Product Description

Two young boys--one withdrawn and shy, and the other popular and confident--participate in a game for those with a dangerous fascination with death, an irresistible game with deadly implications. Reissue.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #53139 in Books
• Published on: 1991-07-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 352 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780425128169
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
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About the Author
Dean Koontz was born into a very poor family and learned early on to escape into fiction. His novels have sold over 200 million copies worldwide and more than thirty have appeared on national and international bestseller lists. He lives in southern California with his wife, Gerda and a vivid imagination.

From AudioFile
Koontz brings his usual suspenseful touch to this 1980 novel. Young teens Colin and Roy become fast summer pals. But it doesn't take long for geeky Colin to see that athletic Roy has a twisted obsession: death. This teen thriller revolves around their relationship, and Patrick Lawlor does a fine job with their voices. He gives Roy a slightly malevolent growling tone; Colin's voice is a bit higher pitched. Lawlor doesn't do as well with minor characters, such as the clichˆ©d matronly librarian, the overbearing father, and the hardworking mother who is too tired to listen to her son. But the bulk of the book is boy versus boy, and Lawlor keeps the story moving. He captures the boys' anger and vengeance as dark secrets come to the surface. M.B. © AudioFile 2008, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine

Customer Reviews

Very Very Good Book~!
The Voice of the Night, by Dean R. Koontz is the best book I have ever read. I couldn't put if down from the minute I picked it up and started reading it. If you want an example of a page turner, then here's one for you. The book is about a young fourteen year old boy, Colin, who moves to a new little town in the 1990's. Right when Colin moves there, he becomes bestfriends with a boy named Roy, who is about the same age. The are inseperable. The boys are together all of time. Roy has become Colin's new bestfriend, which is something Colin has never had. He had been the outcast in his old school, but now he is friends with the most popular boy in his class. Roy has a deep secret that he desperatly wants to share with Colin, but he first has to test Colin to see if he is trustworthy. When Roy finally feels that Colin is trusted enough, he tells him his awful secret. Roy kills people for the fun of it. And he wants Colin to help him kill someone to prove their friendship. Colin cant possibly kill someone, but he doesnt want to lose Colin as a friend. He decides that their friendship is not worth what Roy wants it to be, so he says 'no' to Roy's offer. This angers Roy and he is out to kill Colin. But in the end..... well, i guess i'll just have to let you read and find that out! This is an excellent book, and I would recommend it to ANYONE. It has just the right sequence of events to make you keep wanting to turn the pages and never stop. Which is what I love about this book. I will read it many times.

Depends on how you relate to the main character
This Koontz book, like many, focuses on an isolated main character -- Colin -- and the challenges he must face. There is also the usual potential "good woman" (sometimes a love interest, sometimes a child, sometimes a mother or aunt) who may bring hope and light into the main character's life. I believe much of Koontz' success as a character is the focus on such loneliness and the hope we can find in such places.

The formula was less effective for me in The Voice of the Night because, although I was not one of the popular kids in school, I had some good friends and understanding parents. Not so with the 14-year Colin. He's had no real friends and his divorced parents are too self-absorbed to relate to him. He retreats into his love of horror/sci-fi books and films until he finally finds the friendship that has eluded him. Roy is the coolest and most popular guy at school and he befriends Colin. Indeed, they become "blood brothers." Unfortunately, Roy is evil. He is fascinated with death, has murdered before, and plans to keep on murdering. He has befriended Colin with the intent of seducing him into his evil games. As the seduction progresses, it is to Koontz' credit that he does not tip his hand on which way Colin will go until the proverbial moment of truth is at hand.

A good book but not Koontz's best because it will not have as wide appeal as his others. For those whose childhoods resemble Colins' more than mine, however, I suspect it could be very meaningful.

Scary, psychological, chilling, and realistic. An eye opener
It's unfortunate that I could not put 20 stars down- that's what it deserves for being such an amazing novel. I first read this book 3 years ago and still pick it up and look at it (skim the pages and read my favorite parts) almost everyday. Although this book's premise does not fit my definition of "horror," it is still scary because it could actually happen and and because Koontz is able to get you to feel for both the characters (near the end of the book I was relatively empathetic to Roy because of some issues he had and still has) and therefore it makes the prospect of something happening to them (for the most part it's Colin you worry about) daunting. It's an incredibly exciting book, with action and subtle clues of the suspense that is to come and it also has psychological elements to it that also interest me because I am fascinated by psychology and such things. I love this book! It's one of my favorites and my favorite of his. Feel free to email me to talk about the book, any of his other books (or other authors and their books) or anything in general.