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In Xanadu did Kublai Khan, A stately pleasure dome decree...
Dean Koontz has created a personal genre of mysterious, fantastical novels of the seemingly improbable. No matter how unrealistic certain events are in his stories, there always seems to be some modest element of plausibility which gives credence to the plot. Nevertheless, the reader must bring a "willing suspension of disbelief" to any reading of a Koontz novel.
The Husband is as psychologically complex as any of his novels, but the psychology is more overt and yet somehow more subtle. That is, we can see the psychological aspects quite clearly and understand the games being played with the minds of various characters. But the ultimate effects of the actions depicted have layers of complexity that are not so obvious, and it is these layers which we have come to expect from Koontz as they drive the plot.
Departure From the Norm (for Koontz)
The novel is a departure from the fantasy of previous Koontz novels of my acquaintance. Mitch, a seemingly simple landscaper, receives a call from the men who have kidnapped his wife Holly. They demand $2 million in cash within 60 hours else they will kill her slowly and painfully. The details are pretty common. Of course, the police are not to be contacted. Mitch contacts his older brother and the plot takes an interesting twist, then it takes a most surprising twist, and then it takes a couple of more twists.
The key here is that each twist is entirely plausible, entirely within the realm of reality.
We know that 99% of all such novels end happily, but it is the journey which sweeps us along to the end. So long as the author is able to plant a bit of doubt we read on leery of the ultimate outcome. Koontz is a master at planting seeds of doubt and that makes for compelling reading.
Not Nicholas Sparks
More, perhaps, than other novels by Koontz, this is a love story. It does not have, however, the saccharine sweetness of a Nicholas Sparks novel, as Holly says at one point. Rather, it seems to be a love rooted in real life. I use "rooted" advisedly. Think of the extended metaphor of Mitch as a gardener, his wife is Holly, and their love is rooted in a fertile soil of mutual support and confidence in one another.
It is not only a love story of husband and wife. The dynamics of parents and siblings play an important role in the outcome. It is these dynamics which Koontz so clearly delineates and which reveal the inner resources which enable Mitch to accomplish what he does.
Rounded Characters
Both Mitch and Holly are well-rounded characters within the limitations of the novel. Mitch is the protagonist who must rescue his wife if he has the internal gumption to do things which he is not accustomed to doing. Normally, the victim (the wife in this case) would be little more than a cipher, obediently waiting for liberation. That is not the case here. Holly is proactive in hopes that she will be able to create a situation which will assist in her potential rescue.
We know, for example, that the Stockholm Syndrome accounts for those hostages who become supporters of their kidnappers. Holly, not to reveal too much, effectively reverses this propensity and causes her kidnapper to have compassion for her. Like many of Koontz's characters, the kidnapper is in touch with a more esoteric view of life. He frequently refers to a number of small New Mexico towns where his life changed. This is a kidnapper with a difference.
Just released May 30, The Husband is scheduled for movie release through a new partnership between Focus Features and Random House Films, according to the Dean Koontz website. Nine of his books have risen to number one on various bestseller lists. Published in 38 languages, his numbers increase by 17 million copies per year. This novel will certainly help push those impressive numbers higher.
