"Apocalyptical thriller"
The rain keeps Molly Sloan indoors so she works on her
book that she hopes to complete soon. However, she
observes the oddity of the torrent pouring at over seven
inches an hour and it has luminescent glow as if snow was
falling. On her porch is a horde of coyotes acting as if
they fear what is out there but they are friendly towards
Molly. Her husband Neil awakens from a nightmare and
joins her. From TV they learn that the storm is worldwide. The Sloans see the probable cause when an UFO hovers in
the sky and weird looking fungus and spores multiply at a
geometric Malthusian rate. People vanish into the ground
or levitate into the air; corpses walk and decapitated
heads talk. Special dogs congregate around the
beleaguered couple as Molly and Neil search the nearby
town for children of parents who disappeared. They
believe that the children and their guardians cannot be
touched. In less than thirty-six hours the world that the
Sloans knew is gone and both wonder how the ETs will deal
with the survivors. This apocalyptical thriller is a chilling frightening
tale as two scared souls fight back against overwhelming
odds, but take the time to try to protect the children
though being a good Samaritan can mean being a dead
Samaritan. Dean Koontz is at his best with this sure shot
New York Times best seller that deserves many kudos. The
science of the invaders is so far ahead of humanity it
compares to prehistoric man seeing TV or movies. Readers
will never look at rain the same way as Mr. Koontz has
subtle changed the rhythm. Harriet Klausner
Reviewed by PNR Group Member
Posted May 3, 2004
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In one of the most dazzling books of his celebrated career,
Dean Koontz delivers a masterwork of page-turning suspense
that surpasses even his own inimitable reputation as a
chronicler of our worst fears?and best dreams. In The
Taking he tells the story of a community cut off from a
world under siege, and the terrifying battle for survival
waged by a young couple and their neighbors as familiar
streets become fog-shrouded death traps. Gripping,
heartbreaking, and triumphant in the face of mankind?s
darkest hour, here is a small-town slice-of-doomsday
thriller that strikes to the core of each of us to ask:
What would you do in the midst of The Taking. On the morning that will mark the end of the world they
have known, Molly and Niel Sloan awaken to the drumbeat of
rain on their roof. It has haunted their sleep, invaded
their dreams, and now they rise to find a luminous silvery
downpour drenching their small California mountain town. A
strange scent hangs faintly in the air, and the young
couple cannot shake the sense of something wrong. As hours pass and the rain continues to fall, Molly and
Niel listen to disturbing news of extreme weather phenomena
across the globe. Before evening, their little town loses
television and radio reception. Then telephone and the
Internet are gone. With the ceaseless rain now comes an
obscuring fog that transforms the once-friendly village
into a ghostly labyrinth. By nightfall the Sloans have
gathered with some of their neighbors to deal with
community damage...but also because they feel the need to
band together against some unknown threat, some enemy they
cannot identify or even imagine. In the night, strange noises arise, and at a distance, in
the rain and the mist, mysterious lights are seen drifting
among the trees. The rain diminishes with the dawn, but a
moody gray-purple twilight prevails. Soon Molly, Niel, and
their small band of friends will be forced to draw on
reserves of strength, courage, and humanity they never knew
they had. For within the misty gloom they will encounter
something that reveals in a terrifying instant what is
happening to their world?something that is hunting them
with ruthless efficiency. Epic in scope, searingly intimate
and immediate in perspective, The Taking is an adventure
story like no other, a relentless roller-coaster read that
brings apocalypse to Main Street and showcases the talents
of one of our most original and mesmerizing novelists at
the pinnacle of his powers.
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