Analyze the novel’s female characters. How do Koontz’s portrayals of Harper, Jill, Cosima, Naomi, Urnfield, and Mrs. Baneberry-Smith contribute to the novel’s implicitly misogynistic worldview?

How do the events of the novel loosely resemble the narrative structure of the Book of Job? How does Koontz introduce thematic or philosophical departures from this blueprint?

How are Benny’s problems as an adult rooted in his childhood experiences? What broader commentary does Koontz make about the nature of childhood trauma?