Breathless, by master wordsmith Dean Koontz, is a page turning novel of suspense, mystery, and adventure. Koontz is a mesmerizing storyteller who spins a thought provoking tale of imaginative mystery and wonder. Breathless tells the story of the moment when what the world holds as fact is shattered and a government on the brink of disaster as it tries to contain the truth.
Breathless begins in the wilderness of the Rockies where we meet Grady Adams, a solitary craftsman of fine furniture. Koontz’s deep affection and reverence for animals shows through when a pair of wondrous and mysterious creatures follow Grady’s faithful dog, Merlin, home. Merlin, a good-natured Irish wolfhound provides the connection with the animals described as about the size of a six year old child with white fur and black paws and noses and possessing eyes that are beautiful in their strangeness.
Grady calls in local veterinarian and friend Camilla Rivers to try and identify the mysterious species. Camilla is scarred by a mysterious past and living on automatic never getting too close to anyone. The mystery and adventure plus Grady supplies what is missing from her life as she is caught up in the adventure. The mood between these two is full of trust, fun, and friendship and tense with unrequited romance. The creatures seem to fill and Camilla and Grady with happy wonder. The heroes are quite likable yet slightly difficult to connect with. There are no surprises when Koontz casts a blind and overbearing government full of corruption and chaos as the antagonist after the mystery animals are reported to national security.
Society’s theories long regarded as facts are challenged as the mystery of seemingly disjointed storylines unfold in Dean Koontz’s Breathless. A renowned scientist and secret philanthropist explores the chaos theory in Las Vegas. A vagrant living on the beach happily surviving off of panhandling, tequila, and marijuana sees something by the garbage can at a scenic overlook by the sea which sets him on a journey that will change his life. A husband takes a walk on a pricey golf course and hires a killer to murder his wife and child. Estranged identical twins have a deadly reunion at a nearby farm. The story twists and turns as all of the yarns come together.
Loosely tied up at the end, the different storylines provide engaging entertainment while never quite fully converging. While the ending of Koontz’s novel Breathless does supply the needed explanations it was a little anti-climatic and left me less than breathless. However, curiosity and Koontz’s superb storytelling abilities will keep the pages turning.
Dean Koontz is the prolific author of many bestselling novels. Koontz uses his brilliant control of the language and wild imagination to spin a tale guaranteed to pique your interest and curiosity.
