HomeGroupsTalkMoreZeitgeist
Search Site
This site uses cookies to deliver our services, improve performance, for analytics, and (if not signed in) for advertising. By using LibraryThing you acknowledge that you have read and understand our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. Your use of the site and services is subject to these policies and terms.

Results from Google Books

Click on a thumbnail to go to Google Books.

Brother Odd (Odd Thomas Novels) by Dean…
Loading...

Brother Odd (Odd Thomas Novels) (original 2006; edition 2007)

by Dean Koontz

Series: Odd Thomas (3)

MembersReviewsPopularityAverage ratingMentions
5,1801052,059 (3.82)72
Fantasy. Fiction. Horror. Thriller. HTML:NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
 
Loop me in, odd one. The words, spoken in the deep of night by a sleeping child, chill the young man watching over her. For this was a favorite phrase of Stormy Llewellyn, his lost love. In the haunted halls of the isolated monastery where he had sought peace, Odd Thomas is stalking spirits of an infinitely darker nature.
 
As he steadfastly journeys toward his mysterious destiny, Odd Thomas has established himself as one of the most beloved and unique fictional heroes of our time. Now, wielding all the power and magic of a master storyteller at the pinnacle of his craft, Dean Koontz follows Odd into a singular new world where he hopes to make a fresh beginningâ??but where he will meet an adversary as old and inexorable as time itself.


… (more)
Member:pale_violets
Title:Brother Odd (Odd Thomas Novels)
Authors:Dean Koontz
Info:Bantam (2007), Mass Market Paperback, 464 pages
Collections:Your library
Rating:
Tags:dean koontz

Work Information

Brother Odd by Dean Koontz (2006)

Loading...

Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book.

No current Talk conversations about this book.

» See also 72 mentions

English (103)  Norwegian (1)  Spanish (1)  All languages (105)
Showing 1-5 of 103 (next | show all)
This is the second in the Odd Thomas series that I have read. They are weird, scary and downright funny at times. Somehow, I always find myself drawn in. This novel finds Odd residing at Bartholomew's Abby in the High Sierra mountains of California. As with the previous Odd novels, the plot is full of quirky characters and an interesting storyline. I'm looking forward to reading the additional Odd Thomas novels. ( )
  AndreaHelena | Feb 19, 2024 |
I didn't intend to obtain this book after reading book 2, then discovered it lurking in my TBR pile so decided it would serve the purpose as a lighter read in between the volumes of Jack Vance's Lyonesse series.

The beginning is not very promising as it takes an age to get going after we learn that Odd Thomas has indeed retreated to a monastery, although he is a guest there, not a lay brother. The mountain is remote and in mountainous country, and the snow which will cut off the community for the duration of the story, has just begun. It is a new and not always welcome experience to Odd who has grown up in hot and dry desert-like conditions.

Odd leaves his room when he notices a dog, which lives at the monastery, behaving strangely and then realises it has spotted one of what Odd calls bodachs, dark spirits which are always drawn to the site of a future bloodbath. In pursuing the dog out into the snow, he stumbles over one of the brothers, but before he can see who it is lying in the snow, or whether he is dead or just unconscious, Odd is clubbed from behind. He is only saved by the fact that he moved at the time of the blow, so it caught him mainly on the shoulder. He runs off, and is not pursued - luckily, it transpires when we discover what it is that had attacked him.

The threat this time seemed extraterrestrial in nature from the weird description of what Odd sees through a window when something chases him to the building where nuns reside and where they look after the community of children with disabilities. That was a genuinely menacing scene. But Odd also confronts other entities, such as a figure which resembles the grim reaper, which seem more supernatural. Eventually it all stems back to a brother who was a multi-millionaire and former quantum physicist who built the community and retired there, only he had continued his research all along and has a souped up digital printer.

I didn't find the denouement at all convincing sadly. It was rushed and the outcome was obvious, plus not instituted by the protagonist. I also was less than convinced with some other elements, such as the possible Russian spy with his 'cake humour', and the readiness of the brothers and nuns to believe Odd's wild story and act accordingly, even if the police chief from his old town had vouched for him to the abbot and mother superior before his arrival. One of the characters, Brother Knuckles as Odd calls him, is rather a stereotype from old films about the Mafia. But the creatures and their behaviour, very reminiscent of 'Alien' and other films was intriguing, so their origin was rather disappointing. The author even name checks the classic film from which he drew the idea Forbidden Planet so he is fully aware of how derivative the rationale behind everything actually is. And the ending is a bit too cheesy, swapping one famous legend for another, plus the 'revelation' about the dog which I had guessed very early on. There is even one little girl who loves dogs and wants to work with them when she grows up, but she has no relationship with the supposed resident animal, so it was very obvious.

