in his story that just made me groan and shake my head in disbelief. But hey, at least there weren't too many pop culture references in this book (something that drives me nuts in the first two). This book abounds with tons of gore and violence and murders and may be a little too much for more sensitive readers.

This book definitely doesn't inspire me to go read anything else by Koontz for awhile. Its amazing that he could take such a good series and turn it into a deplorable book like this.

Dead and Alive
Copyright 2009
352 pages

Review by M. Reynard 2011

I've been a fan of Dean's writing for some time now. He never disappoints and he surprised me when I first discovered his work. I was use to the 'genre writer' -authors who produced the same type of book each time. Dean's writing continues to evolve -and grow and branch- in new and interesting ways.

Likewise this series has evolved. The flavor of this last book is slightly different to me but a fitting end(?) to the series. If you haven't read them yet I highly recommend you do. It is a re-imagination of the original Frankenstein tale wrought through time to our current day. It is also more than that. He touches on several themes of science, and values and even faith but at its core the same engine pumps - interesting characters, a bit of wisdom, creativity and a word master's craftsmanship.

Back in the 70s Dean Koontz was asked to write a TV script about the famous monster. It never panned out, but the Frankenstein series of novels shows a more developed version of this treatment,( and would have made a great TV movie miniseries Hear that, Hollywood? ) This is the first, and sets the stage for a story of madness, monsters, and a couple of heroes. Read the book , I recommend all five volumes!

I've just started it.
Koontz plays to our prejudices. People who are out to appeal to a LOT of people probably have to. Not too much subtlety. 2nd chapter, we meet a tough, gorgeous, career-driven homicide detective in New Orleans. She has an encounter with thugs conducting a shakedown of drivers at a city stoplight. And, while most of the rest of us would be pretty much helpless, she's too tough, has a gun and plenty of backup she can call in. She wins the encounter, and we are satisfied. We get to read about somebody who wouldn't have to take it .

The next chapter starts off with comments about onlookers at a homicide scene who come across as ghoulish. We like to see them described that way because it allows us to feel superior. We forget that we're pretty ghoulish - the kind of people who are entertained by reading about homicide scenes, and the ghouls who flock to view them. I got to that point and saw how obvious is the manipulation that Koontz engages in, and I wanted to point it out to any reader who might be looking for something less obvious..

It's like TV. The writers have to play to our emotions, to absorb us. I watch TV and I think so often that it wouldn't go that way in real life. There wouldn't be that much artificially-created drama, put there for the sole purpose of causing us to react emotionally. After all, they only have so much time to generate interest.

That's the difference between literature and pulp fiction - pulp fiction is far more removed from reality, and it entertains a lot more people, because it has all the subtlety and art of a board to the face.

A horrifying and fun modern retelling of the original text, Frankenstein Prodigal Son brings us to a near future world where a conglomeration led by a mysterious scientist turns out to be more than it appears on the surface. Murders, mystery, and horrific disembodied parts squiggling along on their own, all contribute to the larger action/adventure/mystery novel that this very genre-based piece is a part of. It is a classic mystery with bodies piled high and an application of the airport-bookstore staple in original, albeit predictable ways.

I am a very big fan and teacher of the original novel, so reading this text was really an experiment in finding some outside material with which to use as fun, supplementary material for my courses while being exposed to new iterations of our scientist in literary pop culture. Koontz has not been part of my bookshelf since I was probably twelve years old, and after having read this book I was reminded why.

I enjoyed the story, the interesting and novel ways that he has found to contextualize our scientist and his creature(s) in a modern setting, however the writing was very difficult to get through. It is what it is, however – an everyman's exciting, thrilling, and driven narrative that speeds along, slipping in blood and gore while we have new iterations of the plot, twists, and a colorful cast of characters all out for their own profit and worldwide domination. At times, however, I found myself unsure of even where the setting was, overshadowed by the speed and colloquial language that the book relies on. Will this sell millions of copies to a wide, general audience? Absolutely. Is it an interesting new twist on the text? Certainly. Is it a worthwhile, well-written read? I am not sure about that. I can only say that I only read this first book, and will not be finishing the rest.

After enjoying the first Koontz Frankenstein then finding the second a bit of a trudge, I was hoping for something worth my time, energy and money. This book isn't it. Dean Koontz has written some marvelous books which, for me, culminated in VELOCITY, an absolute triumph of a book. Since then, even counting ODD THOMAS, his writing's really gone downhill and this is only the latest example. The book was plodding, bloated, pedantic, and florid, and even listening to this as an audiobook doesn't improve it. In fact, Dean Koontz would be well-served to actually LISTEN to his own sentences so he could hear how his dialogue is so stilted, so trite, and the descriptions nothing but a jumble of disparate metaphors. I can't figure out, for the life of me, what he was thinking unless he was just SO SICK of the whole enterprise, he wanted a quick out and a quick buck. This is not the Dean Koontz that held me, spellbound, for hours in years past. Every new book of his I keep swearing will be my last, and I think I've finally reached the point where I gotta say: Save your money. Go to the library. Better yet, pick up the latest Stephen King.

10/15/09: Just learned through PW that Bantam's signed Koontz to do three MORE Frankenstein books, the first picking up where this clunker leaves off but in a new setting with a new villain. What's head-shaking about all this? Doesn't anyone at Bantam read these reviews or care about what we think? There are many readers who feel that Koontz is not on his game and hasn't been for the last several books. I'm not sure how Bantam--or Koontz--thinks we need another series, but I do know that I will not be spending my money on it. I'll wait for the library, thanks. Taxes, I can't do anything about. Think about the money being wasted on yet more dead trees and drivel.

I've wanted to start this series for over a year now, so the anticipation could have led to my disappointment.

While the ending of the book was pretty good, it took a long time to get there. There were a lot of characters introduced and I spent most of the book trying to figure out why. It became apparent towards the end, but the journey was a little disappointing to me. I wanted more of Deucalion as he was a very vivid character to me, but he was barely in the book. I have a feeling that the next book in the series may be a little more exciting so I'm going to give it read. I just hope that we've had enough back ground information given in Prodigal Son so that City of Night can be the page turner I'm hoping for.

Dean Koontz’s Frankenstein, Prodigal Son, #1 by Chuck Dixon (adapter), Dean Koontz (author), Brett Booth (illustrator), et al. – This is the first volume of a very interesting and keenly illustrated graphic novel adaptation of Koontz’s Frankenstein Prodigal Son. It provides very interesting, mysterious and ruthless characters and much violent action. How can you go wrong with gruesome bodies with missing body parts and organs? I will be reading the other volumes.

Frankenstein movies and books have been out and around since the original novel was written by Mary Shelly. While I'm not a hardcore fan of Frankenstein I have to admit the idea of where a new storyline with it and its characters would go. Although, I was worried when I picked this book up from this book at a library book sale for 25 cents.

This book is very good because it never focus's on one character and all of the on going plots are very interesting. Although, their are a lot of them so sometimes I felt confused on what was going on.

Also, at times the book seemed pretty long (despite it only being around 470 pages) but overall it was a good book. I would recommend it, even if its not the kind of book that's for everyone.

Originally, I balked about reading the Frankenstein books by Koontz. I believed no one should try and improve on Mary Shelley's original Frankenstein. Koontz didn't improve on it: he wrote his own Frankenstein. Neither better nor worse, just different.

I finally listened to the audiobook of this first installment that a co-worker of mine had checked out from her library. I fell in love with it. The characters Koontz created are engaging and wonderfully believable.

Now I'm a big fan of this series.

And you will be too.

[...]

I wish that I had waited to buy the used paperback. Not because the story "worked" for me, especially this final episode, but because once I start a series I hope that it gets better. I expect to dissolve the links with reality with any DK anymore, but this entire story was just beyond belief. It could have worked if the great build up resulted in a great explosion - the brother needing the protection of the monastery, the "house-friend" benefitting from leaving town, the use of the heavy duty ammo - but all of these just froth as we dealt with the froth of Ericka 5 and Jocko.

But it lives on...did the garbage pit creatation die with the original Victor, is the "new" Victor as evil as the old Victor, or will he just go mad as did the creations - and if so, how long does it take to break down? Or do those who are denied hope the only ones to break down? Will Ericka 5 and Jocko take down Victor-2 in the days ahead...

I forsee an equally bad fourth novel in about 10-15 years.

DK take a long vacation; explore intellectually and physically. Refresh yourself and come back in a year or two. We can and will survive and will welcome you back with open arms.

I have never been a fan of Dean Koontz but then a friend of mine told me to read "Odd Thomas," which I did and somewhat enjoyed. The same friend then told me to read the "Frankenstein" series and I immediately downloaded the first three onto my Kindle. I got through the first one ("Prodigal Son") and thought there were some really interesting ideas. I was accustomed to Koontz's strengths being in character and plotting but had always left the crazy horror ideas to people like Edward Lee or Clive Barker. By the time I read "City of Night," I started to think that all of those ideas must have come from Koontz's co-writer, Kevin J. Anderson.

Then I read "Dead and Alive," the only one written solely by Koontz, and he reminded me why I stayed away from him for so long. I would love nothing more than to say that Koontz had a three book contract and knew he had a certain word count so he simply typed and typed anything that came to mind and decided to publish it. This happens a little bit in "Prodigal Son," a lot more in "City of Night," but then is all over the place in "Dead and Alive." Pages and pages of description go into creating characters or setting up conflicts only for the author to just as quickly tie them up and cast them off when the chapters have been padded out to the right length and the book almost completed.

"Dead and Alive" is all padding, two-thirds of a book of people doing nothing but talking or wandering around. There is no new information in this story until the ending. The fact that the ending is very dumb is almost beside the point. It feels like the ending Koontz probably came up with when he started the series as it's just bad Koontz. Everything else in the book is just awful writing. I will never read another Koontz book.

I truly enjoy Koontz, and have read nearly all of his works. My one complaint, and it applies with this book, is that with all the wonderful character building, clever dialogues, and escalation of suspense, he sometimes leaves me wanting in a dramatic ending. It's as if he has worn out his brain and the wonderful characters just fizzle to a conclusion. Is his editor pressuring him to complete, and he gets in a hurry? I want to be as thrilled with the ending as I am with the rest of the story. I just read The Face, and felt the same disappointment in its end. Is it just that he's done so much within the story there are just no more tricks in the hat?

I did like this series, and even recommended it to others, so I still gave it 3 stars.

This first book in a series of collaborations between Koontz and a number of other authors was written with Kevin J. Anderson (well known for his work in the Dune prequels). It is a fun start for a very original spin on a classic story. In this book, the Frankenstein legend is re-imagined in a modern way. Koontz is always full of surprises and odd twists, and this is no exception. I enjoyed this book a great deal by appreciating it for the light-hearted entertainment that it is. Now I just have to search my stockpile of books to figure out where I stuck the first sequel. I look forward to reading the rest of the series.
Michael Travis Jasper, author of the novel, "To Be Chosen"

I just recently reread this and forgot what an unputdownable book it is. I'm so glad that he finally wrote the sequels to it and I'm looking forward to diving into those. Dean Koontz is a master at his craft and keeps you reading to the end.

