I have been reading a few Dean Koontz novels and some of them are really good. But mostly, the books tend to have a predictable story, although quite highly deviated from reality. Recently, I read “Door to December” and I noted a surprising fact. I was able to predict that the little girl must somehow be the cause for all the mayhem. Although my hunch proved to be true later when I finished the book, I was glued to the story till the end. It is quite counter intuitive to learn that I can be equally, if not more interested, in a story which is predictable, as I can be to one that is not. The normal way to react to a predictable story is to shy away from it. But on the contrary I was attracted to it. If the story was about a bank heist, I probably would have shied away. This makes me appreciate Dean for the choice of the story line. There is a unique character to the way this prediction enhances the chances of further reading. The novel often starts with vividly disturbing situations; these situations trigger our intuitive mind to construct a fictional yet fascinating reason for it. This intuition spawns from the experience of having read a few of Dean’s books earlier. So the trained mind can think and perceive practically unlikely yet highly probable story line. This the reader gets more so firmer in mind as the story moves forward which keeps the reader constantly going at the book.
I do not know if Dean did this on purpose, if he did, he really is brilliant!
If you are intrigued by this post, give a short at his books and come back again to awe yourself.
