Intensity (novel)

Last updated
Intensity
Intensity book cover.jpg
First edition (UK)
Author Dean Koontz
Cover artistJ. James
Country United States
Language English
Genre Suspense novel, Horror novel, Psychological Horror
Publisher Headline (UK)
Knopf (US)
Publication date
Nov 1995 (UK)
Jan 1996 (US)
Media typePrint
Pages343
ISBN 0-7472-1334-8
OCLC 45340457

Intensity is a 1995 novel by American author Dean Koontz. According to Koontz, he wrote the novel with the intention of subverting the commonly-held idea that thrillers must have periods of low action to move the pace along, instead opting to keep the tension high throughout the novel and moving from conflict to conflict without periods of released tension. [1]

Contents

Plot summary

Chyna Shepherd is a college student visiting the family of her friend, Laura Templeton, for a long weekend. Chyna, who was abused and neglected by her mother as a child, finds that the Templeton house provides something she has yearned for: acceptance. This comes to a violent end when serial killer Edgler Vess breaks into the house in the night and methodically kills all of the occupants except Laura and Chyna. After discovering that Laura has been tied up and raped, Chyna leaves, promising to return. Chyna hears Laura screaming and runs upstairs, intending to attack Vess with a knife. Before she can intervene, Vess kills Laura and takes her to his motor home. Unaware Laura is dead, Chyna sneaks aboard the motor home and finds her friend's corpse. Before she can escape, Vess drives away.

Chyna hides in a back room, planning to escape at the earliest opportunity. When Vess stops at a gas station, she sneaks out of the motor home and looks for a payphone. Chyna secretly watches Vess boast to the gas station clerks that he is holding a young girl, Ariel, prisoner in his basement, before he kills them and drives away. She feels compelled to follow Vess and help free Ariel, taking a clerk's car. Chyna passes Vess while traveling through a state park and intentionally crashes her car into a redwood tree. While Vess gets out to investigate, Chyna sneaks on board the motor home. However, unbeknownst to Chyna, Vess glimpses her. Fascinated, he decides not to kill her immediately, wanting to see what she will do. Eventually, they arrive at Vess's remote house.

Vess watches as Chyna leaves the motor home. She enters the house to find a catatonic Ariel locked in a room in the basement. Before she can free Ariel, Vess attacks Chyna in the kitchen, punching her unconscious before binding her with a chain. He taunts her for a while, revealing details about his past crimes. Obsessed with the "intensity" of any particular experience, sensory and existential, Vess styles himself as a "homicidal adventurer" and has killed continually since childhood. He offers to allow Chyna to live if she aids him in tormenting Ariel out of her catatonia. After Vess leaves for work, Chyna manages to break away from the table to which she is chained and slam her chair into a wall. She releases Ariel from her prison.

Vess has trained a pack of deadly Dobermann pinschers to guard his property and kill anyone attempting to get in or out. Dressed in Vess's dog-training clothing, Chyna sprays ammonia on the dogs and makes it to the motor home with Ariel. Soon after, Chyna sees a police car on the road and pulls over to signal it, only to discover that the driver is Vess, the local sheriff. In the ensuing showdown, Chyna rams his police car, but he rolls clear and uses a shotgun to disable the motor home, causing it to tip over. Chyna and Ariel escape the wreck, but Vess catches up to them and knocks Chyna to the ground while Ariel continues on, distracting Vess long enough for Chyna to pull a lighter from her pocket. She uses it to ignite Vess's gasoline-soaked boot. She rolls away to safety just before the pool of gas surrounding Vess ignites. After catching up to Ariel, she turns and watches as Vess burns to death. A passing motorist stops to help them. Some months later, Chyna adopts Ariel and meets a nice man.

Characters

Chyna Shepherd
Chyna is a 26-year-old graduate student still coming to terms with her abusive past, who risks her life to save a young girl from a killer. She is trained to use guns and is inventive.
Edgler Foreman Winston Vess
Edgler is a brutal serial killer who preys on men, women and children, according to his mood. He kills for the sheer "intensity" of it; he believes that life is all about accruing sensation, and that he must live with intensity in order to discover new sensations. He meets his match in Chyna, who repeatedly surprises him through the novel, and he even admits that she frightens him as he was not able to sense her twice in the novel.
Vess tortured and killed animals as a child and committed his first murders at the age of nine when he burned his parents to death after they caught him torturing their neighbor's cat; their death was considered an accident. Two years later he stabbed his grandmother to death because she didn't clean the bathroom to his satisfaction; he was judged in need of therapy, and was later adopted. He killed his adoptive parents when he was 20—once again by fire—for the insurance money and started his killing spree six years before the novel begins. By this time, he had kidnapped and killed six women and has been holding a teenage girl for a year after killing her parents and brother. In the novel he kills eight people, making his body count at least 22.
Koontz's creation of Vess was inspired by Edmund Kemper, who, as Koontz stated in an interview: "killed his grandparents when he was 14, and was released at 21 when psychiatrists said he was no longer a threat to society. He went on to kill nine more people." [2]
Ariel DeLane
Ariel is a kidnapped teenager who withdraws into catatonia. She has been held captive by Vess for months. Vess regards Ariel as a challenge because she has taken the longest to crack of all his captives. Vess longs to see her final breakdown but Chyna is able to rescue her. After the final confrontation with Vess on the highway, she's adopted by Chyna.
Laura Templeton
Laura is Chyna's best friend, who is killed by Vess.

