Author: Dean Koontz
Genre: Thriller
Length: 338 Pages
Publication: January 2015
My Rating: 5/5 Stars
Click title for more info (linked to goodreads).
Review
"You are destined to be together forever."
Warning: Spoilers for previous novels in the series.
In this novel Odd finally returns to Pico Mundo where his story began. The novel reads much like the first one, with many parallels between the two stories. Even the covers of the novels are very similar. Odd has known all along that things would end where they began. He's not running, in fact, he's looking forward to it.
After his love, Stormy Llewellyn, was killed during an attack on the Pico Mundo mall nearly two years earlier, Odd has been trying to earn the destiny given them by Gypsy Mummy when they were sixteen. Now Odd, our ghost seeing fry cook, is pretty sure he's close to either stepping into that destiny or stepping forever away from it. He doesn't seek death. To do so would make him unworthy of the promise he received. He doesn't hide from death either. He does what he has to do.
I found this novel to be the perfect conclusion to the story. Odd is once again trying to foil the plans of a satanic cult before they can devastate the world. His main obstacle is that now they know what he looks like and have guessed some of his abilities.
There were actually fewer encounters with ghosts in this novel, which I thought was very interesting. I guess I just assumed there would be more of the lingering dead around, trying to help Odd along the way. I also thought more of them would be wanting his help to settle scores with the satanists, but it made sense in a way that there were not.
Some readers may find the Odd novels slow, but I find them beautifully paced. They are slow and fast all at once. Odd's humor is what makes the novels so perfect. He's just so funny (as are most Koontz characters) and his attitude is one to envy. I wish I could be as good a person as Odd.
We also get to see some favorites that have had very minor parts since book one. Ozzie Boone, Odd's novelist friend and surrogate father and Chief Wyatt Porter, Odd's other surrogate father both make appearances. I love these characters and was thrilled to have them back again.
As Odd tries to prevent a new disaster he is lead by visions in dreams, words from his friends Annamaria, Edie Fischer, and the guidance of strangers who see the good in him. We see Odd struggle with some of his decisions, questioning his own motives for certain acts he has always felt he's done out of necessity. The struggles made his character that much more enjoyable.
Overall I thought his was an excellent novel and a beautiful conclusion. I will miss not having future Odd novels, but am looking forward to re-reading the series. It is definitely one of my favorite series. This will definitely be one of my top reads of 2015.
No comments:
Post a Comment