Odd Apocalypse: An Odd Thomas Novel [Kindle Edition]

Dean Koontz (Author)

Book Description

“Koontz gives [Odd Thomas] wit, good humor, a familiarity with the dark side of humanity—and moral outrage.”—USA Today
 
Once presided over by a Roaring ’20s Hollywood mogul, the magnificent West Coast estate known as Roseland now harbors a reclusive billionaire financier and his faithful servants—and their guests: Odd Thomas, the young fry cook who sees the dead and tries to help them, and Annamaria, his inscrutably charming traveling companion. Fresh from a harrowing clash with lethal adversaries, they welcome their host’s hospitality. But Odd’s extraordinary eye for the uncanny detects disturbing secrets that could make Roseland more hell than haven.
 
Soon enough the house serves up a taste of its terrors, as Odd begins to unravel the darkest mystery of his curious career. What consequences await those who confront evil at its most profound? Odd only knows.
 
“Odd Thomas is the greatest character Dean Koontz has ever created. He’s funny, humble, immensely likable, courageous, and just a joy to read about.”—Seattle Post-Intelligencer
 
“[Odd Thomas is] one of the most remarkable and appealing characters in current fiction.”—The Virginian-Pilot
 
“Supernatural thrills with a side of laughs.”—The Denver Post

Includes a preview of the next novel in the Odd Thomas series: Deeply Odd!

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

An interview with Michael Koryta (The Prophet).

MICHAEL: In the new novel, Odd Apocalypse, you write that "between birth and burial, we find ourselves in a comedy of mysteries." That statement could be a guiding light for the Odd series, and perhaps even your work in general of late. Was allowing the laughs to join the darkness a conscious decision?

DEAN: Humor began to enter my work as far back as Watchers (1987), and by Lightning (1988), my agent and publisher at that time became alarmed and counseled me that suspense and humor never mix. They were not able to offer a cogent explanation of why the two never mix. One of my favorite films of all time is "North by Northwest," which is tense and funny; so I just kept doing what I was doing. By the time I moved to Bantam Books with Fear Nothing (1998), humor became the binding glue in all of my books except for The Taking, Velocity, The Husband, and Your Heart Belongs to Me.

Odd Thomas is speaking for me when he says, "Humanity is a parade of fools, and I'm right up front with a baton." Odd is a spiritual guy, and in my experience, genuinely spiritual people--as opposed to those for whom faith is either a crutch or a bludgeon--have a great sense of humor. They recognize that our fallen world is not just tragic but also absurd, often hilariously absurd, and that laughing at humanity's hubris and reckless transgressive behavior is a potent way to deny legitimacy to that hubris. Besides, if a character is able to make you laugh out loud, a bond is formed that ensures you will worry more for him when he finds himself in jeopardy. And I will always remember that it wasn't my looks or my sartorial splendor or macho toughness--ha!--that won Gerda; she says that she laughed so much on our first date, her stomach hurt the next day. That was better than being told, as I expected, that her stomach hurt because, after I took her home, she spent the night throwing up.

MICHAEL: A three-part short novel titled Odd Interlude was released in ebook-only form this summer. Tell us a little about the way this was conceived and written. Did you have that planned before the new novel or did it come to you later in Odd's journey?

DEAN: I had written a 32,000-word ebook novella, The Moonlit Mind, to intrigue readers about a forthcoming novel, 77 Shadow Street. The novella sold very well and drew strong reader response. In fact, I'm pretty sure a lot of people liked Moonlit better than 77 Shadow Street! So as I was finishing Odd Apocalypse, my publisher asked me to write a 60,000- to 70,000-word short novel in three parts to reintroduce readers to Odd. It was outside the seven-book arc of the series, and I had great fun with it. By the way, those readers who don't do ebooks tend to get exercised about a piece appearing only digitally. In order to avoid being whacked by an irate reader while waiting at the counter for my Big Mac, I am happy to tell you that Odd Interlude will be published in paperback within a few months.

MICHAEL: Rumor has it a movie of Odd Thomas is on the way, and that you're pleased with it, which is anything but the rule when it comes to adaptations. What can you tell us about the film version and why you are so pleased with Stephen Sommers' take?

DEAN: I have a glowing review of the film at deankoontz.com and on my official Facebook page. Anton Yelchin and Addison Timlim give wonderfully nuanced and affecting performances. Steve's sense of pace and his writing are even better than his previous best, and his scene transitions are amazing, something really new and highly effective. The picture drops much from the book, but at the same time it's absolutely true to the book, to its characters and its themes.

