It's been awhile as Aron Lewis has crooned. Several years ago Dean Koontz set out to fix a story-turned-TV movie he wasn't one-hundred percent on. That was Frankenstein: Prodigal Son. I picked it up at a Target one day and devoured it in just few more. I love the old movie monsters and when someone takes them and adds a clever spin I love it even more. Dean did just that.

He, with author's Kevin Anderson and Ed Gorman, spun two terrific books ( the ladder titled City of Night) and then dropped the readers into limbo by holding out on crafting the third book, Dead and Alive. Its release was marred by the devistation of Hurricane Katrina and since the story took place in New Orleans, Dean felt awkward publishing it. Then he revealed that he had trouble collaberating on the project. No, not the "those hacks couldn't write their way out of a wet paper bag" trouble but a self realization that he's a hard man to work with and he is his own worst critic. And that every time he sat down to work on the story he couldn't refrain from tweaking it... horrendously.

Still, he promised to finish the series and hopefully by this spring. I'll be in line as soon as it hits print, that's for sure, but I won't go on line and bad mouth the man for taking his time. Others have. It's a free country and we're allowed to say what we will but to piss and moan about an author taking his time on a project or focusing on others comes across as petty and damned stupid. Well, such is life.

Again, when you finally finish that book, Dean, I'll be glad to throw down the cash and will love every page of it. Could you just give us a hint as too how long? Maybe a taste? A teaser? I'm on my knees here.