Odd Hours by Dean Koontz Book Review

Odd Hours by Dean Koontz

I have read many other reviews of this book and I agree with most of them, the good and the bad. I, however, am not an all or nothing person. I also must say that I love Odd Thomas and there will never be another book like the original. This is a good book, if taken for what it obviously is. It is sporadic and very noticeably a set up for future story lines but why is that such a big deal. It is still a good piece of work and if you are going to be involved with a series of books you have to be able to roll with what the author is trying to accomplish. Koontz is known for letting his books lead him and I believe that is what he was doing here. Yes, this could have been a much greater novel but that may have ruined where he is going and yes, what was included in this book could have made a very compelling short story if written by a less voluble writer but again who knows what would have been lost. Now I can get on with my thoughts on this installment of the series.

“Odd Hours” gives us everything that we have come to expect from our loveable fry cook. He is humorous and philosophical yet full of humility. This writing is some of Koontz’s most memorable, although broken and erratic at times there are some real literary gems in this book. Some of the other characters are so enduring, namely Hutch and Birdie and some of the scenes so visible in my mind that I was delighted. There are many loose ends and unanswered questions but how else would he keep you anticipating where he will take you in the future. Then there is the whole situation with Annamaria which is very entertaining and took me back to read many of the sections a second time after I finished the book (I think I have her figured out but I will keep that to myself). By the end of this book Odd is no longer a naïve young kid, he has been forced to deal with where his gift/curse is going to lead him. This is, as I said, a good book if taken for what it is – a link in a series. If you haven’t read any of the Odd series, I highly recommend them but don’t start with this one. Start at the beginning and continue on through the 4 already written and the 3 more to come and I’m sure it will all make sense.