Hideaway

I first picked up Hideaway back in 1995, but being busy with school didn't have a chance to finish it before I had to take it back to the library. Now, more than ten years later I finally had the chance to pick it back up and finish it. Needless to say it was well worth my time. As Hatch and Lindsey Harrison are on their way back from a weekend up at the lake where they tried and failed to recapture the magic that drew them together in the first place and was seemingly lost following the death of their only child to cancer, their car is knocked off the road and into a rushing river. Left alone with her seemingly dead husband, Lindsey struggles to fight her way to solid ground, but is rescued by a team of paramedics and born by helicopter to a hospital, where a brilliant cardiovascular surgeon manages to bring Hatch back to life. This brush with death has the effect that a weekend up at the lake didn't manage to achieve. After returning home, Hatch and Lindsey decide to try again to start a family. Since Lindsey is incapable of bearing anymore children, they adopt a disabled girl named Regina, a delighful innocent who helps bring meaning and purpose back to their lives. But things take a disturbing turn as Hatch begins to experience surges of anger and hatred unlike his usual placid, easygoing manner. The targets of his rage, disturbingly enough, include the very driver who forced the Harrisons off the road and is later found murdered. As these disturbing visions and subsequent deaths continue, Hatch begins to question his own inocence and even his sanity. Becoming convinced that he somehow brought the killer back with him from the other side, Hatch only becomes more determined to right his perceived wrong when Regina is snatched from under their very noses. But the true identity of the Harrisons' bizarre adversary is far more disturbing than a simple molevolent spirit brought back from the underworld, and its connection to the man who saved Hatch's life makes it even more so. A gripping tale of suspense, with a shocking twist worthy of Koontz.

Hatch has just survived a car wreck. Well, actually, technically he DIDN'T survive it--Hatch was clinically dead for 80 minutes. When he comes back, there is SOMETHING with him, a presence in his head...a mysterious, murderous character who calls himself Vassago, and yearns for nothing more than death and destruction... But Hatch is determined to continue his life. He and his wife adopt a child. They live happily. But Vassago is closing in. He, too, is aware of the connection with Hatch, and he would relish the opportunity to ruin Hatch's life, and kill everyone he loves... "Hideaway" is one of Koontz's all-time best...and also, as he points out in the new afterword, the first to receive hate-mail. Still, don't let a few letters get you down; "Hideaway" moves along at breakneck speeds, like most of Koontz's books, and features characters that are so real, you are genuinely afraid for--or of--them. This is one of the best books by one of the best authors out there, and shouldn't be passed up by suspense fans.

After being a Stephen King fan for years and loving all that I had read, I decided to check out Dean Koontz, and Hideaway was my first. At first I was dissapointed, trying to get used to this new style of writing. It took me awhile to get into it, but when I did it hit HARD. Hatch and his wife are traveling during a snow storm and they end up in a terrible car accident, rolling the car down the side of a cliffand into a freezing river. Hatch dies and after being worked on in the emergency room, is brought back to life after being dead for a record shattering amount of time. After his accident, the couple begin to learn to love life and are having a great time, but they miss their son who died of cancer years ago and decide to adopt a child-a crippled, spunky girl named Regina. She's lived a hard life of rejection and tries to turn them off by acting like a little brat, but she soon puts down her defenses and accepts their love and shows the sweet girl that she really is. But it seems that Hatch's time in the land of the dead has done something to his mind. He's now seeing visions of murder and mayhem that terrify him and make him fear for his sanity. And now a vicious young killer is aware of Hatch's presence and is determined to track him down and kill him and his family. The hellish setting at the amusement park was truly captivating, as was the killer's gruesome memory of pushing his friend off of an indoor roller coaster at a young age. It really sends shivers up your spine. The entire book was captivating as is the killer. He's young, handsome, and eerily polite, but he's a crazed demon man. All in all, it's definetely one of my favorite books ever, an excellent introduction to Koontz, and I do look forward to reading it again. Intensity was my favorite, though.

Hatch Harrison and his wife Lindsay are driving home from a vacation. Before they have time to react, Hatch and Lindsay become involved in a horrendous car accident that results in Hatch passing away. By the time they are taken to the hospital, Hatch has been dead for over an hour. However, Dr. Jonas Nyberg specializes in bringing people back from the dead, and manages to revive Hatch. Hatch and Lindsay see this as a gift from God and begin to live life to the fullest. They even adopt a handicapped 10 year old girl named Regina. However, just as things seem like they couldn't get any better, Hatch makes a startling discovery. Hatch's return from death has somehow linked his mind, with the mind of a deadly serial killer. As Hatch begins to see the victims through the killer's eyes, the killer also becomes aware of Hatch's presence. Now Hatch and his family are put in danger when the killer becomes obsessed with tracking them down.Hideaway is definately one of the best Dean Koontz books I have ever read. The book drags you in after the first page, and keeps you there until the very end. This book is extremely captivating and terrifying. The premise is what makes the book so great. The subject of near death experiences and the afterlife is one that is extremely interesting. Koontz's take on the subject is very creative and original. The character development is amazing in this book. Koontz tells the story from two different perspectives. One being Hatch, and the other being the killer. You come to see the story through the eyes of both characters which makes the story very well rounded. The killer is perhaps one of Koontz's best villans because of how savagely brutal he is. The description that Koontz uses to describe each kill, will make you flinch at times.Overall, Hideaway is one of Koontz's most terrifying and dark books. The characters are all great, the book is filled with action and suspense, and you will love Koontz's take on near death experiences and the afterlife.

This book does display Koontz at his best. While the topic isn't exactly likely to happen, somehow Koontz pulls you in & makes you believe it CAN happen. When you're near death & almost die, what does that do to you? Can it change you, change who you are- does it open a door to another world? While the thought of dying is scary enough, imagine if you survived, but you were changed. And not for the better. What would you do? This book is full of suspense, mystery, terror, horror, astonishment & heart-pounding moments! Go get it & read!