The Rhodaic Standard

A recent comment influenced me to delineate the standard to which I hold all all books, as a reader. As writers, we are taught to eschew all cliches, so I'll refer to this as The Rhodaic Standard, named for Rhodium, a precious metal more expensive than gold or platinum. At least according to wiki.answers, which has to be The Rhodaic Standard of research sources, right? Good.

Those who know me will not be surprised to learn that The Rhodaic Standard is anything written by Dean Koontz. Koontz has been publishing at least one novel every year for as long as I've been alive, most of them bestsellers. Having just finished his latest, 77 Shadow Street, I debated about writing a review. How does one critique Michelangelo? DaVinci? Ryan Reynolds? Since every good book deserves publicity, even if it is destined for best-sellerdom regardless, I shall now attempt to review 77 Shadow Street. *Spoiler alert* It gets 5 stars . . .

Once my beloved soul mate introduced me to Dean Koontz (not in the flesh, though that would be supremely awesome; unless I started jumping up and down and screaming and crying like some retro-hysterical Elvis fan, in which case it would be just humiliating) and I started searching for him in book stores, I was always puzzled when I found him in the Horror section. Being a big coward who cries big, fat tears when confronted with anything remotely horrorish (Stephen King books attempted: 4, finished: 1), I never found Koontz that horrific. Suspenseful, immensely so. Slightly science-fictionish, heavy on the science, with a liberal splash of the paranormal and trademark take on Good vs. Evil. There are certain things you can count on in a Koontz, but none of them fit very well into the Dewey Decimal System or onto a genre shelf. There is typically a dog of noble or even supernatural character, a child disabled or broken but wholly good and usually ultimately a savior in some way, and a hero that is essentially flawed but has the best of intentions. He almost never revisits a protagonist, Odd Thomas being the delightful exception to this rule.

Speaking of rules, 77 Shadow Street breaks a couple of them. First, it definitely fits into the Horror category. Perhaps hard-core King junkies will scoff at my reaction, but I was definitely creeped out by this book, especially when a fictional creepy-crawly squirmed across a window at the exact moment my real-life offspring absent-mindedly rapped one finger against a wall. She then apologized and coaxed me down off the ceiling. Second, while Koontz doesn't revisit a protagonist, per se, he revisits the scene in a unique way. The Moonlit Mind is a Kindle single that was released one month prior to 77 Shadow Street, and it features the Pendleton Manor - the setting for 77SS. The characters are different, and the timing relation isn't specified (for reasons that become clear in 77SS). Both tales are haunting and lip-smacking yummy. An additional plus (minus?) is that when the true villain was revealed in 77SS, I thought boy, it's a good thing Koontz made that up and it couldn't really happen, but then--knowing Koontz as I do--I took a quick side trip to Wikipedia and learned--yep--Fiction Based on Fact strikes again. *shudder*

As Koontz's go, Intensity had me chewing more fingernails, but 77 Shadow Street had me more intellectually involved with its higher stakes and more complex villains - and protagonists. I shan't include any real spoilers, but will ask you, my fellow writers, with this question: When is the last time your protagonist had to do something truly wrong in order to do what was right?

There are other artists on my list of Go-To's for Good Reads: Diana Gabaldon, Janet Evanovich, Sarah Graves, and Lisa Gardner, whose latest release, Catch Me, is up next.

One Second After by William R. Forstchen

Our local grade school has a fantastic 5th grade teacher who dedicates each month of the school year to one particular genre, i.e. biography, poetry, mystery, etc. Each month the kids choose a book from that month's genre and do some variation of a book report. Three of my four kids have been in her class so far, and every time there is one genre that leaves me scratching my head. Realistic Fiction. Somehow the things that happen in the books they read during this month just don't seem all that realistic to me. I suppose white rats could take over a classroom, and a group of children on a field trip to a farm may arrive to find the farmer murdered, but honestly - what are the odds?

One Second After, however, is All-Too-Realistic fiction. This would be a good book to read during "Things You're Not Worrying About But Should Be" month or "Ways In Which Our Government is Inept" month. If you're a believer in the Mayan calendar, you might choose to celebrate December 2012 by reading this book, but frankly, then it's probably too late and you'll just wish you'd read it during "Maybe There's Still Time to Prepare" month.

Forstchen's End of Days story doesn't include any of the stereotypical alien invasions, natural disasters, or World War III scenarios that Hollywood has reincarnated more times than the soul of a heathen Buddhist. Think it's hype from the over-active imagination of a doomsayer? The book's foreword is written by former House Speaker, Newt Gingrich, who stated, "Though this book is a work of fiction, it is also a work of fact, perhaps a 'future history,' . . . I know this from personal study, across decades, of the very real threat to American security that is posed by this particular weapon."

The weapon in question is know as "EMP" - short for electromagnetic pulse. By strategically detonating nuclear weapons above the atmosphere, it is possible to fry all electronic gadgets within a wide radius. Though none of the fallout would reach the surface, only a few detonations would cause planes, automobiles, phones, Kindles (the horror!) - everything remotely gadget-y across the country would cease to function immediately. One Second After shows how the silent moment when everything goes black could be more disastrous than any attack this country has ever seen, including 9/11 and Pearl Harbor.

Even better, this informed and intelligent novel is well-written. The hero is believable: at once noble and flawed, exhibiting a thoughtfulness and insight most of us would not have, but igniting into irrationality and unabashed self-centeredness when his child's life is on the line. Centuries of military and sociological history are beautifully woven into the plot, showing that what is to come can be predicted and prepared for by looking at what has come before. Clearly this knowledge also informed Forstchen as he wrote a plot that is so utterly believable it seems inevitable. Forstchen pulls no punches and the reader can shelve the idea that "everything will be ok; it's just a novel."

Lest readers be tempted to throw up their hands in despair and choose a sand face-plant rather than read an uncomfortable story, there are lessons offered by Forstchen in the course of the novel about preparing for disaster of any kind. Lessons learned by his characters that are not heavy-handed and don't overshadow the storyline, that is. Forstchen understands what Dean Koontz meant when he said, "First and foremost, I am an entertainer." Forstchen entertains, while also sounding an alarm that any voter, any parent, any person who likes to eat on a regular basis, and in particular--any decision-maker in a government position--should read, enjoy, and take heed.

Five Stars