Book Review-Recent Readings-Dean Koontz

• Publisher: Bantam
• Date: December 2010
• Page Count: 442
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• What the Night Knows by Dean Koontz
• Murder and Ruin follow John Calvino. From the time he was fourteen to now, when he is a local homicide detective, there seems to be a pattern emerging that may mean danger to his family. Two decades ago and many states away, Alton Turner Blackwood went on a murdering rampage, only finishing when he was killed by a teenage boy, after murdering his whole family. Now similar murders are taking place. A young boy who has just killed his family sits in a mental institute, saying the same things to John that Blackwood said twenty years ago. This may be more than coincidence, as the murders are just too much like the past occurrences. John begins to fear for his family as the pattern of murders continue. The anniversary of his family's death is coming soon and the faces of the evil coming after him and his are changing faster than he can keep up with. His job and home-life are affected and he now shares the secret of his past to try and save his future. His wife and children are also feeling the changes that have come into their lives. Mystical and frightening things have been happening and they are isolated more than they know. As the anniversary nears, John seeks an exorcist, but the spirit Ruin, in the form of Alton Blackwood finds many more hosts than John can find to help save his family. It may be up to him and his family to fight the curse haunting them.
• Dean Koontz has written novels for many years, and though frequently past novels have left me disappointed, this book reminds me of why Koontz has been so enjoyable in the past. This novel has characters of good and evil, that interest and entertain. Drama, mystery and intrigue keep you wondering what is going to happen next and what trial will be placed in John's path to further endanger his family and will they overcome it together.
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Book Review-Recent Readings-James Patterson

• Publisher: Little Brown and Company
• Date: June 2011
• Page Count: 383
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• Now You See Her by James Patterson and Michael Ledwidge
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• From Key West  to New York City, Nina Bloom's life take many turns. A young woman, known as Jeanine, goes to Key West for holiday with friends during college, where tragedy seemingly turns into a magic existence. Her husband Peter is her savior in desperate times and soon she finds herself pregnant. Does she really know this man who came from no where to make such change in her life?  As a local policeman, Peter is shot and his partner killed, leading to a quick unraveling of a blissful existence. In the middle of all of this, Jeanine decides life may be safer elsewhere for her and her unborn child. As she makes such a momentous decision and runs, she comes across a serial killer, and barely escapes.
• Soon danger seems very far away as she raises her child and becomes a respected attorney. Her firm has decided to collaborate with a group of attorneys fighting for those whose cases need review based on the possibility that DNA testing may change the results. Now danger may be back in the cards. Does Nina risk her current existence to defend the man who was convicted as Florida's serial killer? A man she knows is not the man she escaped from many years ago. There is risk and danger involved in a return to the sunshine state and new facts will be revealed about a life she ran from.
• James Patterson has written many, many novels and now frequently collaborated with other writers. Though many of the collaborations really do not work if you are looking for a James Patterson novel, this book with Michael Ledwidge is a good choice. The characters are well-defined and mysterious when needed. The action and danger take interesting twists and turns and the relationships are enjoyable to watch endure or develop. This may be a new writer to watch for.