I wouldn't go so far as to call this book terrible, but it was a letdown given the strength and momentum of the first two installments in the Frankenstein series. The biggest disappointment was the almost complete lack of inclusion for the detectives, Carson and Michael. The were essentially the main characters in "Prodigal Son" and "City of Night", but in "Dead And Alive" they don't really do much of anything, other than drive around with a dog in the car (yes, we get it by now, Dean Koontz likes dogs). I also expected Carson's brother Arnie to play some important role in the climax of the series - to my recollection, he's briefly mentioned in this novel, but that's about it. The whole book really becomes the "Jocko And Erika Story" by the end (although I will admit, I actually found Jocko to be a sympathetic character, and I liked how his storyline was resolved). On one hand, I'm glad Mr. Koontz finished the series, rather than leave it open ended for even longer. On the other hand, I wish it didn't feel as rushed. Either way, fans of the series will - and should - read this, just to see how the author closes the loop on the story.

I expected much better and longer after 3 years, i read about how he didn't want to work collaborativly with other authors and that he also wanted to change the story to include hurricane Katrina, which would have been spectacular. However i had my dreams shattered after such a long wait with a book that hints of boredom from the author as well as the complete absence of the hurricane other than a mention in the first chapter as well as some rain throughout the book. I spend days reading this book cover to cover my hopes high and attention waiting for the final show down between Deuclaion and Victor only to have it trampled with an anti climatic cop out. The other characters Carson and Michael lost their luster, Michael lost his humor and Carson became a boring one line simpleton. The characters were only in the book for one tenth of the story compared to the first two. I have to say i may just burn this one and create an imaginary third book for myself.
Sorry Dean but i would have rather waited for 3 more years than had you write this.

Forget what you've heard about. Victor Frankenstein and his creation did not die--they are still alive, and in New Orleans. Driven by power, Victor has created a race--a New Race--of "men" who follow only his orders, who are programmed only to obey him...but like all master plans, this one has a few glitches. Like, what happens when a superhuman suddenly gets a mind of its own?

Deucalion was Victor's first creation. He has spent two hundred years in hiding...and has just found out his creator's plans. Traveling to New Orleans, Deucalion hooks up with two cops: Carson O'Connor, a street-wise cop as beautiful as she is deadly, and Michael Maddison, sarcastic but dangerous. Their goal: to stop a demented serial killer...and make sure they put a hault to Victor Helios's plans before it's too late. If the deadline hasn't already passed, that is...

"Prodigal Son" is gripping and unforgettable. I thought I would hate it; my all-time favorite author, Dean Koontz, reworking an old legend into a new story--it sounded like a recipe for disaster. I almost didn't buy the book. I'm glad I did. This novel is chock-full of humor, suspense, terror, quantum physics, horror, romance, suspense...everything you expect from a good Koontz book (this one also reminded me of Koontz's older work...you know, the buddy-cop novels with a twist).

Dean Koontz and Keven J. Anderson's "Prodigal Son" is a great beginning to what may become a legendary series. Don't miss this book, not if you're a fan of great horror/suspense. Trust me, you won't be disappointed.

You must be done with the second book and planning to get the third book, but the reviwes are frightening you. So you're wondering if you're ready to pick this book up; the truth is, you really should!

The reviews scared me after I got done reading the first two, but I didn't give up on the series because just this book has a poorly rating review.

Koontz threw away his co writer from the first two, so it's no wonder why the book was a littler weaker. So what made it weak? First, it's Koontz's choice of words. Instead of writing what's actually happening, Koontz COMPARES rather than writing what's really happening. Second is his new characters. Jocko is more like a troll. As the book moves forward, Dean seems that he's actually ADDING more description to the character. Instead of writing the characteristics of Jocko at once, Dean seems he was adding those characteristics, as if he was trying to improve the character. Then there's The Mother of All Gone Wrongs. Dean doesn't describe the creature, which he should have, only he writes the creauture being undrescribable. I think that's kind of lazyness if he chose to do that.

The book isn't bad overall, it's just a weak Frankenstein book. The book is more slower paste than the first two, be prepare for that. Enjoy the series.

For me, the enjoyment in reading a book comes from some form of 'enlightenment' I receive from the author. A new way of viewing what I've seen before, a new perspective, a new concept, somehow I want the author to take something of meaning to him and present it to me in a way that I can share his enthusiasm.

“Prodigal Son” is the least inspired work I have ever read. There are no new concepts, no new ideas, the storyline never drew me in with a fresh perspective. Every character, concept and subplot seemed clichéd, old and stale.

This is the first work of Dean Koontz I've read, on-line reviews seemed positive, apparently many people enjoy his work. I found the reading of “Prodigal Son” like driving down a straight road on level terrain with no interesting landmarks along the way, I could not be easily persuaded to read any other works by Mr. Koontz.

Great book. There were a few places where it lagged a bit, but I enjoyed it. I found the Jocko character to be endearing, and was happy with the characters in this book.

One thing that bothered me was the last 5 pages of the book. I hate when an author wraps up a series in such a brief section. I also wish the end were more final.

Yes, I know there are two more books after this one, but I felt this would have been the perfect way to end the series.

I would like to add that there are an awful lot of one star reviews for this book, which I think are both unfair as well as politically motivated. Dean Koontz was the target of a group who tried to paint him as a racist, which I find ridiculous in the extreme, and I believe this is reflected in an active campaign to lower the scores of his books.

My advice? Judge for yourself and beware of any review. Including mine :)

This third book in the five part Frankenstein series by Dean Koontz will please any of his fans. This volume introduces more strange creatures made by Victor Frankenstein or somehow arising from the evolution of his experiments. The new race he has invented begins to spiral out of control, and the cop duo we have come to know and love are basically the only humans aware of the situation. Events escalate to an extent that almost seems to end the story. I look forward to seeing what the fourth book holds in store. Fun "entertainment" reading.
Michael Travis Jasper, author of the novel "To Be Chosen"

This is an OK book. But when reading parts where Jocko had the lead I couldn't help thinking of Jar Jar Bink's, that silly, annoying character introduce in Star Wars Episode I. Just as I kept hoping old JJB would disappear, I kept hoping the same about Jocko. Maybe he and Erika 5 will stay in Montana and out of the next book in the series ?

This book was jam packed with intriguing characters, had a solid storyline, and a very unique plot.

The only downside would be the banter between the two main characters, which was rather annoying at times. Other than that, this was a terrific read.

The whole Roy Pribeaux sub plot is also interesting, but considering the development and the unwinding of the plot, seems rather pointless with respects to the overall story.

It also would have been nicer had the story focused on Jelly Biggs and Deucalion, who are two fascinating characters that weren't involved enough IMO.

I highly recommend this book, as it is one of the best from a great author.

I decided to read this book after I was told of its' existance from a friend. I hadn't previously been a big Dean Koontz reader, having only read maybe 2-3 of his stories, but the idea of a new Frankenstein story intrigued me. I was definitely not disappointed in any way with this story. It almost felt like light-hearted reading compared to some of the other stuff that I had read recently. While not as much as I'm used to, it had enough action and gore to keep me going, and what a great story it contains! I zipped through the first two books just in time for that supposed 'Winter '06' Book 3 release, and I have yet to see anything further about it. I really want to see how this story continues, and I think anyone even slightly curious about this story will feel the same. If you happened to catch the movie that was released related to this, don't even bother comparing....the book is SO much better

Like many reviewers, I was a little leary of this book, but what a surprise. This is probably Koontz's best book in years. Having Kevin J. Anderson's assistance may have something to do with it, but no matter, FRANKENSTEIN: PRODIGAL SON is great. Taking the well known legendary characters created by Mary Shelley, Koontz/Anderson weave a hypnotic and frightening tale of monsters and madmen. Although a lot of Koontz's tiring flouresncent descriptions are still present, the book captures the spell of New Orleans and gives us many characters to either applaud or boo. Koontz's favorite formula of having a male and female confront unknown terrors returns in glorious fashion in Carson and Michael, the two detectives seeking a serial killer. This is more of a horror novel than anything Koontz has written in years and he piles on the gore and terror tactics deliciously. If the follow-ups are as good, Koontz has a real career-booster on his hands!

I have always been a fan of Dean Koontz, but this book blew me away. Everyone seems to have given their own varied basic story line, so that's not what I'm going to do.

The tone of this book is grim. It's not happy, not by a longshot, but the language is thoughtful and understanding, which makes hating characters all the more difficult.

The characters are solid and well-rounded. There were a few cracks in the seams that I think could've been mended by a little more editing, but all in all I thought the characters were realistic to the point where I was comparing them with myself.

The book is the first in a series, and it hangs at the end, like it's supposed to. I don't know when the next book will be coming out, but I know I will be waiting anxiously.

I've liked Koontz for years, but recently started reading more of his work. When I learned of this book, his version of the Frankenstien myth, I just had to check it out. Just as I expected, the story swept me away with a high caliber of writing, intriguing characters and a plot that kept me interested all the way through to the end. If you are looking for classic Dean Koontz, you won't be dissapointed. This is, however, the first in a series, so while there is some resolution in the end, much is left wide open for the following books. If you've never read Dean Koontz, this is a great book to start with-it is a well-told story that adds to and magnifies Mary Shelly's tale. Oh, and one more thing: the chapters are all fairly short, which is something I haven't seen in a Dean Koontz novel. Those of you out there who don't have much time to read (much less think) will enjoy quick chapters that leave you wanting more. Hope this helps!

Dean Koontz's Frankenstein series supposedly updates Mary Shelley's story for the twenty-first century. However, Koontz's version contains so many unbelievable factors that it was impossible to cast aside skepticism and just go with the story. Koontz's Frankenstein not only created a patch quilt, long-lived monster two centuries ago (somehow overcoming tissue decomposition, infections, organ and tissue rejections, brain death, and severed cranial nerves and spinal cord), he also did the following: prevented aging; perfected human cloning; built artificial wombs that promote rapid growth from fetus to adult; redesigned humans with replicate hearts and livers, superhuman strength, superhuman speed, and telekinetic control of severed body parts; invented an electronic interface to the human brain allowing decades of knowledge to be instilled in only four months; and inserted programmed nanomolecules into the brains of his creations that prevent them from harming him. Koontz's Frankenstein must have an IQ of 400. I might have been able to get past Frankenstein's incredibility if the story were more interesting. Unfortunately, most of the novel is a cliched police procedural about tracking down a serial killer and a copycat killer.

It's hard to believe that "Prodigal Son" was by the same author who wrote "Intensity," a great suspense novel and movie.

I too was anticipating Koontz' solo and final excursion into a modernized modern Prometheus. This third installment is filled with more humor and playfulness than its predecessors. By now, Victor's (Frankenstein's) ghoulish creations are falling apart all over the place while the main heroes, Deucalion and the two detectives, seek a way to strike at the madman himself. There are many scenes with a troll-like being and Victor's wife-slave Erika-five that are often laugh-out-loud funny. These serve as a nice foil to Frankenstein's pitch-black megalomania and his sick, twisted vision of a mindless utopia. I found the references such as Victor refering to hitler as "Dear adolph" and his corroboration with other sympathetic dictators to be poignant. The allegorical significance of the original Shelly story is preserved here and serves as a warning no less pertinently.

