Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $11.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    Unavailable
    The Darkest Evening of the Year
    Unavailable
    The Darkest Evening of the Year
    Unavailable
    The Darkest Evening of the Year
    Audiobook9 hours

    The Darkest Evening of the Year

    Written by Dean Koontz

    Narrated by Kirsten Kairos

    3.5/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this audiobook

    With each of his #1 New York Times bestsellers, Dean Koontz has displayed an unparalleled ability to entertain and enlighten readers with novels that capture the essence of our times even as they bring us to the edge of our seats. Now he delivers a heart-gripping tour de force he’s been waiting years to write, at once a love story, a thrilling adventure, and a masterwork of suspense that redefines the boundaries of primal fear—and of enduring devotion.

    Amy Redwing has dedicated her life to the southern California organization she founded to rescue abandoned and endangered golden retrievers. Among dog lovers, she’s a legend for the risks she’ll take to save an animal from abuse. Among her friends, Amy’s heedless devotion is often cause for concern. To widower Brian McCarthy, whose commitment she can’t allow herself to return, Amy’s behavior is far more puzzling and hides a shattering secret.

    No one is surprised when Amy risks her life to save Nickie, nor when she takes the female golden into her home. The bond between Amy and Nickie is immediate and uncanny. Even her two other goldens, Fred and Ethel, recognize Nickie as special, a natural alpha. But the instant joy Nickie brings is shadowed by a series of eerie incidents. An ominous stranger. A mysterious home invasion.

    And the unmistakable sense that someone is watching Amy’s every move and that, whoever it is, he’s not alone.

    Someone has come back to turn Amy into the desperate, hunted creature she’s always been there to save. But now there’s no one to save Amy and those she loves. From its breathtaking opening scene to its shocking climax, The Darkest Evening of the Year is Dean Koontz at his finest, a transcendent thriller certain to have listeners entertained until dawn.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherPenguin Random House Audio
    Release dateNov 27, 2007
    ISBN9780739332979
    Unavailable
    The Darkest Evening of the Year
    Author

    Dean Koontz

    Dean Koontz is the author of more than a dozen New York Times No. 1 bestsellers. His books have sold over 450 million copies worldwide, and his work is published in 38 languages. He was born and raised in Pennsylvania and lives with his wife Gerda and their dog Anna in southern California.

    More audiobooks from Dean Koontz

    Related to The Darkest Evening of the Year

    Related audiobooks

    Thrillers For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      April’s BOOK CLUB

      Mar 1, 2024

      Diva by Daisy Goodwin (£20, HB, Bloomsbury) Hailed as one of the greatest opera singers of all time, Maria Callas’ life was as dramatic and fascinating as her vocal range. In this fictionalised historical story, Goodwin delves into the Greek soprano’

      5 min read

    • Article

      Book CLUB

      Jun 14, 2022

      Book CLUB
      1 min read

    • Article

      Past Secrets, Present Dangers

      Apr 8, 2024

      by Garry Disher (Text, $40) Garry Disher, the quiet king of Australian crime writing, returns with another absorbing tale, about a small-time thief looking for a normal life; the owner of a rural shop looking for safety; and the dangerous men looki

      4 min read

    • Article

      Sweet River

      Jan 11, 2021

      Sweet River
      2 min read

    • Article

      Alter Native Holiday Movies

      Dec 1, 2020

      Alter Native Holiday Movies
      5 min read

    • Article

      Storytime

      Nov 30, 2022

      After a disastrous election night loss political staffer Dominic Cochrane decides to take a break to review his career options and moves into a mate’s converted boatshed in picturesque Flounder Bay on Sydney’s northern beaches. The peaceful haven is

      2 min read

    • Article

      Midsommar

      Sep 1, 2019

      Midsommar
      3 min read

    • Article

      TV Reviews

      May 24, 2022

      TV Reviews
      4 min read

    • Article

      RV Road Books

      Nov 7, 2019

      Kelly Wilson RRP $19.99 Penguin Kelly Wilson’s heartwarming picture book is a tale about a stallion rescued from the 2012 Kaimanawa muster, and his real-life journey from wild horse to show horse, illustrated by Jenny Cooper. Ranger is a wild horse l

      5 min read

    • Article

      Ready, Set, Let go!

      May 15, 2019

      Ready, Set, Let go!
      11 min read

    • Article

      Reading Room

      Sep 11, 2019

      Ann Patchett’s genius is in putting families and their fragile intimacy under the microscope. In The Dutch House, this unique author is at the height of her powers with a tale you won’t want to put down. The novel opens with eight-year-old Danny Con

      4 min read

    • Article

      Summer Reading Special

      Dec 28, 2023

      The distinctive depth of characterisation shines in this tightly knitted story of therapist Nick and retired solicitor wife Zoe, as they decide to view a deconsecrated Victorian church which is for sale. It’s “even more picturesque than it looked onl

      11 min read

    • Article

      Your TV PICKS

      Nov 28, 2023

      In this year’s seasonal episode of the much-loved drama, it’s 1968 and as the residents of Nonnatus House – including midwife Nancy, her daughter Colette and head nun Sister Julienne – are preparing for the festive season, Trixie and Matthew look for

