The Funhouse

By: Dean Koontz

Narrated by: Karen Peakes

Once there was a girl who ran away and joined a traveling carnival. She married a man she grew to hate - and gave birth to a child she could never love. A child so monstrous that she killed it with her own hands.… Twenty-five years later, Ellen Harper has a new life, a new husband, and two normal children - Joey loves monster movies, and Amy is about to graduate from high school. But their mother drowns her secret guilt in alcohol and prayer. The time has come for Amy and Joey to pay for her sins.…

Because Amy is pregnant.

And the carnival is coming back to town.

©2001 Universal Studios Publishing Rights, a division of Universal Studios Licensing, Inc. (P)2014 Brilliance Audio, all rights reserved. Recorded by arrangement with The Berkley Publishing Group, a member of Penguin Group (USA) LLC, a Penguin Random House Company.

Don't Do That

The carnival is an exciting setting for a horror novel. Makes you wonder why you go to them: it's the freaks, funhouses and grinning clowns. I kept saying to the characters: "Don't do that, you'll be sorry." A bizarre, quick, easy read--creepy read for Halloween time.

I definitely recommend this book

Such a great story. Wish it was longer, but still Koontz didn't leave anything out. You care about the main character, while hating others. There's a "reason" the bad things are happening. Overall, I give it an A.

Fun in the Funhouse

Early supernatural offering from Koontz didn't fully develop the characters which left me wondering about the exact nature and origins of the "monster". There also seemed to be very little compassion toward the mother. Altogether, I felt I was experiencing an R-rated Scooby Doo episode. Narrated does well with annoying female and teenage voices, not so much with males.

An ok horror story I guess

Girls like that deserve to die long painful deaths. For that matter so do the boys, and all the rest of the characters in the book except Joey.

not my favorite koontz novel

I've read or listened to several Dean Koontz books, and this one was my last favorite so far. Characters were too predictable and the story wasn't developed very well. The narration was quite good, and is the only reason I made it through the book.

good but ended too soon

The book was good... it grabbed me from the outset and had me captive the entire time. I'm just disappointed with the end. Seems like Koontz got tired and gave up. So many loose ends... lots of places this book could have taken the reader at the end. Good read though.

Another great from Koontz!

Once I started this book I couldn't wait for my next free moment just to get in a few more moments with the characters of The Funhouse! As a teenager I was never particularly fond of this attraction at the country's fair. I think Koontz put a voice to what I always imagined could be lurking in the dark!

Old trope nothing new

Well-worn archetypes mot a bad story, just not a great one. Nothing new to add to the genre.

Good Read, on a level with Stephen King novels!

Would you listen to The Funhouse again? Why?

yes if I needed something to listen too and it was available

What did you like best about this story?

I liked the fact that it sounded so much like a Stephen King novel, suspense, strange characters, mystery,

What does Karen Peakes bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

she is a good reader and the characters were discernible from one to the other easily.

Who was the most memorable character of The Funhouse and why?

I guess that would be Amy because she worked through a lot of problems and dealt with a very difficult mother, yet she was very good to her brother and seemed to truly care for him.

Any additional comments?

I wish there had been more of an explanation as to why Victor, then Gunther were so deformed and mutated. I think the writer was trying to infer that the evil in their father caused these malformations but it didn't seem a very clear explanation.

awesome

read this book overnight ahem it first came out and once more later in years. beautifully narrated and still a wonderful read. Pull up a chair, get a cuppa and enjoy.