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title: Relentless

author: Dean Koontz

genre: suspense/thriller

pages: 428

published: 2009

first line: This is a thing I've learned: Even with a gun to my head, I am capable of being convulsed with laughter.

rated: 2 out of 5 stars

As a writer, I succeed by deceiving readers into accepting that the story I'm telling as true is as true as their lives, that what happens to my characters should intellectually and emotionally involve them no less than they should be concerned about their real-world neighbors. But I have never been good at self-deception.

Relentless is about an insane book critic, it caught my interest right away.



34 year old writer Cullen Greenwich is married to Penny Bloom, has a 6 year old six-year-old prodigy son named Milo and a dog named Lassie.

Literary critic Shearman Waxx gives Cullen's latest book a bad review. Cullen is really upset by this, even though his wife keeps telling him to just let it go.
When Cullen finds out what restaurant the book critic frequents, he goes there for lunch with his son, and runs into Waxx. After an odd run-in in the men's room, Waxx takes notice of Cullen and says one word to him on his way out...'Doom'.



Soon after Cullen spots an intruder in his home, and identifies him as being the book critic. What ensues afterward is an all out terrorizing of Cullen and his family by this book reviewer. The family ends up on the run, not wanting to inform the police because of the media circus that would develop. With the help of friends and various connections, they are able to stay at different homes, but somehow Waxx keeps finding them.



You do need to be willing to suspend disbelief for this read. I just didn't feel like this book critic had enough motive to become hell bent on killing Cullen and his family.


Before you know it, Waxx is after the family, there's explosions and shootings and it's all kind of 'over the top'. Authorities don't notice all this mayhem?


I felt like the methods Waxx was using were just plain absurd. He was almost like a larger than life villain finding Cullen and his family no matter where they went.

The longer Waxx waited to speak again, the more I wondered what his game might be. I had no doubt that he had come here to harm us. That he wanted first to terrorize us seemed obvious, as well. But his boldness, the risks he took, and his eerie patience in the dark gave me the impression that his purpose was more complex than the psychotic thrill of torment and murder.

I also felt like two parents who are on the run from a psychotic maniac wouldn't be so calm and collected about discussing it in front of their 6 year old.


Here's Cullen speaking to 6 year old Milo about what the book critic threatened:

"All right, all right. He says he'll cut out your heart and feed it to your mother, Are you both happy to know that? Mmmmm?


"Don't worry, Milo," Penny said. "I absolutely won't eat it."


"What else did he say?" Milo asked.


"Then he'll cut out your mother's heart and feed it to me."


"This guy," Milo judged, "is a major sicko."

It's been a while since I last read a Koontz book. Years actually. And I've been meaning to pick him up again. Koontz is a favorite of mine, I tend to feel like he won't disappoint.


I'm really, really sorry to say I didn't really enjoy this one more.
I was curious as to what would happen next, and at 428 pages, I'm surprised I finished reading it. I kept putting it away and considered making it a DNF. I was set on finishing it though, because I hoped it would get better. He did make me laugh a few times while reading.

I have a 20-gauge pistol-grip shotgun. It'll stop any book critic ever born.

I still love Koontz anyway and will continue to read his work. This is my first time reading this author where I've been disappointed.




I think Koontz puts his heart and soul into his writing and I did find a few passages I enjoyed. As I read, I would find him throwing glimmers of hope into the storyline.

Among other things, my past had taught me that the very fact of my existence is a cause for amazement and wonder, that we must seize life because we never know how much of it remains for us, that faith is the antidote to despair and that laughter is the music of faith.

This book has been read as part of R.eaders I.mbibing P.eril Challenge