This book has good action, more creepy views of Victor's macabre labs, and the dark backdrop of night with a storm approaching. I did think that Koontz should have used the storm more powerfully to his advantage. The occurrence of Katrina in the middle of the series could hardly have been more fortuitous for the narrative and presented an irresistible opportunity to incorporate it more in the tale. Koontz brings Frankenstein and his "monster" together again and along comes the biggest storm in decades. What a set up! Sadly, this was not the case and so I am docking the book a star for this missed chance. I also remove a half star for the final confrontation of Deucalion with his maker. I expected a bit more out of this than I got. However, the rest of the novel is a darkly funny read that serves as a worthy endcap to the trilogy. I would certainly recommend the entire series to any reader looking for a good modern gothic story. I HIGHLY recommend reading the original Shelly story first, but it's not necessary to enjoy this modern tribute. I believe Koontz, along with Anderson and Gorman, have captured the essence of the cautionary tale, one which many have forgotten the lesson of. I will mention a little teaser that the ending is exactly what it should be. I'll include back a half star since others seem to rather harshly pan the book despite how good a read it really is.

I admit, the idea is very origonal, yet Dean Koontz (who I'm shocked had anything to do with this book) could have made this book so much better. I've read many of his novels and this is by far the worst.
The more I read the more outlandish the story got, and I found myself laughing at the end when Johnathon was running from the cops with a baby monster creature hanging half attached to the inside of his belly, as he was giving birth to it.
I did however think the storyline of the retarded boy who could only move through a series of imaginary crossword boxes was cool, but I will probably not be reading the next one. I dont even think he's going to finish the series anyway. It was scheduled to come out like 2 years ago.
Dean Koontz has always been one of my favorite authors. I just hope he's not losing his luster for writing.

I waited three years for this? What happened? I am totally heartbroken. The first two books were so good; I mean really really really good, I could hardly contain myself waiting for this book's release. Did Koontz just spit this out to appease his fans not caring what it contained? I was soooooo let down. I am a monstrously huge Dean Koontz fan and I have never been more disappointed with his work until I read Dead and Alive. I expected so much from this book and got nothing but a TIPPY-TOING, JUGGLING, SKIPPING, JUMPING, CART WHEELING, PIROUETTING, TOE SUCKING, BUG EATING, ALBINO, TROLL. What in the world was that all about? What about Deucalion, Carson, and Michael? The first two books primarily featured those three characters, but in this third and last installment they were hardly spoken of at all. And talk about a disappointing ending. I expected a huge battle or something close to it, but all I got was...Well it was all just way too easy. If anything ever deserved a rewrite it's Dead and Alive.

It's a classic tale loosely based on Mary Shelly's "Frankenstein" of the Romantic Period in the 19th Century of English Literature. Dean Koontz brings this perennial horror story classic up to date. And today it has never been more relevant. Today's world is one were science has become the most abject of obedient servants to the powerful and mighty. Where the unthinkable has become the common place, and where little can be relegated to the realm of science fiction with any assurance that it is not already science fact. That its just for now being withheld from view and will be revealed shortly as science fact.

Our reality includes the creation of genetically cross species chimeras, computer bio-interfaces, as well as old fashioned brainwashing and now cutting edge propaganda and mind manipulation. Dean Koontz takes our reality and runs away with it screaming into the night and with us screaming by his side. I'm reviewing Book III Frankenstein dead and alive. The prequels are said to be just as impressive.

The malignant narcissist Dr. Frankenstein has found the secret to almost indefinite life extension. Also he has learned how to breed biological beings to his specs. Some are little smarter than animals, some are much less, some intelligent and with human emotions and compassion and a whole gamut of feelings. They are there to only serve Dr, Frankenstein in his evil designs. Of course his ultimate dream is to take over the world and establish his own hellish utopia. Something right out of a new world order scenario.

It all kicks right along as high entertainment. Well written and easily read. As I write there are strange happenings afoot that could rival even the master story teller's imaginative genius. I like this sort of book; one that takes our world and extrapolates that world. After all, what is the future but endless extrapolation?

I am in awe of this series. Dean Koontz has managed to build upon Mary Shelley's story and create his own nightmarish vision of the Frankenstein universe, remaining reverent of the original. Each successive book is better than the last, ratcheting up the tension and building the mystery even further. I can't wait to see what happens in book 4 and 5. If they have been anything like the first three, it will be a pleasure to dive once more into the frightening world of Victor Frankenstein and his creations.

Victor helios is a man that is so demanted and horrid in his pursuit of a 'perfect race".His first "creation" was Deucalion, a man made of parts of other condemned men in the graveyards. He is a monster but a man, and has more heart and soul than Victor ever could.
Victor wants to make a race of super humans, but things are going slowly wrong.. spinning out of control, but he is too much of a ego maniac to see that.
Deucalion has come to new Orleans to help two detectives solve a serial killers motives and Deucalion has answers.

This third installment is by far the best of Dean Koontz' Frankenstein series. The pace is breathtaking, and the way he weaves multiple story lines together is truly masterful. I must respectfully disagree with those who felt the ending was weak. On the contrary, I found it quite satisfying. Yes, he could have written another couple of thousand words to spell the recap scenes out in detail, but in context I felt the summary worked well. Certainly the door is open for more to this story -- not just due to the figure in the box, but also because he brought characters from "Brother Odd" in at the end. Considering how some elements of the Chris Snow series were pulled into Odd Thomas, it seems as if these three wonderful story lines could converge into a spectacular finale. I would certainly love to see that. I heartily recommend this book.

This was a great book to read, and I found myself flying through it. A few of my friends read it as well, and we all enjoyed it. Understand this is not a stand alone story. It's part 1 of 5, and it will leave you wanting to read the next book as well. I felt the series as a whole would have fit more comfortably into 3 books instead of 5, but that's the nature of the beast.

The characters were interesting and well written, and the story was very engaging. I definitely would reccomend this title to others.

The story offers little by way of surprise. Yes, it's about Frankenstein. Yes, that Frankenstein. We learn that Viktor Frankenstein was a real person, not merely a figment of Mary Shelley's imagination. Two hundred years ago, he learned so much about the human body from his experiments that he succeeded in creating a semi-human being--the original Frankenstein monster. He also learned how to augment his own body in order to defy death.

Two hundred years later, Frankenstein is still alive and living under an alias in (pre-Hurricane Katrina) New Orleans, where he is still creating "new" humans in the hope of eventually repopulating the earth with his super-race, eliminating the "old" humans, and becoming the godlike ruler of the world.

His first creation is still around as well. He's given himself the name Deucalion (after the Noah-like ark builder of ancient Greek mythology) and has been living a life of seclusion in a Buddhist monastery in Asia. When Frankenstein created Deucalion, he hadn't yet learned the finer points of making his "new" people look exactly like the "old" humans, so Deucalion is horribly disfigured. He's shy, gentle, huge, ugly, and basically your all-around likeable 200-year-old nice giant.

When Deucalion learns that Frankenstein is still alive, he sets out for New Orleans to kill him before he can carry out his evil plans. Meanwhile, one of Frankenstein's new creations has gone haywire and begun a killing spree in the Big Easy. The cops are stymied by the mysterious case, and their problems are only compounded by the fact that unknown to them, one of the detectives working on the case is a member of Frankenstein's new race. Things come to a head when Deucalion joins forces with the cops and the fact that there are strange human-like beings with two hearts and other obviously engineered features running around the city comes to light.

This is the first in a trio of books about the strangely deathless Frankenstein and the problems brought about by his sinister creativity. The book's characters are reasonably well developed, and the settings are brought to life with lavishly descriptive prose, neither of which is surprising in a Dean Koontz book. More surprising is the amount of sexual content--way to much in my view. Profanity is kept to a reasonable level, but the violence and gore is a bit over the top at times.

All in all, I liked the book. My main hesitation in recommending it is that there doesn't seem to be any real reason to read it. Whereas the original Frankenstein was a social morality tale masked in a horror story, this is pretty much just a horror story with little to commend it by way of a moral. Readers who want a scary book that will challenge them to think would be better off reading Koontz's much earlier (and solo) work Watchers, a Frankenstein-like story about the dangers of genetic manipulation and social hierarchies.

Great! What can I say. Dean Koontz did not disappoint me. Loved the story of Frankenstein when I was a kid. This series has taken the story to a higher level. Can't wait for more. I will definitely be telling my friends and recommending this book.

Not great but a fun read and interesting idea. I read some of the 1 star reviews and can't understand anyone complaining about it being unrealistic; it is Dean Koontz for crying out loud, he writes horror and fantasy/sci-fi stories. And since when is Frankenstein realistic to begin with?

"Dead and Alive" is my new number 1 favorite book!

Book 1 in the Frankenstein series was the first Koontz book I was able to stay with through to the end. Specifically, I came into this series not understanding why this author continuously receives so much praise for his work.

Now I understand why.

Books 1 and 2 held my interest, but Book 3 was unlike anything I have ever read. Yes, it is strange, but Koontz does such a fine job of setting the foundation in Books 1 and 2 that the events of Book 3 did not appear as far fetched to me as they no doubt would have had I tried to read book 3 as a standalone novel (which I had contemplated before a friend talked me out of it). And yet, I understand that for many Koontz fans, book 3 didn't meet their expectations. Reading all three books back-to-back no doubt gave me an advantage as I didn't have time to ponder any unchartered territory that the author might pursue in the next installment. I didn't have any expectations for an alternate ending.

Koontz preserves what was foremost in Shelly's creation, humanity in a "monster" and the monster in humanity, allowing the later seed to flourish with the help of modern technology.

An absolutely superb exploration of the human condition! And an equally superb handling of the fantasy-genre theme which explores the power of the universe to restore the balance of good in the face of evil.

I am not usually a fan of horror fiction and I probably won't start reading the author's other works, but I did enjoy this series and recommend it to any non-Koontz fans who enjoy the frankenstein theme.

I love this treatment of the Frankenstein myth, and despite some of the carping whiners who have nothing better to do than smack a genius, I loved book three. Sure, it is a culmination volume, and sure the detectives are still there, but if they weren't there would be nobody of the old race in the story except Victor, and where would that leave us? The troll and Erika make a great tag team, and the tension generated by the escape of the Chameleon is superb.

What's even better ... there could be a volume four that takes us to a whole new level.

I have not read Dean Koontz work in sometime...at least 15 years...and man have I been missing out....this is the first book in the Frankenstein series and this was really decent....twisted fun!!! Koontz knows how to make the reader get into the mind of the character, and allows you to delve into each one separatley, while keeping the story together and very interesting....you actually felt for the characters....at least the semi sane ones...lol Great book...looking forward to the next one!!!

Wouldn't it be nice if we could step through walls and travel from one continent to another?
Dean Koontz sure knows how to write very fascinating protagonists (for those who don't know what a protagonist is: A protagonist is the leading character or champion or a particular cause.)
I was the protagonist in my own true story "Fighting the Devil".
I have a particular fondness for books that have good vs evil. This is one of those stories. However, it helps if you have read the two books that came out first in this series. I am not particularly fond of sci/fi thrillers, but I found this one to be a good read.

