Book Two in the Jane Hawk Series.
Thank Goodness Book Three comes out in three weeks!!!!
I absolutely love the way Dean Koontz writes. Some of his sentences could be stand alone award winners - his imagery and word choice and how he always includes detailed descriptions of the outdoors (I am missing a doggie in this story however!) can be stunning without overdoing it. His characters are fully fleshed, actually eat and take showers and hurt and drive and get sleepy - they are REAL. And the idea behind this good old fashioned new fangled thriller - mind control, nanotechnology injected into unsuspecting people who become like robots, and tracking down the bad guys while staying off the grid and one step ahead - does not disappoint; nay it terrifies with its potential reality.
Lots has been said about the rare strong female protagonist we have here in Jane. Move over Jack Reacher and Ethan Hunt. While Jane is smart and thinks ahead through all the details and scenarios and is uber-prepared for every challenge, she is also human. She misses her son who she has put into hiding. She is grieving her lost husband, and places her gun under the pillow upon which his head will no longer lay. (paraphrasing Koontz's prose there....sigh!) But she is determined, she is committed, and she will NOT give up. She is tracking down the people responsible for her husband's commanded suicide to stop them from literally taking over the world.
What I like best here is yes the action, and the suspense, and the breakneck pace - but also the characters Jane meets along the way. Dougal, Luther, Bernie, and her sweet in-laws help keep her grounded, focused, yet human. Will she succeed in stopping this diabolical plan? Not in this book - but she sure makes great strides. A bit more violent than the first book (hello, chimpanzees!), but the stakes are higher too. As with book one, we end with some questions answered and others posed, and Jane is on the way to regroup by hugging her son before the next phase of her mission.
I also like how the conspiracy theory through media is explored - many of the people Jane meets almost immediately realize she is not the cold-blooded killer "they" are making her out to be. The way she is able to stay under the radar and call in some favors is amazing. I could never! But then, you never know what you are capable of when your child has been threatened and your husband murdered by people who want to continue their grab for ultimate power.
Bring on Book Three. I love it.
Hmm, I normally would not have picked up Dean Koontz, not exactly sure why, but now your review has intrigued me and I feel like I must! Thanks for writing this!
ReplyDelete