      1 min read

    • Article

      Where The Crawdads Sing Review – Hit Novel Crashes On The Big Screen

      Jul 12, 2022

      Where The Crawdads Sing, the bestselling book of 2019, presents a fantasy of grit and purity: a young white girl, abandoned by her family in the 1950s, learns to fend for herself in a North Carolina marsh, goes from illiterate to acclaimed scientific

      3 min read

    • Article

      Don’t Miss This Week…

      Aug 23, 2021

      This epic adventure comedy starring Ryan Reynolds and Jodie Comer (together right) follows Guy, a bank teller who discovers he is a character in an open-world video game that is soon to go offline. After this realisation, he decides to rewrite his ow

      1 min read

    • Article

      Watch Now!

      Jan 10, 2023

      Watch Now!
      6 min read

    • Article

      Hot Right Now!

      Dec 2, 2021

      £14.99, WATERSTONES Elderly widow Sabine knows this will be her last Christmas in her beloved home, Mitras Castle. Determined to make it just like the ones she remembers from her childhood, she employs Dido Jones of Heavenly Houseparties to help with

      2 min read

    • Article

      Great Reads

      Mar 13, 2024

      by Claire Douglas (£14.99, HB, Penguin) During a week’s life-swap in Venice, Tasha and husband Aaron receive an urgent call to say her sister, Alice, has been attacked and her brother-in-law murdered. Tormented by unanswered questions, they assume it