Jeannie Walker - Award Winning Author of "Fighting the Devil" - A True Story of Consuming Passion, Deadly Poison, and Murder

The Monster? No, the book! Dean Koontz has teamed up with Kevin Anderson (of Star Wars fiction fame) to produce one of the poorest written books I may have ever had the displeasure to come across. The story is actually not half bad. The basic idea was fairly thought provoking and honestly, the ONLY reason I read the book was because I am currently working on a Frankenstein novel myself and wanted to see what Koontz was doing with the character and story. Quite a bit, I can tell you, and again, the *story* is really pretty good.

The writing, however...

It reads like two people wrote this sitting in the same chair, fighting over the keyboard. I've never seen more awkward use of tags in dialog. The main police detective characters are absolutely horrible, but ironically, very funny. I was surprised at the amount of humor in "Prodigal Son" and the Frankenstein monster looks to be a compelling character with numerous layers of depth. I want to know more about him (and the lightening's effect on him when he was created.)

Dr. Victor Helios (Victor Frankenstein--he takes on the name of Helios for several reasons) is extremely uninteresting and stereotyped like the blood-n-guts, shoot-first cops I mentioned and I found New Orleans to be a poor setting. Reminds me too much of Rice's vampire town. He should have set the book in Europe, IMHO, but who am I?

Koontz (as I've said in other reviews) is hit and miss with me. Some of his stuff (like "Odd Thomas") is both brilliant AND entertaining. Not this. I haven't read all of Koontz's work yet, but so far this is (mechanically) his worst, in my opinion. I remember a brief note Koontz posted on his web site saying that he was disappointed in the Frankenstein book(s) himself and would finish the series solo. He certainly can't do worse and I suspect the collaboration may be at fault. I've never read Anderson's books, but I'm pretty familiar with Koontz and it just didn't jive with what I had read before. I suspect Book 3 will be very different from Books 1 ("Prodigal Son") and 2 ("City of Night"). Let's hope so.

"Odd Thomas", however...you really should read "Odd Thomas" if you haven't already.

I read this book when it first came out and cound not put it down untill I was done then kept my eyes out for the next installment. I enjoyed the way Dean Kootz brought Frankensteins monsyer in to our time and made him a mystical but yet human beeing I got caught up in all of the characters and despised Doctor Helios if you enjoy Dean Kootz you will definitely enjoy this book

I was given Frankenstein: Prodigal Son: A Novel (Dean Koontz's Frankenstein) by a person who purchased it at a used bookstore for $2. I certainly wouldn't recommend paying any more than that for this book. It is typical Koontz's more recent recipe novels...Corny wisecracking male protagonist, stunning female protagonist (insipid romantic tension between the two), purely evil antagonist, enigmatic main, yet oddly tertiary, miracle character and the setup character for the second book. The plot is ridiculously unimaginative and the obvious attempt to stretch a thin story line out over several books I found particularly irksome. I do realize that this was originally intended to be a television series, but I feel the novels should be able to stand on their own -- or bill it as a serial novelization, which is what it is and what I tend to avoid. 97 chapters in less than 500 pages....Hmmmm.... It reads like one of those television shows that is geared toward teens with the attention span of gnats, with many chapters being only three pages long. If you count all the empty space on the pages from chapter headers, you will soon realize that you're actually only reading a 300 page book. The format makes it a quick read and I was able to finish it in a couple hours and move on to better things. I won't be hooked into buying the other books in the series, too much fluff.

Any newcomers who have not read Dean Koontz this is a great 1st book. At first, I had no intention of reading a book about Frankenstein. The topic is so old and I can't begin to count how many tv/movies I've seen on the guy. I figured there is no way Dean can come up with something new and original. I was mistaken. Deucalion is an unlikely hero to the human race. Koontz revives Frankenstein with a refreshing new take and brings him into our century.

I'm not even finished with it yet, about 50 more pages to go, I just thought I would see what other people thought of it while I was surfing the web.
First, thank you Dean Koontz, for the short chapters. I love it. Quick, easy reading.
I must admit that when I was reading the back cover at the store I thought it was going to be another serial killer book, set in New Orleans, with probably some supernatural connection, given the author. Boy was I ever wrong and boy was I pleasantly surprised. A little ways into the story I was like, 'What!???!! Dr. Frankenstein and the monster STILL ALIVE!?!?" What a cool concept! The story rolls along and keeps me wanting to read just one-more-chapter before putting it down. I love the characters - especially the sarcastic combativness between the two main detectives.
I wish I could see this as a movie, as it was intended. It plays like a movie in my mind as I'm reading.
If you like a break from reality, like I do from time to time, then this book will give it to you! Can't wait to start Book 2.

I'm normally not a huge sci-fi buff, but I decided to give the Frankenstein series a try since it was so highly recommended by several of my friends. I was not disappointed! Koontz introduces a take-over of horrific proportions, where human kind is faced with a new and terrifying race that has been designed by the murderous and powerful Victor Frankenstein. Koontz introduces a scientific world that is both fascinating and terrifying. I highly recommend this book and the series as a whole.

Reading this book was a nice relief from several recent books by DK that I havn't enjoyed nearly as much as his earlier worked. This book has adventure, action, both realism and surrealism (unlike Life Expectancy, which is totally surreal)

We are back to multiple characters and story lines that come together and interact with each other. There are monsters, villains, and idealistically good cops.

The story is fast paced and entertaining. This is the Koontz I enjoy and can't put down. I can't wait to read the second book. Bring it on!

Dear Koontz loyal reader,
I have read numerous Koontz novels and have found myself hanging on his every keystroke. I have admired him most of his stories and fallen in love over and over again. One of the first books i ever really fell in love with was Mary Shelly's Frankenstein. When i originally picked up the series i was ecstatic to have found my worlds collided. I loved the idea of a new take on an old classic. I devoured about four days of my life to the first two novels barely putting them down. Carson and Michael were adorable together and you were really connected with them. I couldn't wait for the third book to be published.
I picked up dead and alive in great anticipation wondering what he had planned for us after such a long wait, and found out that he didn't. It was like he sat down and forced this out so we would leave him the hell alone. It was offensive and insulting to all the fans who waited for the same exact magic he had going in the first two. The story was slow, nothing really happened. When i was getting towards the last couple of chapters i kept scanning threw checking how many pages he had left to pull something out of his rear end. Sadly he never did. I would never have known that this was a Dean Koontz if his name wasn't plastered over the cover twice because it just wasn't his caliber writing.
In addition to that i just checked his web site and found out that he just got picked up to write 3 more Frankenstein's. Really? If this is how you repay your loyal fans with absolutely no effort or work put in his ideas then thanks, but no thanks.
So loyal fans beware but then again i'm sure you already read it didn't you?

I'm not much of a Dean Koontz fan; his tendency to use `deus ex machina' to resolve plots and such has always put me off. I'm also not much of a fan of the horror genre anyway, so I rarely read Koontz. However I had heard a bunch about this series, including the rumor that Martin Scorsese had at one time expressed in interest in producing it for TV. Anyway, I was really kind of glad to read this and see that Koontz had put a little life and a novel twist to the old story. I'm actually looking forward to the next two parts.

First, you need to know that Dean Koontz has long been my favorite writer. Second, I have read almost all of his books. However, this is not up to his standards, and I wonder if the co-author (Kevin J. Anderson) did most of the writing. It lacks everything most Koontz novels have: humor, love, super-intelligent animals, a touch of the supernatural, a sense of awe and wonder, optimism, and a well-developed protagonist you can care about and identify with. And while a few of Koontz's books have had sequels, his books have never left you hanging like this one, with so much unsettled, so much unresolved. The romance is just hinted at between the two cops, and Deucalion, while interesting, is too super-human and not well enough developed to identify with and care about. And finally, "In a mansion as large as this, a severed hand had to do alot of crawling to get where it wanted to go," has to be one of the silliest lines in the history of literature. i can't even tell whether this was meant as humor or to be taken seriously.

Koonz is the only author that I've ever read where I either love or hate the book. I have to say, the first two Frankenstein books are the best of the best. I pessimistically began this book thinking, "How is he going to pull of Frankenstein living in the 21st century?" Not only did Koontz pull it off, he did it with flying colors. The book reads fast, there is the right mix of understated humor and supernatural story telling, combined with well developed characters that hold the readers interest. I'd recommend reading both books one and two, as the final installment of the trilogy is due out in early 07.

This novel was a little confusing and even baffling at times. Oh, I worked it out and read the second one and then waited and waited and waited for the third one ... but I haven't read that one yet, and I've learned there are others after that. I'll have to get busy! Koontz is a masterful story teller and I am so happy he is a prolific as he is. I do enjoy his books and will continue to do so as long as I can read!

I think Mr. Koontz needs to take a break from writing. I would further suggest he engage a muse .... maybe Jocko the troll is available ... to assist him with his future writing projects. After reading this book I find I must agree with all of the one star reviews that it totally missed the mark as the long awaited conclusion to the series. I should have taken a pass on it after I downloaded the sample and found it consisted of only accolades to the superb writing of Dean Koontz and not one word from the actual first chapter of the book. It is unfortunate but this experience has turned me off of Dean Koontz.

I've read many of Dean Koontz' books. This is not one of the best, but it is a good book. There is a lot of action and and the characters are well developed. The ending makes me want to read the next in the series.

Well, it was an ending, and though many, many things about this book were just ridiculous, I feel obligated to put in a good word for what wasn't off-the-rocker unbelievably and distractingly odd. Half the plot elements in this book were just fodder for the big exploding ending, which was kind of sad. But, as far as world building, character building, and interesting humans and not-so-humans goes, well done. Could have done with a stronger and less silly conclusion, though. And a little shred of humanity on the part of you-know-who would have been welcome.

Dean, I love ya man; but the third installment of the Frankenstein series was a let down on par with the third installment of the Aliens movie series.

You created those great characters and great build up to what felt like a wee little popcorn fart (kind of dry and particularly uninspiring). The great showdown with Victor, where was it? I felt like I missed a whole section of the book. The chameleon was interesting to begin with, but ended like the proverbial fart in a windstorm--poof!

I thought that my disappointment might stem from the long wait, but found that I was one of many friends that felt the same. Pardon the scatological references, it seem like the place to go on this one.

Any chance of a do-over? Maybe three could be just a dream sequence.

Added Update: March 2010...I think Dean might have listened! Do I dare hope? Just announced...Frankenstein Book 4. Hope this one gets the job done.

Great series. I could not put these books down. I am on the final book and I know I will be sad to not have them to read anymore. (by the way - I just started reading these books last week and am on book 5) you know it is that good :)

This book would probably have to be the best work of fiction I have ever read, and I have read a lot of fiction. Short chapters, follows all of the characters so you have every aspect of the story line. Very interesting and just up my ally, hits very close to home. I connect with Victor very much in some aspects. After reading this book, you almost want to start experimenting with reanimation, and see where it goes...or maybe thats just me. Very good book though.

I used to travel weekly for my job and I read every top seller at the airport kiosk. I read the first two and I was very surprised as how he played out his own style of Frank. The third book was great but I had this strange feeling it was rushed to finally finish or honor a contract with his fans. There was a long wait between the 2nd and final installment. The dog was one of my favorite characters, "kill the pizza boy" at 25MPH.

