Innocence

by Dean Koontz
Hennepin County Library audiobook 10 discs
read by MacLeod Andrews
genre: suspense, supernatural thriller

Addison Goodheart - fearsome creature, cast out at age 8, mother committed suicide, "father" also a fearsome beast, took Addison in when he showed up in the city, father was murdered when Addison was 20, story opens when he is 26

Gwenyth - recluse, can't stand to be touched
Ryan Tellford - attempted rapist, museum curator, murderer, thief
Teague Hanlon - guardian for Gwyneth, benefactor

Not sure how to blog about this without spoiling the story. I'll start with likes and dislikes:

Liked:

• narrator's voice - fantastic vocal work!
• mystery - drew me along, I wanted to know the answers
• Addison and Gwenyth were wonderful characters, complex and good at heart

Disliked:

• some of the creepy stuff was too creepy - the pedophile pornographer, some of the murders and evil . . . too much nasty
• some of the pseudo-religious themes. Really? It was almost as bad as that moment in the Star Wars movie when we learn that Anakin is . . . whatever. Holy. Didn't work for me.
• ending was way too pat

It took until disc 9 out of 10 for us to learn why Addison's appearance was so repugnant to anyone who saw him. The title became clear here, too. We never really learned the full mystery of the clears and the fogs, but it was classic Koontz storytelling. I still like Odd Thomas the best of all his stuff that I've read so far.