The Whispering Room

Whispering Room

Jane Hawk continues to hunt down her husband’s killer in this action-packed sequel to The Silent Corner.

Jane is searching for the top man at Far Horizons, David James Michael, to record his confession. His company is using brain nanobots to control people. Some are used as submissive sex slaves, others as guards but worse are the ones forced to commit suicide like Jane’s husband.

Cora was named teacher of the year before the headaches started. Why would she set her own car aflame and drive into a crowded hotel restaurant? The local sheriff, Luther Tillman, finds Cora’s cryptic notebooks and decides to investigate on his own.

The Whispering Room is a thrill ride that is much better than the previous book in the series. It can be read as a stand-alone novel. However, it shares so much of the plot of The Silent Corner, there is little point in reading the previous series entry after reading The Whispering Room.

Mr. Koontz’ rather flowery writing style seems better suited to his atmospheric horror novels. Here is an example of a single sentence in the book:

The bone-pale skeletonized limbs of winter-pasted trees, chokeberry and moosewood and gray poplars, and the storm-crusted boughs of evergreens more white than black, not green at all in the night, rendered a monochromatic scene in the spectral light of the snowfields.

While definitely evocative, it is a bit distracting in a thriller, where being fast-paced is a major goal.

However, I really enjoyed all the action and the comedic interludes within the novel. The details of the Los Angeles area were spot-on. I’m looking forward to more thrillers from Mr. Koontz (though I do hope he writes at least a few more horror novels as well). 4 stars!

Thanks to the publisher, Bantam, and NetGalley for an advanced review copy.

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