Steve is also a great guy and a family man. When he'd send me long emails about progress on the picture, he'd write also about his daughters and family things. After one such email, I wrote him back to say that he was so normal, compared to most of my Hollywood experiences, that I was getting suspicious. I said I was steeling myself to wake up one morning and discover that he'd been arrested with Charlie Sheen, crossing the border from Mexico in a school bus loaded with drugs and explosives.

(continued)

>Read the full interview
>See all of Michael Koryta's books

Review

Praise for the Odd Thomas series: One of his finest books, and Odd himself is a superb character Independent Odd Thomas is a page-turner ... A read-at-a-sitting novel with a terrific final twist Observer Humour, humanity and horror, the classic Koontz concoction The TimesPraise for Dean Koontz: Dean Koontz is not just a master of our darkest dreams, but also a literary juggler The Times A terrific pursuit story ... clever, up-to-the-minute, and riveting Guardian There s surprise after surprise, including a killer finale ... a read-in-one-go novel Independent on Sunday Psychologically complex, masterly and satisfying . --The New York Times

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• File Size: 1206 KB
• Print Length: 368 pages
• Publisher: Bantam; 1 edition (July 31, 2012)
• Sold by: Random House Digital, Inc.
• Language: English
• ASIN: B0064C3TWE
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• X-Ray: Enabled
• Lending: Not Enabled
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,247 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)
  • #25 in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Genre Fiction > Horror
  • #29 in Books > Literature & Fiction > Genre Fiction > Horror
  • #73 in Kindle Store > Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Fantasy

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

81 of 85 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars I miss Pico Mundo and all of Odd's "family" there August 1, 2012

By Patricia Chandler

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

I am an avid Dean Koontz fan and have been for many years. The Watchers, The Taking and Odd Thomas and Brother Odd have been my favorites. It must be hard for Mr Koontz to balance his own creative needs and the overwhelming cries from his fans (AND publisher, I'm sure!) for more, more, more. And his publishing of graphic novels, web episodes, etc. must take a lot of his time as well. That's the only reason I can see for Odd Apocalypse having taken so long to publish after the fourth in the series, Odd Hours. I read the Odd Interlude sessions and Odd Apocalypse on my Kindle. If you ask me details about the first book, Odd Thomas, I can wax eloquent...but I can not tell you much about Odd Apocalpyse, although I just finished it 30 minutes ago. I don't really care if Odd and Annamarie are heading toward some big "tada!" in the sky. I DO care about what's happening in Pico Mundo. To Ozzie and Sheriff Porter and the folks at the grill (and where are the bodachs???). I miss the ghosts (even the ghost dog Boo just hangs around the edges now). In the last couple of books Odd doesn't even let those people who love him back at home know that he's okay....Odd needs to FOCUS, connect back with his solid Pico Mundo roots, and quit floating around the fog of vagueness that is Annamaria.

86 of 93 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars It's a Darker Odd... May 21, 2012

By C. Bayne VINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Vine™ Review (What's this?)

First of all, don't read this unless you've read the others in the series. Period. Have you read them? No? Go away and read them first. I might spoil something for you. This is an awesome series but you have to start at the beginning.

Everyone else read the others in the series? Good. Here goes...

This is a much darker Odd Thomas novel than the others, and the last one (Odd Hours) was pretty shadowy. This book takes place over a day at an estate in California. It's a couple days later than the events in Odd Hours, a point Odd makes a couple of times. Annamaria is back, you know the pregnant, enigmatic girl from Odd Hours. She is still enigmatic, and though she has a strong part, it's a small one. Boo, the ghost dog is also back, but he's with Annamaria most of the time.

Though this is dark, Odd still has a way with words. "...nor in the sense that a man is insane who wears a colander as a hat to keep the CIA from controlling his mind. I dislike hats of any kind, though I have nothing against colanders properly used." - page 9. Odd is sad and has had horrible things happen to him, but here's why I like him: "Yet everywhere I look, I find great beauty in this battlefield, and grace and the promise of joy." - page 15. Through the darkness and horror, Odd remains fundamentally decent and good. And that's what makes this series so good. There IS horror in Odd's life, but his attitude toward it makes it bearable, both for himself and for his readers. You want to take the journey along with Odd, no matter what turns it makes, because you care about him. There aren't a whole lot of characters I truly care about.

While the writing is good as always, this almost didn't seem like an Odd Thomas novel. It's almost like it's an aside to the longer journey that Odd is on. It almost takes place out of the timeline, which is kind of ironic once you read the novel. The people Odd cares about are either not there or barely there. Most of his interactions take place with the estate and the people who live there. There is A LOT of philosophical musing on Odd's part. More so than the other books.

