Sunday, June 11, 2017

The Silent Corner

The Silent Corner by Dean Koontz
Penguin Random House: 6/20/17
eBook review copy; 464 pages
ISBN-13: 9780345545992

The Silent Corner by Dean Koontz is a very highly recommended conspiracy thriller and starts a new series. This is a perfect summer novel of suspense!

FBI agent Jane Hawk's husband, Nick, committed suicide, leaving behind a note that said, "I very much need to be dead." Jane knows that this is not her husband, a decorated Marine, a full colonel, on a career path to becoming a general. She needs to find out the truth behind his suicide and that of other capable, talented people. In fact, Jane knows that the suicide rate is dramatically increasing across the country. What is alarming is that these are people of accomplishment, of excellence. These are people who will make a difference or are making a difference. Why would these intelligent, proficient people be committing suicide?

After taking a leave of absence from the Bureau, Jane tries to find out the answer to the increasing suicide rate. When the life of her son is threatened, Jane knows they are a target. She hides her son and Jane goes rogue and underground. Clearly she is the target of powerful people who will do anything to stop her and there is no one she can trust. She has to rely on her skills to find the answers she needs. Who is behind the increasing suicide rate? How are they controlling people? More importantly, why? As she gets closer to the truth, the danger increases.

It is truly frightening to know how easily our every move can be tracked today.  Koontz takes real life technology and shows how the features built into it can be used to track people. It is frightening to realize how easily our every step and movement can be watched without us even realizing it. It's not the stuff of science fiction, it is fact.

The Silent Corner is an extremely well written, excellent thriller with incredible characterization and fast paced action. Jane Hawk is a fully realized, compelling character, full of depth, growth, and intelligence. It's good to know that this is the start of a series featuring her. It's also challenging. Because it is the start of a series there isn't complete closure or answers to all the questions.
There are terrific, nail-biting action scenes and narrow escapes. The suspense and threats grow but Jane narrowly manages to keep a clear head and a step ahead. And it's a great story.

Thriller/suspense fans: read this book. You won't regret it. After that you will be relieved to know that the second book in the Jane Hawk series, The Whispering Room, has a tentative release date of January 9, 2018.

Disclosure: My review copy was courtesy of Penguin Random House.

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