What the Night Knows | A-

Dean Koontz has been called the king of suspense by many, and with his latest book, What the Night Knows, he shows readers why. Koontz, author of many bestsellers such as the Odd Thomas and Frankenstein series, provides an entrancing thriller with What the Night Knows (December 2010).

The book begins with John Calvino's trip to a mental hospital where he visits a young man who killed his own family. The boy's crime is particularly interesting to Calvino because they seem to be exactly like the murders committed by Alton Turner Blackwood many years ago. Calvino, a homicide detective and the sole survivor of Blackwood's murders goes outside of protocol and meets with the boy to find out if the similarities are merely coincidence. Through visits to the scene of the crime and brief conversations with the boy, Calvino begins growing more and more convinced that Blackwood's murders have been mirrored. Soon he finds himself having to deal with the fact that his family could be targeted and the strange possibility that Blackwood himself may have returned to take revenge against him. This begins an interesting tale with many surprises and mysteries.

The book can be considered a suspense novel, as it has all of the key elements of a good mystery: suspenseful plot, worthwhile characters and an interesting back story. Koontz does a particularly good job at setting his characters up in a way that readers feel connected to them. You're drawn into the Calvino family, and they are particularly relatable.

He also does a good job of establishing a strong villain. Blackwood, the main antagonist of the book, proves to be a menacing foe and often times you get the feeling that he's some kind of monster, something out of this world. At the end of certain chapters you find out more about Blackwood's past through his journal entries where he tells of his troubled past and the journey he went on to become a person capable of killing entire families without mercy.

Koontz has definitely not lost his touch as this book does a good job at keeping up with his previous novels. What the Night Knows is full of secrets and unexpected turns. It does a good job at creeping readers out, as well as keeping them on the edge of their seats the entire time. This is definitely a good read for those who love suspense novels. Even if you aren't in love with this genre, one thing is for sure: This is one ghost story you'll want to keep reading.