Odd Thomas, (Chapters 1-13)

Of the 70-80 novels that Dean Koontz has written (under that name, anyway), “Odd Thomas” may well be the most popular.  The fact that he has continued with several sequels into a series attests to that.  From the beginning, we can see why.  Writing in first person, the 20-year-old Odd is an engaging, self-effacing, highly relatable young man with whom the reader feels a real connection.  This is definitely Koontz at his witty best.  And when you add the premise that this young man sees dead people, you have a recipe that can’t lose.

Almost immediately – in the first two chapters – we find him avenging a little girl’s death by chasing down the killer…who has been identified by the dead girl herself, in the form of a silent manifestation of her previously living self.  In the process of running down the villain, Odd treats us to an almost constant stream of witticisms, such as when he chases the suspect into a woman’s house and kitchen: “Past her, on a far counter, smoke poured from a toaster.  Some kind of pop-up pastry had failed to pop.  It smelled like strawberries and smoldering rubber.  The lady was having a bad morning.” 

As our hero’s character is further developed, we see several more endearing traits such as the fact that he takes great pride in being a superb short order grill cook, comforts a senile old neighbor in her irrational fears, and relates winningly with his co-workers.  Koontz’s writing – always a treat – is often as poetic and deep as it is witty.  In describing the child-killer:  “Here was a diseased and twisted bramble of a soul, thorny and cankerous, which perhaps until recently had been imprisoned in a deep turning of Harlo’s mental labyrinth.”  Practically every page has a remarkably phrased observation worthy of stopping for reflection.  This is a feature of almost any of his books, but he has really hit his stride in this respect with this work. 

Odd’s ability to see dead people has accompanying quirks as well, such as his ability to see the entities that he calls “bodachs.”  With the movie coming out soon, it will be interesting to see how these are depicted.  They are described in pretty good detail here, so one can only hope that the movie producers don’t drop the ball on this.  Speaking of which, Willem Dafoe as the Police Chief, Wyatt Porter is a good call.  Stormy Llewellyn is described in the book as having a “…Mediterranean complexion, jet-black hair, and mysterious dark eyes…she looked like a sultry espionage agent…”  Addison Timlin? I’ll believe it when I see it!  Anton Yelchin as Odd?  I think he can make it work.  My pick, if he were still young enough looking for the role, would have been John Cusack.  Yelchin will probably have to play it differently than Cusack would have, but I’m optimistic. 

The mysterious dark room:  I remember reading a critique somewhere that this passage is never followed up on, that the book never gets around to explaining the significance of this “portal to nowhere” that Odd encounters in the house of “Fungus Man.”  The implication seems to be that Koontz wrote it in, intending to later weave it into the story somehow, but forgot to do so!  Well, maybe.  I have noticed instances in other books of his of strange passages that made me feel that I was missing something.  I have always assumed it was just me.  That this mysterious multi-dimensional room is the point of origin for a host of bodachs to enter our universe may be its only function.  If so, one might wonder if it was necessary to the story.  Personally, I don’t think it detracts as much as it adds, so I’m willing to let it stand as is, in this otherwise stunning work!

Next week's chapters: 14-27.