Odd Thomas
by Dean Koontz
I'm not going to wax poetic. Nor will I get really long-winded. (And if you believed that one, let me sell you some real estate on the moon...) This will be a quick "review" or "report" or whatever these are supposed to be.
This book was unquestionably entertaining. And well written. Dean Koontz has a fun style to read.
But...
This book was far, far darker than I like. I like books where each personality is multi-faceted and we can mourn the fatal flaws in our heroes and celebrate the small triumphs (even in the villains). The characters in Odd Thomas, while well-developed, seem in retrospect wholly evil or wholly lovable (if clueless).
That bugs me. It also bugged me that this book was so eerie. I mean, for heaven's sake, I've read every Agatha Christie book ever written and they were often a bit dark, but in general, that stuff is not for me. I love books that are gritty and real, but not when they deal with unadulterated evil. It just leaves me feeling icky.
I know that I'm in a vast minority with this issue--I have a rather weak stomach for suspense. I'm also afraid of the dark, so we'll just leave it at that. :-D
One last complaint: I hated the ending. Remember what I said earlier this week that some books leave you thinking, "I just read 400 pages to have the book end like THAT?" This book epitomized that for me. It left me feeling empty after the last page, as opposed to how full I felt after reading some of my recent favorites.
However, this book was intriguing and well formed. I would easily recommend it to people who aren't as squeamish as I am.
You've got to read the second one then...I think it answers your questions, but to be honest, I can't remember. Sorry you didn't like it as much as I did. I like Koontz's style, but he doesn't use it in every book he writes. He's very universal. I admit his imagination is really out there, sort of like Stephen King. Where do they think these things up?
ReplyDeleteSorry, Dean isn't for the squimish, but I love the character he portrays in Odd Thomas! He took a lot of heat when it first came out that no one would read a book about a nineteen year old that believed in "waiting" till he was married to be with his girlfriend. Koontz didn't care, and guess what, the fouth book comes out in may. The second one is good if you loved the first because you love the character, but the third is my favorite. Personally I like that Koontz' bad guys get what is coming to them. Sometimes it is good to see the black and white of good and evil. Glad you kinda liked it though!
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