I was curious to see how others felt about book 3. Not surprised about what I have read. Books one and two were "full-course meals," whereas book 3 was like a "hamburger and fries." Enjoyable and fun, but not what I expected based on the sophistication of the previous installments. The book progressively read more like a Kurt Vonnegut satire than a Koontz thriller. But, it did hold my attention. To say this book is a "slap in the face, " or "an insult to his fans," is a little strong, but one can't help but think Koontz did not want to write this book. His treatment of Duecalion is very sparse... I kept waiting for the character to emerge, but his role is bit of a guest appearance. Overall, it feels like a missed opportunity.

Well here we are, the final part Book 3 is here. Was it worth the wait - NOT REALLY. I went back and re-read the first two in order to do Part 3 justice . I spent the first few chapters of Part 3 with explainations concerning things from the first two books, this would not have been necessary if the trilogy had been completed in a timely manner. Result - Boring. I kept skipping parts - to me a sudden death for a book. Parts seemed familiar to me, I kept thinking I had already read the story, knowing that I couldn't have - I have read a lot of Koontz's books. Whatever his two collaborators on the first two books brought to the story was definitely missed on Part 3, its reminds me of "lets get it over with" and it did not complement Parts 1 & 2. To me the trilogy is still unfinished and now never will be.

Say what you will about how his last few novels have read a little thin (they have), this showed us a Dean in high form. There are themes here. A purpose. And meaning: that if you separate the intellect from love, goodness, truth, beauty, justice, grief, hope and dreams, you get nothing but emptiness in return. And, even for his thinner novels, (apparently EVERYONE hated Darkest Evening of the Year, while I loved it), there are times - especially in this world - when I DESPERATELY need Koontz's optimism, even if most his novels feature Golden Retrievers that may or may not be Jesus in dog form.

I really enjoyed the first two, but this one was just bleah. Everything that happened was either predictable or boring. Characters or situations are set up in great detail and then resolved with minimal fanfare and in the most uninteresting manner possible. One character tells another like 40 pages out how the book is going to end and that is pretty much what happens! And as another review mentioned, in the end what the detectives and Deacaulion (sp?) did throughout the rest of the book (all 3 books for that matter) had nothing, nadda, zip to do with it. They could have died in the first chapter and it would have ended the same. Unfortunately like a sucker I still read the fourth book. I don't think I will waste my time on the fifth.

Dean Koontz's very readable and well paced Christian-Horror series continues with many interesting (and crazy) characters. For those new to Christian novels, or the series in general, Koontz has take Mary Shelley's Dr. Frankenstein and his monster and placed them in today's world of skyscrapers. Common to the series is themes of horror, suspense, and the theme of science and psychology as the enemy of mankind.

While "Prodigal Son" and "City of Night" are 5 stars each I would say at best 4.5 stars for "Dead and Alive" Dean could have elaborated a bit more on process. He could have definitely kept us in suspense with another 450+ book like the previous 2 books. A classic theme of science vs. religion resonated throughout! We also find his penchant for illuminating the wisdom of his canine friends! Nonetheless another solid read.

BTW - People before you read & review "Dead and Alive" read the first 2 books in Koontz's Frankenstein trilogy!

The third book in the Frankenstein series is a disappointment.

Book one, Prodigal Son, was engaging and suspenseful, a real page turner. Book two, City of Night, was not as good as book one but still managed to maintain a consistent sense of stakes, tone, and narrative plausibility.

Book three, Dead and Alive, was a complete disappointment. It's like he wasn't even trying. Comic sequences go on for too long and cease to be funny. Passages meant to be endearing are cloying. The protagonists don't actually do anything or have any interior life. There is no mystery, no suspense. It's just a series of events that don't happen for any clear reason, one deus ex machina after another and nothing to make us care.

What happened? Awful. I wish I had those hours of my life back. Please try harder with book four. As it is I'm not going to read it unless I hear that it's a lot better than book three.

I like thinking about this series. It was
so imaginative. Taking the old Frankenstein model
and building on the kindness of the monster.
The short chapters keep everything moving quickly.
Koonntz brings his characters to life with
comic book charm. I particularity liked the superficialness
of the novel; it's fun, absorbing, and put a continual
smile on my face.

What if Dr. Frankenstein and his monsters were real and still exist? New Orleans is the setting. At first it appears a serial murderer and a copy cat killer are in action. For Detective Carson and her partner Michael it turns into so much more. Excited to read the next book in series.

After 4 long years I finally got my third Frankenstein! And thanks to a long trip to Ecuador, I was able to actually read it and the wait was worth it. In this book, you really see how Victors' monsters are starting to fall apart. In the center of book three are police detectives Carson O'Connor and Michael Maddison, which with their witty dialog help with the flow of the story; followed by Erika fives' developing relationship with Jocko, a troll like character that can be cute at times. Each of these characters have subplots, including Deucalion, but they all come together at the end. I must admit, I enjoyed it until its conclusion, where it seemed to end rather too quickly. I am looking forward to book Four - Lost Souls and sincerely hope it doesn't take another 4 years to come out.

I enjoyed this book very much. Koontz's Frankenstein character is extremely interesting and the story was fast paced and had edge of your seat thrills. The exploration of the Victor Frankenstein character was the most compelling, offering readers a glimpse into the insanity it took to create the monster in the first place. Readers of both Koontz and the original would love this interpretation.

The only reason I give this mess of words two stars instead of one is that it ends the trilogy, and I don't have to keep asking the bookstore to look up the publication date. The first two books were tightly written, with exciting action, gothic settings and convincing self discovery by believable characters. This one uses every cliche and overwrought phrase Koontz can devise to finish off the series. Koontz is surely putting over a massive joke on his readers with this book.

If you are like me, a Koontz fan who thought the first two books were some of his best and want to know what Koontz can imagine for the characters, then you need to read this book just so you can be done with the series. However, if you are just a casual fan and do not care what Koontz thinks might happen to the characters, you may want to skip this train wreck.

If you have more imagination than I do and can devise your own ending to the trilogy, yours would be better by far than what is offered by Koontz. Perhaps Koontz would allow someone to write an alternate book three, maybe even sponsor a contest so we could have many alternates to read. All of them, even the most amateurish, would be better than this book.

This books begins slow, moves along at a faster clip in the middle and then, without warning, abandons the reader without an ending or even an inkling another book is coming. Talk about frustrating! Now I see Koontz has book #2 ready to sell his legions of fans, who can overlook what now seems as an obvious effort to milk two sales out of what should have been one book. No doubt I will bite..no pun intended..but not happily and hoping this is not his version of a Frankenstein series.

I just finished reading the Odd Thomas series & fell in live with it. When I finished I started on the Frankenstein series, but didn't really think it would be something I would like. Well I love it!

I want the 2 nights of my life I wasted reading this book back! The 1st and 2nd books were fantastic. But this one left me totally dry and I feel like I was cheated. Yes this is a work of fiction but some of the explainations given were totally OFF THE WALL! I'm not going to ruin it for any one who has not read it yet, perhaps you will like how it ends. But for me the wait was not worth it. I felt as though Mr. Koontz ran out of ideas and decided to just end it so his fans would get off his back about when this was going to be released. I would have waited another four years if I knew the final installment would have been better than this piece of dreck.

If you think that this novel is awful, you are missing the point entirely.

The entire series is refutation of Materialism and a response to the collected writings of C.S. Lewis. How many "Lion, With, and the Wardrobe" references do you need to take the hint?

Is the ending of this trilogy unsuccessful? Yes it is. The climax of the series is nothing more than a series of improbable events; an unbalanced sketch with obligatory Deus ex Mechanica.

Still. Wasn't this obvious by Book 2?

This is a good story with an interesting twist to the plot.
But...cliffhanger ending indeed.
I like my books to have an ending.
I do not like to have!! to read the next book in the series to find out what happens to the characters in the current story.
So do not start this series if you do not have in hand all 3 books.
Rachell Youngman

The New Race created by Victor Frankenstein are beginning to experience glitches. Some commit vicious murders while others experience hope and feel happiness. Deucalion, Carson and Michael seek to free New Orleans from Victor' s hold forever.

I say that, because like the character in this novel, he's losing his grip and doesn't even seem to realize it.

I first read Koontz' fiction back in college, and while I wasn't blown away, I really enjoyed it. A lot of his stuff is a little to similar, and some of his themes he's always had a tendency to beat to death, but still, his books were entertaining. Several of his novels were absolutely great books with which to while away an evening. I can still reread those stories with pleasure from time to time. But something's happened in recent years. Maybe that god-awful toupee he wears nowadays is interfering with the blood circulating to his brain, but his recent novels have simply left me cold. I picked up the first book in this series because I needed a book to read on a long flight and there was nothing else I could find on short notice that looked interesting. I saw that it was the first of a series, but I decided to hold off purchasing the two others until I had a chance to see if this was any better than most of his recent work. Then I actually read the book and I thought it was great. I eagerly bought books two and three after reading the first. The old Koontz was back, or so it seemed. I now think it more likely that the book was rescued from mediocrity by Kevin J. Anderson, and Koontz' decision to eschew another collaboration is part of the reason this book is so dismal.

In Book One, Koontz and Anderson created some really interesting characters, and plunked them down in the center of a really good plot, wherein Frankenstein/Helios, who has managed to prolong his own life with the same science he has used to create artificial humans, intends to create a new and improved race with which to replace humanity. Deucalion (the original Frankenstein's monster) was very interesting, as was Victor Frankenstein (AKA Helios) himself. Erika Four, Victor's created wife was interesting also, as was her journey toward real humanity. There were missed notes too, even in that book, I have to say. The detectives Carson O'Connor and Michael Maddison were pretty much drawn straight from the Dean Koontz stock character repertoire, and there wasn't much new or interesting about them, at least to me, but they were okay. The serial killer, Roy Pribeaux, was REALLY a Dean Koontz stock character, and seemed to serve very little purpose in the story. But overall, it was a great book.

Book two wasn't nearly as good, but was still entertaining, though the autistic "new human" Randall Six was poorly drawn, I thought, and like Pribeaux in the first book, seemed to serve little purpose in the story.

But the third book, frankly, is really a stinker, and makes me think I will most likely never pick up a new Koontz novel again. It's that bad. EVERYTHING descends into absurdity. EVERYTHING is crudely overdone. EVERYTHING becomes implausible. Even the characters, who had previously been interesting, became dull and two-dimensional. Victor became an absolute parody of a mad, evil genius trying to destroy the world. All that was missing was a caricature version of James Bond that he could dramatically reveal his master plan to, seconds before being killed. In every way, Koontz stretches things too far. It would have been great if Victor had been made simply arrogant and controlling, but Koontz had to make him unbelievably, cartoonishly megalomaniacal, to the point where he actually has to restrain himself from screaming hysterically at those who simply call things by names he doesn't like. Rather than wanting simply to replace humanity populate the world with a superior human, he must be shown to want to build the "perfect" ordered, regimented, machine-like, efficient society, right down to the very tiniest detail. Rather than being merely autocratic and tyrannical, he has to be made into a man who would stamp out every last vestige of individuality and freedom, with controls so thorough and rigid and infallible that Big Brother could only have wished for them in his wildest dreams. Rather than receive backing from shady and amoral sources, he has to be made financial beneficiary of ALL of the 20th century's worst monsters, each in turn: Hitler, Stalin, and Mao. Rather than being a domineering and abusive husband who possesses his wives, but is incapable of actual love, he has to be shown as an ogre so diabolical that he will kill a wife for even a single instance of willful impertinence. Rather than being a man who simply deals efficiently with any adversaries, having them dispassionately disposed of if need be, he is shown as being someone so spiteful and motivated by rage and petty animosity that he has them kidnapped and brought to him so he can torture them to death personally for merely daring to oppose even his most trivial desires (e.g. renovating and adding on to his historic mansion).

