Ricochet Joe

“I might be a writer someday.” — Joe

“Oh, I hope not. You seem so nice.” — Portia


It’s deadly serious as this wonderful little novelette from Dean Koontz begins, but in telling how young Joe Mandel reached that moment in time — so to speak — the narrative is filled with sweetness and charm. There is almost a whimsical tone to Ricochet Joe which is quite refreshing. Joe lives in the small town of Little City, population around twenty-thousand. His life there is pretty good, and he considers himself average. His kind and wise grandmother, Dulcie Rockwell reminds him, however, that there are dedicated practitioners of evil.

Joe is good though, innocent in many ways. One of these includes picking up trash along the roadside show more with a group of volunteers, and it is there he meets a lovely girl named Portia, who happens to be the police chief’s daughter. Something happens to Joe as he’s picking up trash, and soon he is swept up in the fight between good and evil. The evil is like a puppeteer, and the one trying to stop him, the Seeker, has chosen Joe to be the new paladin. And oh, Portia knows all about this, as does her father, and it’s their dog the Seeker has chosen to inhabit.

Many familiar yet enjoyable elements make up the story, including parallel universes, young love, guns, sacrifice, and of course, innocence. As the story takes on a more serious bend it manages to maintain its charm, for which Koontz must be credited. There is unexpected heartbreak, and a resetting of things which give this little bauble a bittersweet flavor in the end. To say more would ruin it for the reader, but it is an incredibly enjoyable short read.

Because I have a Kindle Keyboard I cannot comment on the illustrations which move and all the bells and whistles those with a Kindle Fire or other similar device can experience with this one. Considering how wonderful the actual story is, however, any and all of that would just be icing on the cake. I loved Ricochet Joe, and highly recommend it. I’ll end my review with this wonderful quote from the book:

“In the momentous night, however, he knew far more sadness than grief, and while deep sadness bruises the heart, it doesn’t leave the enduring scars of profound grief.” show less

Joe Mandel is an average guy. He leads a normal life, has normal friends, a normal family and normal life plans, if wanting to be a writer is normal. He even volunteers to help his comunity. The day he heads out to pick up trash on the side of the road with a local group, Volunteers for a Better Future, turns out to be the last day his life will be normal. The weird feeling he gets about an elderly woman being mugged.....the weird feeling he gets about a business owner being threatened by thugs.......he runs headlong into danger without thinking twice. It's as if he isn't in control of his own body anymore. Because he isn't. And the daughter of the local police chief, Portia Montclair, is there to tell him exactly why his life will show more never be the same.

This short novella by Dean Koontz is an interesting read -- definitely classic Koontz (supernatural forces, normal people put in supernormal situations, a magical golden retriever, etc). I was curious about the Kindle-In-Motion illustrations and I like most of Koontz's books, so I paged through the ebook while listening to the audiobook version (came along with the kindle ebook). The actionn moves along quickly since it is a shorter story, with a nice building of suspense and some great action. Nice story! I found several other shorter Koontz stories that I think I will read too since this one was enjoyable.

The Kindle-In-Motion illustrations were ok -- they move a bit. It added an interesting depth (comic book or cartoonish artwork though) to the story. I'm definitely going to look to see what other books they have using the animated artwork.....reminds me of an Edgar Allan Poe app I have on my phone where the art moves just like that. It doesn't work on my PC version of the kindle software though....only on my Fire and my iphone. Drat! The Kindle for PC app just sucks....can't load docs on it so I can't read my e-galley review books on my PC and no animations on Kindle-In-Motion. Why?? I'd sure like to see the movement a little larger than on my iphone 6S or my Kindle Fire screen. *rabble rabble complain moan* :) But back to the story I'm supposed to be talking about.....

Great story! Had to laugh when the required Golden Retriever appeared. So Koontz. :) Woof! show less

An absolute quality little story, for some reason it's been a while since I read a Dean Koontz, but after this excellent read, it won't be long before the next. Totally engaging and gripping from first to last page. Quality writing with superb characters throughout, and considering the subject matter somehow totally believable.
The animated artwork is a clever surprising addition.
Totally recommended.

This is a really good, quick read - Joe is drafted by a cosmic time traveling entity to battle its counter part, a cosmic time traveling evil that possesses and manipulates humans. Joe is an ordinary guy with an extraordinary heart, but what will it cost him to save the world? This the first Koontz book I've read and I really like his writing style. He has an economy of words that creates well rounded characters and a tight plot. The pages turn rapidly as the characters and plot pull you in and build suspense. This may be my first Koontz novel, but it won't be my last.

La verdad es que no quiero abundar mucho hablando de un libro de corta extensión. En resumen, me gustó el principio y no puedo decir lo mismo de las últimas dos partes. Es una obra que se puede terminar de una sentada. Me tomó tres días. El autor describe al personaje principal como un tipo bastante promedio y lo repite tanto que hace que el lector lo crea y no importa los ‘poderes sobrenaturales’ que obtenga o que tan bien parado pueda salir de una batalla cósmica, Joe siempre será un Average Joe. Y sí, el autor es Dean Koontz; pueden esperar la aparición de un perro Golden Retriever.

Short Story

This was an interesting premise for a story and it kept my interest. As always Dean Koontz tells a compelling story with unexpected plot twists.

Ricochet Joe

I enjoyed this book a lot. My only complaint is that it’s shorter than l would have liked. The end comes too soon.