Forever Odd - Dean Koontz

This is the second Dean Koontz novel to feature Odd Thomas, the reluctant hero from the first book of the same name. For those of you who have not read the first book, Thomas is a rather modest, self deprecating character who shares the Hobbit like quality of not seeking adventure or danger; it tends to find him regardless. Thomas has the ability to see and have limited interaction with the troubled souls of the dead, those who are reluctant to move on because some unfinished business prevents them from doing so. On the lighter side, one of Thomas' ghostly companions is an earthbound Elvis who for reasons not explained, chooses to inhabit our hero's home town of Pico Mundo.

The story opens with an early morning visitation from a rather distressed newly dead Dr Jessup, the step father of Thomas' youmg friend Danny. It soons becomes obvious that Dr Jessup has been murdered and Danny has been abducted by persons unknown. The plot then develops into Thomas' quest to locate and rescue his young friend from the cluches of his kidnappers. He finally tracks them down holed up in a derelict hotel and casino in the desert. It then becomes a game of cat and mouse between Thomas and the baddies led by the almost comically vampiric blonde seductress Datura. Along the way we find out that the evil and totally loony Datura has her own reasons for kidnapping Danny and luring Thomas to this particular location.

Forever Odd is a rather routine search and rescue thriller with a touch of the supernatural thrown in for good measure. The first half of the book is quite pedestrian in pace and it was largely my appreciation of Dean Koontz's narrative style that kept me reading. Despite the rather mediocre and somewhat predictable plot and the comic book villians, I still took delight in Mr Koontz's skill as a wordsmith.

As a long standing Dean Koontz fan I was disappointed in Forever Odd. It had none of the shudders and nasty surprises that I have enjoyed in his previous books. It also lacked that sense of wonder and spirituality that Koontz often brings to his stories and characters. In conclusion, a very ordinary 'odd' one out for a well established master of the genre (Despite this, I've already bought his next book!).

I bought the paperback edition at Amazon
price £5.59
publisher Bantam
ISBN 0553588265

I have since seen a lot cheaper on ebay