      2 min read

    • Article

      Book CLUB

      Jul 6, 2021

      Book CLUB
      1 min read

    • Article

      Book CLUB

      Apr 9, 2024

      Book CLUB
      1 min read

    • Article

      Summer Reading Special

      Dec 28, 2023

      Summer Reading Special
      11 min read

    Reviews for The Darkest Evening of the Year

    3.5/5

    658 ratings61 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 5/5
      I loved this book - was listening to it in the car, and kept thinking up errands to run to her more sooner. I had never read Dean Koontz, just knew he wrote mysteries and is very popular. I certainly wasn't expecting the spiritual aspect I found in this book. I hear the term Magical Realism and resisted reading books associated with it because I don't usually enjoy fantasy. But as used in this novel, I really liked it. It took some getting used to - it is almost like a modern morality play. - all good vs. evil, with dogs standing with the good guys, along with angels and God too. Really, it is about spiritual warfare. The villains in this book were beyond mortally nasty, and the good guys, including the dogs, were luminous. Not your typical mystery! The light shines in the darkness and the darkness cannot overcome it...spelled out! I can see why a lot of people would be put off by it, but a lot of others will love it.
    • 1/5
      This one goes in the category of DNF (Did not finish). I do this when the audio sounds like Charlie Brown's teacher...."bwaa...bwaaa. bwaaaa". It just did not click in my head.
    • 2/5
      Koontz has been on a bit of a career resurrection ever since Odd Thomas, but this one was a bump in the road. Not one of his better works, but not too bad UNTIL the ending. Wow. The ending totally sucked ass and left me with a bad taste.
    • 3/5
      Golden retriever. Supernatural elements. Big build-up to not much, in terms of resolution. Koontz seems to have trouble delivering the goods at novel's end.
    • 5/5
      Omg I absolutely love this book and the narrative. I was surprised how addicting this book was until I realized I’ve been listening to it in my car every chance I could!
    • 5/5
      I loved this book. Ay one point it brought tears to my eyes.A great read
    • 3/5
      It was good, but it took a very long time for all the stories to tie together. I really didn't like the ending either. I read this because I like the Odd Thomas series so much. This was not nearly as good as the Odd Thomas books.
    • 2/5
      I normally really like this author's books, but this one just hit me weird. I couldn't really get into it. There were so many storylines going on coming to a convergence, but for some reason I didn't feel the pull to keep up with it all. Usually I like to try to figure things out. The ending wasn't satisfying for me either. I will definitely not let this keep me from reading more by this author, but this book was not for me.
    • 5/5
      One of the best Koontz books I've read. As an animal shelter worker, his description of the dogs, their eyes, their feelings, really hit the mark. I really felt he did his homework on homeless pets. I was almost in tears a few times because the reality is just as he describes. The story kept me interested, regardless of the dogs though.
    • 2/5
      Really enjoyed Whispers by this author, but this was nothing in comparison. It pushed my limits of suspended disbelief past the breaking point. A sad disappointment.
    • 3/5
      In my humble opinion ... not one of Koontz's best. More of an ode to the golden retriever. But since Koontz's Einstein is one of my favourite "characters" ever ... I forgive him.
    • 4/5
      Another masterpiece from Koontz. Such an intriguing plot with so many twists. Enjoyable
    • 2/5
      This is a bit of a daft story, Characters arent really believable. Main character is Amy she rescues dogs and Brian who helps her. Brian wants to adopt his estranged daughter who has downs syndrome her mother is a mad bitch.
    • 3/5
      A good read with a plot that does not require major concentration. Great for a read on a trip or plane.
    • 4/5
      A preternatural force melds the past with the present, heralding a cascade of events which begin as seemingly unrelated streams of occurrences, culminating in a darkly woven tale of revenge, redemption and restoration.
    • 2/5
      I am a huge Koontz fan so I have to judge him a little harshly on this book. It was an ok book, I had no problem breezing right through it, but I just thought it was not up to his usual standards. I even wondered at times if he was the actual writer because it read so differently from his other novels.
    • 3/5
      Well, this did not turn out to be the page turner I hoped for. The plot depends on two protagonists who are barely sketched in, two way over the top villains, a child in jeopardy (hate that device), and a dog temporarily inhabited by Unearthly Power to overcome Evil. The dog was easily the most well developed character, if not the most believable...As much as I love my furbabies, I can't recommend this. For a truly wonderful, earlier Koontz take on dogs vs. Evil, try "Watchers."
    • 2/5
      I probably should have realized that this novel wouldn’t work for me when I saw a dog on the cover. One of the most annoying aspects of Dean Koontz novels is this infatuation he has with dogs, how he gives them human attributes, how he holds them on pedestals for above his human characters. Predictably, this novel didn’t work for me in any way shape or form and is one of Koontz’s worst novels, and there have been a few stinkers he’s put out. The two protagonists in this novel start off by saving a Golden Retriever during a violent family intervention. Of course, they don’t seem to much care about the people involved, but why save a person when you could save a dog.The book is filled with melodrama with little to no believability in any aspect of it. The plot is ludicrous, and the writing is far from being Dean Koontz’s best work. When he is on, Dean Koontz is great. He has produced some of the best novels I’ve ever read. Unfortunately, it seems that he is just as likely to put out a weak effort, like this novel. Unless you’re a dog lover, I would suggest skipping this novel. Try out Lightning instead.Carl Alves – author of Blood Street
    • 3/5
      Combine Jim Kjelgaard with Steven King, and you end up with a dog story like this gem by Dean Koontz. The writing was good and my only complaint is one of personal taste. I don't like reading from the 'bad guys' point of view and there was a fair bit of that POV in this book. Otherwise it was really good.
    • 2/5
      Mediocre suspense/thriller with really far-fetched crime scenarios, plus a supernatural element. Minimal character development, with characters being very good or very evil. On the positive side, it has dogs.
    • 5/5
      Dean Koontz is another amazing author and I love how he makes every chapter from a different point of view and how there are more hints that help things fall into place at the end as you receive more information about each of the characters. However I did feel sorry for Piggy (who even names their kid that anyways?) and that made me really sad but the book has a great ending nonetheless.
    • 4/5
      Very odd book. Intense and entertaining, and great for a dog-lover, but the supernatural elements of it caught me off-guard. I think if Koontz explained the seemingly-supernatural aspects in non-supernatural ways, it would've been better. Put differently: the supernatural explanations could have easily been replaced by logical ones, and it would have made the resolution less jarring.The climax had a very intense build-up, but the final conflict itself was very quick. The book also contained lot of torturous, sick and twisted imagery that made me a bit squeamish.
    • 3/5
      At times the suspense was so great that I didn't want to stop readings. However, especially at the beginning, the animal scenes were so heart-wrenching, that I had to keep putting the book down.
    • 3/5
      Dean Koontz is as we all know is prolific. Unfortunately he also tends to rehash his better stories. This book is an easy read. Heartwarming scenes abound, most in reference to the rescued dogs. Villains also abound, and they tend to be soulless. I only wish there was a little more depth to all of his characters back stories.
    • 4/5
      Golden retrievers with ESP? Hmm I thought. Within the first couple of chapters though I was hooked. Koontz's dream-like style isn't for everyone but by halfway through I couldn't turn the pages fast enough. It is a really very good thriller with a few points where I was actually pretty scared. Once the story reaches it's climax though it is all over within about 15 pages which I found a bit disappointing although I was pleased I never saw the final twist coming. A good read.
    • 3/5
      I was really excited when I read that Dean Koontz was releasing a new book involving golden retrievers. I was hoping a supernatural theme was going to make this thriller a real page turner. I'm glad to say I was right, although it was a slow start, and a very quick finish.This novel had it's moments though and a twist I wasn't expecting, although I think the plot had more potential than what was realised. I hope it's not too long before the next Koontz hits the shelves.
    • 3/5
      Not one of his best. I was a little disappointed compared to his other books.
    • 3/5
      Koontz has done all this before--and done it better. His books are always enjoyable if you like dogs, lots of social commentary with a moral, evil villains, tragic heroes and dogs. Lots of dogs. In this case, angelic dogs figure in the cast. My lack of enthusiasm for this book feels disloyal because I've been a Koontz fan almost since he began writing. I'm also a huge fan of dogs. Still, this one didn't do much for me. I could have picked up any of his novels that I already owned and enjoyed it more.
    • 4/5
      This was a really good book. I'm already a big fan of the author, so I wasn't surprised that I loved this, too. It kept the suspense going until then end.
    • 3/5
      Dean Koontz has got horror/suspense down to a science. His bad guys are some really bad guys. Yet, they are all within the scope of being human, which makes it even worse.All in all, an above average read that keeps you wondering until the end.