And Victor isn't the only beneficiary of this over the top treatment. The new human he is creating overact just as egregiously. Rather than merely envying the Old Race (as they call them) for having the freedom of action and depth of feeling that their maker has denied them, and rather than being just more cold-blooded and cruel as a result, Koontz makes them absolutely savage and demonic in their rage and hatred at real humans, so that EVERY LAST ONE OF THEM wants, literally above all other desires, to kill and rend and tear humans with his or her bare hands. They all look forward to the day they can finally strike out at real humans and replace them more intensely than the most devout Evangelical Christian looks forward to The Rapture. Philip K. Dick handled this same issue immeasurably better in "Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep," where his androids simultaneously envied, feared, and looked down on the humans to whom they were physically superior, but compared to whom they were emotionally stunted. Koontz' new humans also end up behaving cartoonishly. For example, two replicants, who have replaced the New Orleans district attorney and his wife, talk calmly with each other, calmly decide to go kill their neighbors for no apparent reason, all the while saying things like:

Replicant wife: "I hate her so much."
Replicant husband: "I hate her too. I hate him. I hate them all. Do something really amazing to her."

And later, after a few senseless, very gory murders...

Replicant wife: "I need to be naked when I kill the next ones. It feels right."
Replicant husband: "Does it feel right just for the next house, or is it maybe one of your personal core values?"
Replicant wife: "I don't know. Maybe it's a PCV. We'll have to wait and see."

You've GOT to be kidding me! What has Koontz been smoking lately? And it's not just the over-the-top, ridiculously cartoonish (I can't think of a word that fits this better) violence and dialogue. It's the plot holes you could march the 82nd Airborne Division through. Take the two homicidal replicants I just mentioned, for example. They had replaced the real district attorney and his wife just days earlier, and now they are coming unhinged so completely, and so publicly that they go on the above mentioned, multi-house murder spree, and end up chasing a dog, while naked, through the streets of New Orleans, chanting "Dog, dog, dog..." and "Kill, kill, kill..." all the while. Another one, who replaced a pastor, breaks down and begins losing his mind, as well as his motor functions within an equally short time. Numerous others exhibit homicidal tendencies. Some literally go insane and start chewing off their fingers or smashing their faces into a hot stove, etc. A couple of other undergo spectacular and dangerous physical transformations as well. Now think about this for just a few seconds. Victor Frankenstein has supposedly been making artificial humans for over TWO HUNDRED YEARS by this time! And he's been doing it so successfully that in two full centuries no one has ever managed to discover what he's doing. The only time word really got out was with his first creation, who became a local legend that inspired Mary Shelley to write her famous novel, and at no time since has he ever been close to discovery by the rest of humanity. Now how could he have ever integrated his creations so seamlessly into human society for so very long if they were this unstable? And it's awfully convenient that this mass breakdown of his creations should occur just as he's ratcheting up his plans and is ready to begin mass production of his new humans. Frankly, the story would have worked much better, and the danger been much more menacing, if Victor's creations were successful and stable and blending into society, and stood a real chance of taking over key positions, awaiting the day when they could strike decisively at an unsuspecting and complacent humanity. As it is, they look far too likely to self-destruct before they can get very far, so why worry?

Another plot hole is the supposed despair with which all these "soulless" manufactured humans view the world. ALL of them, every last one, wants to die. You see, they have been genetically engineered to be incapable of believing in a higher power, so of course, life has no meaning, and there's no point to existence, right? So what if they create the perfect society? If the universe is just a big, unfeeling machine itself, and there's no soul, and no afterlife, and no higher power to enforce morality and imbue the cosmos with some great metaphysical purpose, who'd want to live anyway, right? And so it is that all of these new humans are secretly living totally empty lives of despair and anguish, and every last one of them wants to end it, but can't, because their maker has encoded a proscription against suicide into their DNA. I am aware that many people of various religions seem to have this view of atheism/agnosticism, but it really astounds me that a best-selling novelist, of all people, especially a writer of fantastic and supernatural thrillers, should be so utterly lacking in imagination that he truly cannot conceive that there are GENUINELY people out there who have no belief whatever in a higher power or an afterlife or a supreme being, and yet still find life fulfilling and meaningful and enjoyable. Not believing in a higher power simply does not inevitably lead to this outlook on life, and even people who do not share this outlook themselves, ought not assume that other people must secretly see the world the way they do. Consequently, I have a hard time accepting this as the motivation for the new humans' ultimate breakdown, which is how Koontz has it.

Anyway, suffice it to say that never has a well begun tale been brought to a sorrier conclusion.

I have adored Dean Konntz since I was in High school, I remember reading Phantoms for the first time and not sleeping through a night for a week! He is simply the best author I've ever found, he grabs you in the first page and doesn't let go until he's done what he wants to.

I too was very Wary of the title, but I've found I'm not thinking about Frankenstein when I'm reading this, I'm just too engrossed in the characters! I can not wait until book two and I am so glad he wrote this instead of following through with making it a movie as he mentions in the begining of the book.

I loved book two City of Night, so book three had a lot to live up to. I liked the story but it had that wrap up feeling to it. I prefer sequels to have a stand alone quality to them. That being said I felt it was good as an extension to book two. I like the message at the end of book three and I liked that Dean brought a signature animal character into the story.

Like many of Koontz's fans I have been waiting eagerly for this final installment. Unfortunately it reads as though the author was much less enthusiastic about finishing it than the readers were.

I really enjoy Dean Koontz's books... but the problem is that while some of them are just amazing the remainder range from mediocre to bad.

Deucalion, Helios, and Erika are still great in this book.

Michael and Carson are not. They don't seem to carry forward their personalities from the earlier novels - it's almost like the author didn't bother to re-read his own stories to make sure they stayed in character.

But it still moves, and it's still interesting, it just feels thrown together. Less humor less depth and less quality than I hope for (used to be expect) in Koontz's novels.

I know others have said in the past that it seems as though Koontz is now employing a ghost writer - this is the first time I didn't think it was just a conspiracy theory. It felt like DK laid out the story and the ideas and someone else filled in the blanks. My guess is that he just wasn't that into it but now I understand where that idea comes from.

It's a shame because this was a super promising premise when he wrote the first two books.

Well actually, no. Of course not. Nothing can top the original. But Koontz comes at this classic tale with his own scythe ready to cause a change of faith in the fans of the original. This is not so much a remake as a supplement to the classic tale. Koontz references the story we all now and simply fast-forwards to our time, keeping the original Victor and his monster, and giving them longevity.

The prose is ellegant and the speed is neck-breaking. It appears that Mr. Koontz uses 'big' words and paints detailed scenarios that may intimidate some readers, but I challenge you to read his work out loud - you'll see how nicely the words roll off your tongue.

We seen the story Frankenstein in movies. The tale has been told over and over again. But this book puts a new spin on a great and legendary character.

Welcome to the future ...Frankenstein in the modern age. This book is compelling, thrilling, and full of mystery and suspense.

This is a must read for fans of Frankenstein.

I am a first time reviewer, and like so many of the reviewers said before, waited patiently (or maybe not) for the 3rd (and final?) in this Frankenstein series (LOVED 1 & 2)...I couldn't wait to start this book...as it turned out I couldn't wait to finish it...boring, all over the place (Jocko, what a Joko), where was the all out battle we were lead to believe was going to take place involving all the characters, where was the "danger", "suspense"...what a total let down. Maybe the co-authors of 1 & 2 will bring us an entertaining finale to this trilogy!!! If for some reason Mr. Koontz chooses to continue this series, I know one reader who won't bother wasting time with the next installment...

terrific character development, holds your attention then...NOTHING! Really prefer a story that continues to a conclusion, instead of abruptly ending (almost in mid-paragraph). Very disappointed in Mr. Koontz.

Dean's take on Frankenstein was innovative and clever with a dash of humor every now and then. There are various characters in the book, each with their own goals, desires & overall darkness. Seeing as their paths connect throughout the book makes every chapter as gripping as the previous one. The fact that there are 4 more books in the series is a clear sign that Dean's vision and ideas on Frankenstein have barely just started in 'Prodigal son'. Just know that one book won't be enough. Eventually you'll end up owning them all.

On his blog, Koontz said that book 3 was delayed because he just couldn't write with contributing authors. "Dead and Alive" proved one of two things: a) the contributing authors were better than Koontz, or b) he was tired of the complaints and churned out something just to finish it off.

Because of the lapse of time between this and the other two books, I re-read books 1 & 2. I even bought new copies because I had passed the originals on to friends. I found myself thrilled anew with "Prodigal Son" and "City of Night," and couldn't wait for "Dead and Alive." The story was initially intriguing. However, the longer I read, the more I wanted it finished.

It's obvious from the start that Victor's creations are not as perfect as he believed they were, and his world is slowly falling apart. However, the devices that Koontz uses to illustrate this chaos are chaos in themselves. With the Warner thing, the Chameleon, the troll, the mind-clouding "entity," I began to feel like I was in a Star wars bar scene.

Overall, "Dead and Alive" was very disappointing. If you read the first two, you will probably have to read it, but be prepared. It's all downhill after book 2.

I have to admitt that I am not as big a book reader as I used to be. However, when I saw this book in the store I couldn't resist.The idea of making a remake of the classic book was exciting and possibly to like the original. Let me tell you upfront that this book was GREAT!!!! It is the fastest I've ever read a book (4 days); I could not put it down. This book is very direct in the plot, and easy to follow the chapter changes. Koontz writes the characters in a way that you can truely understand exactly what they're feeling, and you can sympathize with even the dubious villians. I hope you take the time to read this book, IT IS WORTH IT!!!!!!!

PS- The next part to this book is set to be released in July 2005 :)

I have read most of Dean Koontz's books and really enjoy him when he doesn't get too dark or "weird". This book was neither (unless your squeamish about serial killers, in which case you shouldn't be reading horror anyway ;o) and I really enjoyed it.

The Cop/Buddy aspect was fun and the monsters kept it interesting. If you are looking for a good horror read, definitely pick this book up!

This novel honestly makes me question the skill level of Koontz as a writer. Or maybe his editor is to blame. My assumption is that Koontz has so many bestsellers his editor doesn't even proof anything anymore, or Koontz refuses to let anyone meddle with his first drafts. This is most clearly exhibited in the changes in past and present tense strewn throughout the book. At first I thought certain parts were taking place in the present, and others were slightly in the past, leading up to other events taking place, but no. Within chapters it was changing. A setting or character would be described in the present and then the action would take place in the past. I kept wondering if I was missing something, but no, by the end it became clear that everything was happening at the same time. No story line was farther along than another.

