Velocity

By: Dean Koontz

Narrated by: Michael Hayden

Length: 9 hrs and 16 mins

Publisher's summary

Dean Koontz’s unique talent for writing terrifying thrillers with a heart and soul is nowhere more evident than in this latest suspense masterpiece that pits one man against the ultimate deadline. If there were speed limits for the sheer pulse-racing excitement allowed in one novel, Velocity would break them all. Get ready for the ride of your life.…

Bill Wile is an easygoing, hardworking guy who leads a quiet, ordinary life. But that is about to change. One evening, after his usual eight-hour bartending shift, he finds a typewritten note under the windshield wiper of his car. If you don’t take this note to the police and get them involved, I will kill a lovely blond schoolteacher. If you do take this note to the police, I will instead kill an elderly woman active in charity work. You have four hours to decide. The choice is yours.

It seems like a sick joke, and Bill’s friend on the police force, Lanny Olson, thinks so too. His advice to Bill is to go home and forget about it. Besides, what could they do even if they took the note seriously? No crime has actually been committed. But less than twenty-four hours later, a young blond schoolteacher is found murdered, and it’s Bill’s fault: he didn’t convince the police to get involved. Now he’s got another note, another deadline, another ultimatum…and two new lives hanging in the balance.

Suddenly Bill’s average, seemingly innocuous life takes on the dimensions and speed of an accelerating nightmare. Because the notes are coming faster, the deadlines growing tighter, and the killer becoming bolder and crueler with every communication—until Bill is isolated with the terrifying knowledge that he alone has the power of life and death over a psychopath’s innocent victims. Until the struggle between good and evil is intensely personal. Until the most chilling words of all are: The choice is yours.

©2005 Dean Koontz (P)2005 Random House, Inc. Random House Audio, a division of Random House, Inc.

Critic reviews

"Graphic, fast-paced action, well-developed characters and relentless, nail-biting scenes show Koontz at the top of his game."—Publishers Weekly, starred review

"Genuinely terrific."—Booklist

“Just in time for summer, Dean Koontz again delivers a top-notch thriller full of well-drawn characters and anxiety-spiked sequences.”—Chicago Tribune

Unexpected thriller. Very good.

If you could sum up Velocity in three words, what would they be?

Title describes story.

Did the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?

Very well. This story moves along nicely, as the title indicates.

Which scene was your favorite?

The farm house visit, or sleeping by the church.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes.

Any additional comments?

This story was an unexpected gem. Had not heard about it. Came across the tapes at a half priced book store and as a Koontz fan, bought it without a thought. Great Buy. Story kicks off quickly and the events build momentum. Predictability is kept to a minimum and the events are exciting. So i bought the Audible version for my ipod and have heard this a few more times. Going to japan next week. maybe I will listen on the plane again!

Excellent Book

this is my favorite book. It's so suspenseful and always keeps you guessing. so many twists and turns. I highly recommend Velocity

Excellent!!!

Thriller from beginning to end.... keeps you on the edge of your seat. I like not being able to predict an ending.

Decent but not my favorite

Dean Koontz is one of my favorite authors. Cold Fire, Bad Place, Intensity, Odd Thomas are a few of my favorite for example. This book started slow and narrator has one tone all of the time. Second half was really good and enjoyed the ending. It’s just Dean Koontz has some amazing books so this one isn’t on top. Try the Jane Hawk series!

A True Dean Koontz Novel...as I see it

I think the last reviewer should have finished this book.I thought of it as I did Strange Highways..One of his best. A moral to be recognized and absorbed. A horror story with something to teach...How detrimental for us to have a conscious when we make decisions.Personally these are my favorite types of books by Dean Koontz. Although he can write the best of typical 'scare the pants off them' horror stories, the ones that have a moral core are the most memorable to me. Not all black and white, but with many shades of gray entwined in this one.Very fast paced..and hard to stop listening to until the end which was delightful. I say ,you must listen to this one...It's worth your time. As I have listened to or read all Dean koontz novels..Some were disappointing and left me feeling something was lost, but not many and this one is very good...like his older novels.

A very good listen

In my opinion, Koontz has reached his pinnacle with Velocity. From beginning to end, the story was interesting and fast-paced. The chaacters were a bit far fetched at times but, hey, it's fiction. I enjoyed this book very much and as an avid Koontz junkie, found it to be one of my personal favorites. Money well spent.

Good Listen

A good listen but the narrator was a bit monotone which made it difficult to stay focused. Overall, though, it was a good book. I enjoyed it more when I actually read the hardcopy. :-/

One of the can't put it down books

Good book. It was interesting throughout and the characters are likable except for the villain. The villain behind the evil acts is brought in all of a sudden without any prior clues, win my opinion. The reason for his/her actions is not understandable or believable. However, it is a good story that made the hair on my neck stand up in shock and awe.

Wow!

I definitely loved this book. It got started and never slowed down until the conclusion.

Stick with it awhile, it gets better.

The performer is a bit bland in the beginning, (hence the 4 stars) but warms to the story as he goes along and somewhere unremarkable, he becomes very good. I didn’t notice the change until I realized just how much I was enjoying it.

As the title line says, “stick with it, it gets better”.

The story itself is really quite good overall. The only reason for the 4 star review is that I knew very early who was the villain. However I was taken in until the twist caught me somewhat off guard. This will make sense once you’ve listened to or read the book.

All in all a very enjoyable and thought provoking story with just the right amount of intensity to keep you entertained. You’ll want to keep listening without ever being tempted to stop because of unwanted visuals or too graphic scenes.

I wrote that last sentence because there are at least 3 earlier Koontz books that I just wasn’t able to get through because the level of the disturbing imagery was more than I cared for. Since I know I’m not that special, other folks must feel this way as well.