Well! Holy cow. This was so not what I'd expected. I've been a Dean Koontz fan for years. I love his scary, eerie, supernatural writing. This was not that!

What it was, was fabulous. So different from anything else I've ever read of his. It was slow moving, very wordy, but oh the words were magic. They put me right in the story, on the run with Jane Hawk as she sets out to find out why her husband killed himself. And in the process puts her own life in danger. It was a fascinating journey and one I can't wait to continue in the next installment of this series. I'm thrilled to have a new Dean Koontz series to read again. And this was one absolutely delicious first course! Bring on the rest of the feast.

I highly recommend this one to Dean Koontz fans and newcomers alike. Both will love this twisty, awesome thriller.

“Was your husband… was Gordon at all depressed?”

“Not ever. Some people throw hope away. Gordie was chained to it all his life, an optimist’s optimist.”

When Jane Hawk’s husband commits suicide it isn’t just her grief nor denial driving her to find out what really happened. Suddenly people are committing suicide, those who have never suffered from depression and have everything to live for. What is terrifying about his latest novel is the reality, how someone can easily be turned into an enemy, a bad person to turn in, because they know secrets of powerful people. What is more frightening then the control a group of people can have over any of us? This is dark, but the monsters are inside human beings.

It’s impossible to review this story fully without giving away what happens. It is soul corruption, it is viciousness and after reading it a little ‘what if ‘sets in… what if this really happened? It is the first book in a series and I can only wonder where Koontz is going to go with it. When Jane sifts through the lies, investigates the strange happenings more danger falls upon her and when she speaks to a widow, similar to herself, she couldn’t have known how evil would follow her. It’s interesting when human beings are more sinister than anything the mind can conjure. Who are the ever present they? Do you know? They who watch and control and say so much, the faceless they that so many listen to. The dead have left behind strange messages, notes that don’t always make sense but of course can easily be excused as ramblings of mental instability. What would you do if you were being pursued but didn’t know who was after you? What if you had to give up the only thing left that you loved more than life itself, because the ones after you were intent on taking it away? Where do you hide when ‘they’ have every resource available? Luckily she has skills herself from her former career.

Technology can be a beautiful thing, but too it can terrorize. We rely on it more and more, and when you’re ill, advances in treatment is the only life preserver- and who wouldn’t grab it? If technology cures us, what do we do with those that use it to harm? How do we know we can trust the hands that control it? These are questions the novel fired off in my brain. As the story gets deeper in, it becomes far more sinister, eerie. This novel brings mind control to a whole different level. It is a strange trip and I look forward to the sequel. Darn it, I didn’t want to get sucked into a series, but alas- it happened.

Strange, creepy new novel from Koontz…

Publication Date: June 6, 2017

Random House Publishing Group- Ballantine

Bantam

Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to preview The Silent Corner from Dean Koontz. This is a standalone novel that introduces a new character, Jane Hawk. She is a FBI agent on leave - she is investigating the suicide of her husband. Jane does not believe he killed himself and starts to look into recent suicides and starts tp find common threads. There is a significant uptick in suicides recently. Jane has been researching and is unraveling information - She knows something is terribly wrong. While trying to get to the bottom of these deaths, Jane is being followed.
Jane must outwit her pursuers, including killer drones, while trying to solve a murder puzzle. She is a clerver woman with alot of tricks in her bag. She loved her husband and does not believe he would hurt Jane by taking his own life. Did he kill himself or was he driven by forces to take his liife? Jane discovers there are other suicide victims. Who or what compels people to kill themselves when they are living ordinary lives? Her husband left her a mysterious suicide note and Janes knows this is not the husband she knows by reading it.
What drove her husband to take a gun and shoot himself? Did he kill himself or was he driven by forces to take his life? These questions Hawk must answer for herself and for others. Jane meets others who have lost someone to suicide - who can she trust and will that trust lead to her own death. (suicide).
Jane Hawk is an interesting character, well developed and readers will find her relatable. This is not a supernatural book as others Koontz has written and that makes it different.
A bit wordy and overly descriptive in some parts, but otherwise a good book and maybe a start of a series. Recommend.

As a Dean Koontz fan for more years than I care to mention I must admit The Silent Corner is one of the best I've read. The story line is scarily probable, in our current day, and it frightened me far more than I expected! I look forward to more Jane Hawk!