The story itself is solid and was enough to keep me reading, though mostly just to see where he was going with all this. The cops were alright because I'm a sucker for cop stories, but they were very wooden. As for the love aspects, if the characters were wooden like a soft birch, the love situation was a very solid oak, possibly a pine. For all the magical elements I had no trouble believing, I could not suspend my disbelief in regards to the people and their thoughts and actions.

I also have a problem with the book's pop culture references. They're all clunky. I was weary when Deucalion and a monk were chatting about Cheezits for the first six pages of the book, and my fears were solid. Dean tried to reinvent the Frankenstein concept in a world that understood itself based on pop culture, as understood in our reality by a 50-year-old nerd (Koontz). I laughed countless times (". . . had it been Barney the Dinosaur things may have gone differently." LOLZ). By the end I was pitying the poor guy.

This book doesn't seem like the product of a professional writer. I read stories like this in creative writing classes.

Maybe read it. Probably don't.

One has suggested the Decaulion character lacked depth. Another has hinted that the ending lacked surprise (must have been reading a different book). Remember two things: Koontz wrote it, and it's Book One. We will get into the mystery of the original "monster" (Decaulion) and we readers will find many surprises and twists as the story continues to unfold.

That being said, I loooooved this book. This is a fun, intriguing look at the evil Doc Frankenstein, who was certainly a monster before chopping his own body up to become yet more so. Dr. F., impervious to aging and disease after 200 years, has been a busy bee, building and perfecting more monsters. But things are starting to go terribly wrong for New Orleans and for the Doctor we love to hate.

Read it, you'll love it.

This story is slow and the characters unsympathetic. I like the idea of genetics superfreaks running amuck and the Frankenstein's wise monster is a cool character. I'd say this book is good enough to read, but not really worth more than a few bucks. Far from Koontz's best effort.

And please, Dean, would you stop with all the smug swipes at everyone on earth who doesn't share your religion?! Contrary to what you state or imply in virtually every one of your recent books, again and again, it IS possible to live in a moral fashion and love one's fellow humans, and to find meaning in life, without reference to a higher power. The opposite of monotheism is not necessarily chaos or amorality. Just give it a rest! Please!

Sorry, but this tendency on Koontz's part is getting really old.

I resisted reading this book, even tho I am fond of Koontz's books. It just sounded trite and boring to me. But I finally caved and got it. What a surprise that it was just loads of fun. Yes, it was grisly (after all, we are talking Frankenstein here), but it had Mr. Koontz's usual good pacing and story telling, believable characters, etc. I look forward to the next installment, which I will certainly not resist reading!

I just finished reading Dean Koontz's Frankenstein, an imaginative expansion of Mary Shelly's classic. Two hundred years later, Victor Frankenstein's original creation, now known as Deucalion, is a mysterious facially-tatooed Tibetan recluse who returns home once he learns that Victor is still alive, well & creating.

In the intervening years Victor has managed to create a number of creatures to inhabit his new world order. Among them include:

+ A godless, Igor-like priest (without the deformity)
+ An autistic soul looking for happiness; called Randal Six
+ A severed head (named Karloff) and an Adams Family-like disembodied hand
+ A homicidal police detective, how ironic
+ Several Stepford Wife-like brides called Erika who are numbered like movie sequels
+ And a monstrous, troll-like creature who emerges from Jonathan Harker's torso in a manner reminiscent of the movie Alien. Ummm, wasn't there a Jonathan Harker in Bram Stoker's Dracula?

Other monsters included:

+ The horror of abuse & neglect
+ The hollowness & anxiety of autism
+ The despair of soul-less existence
+ The terror of being violently used, stalked, maimed & killed
+ The madness of unbridled ego & self-gratification
+ The futile quests for soul-less faith, hope & happiness
+ The guilt of righting wrongs, erasing the past & erasing the present
+ The desire to create a Hitler-like world ruled/inhabited by superior beings

Still reflecting, I'm wondering whether this was intended as a tribute to the horror greats & cult movie/TV favorites or an ernest attempt to stand on Mary Shelly's shoulders to create something entirely new, yet entirely old.

By the way, nice homage to Boris Karloff & The Brain that Wouldn't Die.

[...]

I liked this book. I've read the other two in the series and keeping in mind this is more of a "comic book" type of novel was entertaining. I have noticed his last few works have seemed not as hard or edgy. Lots of silly banter between characters. I could do without that. But I do like his injection of humor at times.

I have always been a fan of Dean Koontz's books and when my flight was grounded and I was to spend the night in the airport, I figured I'd better get myself a book to keep me entertained. That's exactly what this book did. I enjoyed reading it so much that I almost missed my connecting flight back home because I didn't want to put the book down.
It's unique, fresh and fast paced. If you enjoyed the original Frankenstein story, you will adore this "updated" and more complete modern version. You will not be disappointed!

This was a great read! The mad scientist return & theres so much mystery its very intriguing. However, I did find it to be a bit confusing with so many charecters to keep up with in order to understand the whole storey & how it meshes into Frankenstien but Im glad I read it :)

I loved the first two Frankenstein books. When the third finally came out I was beside myself with excitement. As I started reading it though I began wondering, why this took so long to come out? It felt sloppy and lacked anything meaningful going on in the story. It all lead up to an anti climactic ending. All the character felt a little hollow. Helios use to feel so strong and cold, collected in his evil scientist thing..in the third book he turned into a vein sissy. What the heck was that about?!
At the end of it all, I felt it wasn't worth the wait. Maybe it would have been better just leaving it hanging at 2.

First, as most of us here have posted, I've been a Koontz fan for 3 decades. And in those decades, I've only been disappointed once or twice in a story of DRK. The first two books of this trilogy, were great. Kept me hooked and then longing for 4 years for the final one. I re-read the first ones prior to scampering out to get the next one.

I snapped it up the day it hit the bookstore. I wanted to return it the same day. I was sure someone had impersonated DRK and wrote the book. There are parts where his natural writing style and talents come thru, but over all I was very disappointed. Jocko seemed more like a demented house elf from Harry Potter, than the thing that chilled Carson & Maddison. Victor's character was not as deep as the first two books, the New Race, not as believeable. What happened to Jelly? Carson & Maddision spent most of the book wired up and driving around. Very sad use of two such notable characters.

It was an easy read, but not worth the 4 year wait, much as I love Dean, I just can't say it was.

After waiting and waiting and waiting for this book to come out I am very disappointed. 80 pages in I just had to quit. It was total crap nonsense and a waste of time. Glad I didn't buy the book but borrowed it from my library. Way to phone it in, Dean.

Dean's take on Frankenstein was innovative and clever with a dash of humor every now and then. There are various characters in the book, each with their own goals, desires & overall darkness. Seeing as their paths connect throughout the book makes every chapter as gripping as the previous one. The fact that there are 4 more books in the series is a clear sign that Dean's vision and ideas on Frankenstein have barely just started in 'Prodigal son'. Just know that one book won't be enough. Eventually you'll end up owning them all.

On his blog, Koontz said that book 3 was delayed because he just couldn't write with contributing authors. "Dead and Alive" proved one of two things: a) the contributing authors were better than Koontz, or b) he was tired of the complaints and churned out something just to finish it off.

Because of the lapse of time between this and the other two books, I re-read books 1 & 2. I even bought new copies because I had passed the originals on to friends. I found myself thrilled anew with "Prodigal Son" and "City of Night," and couldn't wait for "Dead and Alive." The story was initially intriguing. However, the longer I read, the more I wanted it finished.

It's obvious from the start that Victor's creations are not as perfect as he believed they were, and his world is slowly falling apart. However, the devices that Koontz uses to illustrate this chaos are chaos in themselves. With the Warner thing, the Chameleon, the troll, the mind-clouding "entity," I began to feel like I was in a Star wars bar scene.

Overall, "Dead and Alive" was very disappointing. If you read the first two, you will probably have to read it, but be prepared. It's all downhill after book 2.

I have to admitt that I am not as big a book reader as I used to be. However, when I saw this book in the store I couldn't resist.The idea of making a remake of the classic book was exciting and possibly to like the original. Let me tell you upfront that this book was GREAT!!!! It is the fastest I've ever read a book (4 days); I could not put it down. This book is very direct in the plot, and easy to follow the chapter changes. Koontz writes the characters in a way that you can truely understand exactly what they're feeling, and you can sympathize with even the dubious villians. I hope you take the time to read this book, IT IS WORTH IT!!!!!!!

PS- The next part to this book is set to be released in July 2005 :)

I have read most of Dean Koontz's books and really enjoy him when he doesn't get too dark or "weird". This book was neither (unless your squeamish about serial killers, in which case you shouldn't be reading horror anyway ;o) and I really enjoyed it.

The Cop/Buddy aspect was fun and the monsters kept it interesting. If you are looking for a good horror read, definitely pick this book up!

This novel honestly makes me question the skill level of Koontz as a writer. Or maybe his editor is to blame. My assumption is that Koontz has so many bestsellers his editor doesn't even proof anything anymore, or Koontz refuses to let anyone meddle with his first drafts. This is most clearly exhibited in the changes in past and present tense strewn throughout the book. At first I thought certain parts were taking place in the present, and others were slightly in the past, leading up to other events taking place, but no. Within chapters it was changing. A setting or character would be described in the present and then the action would take place in the past. I kept wondering if I was missing something, but no, by the end it became clear that everything was happening at the same time. No story line was farther along than another.

The story itself is solid and was enough to keep me reading, though mostly just to see where he was going with all this. The cops were alright because I'm a sucker for cop stories, but they were very wooden. As for the love aspects, if the characters were wooden like a soft birch, the love situation was a very solid oak, possibly a pine. For all the magical elements I had no trouble believing, I could not suspend my disbelief in regards to the people and their thoughts and actions.

I also have a problem with the book's pop culture references. They're all clunky. I was weary when Deucalion and a monk were chatting about Cheezits for the first six pages of the book, and my fears were solid. Dean tried to reinvent the Frankenstein concept in a world that understood itself based on pop culture, as understood in our reality by a 50-year-old nerd (Koontz). I laughed countless times (". . . had it been Barney the Dinosaur things may have gone differently." LOLZ). By the end I was pitying the poor guy.

This book doesn't seem like the product of a professional writer. I read stories like this in creative writing classes.

Maybe read it. Probably don't.

One has suggested the Decaulion character lacked depth. Another has hinted that the ending lacked surprise (must have been reading a different book). Remember two things: Koontz wrote it, and it's Book One. We will get into the mystery of the original "monster" (Decaulion) and we readers will find many surprises and twists as the story continues to unfold.

That being said, I loooooved this book. This is a fun, intriguing look at the evil Doc Frankenstein, who was certainly a monster before chopping his own body up to become yet more so. Dr. F., impervious to aging and disease after 200 years, has been a busy bee, building and perfecting more monsters. But things are starting to go terribly wrong for New Orleans and for the Doctor we love to hate.

Read it, you'll love it.

This story is slow and the characters unsympathetic. I like the idea of genetics superfreaks running amuck and the Frankenstein's wise monster is a cool character. I'd say this book is good enough to read, but not really worth more than a few bucks. Far from Koontz's best effort.

