Intensity (novel)
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| Author | Dean Koontz |
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| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Genre(s) | Suspense, Mystery |
| Publisher | Bantam Publishing |
| Released | 1996 |
| Media Type | Paperback |
| Pages | 448 |
| ISBN | 0553582917 |
| Preceded by | Icebound |
| Followed by | Ticktock |
Intensity is a novel by the best-selling author Dean Koontz, released in 1996.
Contents |
[edit] Plot
The book begins with Chyna Shepard (a college student) visiting the family of her friend, Laura Templeton. At the Templeton house, she finds something she's often yearned for-acceptance. But this is all crushed when Edglar Vess, a psychopath who, essentially, has no emotion, breaks into the house and kills all of the family except Laura.
Chyna hides from him and finds her friend tied up in her bedroom. She sneaks away, promising to return. Before she can, however, Edglar takes Laura onboard his motor home and kills her. Chyna, not knowing this, sneaks onboard and finds her friend's body. Before she can escape, Edglar begins driving. She hides in a back room until he stops at a gas station, where she gets out and heads inside to find a phone. Edglar kills the attendant, however, and drives away. Chyna feels compelled to follow him at this point, since Edglar boasted to the attendant before killing him about a girl he claimed to be holding prisoner in his basement. Stealing the attendant's car, she gives chase and manages to once again sneak onboard the motor home.
At his house, Edglar already knows that Chyna is on board but decides not to kill her immediately to see what she will do. Chyna breaks into his house and goes into the basement to find the girl, Ariel, locked in a room down there. Before she can think of getting her out, Edgar captures her, chaining her up in the kitchen. After taunting her for a while, Edglar leaves for work, promising to kill both her and Ariel when he returns. Chyna manages to escape from her chains by breaking away from the table, though, and releases Ariel from her prison. After taking care of the dogs Edglar has guarding the house, she and Ariel escape in the motor home and see a police car. She pulls over for it, only to discover that the driver is, in fact, Edglar himself. She manages to defeat him.
The book then picks up a few months later with Chyna planning to adopt Ariel (who still will not talk) and rehabilitate her.
[edit] Movie
Intensity was made into a two-part tv movie in 1997 that first aired in America on the Fox Network. It starred Molly Parker, John C. McGinley, and Tori Paul.
[edit] Trivia
- Many believe that the film Haute Tension plagiarised Koontz's book, or was at least heavily influenced by it.
