Odd Hours

The title of this review relates to key elements in Dean Koontz's novel: a tugboat, the ghost/poltergeist of Frank Sinatra, and a pack of supernatural coyotes.

I had just finished reading Koontz's The Darkest Evening of the Year when I picked up Odd Hours. Odd Hours is a much weaker book. I haven't read any of the other Odd books, so maybe I'm missing something. But this work has too much fog. Too many ghosts. Too much rushing through the night. This struck me as a write-as-you-go book, with very little planning.

It seems to me that Koontz was trying to capture the spirit of a (bad) screenplay from the 1940-1960 era, years which he often references in Odd Hours. There's semi-mindless comic banter. Melodramatic heroes and villains. Bursts of violence that are hard to take seriously. Maybe a young Mickey Rooney as Odd Thomas.

Koontz is a master wordsmith, and his command of the language is obvious throughout Odd Hours. Some of his characters have Dickensian qualities, notably Hutch Hutchison, an octogenerian retired movie star, and Hoss Shackett, a malevolent police chief.

I most enjoy Koontz's work when it is anchored in reality. A little of the supernatural is okay. After all, Koontz is famous for his ability to mix the real and the unreal. But this book was just too goofy for me.

The Odd Thomas series has, like Fonzie when Happy Days found itself in its twilight and attempted to resurrect itself with a gimmicy episode, "jumped the shark". Sure, his cheerful voice is ever-present, but Koontz really stretches his audience's patience with this thrown-together effort.

Even though Odd still finds himself dealing with supernatural realms, this book's implausability factor is off the charts, especially for those characters grounded in "reality". Characters have deep, cryptic conversations, sometimes teetering on the verge of ludicrous, in the midst of running from bad guys trying to kill them. One such conversation occurs when Odd and our even odder heroine are crouched in the backseat of a car while the bad guy searches the garage. The ponderous nature of the dialogue had this reader's head cocked and slightly shaking. One can imagine Koontz sitting at his word processor chuckling as he comes up with witty comeback after witty wisecrack (all with proverbial bullets flying), thinking, "My, isn't THIS clever!"

Dean Koontz has famously stated he doesn't storyboard his books. Odd Hours meanders so much, it's overwhelmingly obvious that Koontz haddn't the foggiest idea what was going to happen next. A rushed ending (getting to be a Koontz staple) with an obvious sequel set-up leaves the reader unsatisfied. Combine that with his worst similies in a decade (and for Koontz, that's saying something) and austentatious allitteration make this book possibly one of Koontz's most phoned-in efforts to date.

When I picked up the fourth Odd Thomas Novel written by Dean Koontz I expected another fast paced book that I could not put down. I found this sequel to be boring and the law enforcement characters too evil in their attempt to get nuclear bombs to destroy the country into the harbor of this small town that Odd now inhabits. The ghost of Frank Sinatra was a hoot however and I enjoyed his machinations with Odd and the sheriff. This Odd was deeply dark and sinister and I did not enjoy all of the killing. There were some scenes that just did not make sense like when Odd saw the glow from the manhole cover and never followed through with what caused the glow. Also, I didn't get how he met the character he now lived with and their relationship.Why was the female character pregnant and why did she talk in such a weird way? These plot lines could have been developed better. Don't rush to get it. Dean Koontz could have waited on this Odd story and developed a better plot line.

As usual Dean Koontz is remarkable, this character Odd is a Hero and is such a kindhearted and very deep minded individual. A movie would be a hit, as is Dean and his dear Trixie.....and her book...Bliss.

I was looking forward to read another odd thomas adventure- I was totally
disappointed. Instead of a supernational plot, it was a plot to bomb a
couple of cities with a nuclear device, totally out of koonz's character. He left me hanging with the ending, although I suspect he plans a sequel, I hope it is better then this one