And please, Dean, would you stop with all the smug swipes at everyone on earth who doesn't share your religion?! Contrary to what you state or imply in virtually every one of your recent books, again and again, it IS possible to live in a moral fashion and love one's fellow humans, and to find meaning in life, without reference to a higher power. The opposite of monotheism is not necessarily chaos or amorality. Just give it a rest! Please!

Sorry, but this tendency on Koontz's part is getting really old.

I resisted reading this book, even tho I am fond of Koontz's books. It just sounded trite and boring to me. But I finally caved and got it. What a surprise that it was just loads of fun. Yes, it was grisly (after all, we are talking Frankenstein here), but it had Mr. Koontz's usual good pacing and story telling, believable characters, etc. I look forward to the next installment, which I will certainly not resist reading!

I just finished reading Dean Koontz's Frankenstein, an imaginative expansion of Mary Shelly's classic. Two hundred years later, Victor Frankenstein's original creation, now known as Deucalion, is a mysterious facially-tatooed Tibetan recluse who returns home once he learns that Victor is still alive, well & creating.

In the intervening years Victor has managed to create a number of creatures to inhabit his new world order. Among them include:

+ A godless, Igor-like priest (without the deformity)
+ An autistic soul looking for happiness; called Randal Six
+ A severed head (named Karloff) and an Adams Family-like disembodied hand
+ A homicidal police detective, how ironic
+ Several Stepford Wife-like brides called Erika who are numbered like movie sequels
+ And a monstrous, troll-like creature who emerges from Jonathan Harker's torso in a manner reminiscent of the movie Alien. Ummm, wasn't there a Jonathan Harker in Bram Stoker's Dracula?

Other monsters included:

+ The horror of abuse & neglect
+ The hollowness & anxiety of autism
+ The despair of soul-less existence
+ The terror of being violently used, stalked, maimed & killed
+ The madness of unbridled ego & self-gratification
+ The futile quests for soul-less faith, hope & happiness
+ The guilt of righting wrongs, erasing the past & erasing the present
+ The desire to create a Hitler-like world ruled/inhabited by superior beings

Still reflecting, I'm wondering whether this was intended as a tribute to the horror greats & cult movie/TV favorites or an ernest attempt to stand on Mary Shelly's shoulders to create something entirely new, yet entirely old.

By the way, nice homage to Boris Karloff & The Brain that Wouldn't Die.

[...]

I liked this book. I've read the other two in the series and keeping in mind this is more of a "comic book" type of novel was entertaining. I have noticed his last few works have seemed not as hard or edgy. Lots of silly banter between characters. I could do without that. But I do like his injection of humor at times.

I have always been a fan of Dean Koontz's books and when my flight was grounded and I was to spend the night in the airport, I figured I'd better get myself a book to keep me entertained. That's exactly what this book did. I enjoyed reading it so much that I almost missed my connecting flight back home because I didn't want to put the book down.
It's unique, fresh and fast paced. If you enjoyed the original Frankenstein story, you will adore this "updated" and more complete modern version. You will not be disappointed!

This was a great read! The mad scientist return & theres so much mystery its very intriguing. However, I did find it to be a bit confusing with so many charecters to keep up with in order to understand the whole storey & how it meshes into Frankenstien but Im glad I read it :)

I loved the first two Frankenstein books. When the third finally came out I was beside myself with excitement. As I started reading it though I began wondering, why this took so long to come out? It felt sloppy and lacked anything meaningful going on in the story. It all lead up to an anti climactic ending. All the character felt a little hollow. Helios use to feel so strong and cold, collected in his evil scientist thing..in the third book he turned into a vein sissy. What the heck was that about?!
At the end of it all, I felt it wasn't worth the wait. Maybe it would have been better just leaving it hanging at 2.

First, as most of us here have posted, I've been a Koontz fan for 3 decades. And in those decades, I've only been disappointed once or twice in a story of DRK. The first two books of this trilogy, were great. Kept me hooked and then longing for 4 years for the final one. I re-read the first ones prior to scampering out to get the next one.

I snapped it up the day it hit the bookstore. I wanted to return it the same day. I was sure someone had impersonated DRK and wrote the book. There are parts where his natural writing style and talents come thru, but over all I was very disappointed. Jocko seemed more like a demented house elf from Harry Potter, than the thing that chilled Carson & Maddison. Victor's character was not as deep as the first two books, the New Race, not as believeable. What happened to Jelly? Carson & Maddision spent most of the book wired up and driving around. Very sad use of two such notable characters.

It was an easy read, but not worth the 4 year wait, much as I love Dean, I just can't say it was.

After waiting and waiting and waiting for this book to come out I am very disappointed. 80 pages in I just had to quit. It was total crap nonsense and a waste of time. Glad I didn't buy the book but borrowed it from my library. Way to phone it in, Dean.

It has been a long, long wait. Now I wish we could wait longer.

What happened?

First, Carson and Michael. Ready to fight the impossible fight meets the ultimate challenge when they kill a New Race guy with a couple of huge gun. Did I mention he was naked? Not Michael, the new age guy. Good thing these two have themselves a heapin' helpin' of witty repartee or there would be pretty much no reason to keep them alive beyond page 1.

Victor's new wife, fresh from the wife-vats, immediately starts down the dangerous road of making friends with a troll who calls himself "Jocko". Should have been "Jar-Jar-Jocko". All Jar Jar wants to do is kill Dr. Frankenstein, but somehow gets caught up in obsessive pirhouetting and fruit juggling. But due to his new friend, Mrs. Mad Scientist, J gets the lovin' he needs to be a normal troll.

Of course, there's also the Mad Scientist himself, Victor Frankenstein-Helios. Whatever danger he represented in 1&2 is missing here. He's the Colonol Klink of Hands-Of-Mercy. Every thing, absolutely everything is going wrong all around him, and it takes him forever to figure it out.

What of The mighty Deucalion, First-Made of the new race has powers to tap in the very quantum essence of the universe? In the first books, he a marvelously conflicted character able to snatch quiet calm from the jaws of incredible rage; protecting those who would naturally seek to destroy him once they know who he is.

In 1 & 2, He uses his powers to destroy dangerous members of the new race and save the life on an autistic boy. In 3, he transcends these deeds by reading stuff at victor's mansion, pulling tubes out of brain machines, and carefully standing an watching while one of the most horribly repugnant, beautiful telepathic gone wrongs convinces new and old racers that everything is ok.

Overall, I enjoyed turning the pages and reading the book because I kept believing that in a short time, everything will come together for a powerful finale.

The finale never arrives. With a few short paragraphs and a bit of magic, everything is made fine and everyone goes on the live peaceful lives.

I'm a faithful Koontz fan. If you are like me and loved 1 & 2. Prepare to be disappointed in #3.

The much awaited, by me anyway, final chapter in the Frankenstein series was a big letdown. I knew Koontz's heart wasn't in the story as I followed posts on his site and even got replies to e-mails I sent, and it shows. It reads like, how can I get this done as quickly and as painlessly as possible to get these fans off my back. I had planned to read the first two stories again having read them twice already. I figured that would set me up for the grand finale. I am glad I did not since I think it would have made my disappointment even greater.

It had to be New Orleans because the plot meandered around the city like the chronicles of a certain vampire-loving raconteur from the Big Easy. Don't misunderstand me, I admire the detail, but get on with the story. If I wanted excessive minutia, I'd read Crichton. Too many details derail the rising action and sidetrack the attention span. These characters burn tissue thin except for the side show freaks including Deucalion. He deserved the story and not the two dimensional, reiterated clones that became as souless as their flat egotistical creator (I guess Helios meant that he is the center of the solar system and not just this world). I hope if I live 200 years I will not become as concerned with humanity that I find the need to control it through a B-movie motivation. Helios deserved more. Mr. Sinister in Marvel Comics played more convincing than Helios. I wanted to like this novel since I adored the Modern Prometheus and the Dune prequels, but where was the story? More matter and less art next time! I won't be tagging along for the extended tour of New Orleans for the next book. Sorry.

This book is amazing on so many levels. It takes the traditional Frankenstein story and weaves a modern tale of secrets, deception, and corruption hidden under a thin veneer of high society. It is creepy how probable some of the things in this book are. It is a sad tale, but it pulls you in and won't let go. I would recommend this book for anyone with a healthily inquisitive mind and a bit of empathy.

Like everyone else, I'd been waiting forever for this third book to finally come out. The first two were incredible - some of Koontz's best work to date. This third book lacked just about everything - the two detectives and "The Monster" were just a side note rather than the focus. I expected so much better - I'd have rather waited another year for him to come up with a better plot and finish to the trilogy. As a fan of Koontz's for over 20 years, this was a huge disappointment and definitely not the "masterpiece" that was expected.

I was pleasantly surprised how much I enjoyed this book. Fast paced, detailed characters, original story, and an epic feel make this a great read. I haven't liked other Koontz before, but I guess Kevin J. Anderson helped pull Dean up to his level. I look forward to the continuing story -- especially by veteran writer Ed Gorman.

I hate reviews that tell me too much about a book.

What I loved about Prodigal Son was the pacing, the gritty feel of the darker parts of New Orleans (my personal favorite city), and complex characters who were interwoven in this thriller. I was also thrilled to know that Kevin J. Anderson was a co-author on this adventure. Kevin's novelizations for SKY CAPTAIN AND THE WORLD OF TOMORROW and THE LEAGUE OF EXTRAORDINARY GENTLEMEN capture the feel of the movie as well as allow a reader to fill in with their own imagination. How I wish that FRANKENSTEIN had been made for TV or Film...I'd be in line at least twice to see it because of the craftmanship of Anderson & Koontz on paper only makes my want to see a filmed interpretation that much more.

What a huge disappointment. The first two were so good, but this is just the story of a bimbo, an overactive troll thingie and a blob. Really bad.
Maybe if we all get together and ask nicely we can get Koontz to rewrite the third installment? Some one could wake up and it could all be a stupid dream...they do it on soap opera's all the time! C'mon...why not?...really, it would be so much better.....

I did the same as many reviewers and reread Books 1 and 2 before reading Book 3. Book 1 was as great as the first time, Book 2 just a little less so. I had been waiting and waiting for Book 3 to come out and agree it is Koontz's worst work, by far. I've read everything he's written and consider him one of my favorite authors. I may not have LOVED all his books but I've never disliked one until now. What a disappointment! Jocko???? Really, Dean, that's YOUR Jar Jar Binks. Enough said.

A new twist on an old story. This book seems a bit slow as the various storylines are being formulated. They all tie together nicely at the end with a good cliffhanger at the end. I'll read the next one in the series.

koontz claimed he didn't enjoy the collaborations of the first 2 novels in this series. he really should have gritted his teeth and tried it one more time. perhaps, then, this book would have been less of a disjointed mess, with some continuity in character development. carson and michael had absolutely nothing in common with themselves in the first 2 books. the dwarf, who should have been used to better effect as a menacing character, became a jester. and on and on. he added characters, forgot others and shrunk the books content. it does make you wonder about ghost writers for his other books, you know, the better ones. and if there weren't ghosts for those, perhaps he should think about one as long as he's fixated on odd thomas, because his last few books have been disappointing. this book gives the impression that he just threw it out there to pacify his critics. why aren't you allowed to give NO stars.