The Husband

By: Dean Koontz

Narrated by: Holter Graham

Length: 9 hrs and 29 mins

Publisher's summary

With each and every new novel, Dean Koontz raises the stakes—and the pulse rate—higher than any other author. Now, in what may be his most suspenseful and heartfelt novel ever, he brings us the story of an ordinary man whose extraordinary commitment to his wife will take him on a harrowing journey of adventure, sacrifice, and redemption to the mystery of love itself—and to a showdown with the darkness that would destroy it forever.

What would you do for love? Would you die? Would you kill? We have your wife. You can get her back for two million cash. Landscaper Mitchell Rafferty thinks it must be some kind of joke. He was in the middle of planting impatiens in the yard of one of his clients when his cell phone rang. Now he’s standing in a normal suburban neighborhood on a bright summer day, having a phone conversation out of his darkest nightmare.

Whoever is on the other end of the line is dead serious. He has Mitch’s wife and he’s named the price for her safe return. The caller doesn’t care that Mitch runs a small two-man landscaping operation and has no way of raising such a vast sum. He’s confident that Mitch will find a way. If he loves his wife enough. . . Mitch does love her enough. He loves her more than life itself. He’s got seventy-two hours to prove it. He has to find the two million by then. But he’ll pay a lot more. He’ll pay anything.

From its tense opening to its shattering climax, The Husband is a thriller that will hold you in its relentless grip for every twist, every shock, every revelation…until it lets you go, unmistakably changed. This is a Dean Koontz novel, after all. And there’s no other experience quite like it.

©2006 Dean Koontz (P)2006 Random House, Inc.

Critic reviews

"The Husband moves like a roller coaster without brakes….Without a doubt, Koontz is America's No. 1 author of thrillers today … The Husband is one of his finest novels."—The Denver Post

"Dean Koontz thrillers are the perfect way to chill out on a hot summer day."—The Chicago Tribune

"Fast-paced.... Koontz often pulls the rug out from under his readers' assumptions about his characters and their motives."—Associated Press, Book Review

unanswered questions

Not Koontz best by far. left me with unanswered questions. The story started out very well them fizzled towards the end

What would you do for love?

I was hooked in the first 10 minutes of this book. I liked the narration, the pace and the idea of this novel. Are there some plausibility issues....sure, but I think the overall storyline deals with them and as a reader you can immerse yourself into this story and they won't even bother you. I am a very "by the book" kind of personality and I enjoyed this audio immensely.

I am lucky enough to be married to a "Mitch" and the way he thinks and is motivated by his deep love for his wife is very moving and touched my heart.

Not a Pulitzer winner, but a fun, good read nonetheless...and truthfully, isn't that what we are really looking for anyway?

Great Listen!

I thought both the book and the narrator were great! It kept my interest right from the beginning and the book took some very interesting twists and turns. I took some very long walks just so I could continue listening.

It was ok.

Had too much detail in areas that didn't seem needed and not enough in other areas.

The Plotline

I love the dialogue, the plot, and the characters, as well as the overall plot of the story. It really makes you wonder; what if I were put in a situation like this? How would I come up with that type of money? How far would I really go? Intriguing! I own and have read the actual book and I am very much pleased with the performance!!

Need a Map for all the Twists!

This book starts off fast and just keeps going. You never know what's going to pop up- other than the main character's motivation. It was well thought out and when new characters showed up, you knew why they were there. It was written well and performed well. I love Holter Graham's performances and this one didn't disappoint me. By the end, you really find the strength of the main character that he didn't know he had at the beginning of the book.

Didn't want to leave the car

As I drive from customer to customer I didn't want to get out of the car. It kept my attention and I could hardly wait for the next time I got back into the car to pick up the story again. I really like Dean Koontz and this one didn't disappoint. It was one of his best in the past couple of years.

Suspenseful and good story

Definitely glad I read. Not as many shocking plot twists as I prefer from Koontz, more straightforward.

My favorite

Probably my favorite Koontz book so far! Great characters. No sci fi here - just a good guy against all odds trying to get his wife back.

Great Listening Too

Great story, read it > 20 years ago; wanted to hear it still good