I gave this 4 stars because of the writing and the character, but the story was very... well I can't think of another word to describe it than "dark", which is not normally my thing. This novel is seriously midnight without stars or moon kind of dark, but Odd is a shining beacon. I am looking forward to the conclusion (will it be 6 books or 7?) I've read all 3 graphic novels and am looking forward to the Odd Interlude Kindle shorts that are coming in June. I wish I had received an advance Kindle reading copy instead of paper because there are so many quotes I wanted to clip. And a couple of words to look up. For a fry cook, Odd has a marvelous vocabulary.

This series is highly recommended.

90 of 101 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars "Chaos half-loosed cannot be long controlled" May 22, 2012

By The geacher VINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Vine™ Review (What's this?)

If half-loosed chaos is what you're looking for in an exciting summer read - this is it. Koontz latest installment of his popular Odd Thomas series, Odd Apocalypse, is one of the best. Odd has hooked up with Annamaria again, the Lady of the Bell, who talks in riddles. The couple run into Noah Wolflaw, the current owner of Roseland, an estate built in the early 20's by Constantine Cloyce as his retreat and man cave. Some say that Cloyce dabbled in the occult and from the start we see that this property holds more than meets the eye.

Odd Thomas (so named due to the dropping of the "T" from Todd on his birth certificate) and Annamaria are invited to Roseland and are housed in a stone tower located in a eucalyptus grove on the compound and told to keep the doors locked and never to venture outdoors at night. They share the dwelling with a living Golden Retriever and Boo, the white German-shepherd ghost dog who has befriended Odd in previous novels. Odd, you must understand, can see the dead. On one of his illicit forays into the night he meets a spectral woman in white astride a black stallion who points down at him with a message about a young son she left behind.

Odd further explores the grounds finding weird lazy eights, made of copper, embedded in the mausoleum, the stable and atop the fortress-like stone wall that surrounds the compound. He meets the cast of characters who dwell in one capacity or another at the estate. Aside from the current owner we meet Chef Shilshom the corpulent cook who aside from being a gifted kitchen pundit demonstrations his main talent is "not" answering questions in a very evasive manner. In the immaculate stables with their stained glass lazy eight décor and strange out of sync time continuum, Odd meets gigantic Jack Keister, who may or may not be a property guard. At first meeting Jack abruptly leaves the barn like the White Rabbit of Alice fame repeating the words "late, late, late".

There is Henry Lolam, the poetry reading Ufologist who mans the guard shack and Paulie Sempiterno, the chief of Roseland security who roams the property in his pimped up golf cart. All of Koontz's characters in the tale are well written, interesting and keep the story moving along at a jack rabbit pace. Odd's interactions with each personality gives Dean a chance to weave his words in that now famous and charming Koontz way. I often have to stop reading and just smile at the way he's comically turnes a phrase.

Roseland, as an estate, is described as "No place in my experience has ever been more beautiful....and no place has ever felt so evil". In Odd Apocalypse our hero is put in the difficult position of acting on the appeal of Annamaria, seeming more and more like an old soul, who tells him "there's someone here who's in great danger and desperately needs you..." or heeding the warnings from everyone else to leave. The others also bestow curious advice such as "look for death if you want to live". Odd suspects that he might have to "save the nameless someone with time pouring away like sand from a fractured hourglass".

This is the best Odd Thomas novel in a while and I think it can stand alone and be read out of the framework of the others in the series. But, hey, read them too. They're fun.

More About the Author

I was born and raised in Pennsylvania where I graduated from Shippensburg State College (now Shippensburg University). When I was a senior in college, I won an Atlantic Monthly fiction competition and have been writing ever since. My first job after graduation was with the Appalachian Poverty Program, where I was expected to counsel and tutor underprivileged children on a one-to-one basis. During my first day on the job, I discovered that the previous occupier of my position had been beaten up by the very kids he had been trying to help and had landed in the hospital for several weeks. The following year was filled with challenge but also tension, and I was more highly motivated than ever to build a career as a writer. I wrote nights and weekends, which I continued to do after leaving the poverty program and going to work as an English teacher in a suburban school district outside Harrisburg. After a year and a half in that position, my wife, Gerda, made me an offer I couldn't refuse: "I'll support you for five years," she said, "and if you can't make it as a writer in that time, you'll never make it." By the end of those five years, Gerda had quit her job to run the business end of my writing career. Gerda and I, along with our dog, Trixie, live in southern California.

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