Krishna
I know that By the Light of the Moon (A book reviewed earlier) attempts to bring science back into the picture, but the explanation seems to have been left as an afterthought rather than being central to the book.
Now come on, folding the fabric of space…? (Yes, I know I liked that book, but it is for narration and tight writing rather than any logical solidity of the story)
This book follows the recent tradition. It tells the story of Ethan Truman, who has resigned from the police force to take up the job of security chief in a highly protected home of The Face (an actor called Charles Manheim, who strongly reminds me of Arnold Schwartznegger). He seems to run into a lot of paranormal phenomena like seeing a dead man
disappear and (later) come alive. He is also killed and suddenly back resurrected, not once but twice.
Add to that the phenomena experienced by the son of the Face. the geeky, well-read, nice kid Alferic Manheim – man walking into and out of mirrors, man flying etc – and you start to wonder how is Dean going to explain all this. He, ultimately never manages to, convincingly anyway. (As opposed to the movie ‘Identity‘, where they create a
situation so bizarre that you doubt anyone can explain it convincingly, and yet, they manage to do at the end! Sorry, I
digress). So you read this book the same way you watch a James Bond movie or read Robert Ludlum. Suspend your disbelief, and go for the ride. Do not try to analyze.
Once you take that position, it is a well told story, with all the tension and verbal power that Koontz brings to bear on the story. The end where Dunny (don’t ask!) finds his final destination is very moving.
The villain, Corky Laputa, is a typical Koontz character, and is not a great surprise anyway.
I would give it a 5/10 purely for the narration, not much else.
— Krishna