Another issue, which I've noticed in his more recent books as opposed to those he wrote in the 1970s, is that his hobbyhorses about modern life and his anti-science bias are here, the latter being more to the fore.

However, one redeeming feature was the portrayal of the young man who has been living at the monastery for some years, and is very autistic but is a fantastic artist. So with that and the early promise of the hostile creatures, I would award this one 4 stars. ( )
  kitsune_reader | Nov 23, 2023 |
With all of the weird stuff happening in Odd Thomas's life, could anyone blame him for taking time out at a monastery? Here he though all would be peaceful and calm, but alias, nothing is normal in Odd Thomas's world.

Another engaging chapter in the life of Odd Thomas, that is thoroughly enjoyable. ( )
  BluezReader | Nov 12, 2023 |
The best of the Odd Thomas books. What a fun ride. ( )
  MickeyMole | Oct 2, 2023 |
Koontz dialed-back the totally crazy and pared down the setting quite a bit. In a way, it is almost the opposite of the pandemonium in the second novel, Forever Odd.

I am not going to lie – I utterly enjoyed this novel. This novel is not really anything other than a superficial, kind-of entertaining pulp fiction. I mean, you likely would not include it in your permanent collection and I do not think it is going to set Koontz up for any prized awards. The villain is kind of obvious and the pseudo-science is incredibly ridiculous. This book is really not for everyone. The author told me a good story that had elements in it that I could access and that also I could be entertained by. ( )
  AQsReviews | Sep 4, 2023 |
Showing 1-5 of 103 (next | show all)
no reviews | add a review

» Add other authors (9 possible)

Author nameRoleType of authorWork?Status
Dean Koontzprimary authorall editionscalculated
Baker, David AaronNarratorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Kleinschmidt, BernhardTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
You must log in to edit Common Knowledge data.
For more help see the Common Knowledge help page.
Canonical title
Original title
Alternative titles
Original publication date
People/Characters
Important places
Important events
Related movies
Epigraph
Teach us...
To give and not to count the cost;
To fight and not to heed the wounds;
To toil and not to seek for rest...
--St. Ignatius Loyola
Dedication
To some folks I've known a long time and admire because they do good work and are good people: Peter Styles, Richard Boukes, Bill Anderson (Hello, Danielle), Dave Gaulke, and Tom Fenner (Hello, Gabriella, Katia, and Troy). We'll have a fine party on the Other Side, but let's not be in a hurry.
First words
Embraced by stone, steeped in silence, I sat at the high window as the third day of the week surrendered to the fourth.
Quotations
Last words
(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)
Disambiguation notice
Publisher's editors
Blurbers
Original language
Canonical DDC/MDS
Canonical LCC

References to this work on external resources.

Wikipedia in English (1)

Fantasy. Fiction. Horror. Thriller. HTML:NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
 
Loop me in, odd one. The words, spoken in the deep of night by a sleeping child, chill the young man watching over her. For this was a favorite phrase of Stormy Llewellyn, his lost love. In the haunted halls of the isolated monastery where he had sought peace, Odd Thomas is stalking spirits of an infinitely darker nature.
 
As he steadfastly journeys toward his mysterious destiny, Odd Thomas has established himself as one of the most beloved and unique fictional heroes of our time. Now, wielding all the power and magic of a master storyteller at the pinnacle of his craft, Dean Koontz follows Odd into a singular new world where he hopes to make a fresh beginningâ??but where he will meet an adversary as old and inexorable as time itself.


No library descriptions found.

Book description
Haiku summary

Current Discussions

None

Popular covers

Quick Links

Rating

Average: (3.82)
0.5 2
1 15
1.5 4
2 68
2.5 18
3 322
3.5 63
4 448
4.5 22
5 333

Is this you?

Become a LibraryThing Author.

 

About | Contact | Privacy/Terms | Help/FAQs | Blog | Store | APIs | TinyCat | Legacy Libraries | Early Reviewers | Common Knowledge | 203,243,475 books! | Top bar: Always visible