I'm going to make a confession here, first, I haven't read Mr. Koontz' stuff since The Door to December. That may be my all time favorite from this author. Of course, I've been a fan since the beginning, but I sometimes tire of an author. I've tried at least 6 times now to write this review. Truth is, I can't do the book justice. I suck at reviews anyway, but everything I try to say about this story sounds trite. So, I quit. I give up! All I'm going to say now is that I don't often give Dean Koontz 5 stars, but this story rocked! I'm actually excited for the continuation. Thank you, Netgalley for giving me this opportunity to read a fairly awesome book, that I would have missed. Would I recommend this book? Dude, you'd be a fool to pass it up.

<b>Release Date: 06.06.17</b>

It is nighttime as I write this. In fact, it is time for me to sleep, but I cannot; not until I get down my thoughts on Dean Koontz's latest thrill ride, <i>The Silent Corner</i>. I just finished reading, and my pulse is still pounding.

Jane Hawk is a woman on the run. She's mourning her husband's suicide and running from her past; she's running toward answers. An FBI agent on leave, Jane is a resourceful, intelligent protagonist who suspects a conspiracy: the suicide rate in the United States is increasing exponentially, and each suicide is stranger than the last. Triggered by her successful and ambitious husband's own suicide, Jane decides to take actions and solve this intriguing mystery a lot of research and planning. The deeper into the rabbit hole she goes (and said rabbit hole goes quite deep!) she meets more and more adversaries; people in positions of power know Jane Hawk's name and are not afraid to prevent her from following her instincts. They want her silenced — killed, even.

I have read a lot of Dean Koontz. He's one of my favorite authors, in fact; though I am unafraid to call him out when I feel he hasn't put forth much effort or a story simply falls flat (which is natural with any writer who has been in the game as long as he has), and <i>The Silent Corner</i> is no dud. Actually, I am tempted to say it is in my top three Koontz novels, ever. This is a seasoned author writing at his prime. With this new novel, Dean Koontz has written a story with more intense forward momentum than anything he's published since 2006's <i>The Husband</i>, all while retaining and expanding on the intricate emotional complexities and character growth as seen in recent novels like <i>The City</i> and <i>Ashley Bell</i>. The overarching, paranoid theme of technology gone wrong (or, at least, being used for evil schemes) is a theme very reminiscent of Koontz's '70s and '80s releases. Yet, this book still manages to stand on its own and is very relevant to today's culture.

<i>The Silent Corner</i> is the first in a new series from Koontz which stars Jane Hawk, the most delightfully badass character I have read about in some time. I just couldn't get enough of her: her charisma just oozes off the pages (or screen, in my case, as I read this on my Kindle). I wait with baited breath for the sequel, <i>The Whispering Room</i>.

<b><i>I would like to offer a big thanks to Netgalley and Bantam for providing me with an ARC of this novel in exchange for an honest review. It was an honor!</i></b>

This is not his best work, and I will not continue with reading the series. I could not get into it. The writing felt forced to me.

Amazing book by an amazing author! Excellent read!

What a fantastic novel!! The Silent Corner centers around Jane Hawk, an FBI agent whose husband has recently committed suicide...or so it appears!! Not able to believe her husband willingly took his own life, Jane takes an extended leave from work and sets off on her mission. By doing extensive research and digging, Jane ultimately reveals startling results!! Unbeknownst to Jane, she's basically opened Pandora's box and what's inside is more powerful and shocking than she could have imagined!!

The Silent Corner was a fast-paced novel that had me guessing until the very end!! There were plenty of well timed twists and turns that I NEVER saw coming--loved that!! Being that this is the first book in the Jane Hawk series, I highly encourage everyone to check it out and jump on board from the beginning!! I can already guarantee this will be a top series for me!! The Silent Corner is a 5 star read that every suspense/thriller fan will devour!! Go 1-click it!!

I know Dean doesn’t like to be pegged to a particular genre, but in all the years that I’ve been reading his work, I’ve found that in most cases, each novel falls into one of five categories: Science Fiction (Dark Symphony, Demon Seed, Lightning), Suspense (Whispers, House of Thunder, Key to Midnight), Horror (Watchers, Shadowfires, 77 Shadow Street), Fantastics (Odd Thomas, From the Corner of His Eye), and Thrillers (The Face of Fear, Shattered, Dark Rivers of the Heart.) Sure, there are exceptions (Hanging On) and you can quibble with me on even some of my examples, but in the end, the horror is my favorite followed by the thrillers in a very close second. The Silent Corner is a thriller in the best Dean Koontz style, and one I finished in just a few sittings.

