Forever Odd by Dean Koontz
In this second of three (so far) books following the exploits/adventures of Odd Thomas, Dean Koontz left some holes in his plot but through some great character development gives us a great horror-gripped suspenseful ride in the world of the paranormal.Odd Thomas sees dead people. They don't talk, but they want him to help solve the puzzles of their. untimely deaths. Assisted by the Chief of Police of Pico Mundo, California, an overweight eccentric novelist and the ghost of Elvis, Odd can face anything, and he does so with attitude.
The adventure this time begins with the ghost of one of Odd's few friend's step-father, Dr Jessup, waking him up in the middle of the night. Dr. Jessup, being a ghost, cannot speak but through his face and simply his presence in Odd's bedroom tells Odd something is awry. Quickly Odd heads to Dr. Jessup's house, in his mind he's wondering how his friend Danny is doing. Danny's step-father, Dr. Jessup, is found dead by odd. Dr. Jessup has been brutally beaten. Danny suffers from Osteogenesis imperfecta, otherwise known as brittle bone disease. Being frail has never been anything Danny has let bother him and that is what keeps him and Odd friends. But the slightest movement can fracture any and possibly all of Danny's bones. After discovering the body, Odd calls the Pico Mundo Chief of Police, Wyatt Porter, one of the few who know of Odd's "talents."
Though advised not to, Odd goes out to track down Danny and find what has happened. Wyatt hints that Danny's real father has recently been released from prison and may have kidnapped him.
As it turns out (spoiler alert) it is not Danny's real father but rather Odd learns that Danny's captors are the insane beauty Datura and her two henchmen. Datura, a phone-sex operator and practitioner of a twisted version of Voodoo, has taken Danny to lure Odd to her. She has learned of his gifts and demands that he show her some ghosts.
Reading this book before reading the intro to the series, "Odd Thomas," may leave some readers in the dark, there are a lot of references to his girlfriend, Stormy and the events that happend in that book. Also the twisted form of voodoo practiced by Datura seems to create more questions than answers and seems at times as an after thought in the whole story.
However, Dean Koontz does such a great job with character development and his description of the scenery and action keep you glued to the book. The character of Odd Thomas, is so believeable that you may find yourself using GoogleEarth to find Pico Mundo, California, but I can tell you for sure....Dean Koontz made it up.
