If you like Dean Koontz the way I do, you’ll like this book.

The thing I like most about Dean Koontz books is the characterization. I can’t always put my finger on it, but there’s usually something about his characters that draws me in immediately so that I get attached to them and can’t put the book down. This book was exceptionally good in that regard. I listened to this book on Audio CD and I remember thinking about just the first 10 minutes that I was already hooked on the characters.

This book reminded me a lot of my favorite Dean Koontz book, Life Expectancy. I think that was the first Dean Koontz I read and the reason I keep reading them is the great characterization I first found in that book. The main characters in Relentless are so much fun that you can’t help but smile even when they’re under mortal threat by seemingly supernatural bad guys. The fun banter and jokes between the family members (and dog) make you wish that you could maintain your humor under stressful situations.

<possible spoilers ahead>

The other Koontz book this reminded me of was Dark Rivers of the Heart. This connection is due to the conspiracy theorist slant of both novels. In each, a government agency has basically unlimited resources and are on a personal mission to kill the main character(s). There is lots of conspiracy theorist goodies in here like the main female character’s parents who have an underground bunker in the desert complete with deadly booby traps by the front door.

But it keeps going back to the characters. Even the weird parents in the bunker have a great sense of humor and joke and play, albeit in a potentially offensive way to vegetarian tree-huggers.

In all, I think this is not on my top five list of favorite Dean Koontz books, along with Life Expectancy and Odd Thomas. Which is really good, because there have been a couple of books of his recently that didn’t grab me and I was almost getting to the point of expending my limited reading time on other authors. But this book has renewed my love for Koontz books and I anxiously await the next.