Film, TV or theatrical adaptations

Several viewers of the film noticed striking similarities between the plot of the film High Tension and the plot of Intensity. [3] [4] When questioned at the Sundance Festival in 2004, the director Alexandre Aja acknowledged that he had read the novel and was aware of the similarities. [5] On his website, Koontz stated that he was aware of the comparison but would not sue "because he found the film so puerile, so disgusting, and so intellectually bankrupt that he didn’t want the association with it that would inevitably come if he pursued an action against the filmmaker." [6]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Luke and Laura</span> Fictional characters

Luke and Laura Spencer are fictional characters, and the signature supercouple from the American daytime drama General Hospital. Luke is portrayed by Anthony Geary, and Laura is portrayed by Genie Francis. Though other supercouples came before them, Luke and Laura are the best known outside of the soap opera medium and are credited with defining the term supercouple and leading other soap operas to try to duplicate their success.

<i>Odd Thomas</i> (novel) 2003 novel by Dean Koontz

Odd Thomas is a thriller novel by American writer Dean Koontz, published in 2003. The novel derives its title from the protagonist, a twenty-year-old short-order cook named Odd Thomas. The book, which was well received and lauded by critics, went on to become a New York Times Bestseller. Following the success of the novel, six sequels, Forever Odd (2005), Brother Odd (2006), Odd Hours (2008), Odd Apocalypse (2012), and Deeply Odd (2013), were also written by Koontz. The final novel in the series Saint Odd (2015) was released on Jan 13, 2015. Three graphic-novel prequels, In Odd We Trust, Odd Is On Our Side and House of Odd have also been released. In the postscript to the graphic novel, Koontz states that "God willing, there will be six Odd Thomas novels." A Special Odd Thomas Adventure, Odd Interlude, was released on December 26, 2012, and another Odd Thomas: You Are Destined to Be Together Forever on December 9, 2014.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edmund Kemper</span> American serial killer (born 1948)

Edmund Emil Kemper III is an American serial killer who murdered 8 people, including a 15-year-old girl, his own mother, and her best friend, from May 1972 to April 1973. Years earlier, at the age of 15, Kemper had murdered his paternal grandparents. Kemper was nicknamed the Co-ed Killer, as most of his non-familial victims were female college students hitchhiking in the vicinity of Santa Cruz County, California. Most of his murders included necrophilia, decapitation, and dismemberment.

<i>High Tension</i> 2003 French slasher film

High Tension is a 2003 French slasher film directed by Alexandre Aja, co-written with Grégory Levasseur, and starring Cécile de France and Maïwenn, alongside Philippe Nahon appearing in supporting roles. Its plot follows two female students who arrive at a secluded farmhouse to study, where they are shortly invaded by a serial killer.

Dean Koontz's Frankenstein is the collective title of five novels co-written by Dean Koontz. Though technically of the mystery or thriller genres, the novels also feature the trappings of horror, fantasy, and science fiction.

<i>Watchers</i> (film) 1988 film by Jon Hess

Watchers is a 1988 science fiction horror film directed by Jon Hess and starring Corey Haim, Michael Ironside, Barbara Williams and Lala Sloatman. It is loosely based on the 1987 novel Watchers by Dean R. Koontz.

<i>Liseys Story</i> Novel by Stephen King

Lisey's Story is a novel by American writer Stephen King that combines elements of psychological horror and romance. The novel was released on October 24, 2006. It won the 2006 Bram Stoker Award for Best Novel, and was nominated for the World Fantasy Award in 2007. An early excerpt from the novel, a short story titled "Lisey and the Madman", was published in McSweeney’s Enchanted Chamber of Astonishing Stories (2004), and was nominated for the 2004 Bram Stoker Award for Best Long Fiction. King has stated that this is his favorite of the novels he has written.

<i>Velocity</i> (novel) 2005 novel by Dean Koontz

Velocity is a novel by Dean Koontz first published in 2005. Set in Napa County, California, it is about a man in his thirties who takes the law into his own hands when, out of the blue, he is threatened by an anonymous adversary. The "words of wisdom" with which the novel is interspersed are direct quotations from the writings of T. S. Eliot.

<i>Intensity</i> (film) 1997 American TV series or program

Intensity is a 1997 American television psychological thriller film directed by Yves Simoneau, and starring John C. McGinley, Molly Parker, Piper Laurie, and Tori Paul. Based on the 1995 novel of the same name by Dean Koontz, it focuses on a young woman who accompanies her friend home for Thanksgiving, only to be met by a violent serial killer.