The thrillers don’t have monsters, nothing supernatural, aren’t preachy, and usually have someone chasing after the main character. The tech involved is real although some it may be stretched a bit into the future for dramatic effect. The Silent Corner is a thriller and the first in a trilogy all centered around FBI Agent Jane Hawk, currently on leave looking into a conspiracy that she believes led her husband, and many others, to commit suicide. Throw in drones, armored vehicles, and a form of mind control and you’ll be buckled in for the ride.

As a librarian I do have one additional praise and one criticism that I do want to get on the record. First, Jane uses public libraries on a regular basis to have untraceable Internet access. Kudos to Dean for getting this one right. However, another character, caught looking at porn in a library, defended his doing so with the following:

“Look, I work with various concerned groups in the city. We try to set things right where we can. It took a while to get libraries to block the nasty websites so kids couldn’t get on them. Now and then a librarian or somebody decides it’s a free-speech issue and opens the lid on the sewer. I was told that branch was backsliding. I had to see for myself. Today, the lid’s back on, kids are safe.”

The issue of porn on library computers just isn’t that simple and I hope Dean doesn’t actually think it is.

In the end, if you’re a fan of Dean’s thrillers you’re going to love The Silent Corner and I expect the sequels when they arrive.

This novel seemed very different from the Koontz I'd read so often. It moved slowly and pages were spent on descriptions of scenery, houses, etc. It would have totally bored me in most any author's hands but-even though I thought about giving it up- I read through because even these 'boring' parts were so beautifully written! The man truly knows how to use language to create imagery as few can. Around 65% in, the plot really picked up. I think I missed dialogue and character interaction more than I realized. At this point it became a page turner. The concept is plausible in today's world motivated by not greed but evil and power.
Now, of course, I must read the second in this new series

I have read all of this author's books. I did not find this one to be amonst his best. Still I give a five-star rating. The writing itself is superb. The storyline slow at times. I prefer Koontz with a bit more supernatural. I will certainly read the next in this series, but I am not in deep anticipation as with some of his other series. Despite what I have written, I would recommend this book to all.

The Silent Corner is the excellent first thriller in the Jane Hawk series written by author Dean Koontz. Compelling characters with an intricate and exciting storyline. Thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group-Ballantine for the advance copy.

Once upon a time, I read every Dean Koontz book I could get my hands on. I even went to the library and got the books under his pen name (Leigh Nichols).

But somewhere along the way, the books changed. They got…mystical. And I kind of lost interest. I’ve ventured back and have found that I liked the last couple of books.

This one, I loved. My Dean Koontz love is back!

Jane Hawk is the bad ass of bad asses. She is so awesomely tough and passionate and everything you wish you could be. The action is spot on. The crime in question – extremely devious. If it weren’t for work, this would have been a one-sitting read. As it was, I finished it in two.

This is book one and, while it’s not precisely a cliffhanger, there are unanswered questions. Usually, that bugs me. In this case, I simply can’t wait for the next book!

Unrelenting, compelling, and a thriller that deserves the title! Book 2 now, please!

*ARC Provided Via Net Galley

Review: THE SILENT CORNER by Dean Koontz

First in the Jane Hawk series, THE SILENT CORNER takes on the increasingly random chaos of modern culture and fits it into a plausible framework (especially plausible for conspiracy theorists). FBI Special Agent Jane Hawk loses her beloved husband, a much-decorated Marine full colonel, to a completely unexpected and inexplicable suicide at home. During a leave of absence, her curiosity and grief lead her to begin investigating suicides nationwide, and the data she uncovers are both puzzling and horrifying.


I found the narrative longer than necessary, and thought it occasionally strummed similar chords again and again in different frames.

I absolutely adore anything Dean Koontz writes and I was not disappointed with this book! Far from it!! The heroine was tough, smart, compassionate but still able to make hard choices. There were no slow parts!! This book is engaging the whole way through!! I will definitely be recommending this book and buying my own copy as well!!!

After a man commits suicide, his wife sets out to find out why. Jane Hawk is heartbroken and confused when her husband kills himself, leaving behind a suicide not that says “I very much need to be dead”. She learns that her husband isn’t the only surprising suicide of late, other people who would have no reason to kill themselves have recently slipped the bonds of earth. In her pursuit of the truth, Jane make some powerful enemies and finds herself on the wrong side of the law. Jane may be on the run, but she refuses to give up, and will not stop until the truth is finally exposed. Koontz is one of those writers who’s only gotten better with time. I love his books now just as much as I did back in the 1980’s and he still has the power to shock and surprise