Dean Koontz’s Forever Odd

Psychological Suspense Novel 2006

Mar 1, 2007

Has Odd Thomas met his match in Forever Odd, a Dean Koontz novel published in 2006 by Bantam Publishers? This novel is full of psychic magnetisms, suspense and more.

To be awoken at 2:31a.m.with a ghost watching you would unnerve most people. But not Odd Thomas. He is used to it you see. Ghosts visit him frequently, looking for justice and Odd does his best to help. It would make it a lot easier for Odd to help if only these ghosts could talk to him.

This night, the ghost’s name was Dr. Jessop. The Dr. and his adopted son, Danny lived five blocks from Odd and this is where the good Dr. is leading him. Danny and Odd had been friends all through childhood and although they rarely saw each other anymore, as both had become recluses, they were ‘Friends Forever’.

Finding Danny

The Dr.’s physically battered body was at his home; but there was no Danny. Now it’s up to Odd to find him before, he too, ends up dead. The only suspect that he and Police Chief, Wyatt Porter, can think of is Danny’s birth father, Simon Makepeace. Makepeace was released from prison four months ago after serving a sixteen-year sentence for manslaughter.

Odd’s psychic magnetism leads him to the Blue Moon Café where he discovers the abandoned van used in the kidnapping. Searching the van, he comes to the conclusion that if Makepeace is the kidnapper, he has help. Following the trail again he is led down into the flood tunnels of Pico Mundo. Odd’s friends Police Chief Porter, Terri Stambough and Elvis (his ghost) are there for emotional support, but basically Odd is on his own. Where will this hunt lead? Will Odd find Danny alive and be able to save him? Who is this anonymous woman caller, who can’t leave Odd alone? Is she involved?

Good But Not Great

On a scale of one to ten, I would rate this book a seven. I found the beginning and the last quarter of the book fast paced and did not want to put the book down. But the middle of the book, for my taste, had too much internal dialogue. In my opinion, what was needed was ‘a lot less talk and a lot more action’. I compared this book to Dean Koontz’s book Tick Tock, which I rate as a ten. It was fast paced and fantastic! Both books had a 24-hour time frame, powerful magic and one main character. That is were the similarities ended. Forever Odd is part of a three books series (so far): Odd Thomas, Forever Odd and Brother Odd.

About the Author

Dean Koontz was born in Pennsylvania, but now lives with his wife, Gerda and their dog, Trixie, in southern California. After graduating, he worked as a counsellor and tutor for underprivileged children and then as an English Teacher before he dedicated himself to writing. Koontz has written or co-written over 90 books, some have been published in up to 38 languages.

The copyright of the article Dean Koontz’s Forever Odd in Mystery/Crime Fiction is owned by Cindy Finnegan. Permission to republish Dean Koontz’s Forever Odd in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.