<i>Mr. Murder</i> (novel)

Mr. Murder is a horror novel by the best-selling author Dean Koontz, released in 1993.

<i>Under the Skin</i> (novel) 2000 novel by Michel Faber

Under the Skin is a 2000 science fiction novel by Michel Faber. Set on the east coast in northern Scotland, it traces an alien who, manifesting in human form, drives around the countryside picking up male hitchhikers whom she drugs and delivers to her home planet. The novel, which was Faber's debut, was shortlisted for the 2000 Whitbread Award. It was later loosely adapted into a 2013 film of the same name directed by Jonathan Glazer.

<i>The Good Guy</i> 2007 novel by Dean Koontz

The Good Guy is a thriller novel by American author Dean Koontz, which was released on May 29, 2007.

<i>Hideaway</i> (1995 film) 1995 American film

Hideaway is a 1995 horror film directed by Brett Leonard. It is based on the 1992 novel of the same name by Dean Koontz, and stars Alicia Silverstone, Jeff Goldblum, Christine Lahti, Jeremy Sisto, Alfred Molina and Rae Dawn Chong.

<i>Amsterdamned</i> 1988 Dutch horror film by Dick Maas

Amsterdamned is a 1988 Dutch slasher film directed and written by Dick Maas, and stars Huub Stapel, Monique van de Ven, and Serge-Henri Valcke. The plot revolves around a serial killer who uses the famed canals of the Dutch capital to murder random people, one of which involves a detective's girlfriend linked to the murders.

<i>In Odd We Trust</i>

In Odd We Trust is the first graphic novel featuring Dean Koontz's character Odd Thomas. It was released June 24, 2008. It is written by Queenie Chan and Koontz, with illustrations by Chan in a manga style.

<i>Relentless</i> (Koontz novel) 2009 novel by Dean Koontz

Relentless is a 2009 suspense thriller by Dean Koontz. The story follows the plight of best selling author Cullen "Cubby" Greenwich, his wife, son, and family dog, Lassie, who are being stalked and hunted by a feared and revered national book critic, Shearman Waxx. The novel was released in the US on June 9, 2009 by Bantam Books.

<i>Sole Survivor</i> (2000 film) 2000 Canadian TV series or program

Sole Survivor also known as Dean Koontz's Sole Survivor is a Canadian Science Fiction Thriller film/mini-series adaptation of Dean Koontz's 1997 novel of the same name, made and released in 2000 and directed by Mikael Salomon.

<i>What the Night Knows</i> 2010 novel by Dean Koontz

What the Night Knows is a 2010 novel by bestselling author Dean Koontz. It reached No. 1 on the New York Times Bestseller List. Following the events of the novella "Darkness Under the Sun," it follows the life of John Calvino, a survivor of a violent attack on his family and current police officer. In the aftermath of Billy Lucas's brutal slaying of his own family, Calvino notices many similarities between Billy Lucas's family and his own, and Lucas knows more about Calvino than he possibly can. Spooked, remembering the attack of that left his family dead so many years ago at the hands of the late Alton Turner Blackwood, Calvino starts worrying that Blackwood, or his memory, might be back, and the family Calvino created may be in danger.

Stephen Tolkin is an American television writer, director and composer. He worked on a number of American television series including Brothers & Sisters, Perception, Legend of the Seeker and Switched at Birth. He has been nominated for an NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Directing in a Motion Picture (Television) for A Day Late and a Dollar Short.

Scare Package is a 2020 American anthology horror comedy film created by Aaron B. Koontz and Cameron Burns. It features a series of horror shorts written and directed by Aaron B. Koontz, Courtney Andujar, Hillary Andujar, Anthony Cousins, Emily Hagins, Chris McInroy, Noah Segan, and Baron Vaughn.

References

  1. Brandon Sanderson, Howard Taylor, Dan Wells (13 April 2008). "Writing Excuses Episode 10: Pacing". writingexcuses.com (Podcast). Event occurs at 4:17. Retrieved 31 May 2021.{{cite podcast}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  2. "Contemplating Evil: An Interview with Dean Koontz". November 1996.
  3. "Double Murder Ep 64: High Tension vs. Intensity". Bloody Disgusting. February 5, 2016. Retrieved January 6, 2017.
  4. Richardson, Jancy (June 17, 2016). "Did 'High Tension' Rip Off Dean Koontz's 'Intensity'?". Moviepilot. Archived from the original on January 7, 2017. Retrieved January 6, 2017.
  5. "New slasher film 'High Tension' isn't new". heraldtribune.com. 2005-06-03. Archived from the original on 2014-07-14. Retrieved 2014-07-05.
  6. "Author Q&A: Movies". deankoontz.com. Retrieved 2014-07-05.