Life Expectancy, Dean Koontz
Life Expectancy, Dean Koontz
169 Rating(s)
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Life Expectancy

Author: Dean Koontz

Narrator: John Bedford Lloyd

Unabridged: 11 hr 34 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 12/07/2004


Synopsis

With his bestselling blend of nail-biting intensity, daring artistry, and storytelling magic, Dean Koontz returns with an emotional roller coaster of a tale filled with enough twists, turns, shocks, and surprises for ten ordinary novels. Here is the story of five days in the life of an ordinary man born to an extraordinary legacy—a story that will challenge the way you look at good and evil, life and death, and everything in between.

Jimmy Tock comes into the world on the very night his grandfather leaves it. As a violent storm rages outside the hospital, Rudy Tock spends long hours walking the corridors between the expectant fathers' waiting room and his dying father's bedside. It's a strange vigil made all the stranger when, at the very height of the storm's fury, Josef Tock suddenly sits up in bed and speaks coherently for the frist and last time since his stroke.

What he says before he dies is that there will be five dark days in the life of his grandson—five dates whose terrible events Jimmy will have to prepare himself to face. The first is to occur in his twentieth year; the second in his twent-third year; the third in his twenty-eighth; the fourth in his twenty-ninth; the fifth in his thirtieth.

Rudy is all too ready to discount his father's last words as a dying man's delusional rambling. But then he discovers that Josef also predicted the time of his grandson's birth to the minute, as well as his exact height and weight, and the fact that Jimmy would be born with syndactyly—the unexplained anomal of fused digits—on his left foot. Suddenly the old man's predictions take on a chilling significance.

What terrifying events await Jimmy on these five dark days? What nightmares will he face? What challenges must he survive? As the novel unfolds, picking up Jimmy's story at each of these crisis points, the path he must follow will defy every expectation. And with each crisis he faces, he will move closer to a fate he could never have imagined. For who Jimmy Tock is and what he must accomplish on the five days when his world turns is a mystery as dangerous as it is wondrous—a struggle against an evil so dark and pervasive, only the most extraordinary of human spirits can shine through.

About Dean Koontz

Author Dean Koontz was born in Everett Pennsylvania in 1945. He has used various Pen names such as, Aaron Wolfe, Brian Coffey, David Axton, Deanna Dwyer, John Hill, K.R. Dwyer, Leigh Nichols, Anthony North, Owen West and Richard Paige. His accomplished occupations include novelist, short story writer, screenwriter and poet. Most people were not aware of his many Pen names and various talents in literature besides novelist. Koontz genres of choice are suspense, horror and science fiction thrillers. He has had 14 hardcovers and 14 paperbacks making it to #1 on the New York Times bestsellers list. According to the Dean Kootnz official website, he has sold more than 450 million copies of his books.

A little known fact about Dean Koontz is that he had hair transplantation in the late intos. Many of his novels are set in or around Orange County, California where he lives with his wife Gerda, in Newport Coast in an estate named Pelican Hills. His reported annual salary is $25 million.1990


Reviews

AudiobooksNow review by Elizabeth on 2007-05-09 13:00:29

This book is one of my all-time favorites! Koontz's writing has never been better in this quirky and strange tale. A funny look at life and death and all that lies in between.

AudiobooksNow review by Jennifer on 2007-05-11 18:13:30

This book was thoroughly enjoyable! Different than the Koontz books I'd read in the past, but still tense and edgy. Highly recommend it!

AudiobooksNow review by merri on 2007-06-14 01:51:24

I didn't think I'd get through it, but I did! This was a pretty boring book. I usually like Dean Koontz a lot, but this book had too much description, too much filler. The bare bones of the story was good though. If you like poetry, you might like this book. Or if you're really scared of clowns.

AudiobooksNow review by Jane on 2007-08-23 21:54:23

I really enjoyed this book. Very interesting plot and keeps you wondering until the end.

AudiobooksNow review by Rebecca on 2007-09-14 20:53:03

I felt that the book was quite humorous, slight departure from books of this genre. I loved the plot outline and basic storyline. I like that Koontz took a step away from his normal writing style. It shows his versatility and ability to take a departure from his normal formula.

Goodreads review by Baba on October 06, 2022

Written as a biography of Jimmy Tock's life, it begins with his birth, which occurs just after the ten predictions made by, and the death of, his grandfather - predictions that include the warning of five terrible days in the life of his newly born grandson. A great concept, some solid writing and e......more

Goodreads review by Alejandro on November 04, 2015

My second favorite Koontz' novel!!! A TRUE FAVORITE I love this book!!! This novel isn't featured in my virtual shelf of "Favorites", but not because I don't like it, just since I already have Phantoms in that shelf and I want to keep it to maximum 10 books there, it would have to be 2 books fr......more

Goodreads review by Bill on February 21, 2017

Life Expectancy is a pretty fun read. It was so different than most books I've read in the genre, and was much different than I expected. It flows so perfectly from the first person point of view, and the characters are unforgettable. Plus, it has clowns.........more

Goodreads review by Tiffany on October 20, 2008

It will make you laugh, it will make you cry, it will make you question all good looking men.......more

Goodreads review by SVETLANA on August 02, 2023

Jimmy Tock's grandfather died at the same time as Jimmy was born. Before his death, he made 10 predictions, five of which were future dark significant dates in Jimmy's life. All his predictions were accurate and Jimmy has to face something very dark those days. I liked the book very much: the plot, t......more


Quotes

"A master storyteller and a daring writer... he gives readers bright hope in a dark world.... Life Expectancy pits good versus evil and carries a persuasive message, about the power of love and family and the miracle of existence... Koontz is a true original and this novel, one of his most unusual yet, will leave readers aglow."—Publishers Weekly, starred review.