False Memory - A Novel

Zusatztext “A masterful thriller . . . suspense worth remembering.” — People   “Viscerally exciting . . . [a] tense tour de force . . . an expertly crafted, ornate suspenser.” — Publishers Weekly (starred review)   “Spooky . . . haunting . . . [a] compulsive page-turner.” — The Philadelphia Inquirer   “Page by page the terror mounts.” —San Francisco Examiner   “Positively chilling . . . Koontz seems to know us, our deepest foibles and fears.” —USA Today Informationen zum Autor Dean Koontz Klappentext NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER No fan of Dean Koontz or of psychological suspense will want to miss this extraordinary novel of the human mind's capacity to torment-and destroy-itself. It's a fear more paralyzing than falling. More terrifying than absolute darkness. More horrifying than anything you can imagine. It's the one fear you cannot escape no matter where you run . . . no matter where you hide. It's the fear of yourself. It's real. It can happen to you. And facing it can be deadly. False Memory . . . Fear for your mind. On that Tuesday in January, when her life changed forever, Martine Rhodes woke with a headache, developed a sour stomach after washing down two aspirin with grapefruit juice, guaranteed herself an epic bad-hair day by mistakenly using Dustin's shampoo instead of her own, broke a fingernail, burnt her toast, discovered ants swarming through the cabinet under the kitchen sink, eradicated the pests by firing a spray can of insecticide as ferociously as Sigourney Weaver wielded a flamethrower in one of those old extraterrestrial-bug movies, cleaned up the resultant carnage with paper towels, hummed Bach's Requiem as she solemnly consigned the tiny bodies to the trash can, and took a telephone call from her mother, Sabrina, who still prayed for the collapse of Martie's marriage three years after the wedding. Throughout, she remained upbeat--even enthusiastic--about the day ahead, because from her late father, Robert "Smilin' Bob" Woodhouse, she had inherited an optimistic nature, formidable coping skills, and a deep love of life in addition to blue eyes, ink-black hair, and ugly toes. Thanks, Daddy. After convincing her ever hopeful mother that the Rhodes marriage remained happy, Martie slipped into a leather jacket and took her golden retriever, Valet, on his morning walk. Step by step, her headache faded. Along the whetstone of clear eastern sky, the sun sharpened scalpels of light. Out of the west, however, a cool onshore breeze pushed malignant masses of dark clouds. The dog regarded the heavens with concern, sniffed the air warily, and pricked his pendant ears at the hiss-clatter of palm fronds stirred by the wind. Clearly, Valet knew a storm was coming. He was a gentle, playful dog. Loud noises frightened him, however, as though he had been a soldier in a former life and was haunted by memories of battlefields blasted by cannon fire. Fortunately for him, rotten weather in southern California was seldom accompanied by thunder. Usually, rain fell unannounced, hissing on the streets, whispering through the foliage, and these were sounds that even Valet found soothing. Most mornings, Martie walked the dog for an hour, along the narrow tree-lined streets of Corona Del Mar, but she had a special obligation every Tuesday and Thursday that limited their excursion to fifteen minutes on those days. Valet seemed to have a calendar in his furry head, because on their Tuesday and Thursday expeditions, he never dawdled, finishing his toilet close to home. This morning, only one block from their house, on the grassy sward between the sidewalk and the curb, the pooch looked around shyly, discreetly lifted his right leg, and as usual made water as though embarrassed by the lack of privacy. Less than a block farther, he was prep...

Product details

• Authors: Dean Koontz, Dean R. Koontz
• Publisher: Bantam Books USA
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Released: 26.06.2012
• EAN: 9780345533296
• ISBN: 978-0-345-53329-6
• No. of pages: 768
• Dimensions: 107 mm x 191 mm x 46 mm
• Subject: Fiction > Narrative literature