"Each smallest act of kindness reverberates across great distances and spans of time, affecting lives unknown to the one whose generous spirit was the source of this good echo, because kindness is passed on and grows each time it's passed, until a simple courtesy becomes an act of selfless courage years later and far away. Likewise, each small meanness, each expression of hatred, each act of evil." This Momentous Day, H. R. White
Critic's and readers worldwide agree: Dean Koontz is a modern master. There is no doubt that he is one of the most popular, most prolific and one of the
best-selling writers of all time with more than 17 million copies of his books sold each year and a total 200 million copies of his novels sold worldwide.
"From The Corner Of His Eye," is Koontz's 38th novel, and in my opinion, his best. This author is amazing in that he delivers an original, thought-provoking work of fiction with every novel, and breaks new ground in the scope of its themes and its sheer storytelling prowess. Koontz uses lyrical similes and metaphors and bleaches out all
clichés. His style is concise, yet flows with a purposeful punch.
The first character you meet in this spellbinding story is Bartholomew Lampion. Barty, as his mother calls him, was blinded at the age of three, when surgeons reluctantly removed his eyes to save him from a fast-spreading cancer, but although eyeless, Barty regained his sight when he was thirteen. The child is a prodigy, a genius child, a child of fateful consequences.
"This sudden ascent from a decade of darkness into the glory of light was not brought about by the hands of a holy healer. No celestial trumpets announced the restoration of his vision, just as none had announced his birth." Herein lies a complex, mesmerizing story, few writers would attempt. Part horror, psychological thriller, and teetering over the edge of the mystical, the story impacts senses readers may not even know exist.
On January 6, 1965 in Bright Beach, California, Joe and Agnes Lampion were racing to the hospital when their car was involved in an accident. Agnes, in hard labor, was injured, and Joe was killed. The man who tore the Lampion family's world apart, on the night of Barty's birth, had not been an enemy. He was a stranger, but the chain of destiny shared a link with theirs.
North of Bright Beach in the primeval forests of the Oregon coast Enoch "Junior" Cain and Naomi, his bride of 14 months, are on an outing. They hike along deer trails and other pathways toward a lookout station where they plan to picnic. Junior is a physical therapist, and a good one. He loves his wife with all his heart. She's beautiful and has an infectious joy for life that lifts him from his occasional melancholy.
Once the couple climb the worn switchback stairs of the unmanned observation tower, they spread out their lunch and enjoy the beauty of the panoramic view. Naomi walks over to a wooden railing, and notices the weakened section of the handrail. With no motivation, no warning, Junior suddenly lurches toward her and pushes her into the rotted wood. She falls 15 stories down landing on a patch of grass and stone.
Junior, shocked by his action thinks, "If he was capable of this, then he was different from the man he'd always imagined himself to be, more complex, more dynamic. Wow." By the time police and an ambulance are summoned to the scene, Junior falls ill with a terrible stomach upset. One so all consuming, he's rushed to the hospital.
These first two acts of violence, the car wreck and then, the murder of Naomi Cain begins a tale of interwoven lives and terror the likes of which will raise more than the hair at the nape of your neck.
Many characters are introduced and readers must remember each one as all are important to the story. Detective Thomas Vanadium with the irritating habit of rolling a quarter end over end across his knuckles and who performs illusive other tricks with coins is not only annoying, he's repulsive, and fanatical in his investigations. He alone imagines Naomi's death was murder, not accidental.
Sisters Seraphim, called Phimie, and Celestina and their parents, the Reverend Harrison and wife Grace White, offer elements to the story that eventually binds all the players together in surprising ways. As Barty might say, "All the ways things are."
Agnes, with her baby son Barty, is helped to endure the grief of losing Joe by the
friendship of Maria Gonzales. Maria is an interesting character, almost as fascinating as Jacob and Edom, Agnes's adult twin brothers. Jacob and Edom, abused as children by their monstrous father have retreated into a world of their own. A world consumed by tragedies. The boys know the statistics of every natural and mechanical disaster ever to occur on planet Earth, and delight in regaling Agnes's visitors with horror tales of killer tornadoes and the Johnstown Flood of 1889.
Poor Maria almost breaks her arm crossing herself as the twins chatter off dates, places, and horrific statistics.
Step by step readers will experience Junior Cain's innate sociopathic personality emerge into full bloom by one whimsical act of murder. Layer by layer his facade of decency is stripped away until all that exists is pure evil. An evil that reaches out and destroys all in its pathway.
Koontz, ever the one for detail, drives you crazy with suspense as he, oh, so carefully weaves a web of psychological and mystical tension. The esoteric foreshadows, eerie passages, and sheer terror, bring dread for what must happen next to the characters you've come to love.
This stage is full of players, and with each one Koontz shows "All human lives are so profoundly and intricately entwined those dead, those living, those generations yet to come that the fate of each, and the hope of humanity rests in every heart and in every pair of hands." As evil and innocence come into confrontation, it is impossible to breathe. If you've never asked why nobody understands Quantum Theory you will, after reading "From The Corner of
His Eye."
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(Jones is a published writer & literary critic)
COPYRIGHT MARCH 11, 2001, PATRICIA A. JONES, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
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