NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • Jane Hawk—fiction’s most relentless, resourceful, stunning new heroine—continues her battle against a murderous conspiracy in the riveting sequel to The Silent Corner. “No time to delay. Do what you were born to do. Fame will be yours when you do this.” These are the words that ring in the mind of mild-mannered, beloved schoolteacher Cora Gundersun—just before she … beloved schoolteacher Cora Gundersun—just before she takes her own life, and many others’, in a shocking act of carnage. When the disturbing contents of her secret journal are discovered, it seems certain that she must have been insane. But Jane Hawk knows better.
In the wake of her husband’s inexplicable suicide—and the equally mysterious deaths of scores of other exemplary individuals—Jane picks up the trail of a secret cabal of powerful players who think themselves above the law and beyond punishment. But the ruthless people bent on hijacking America’s future for their own monstrous ends never banked on a highly trained FBI agent willing to go rogue—and become the nation’s most wanted fugitive—in order to derail their insidious plans to gain absolute power with a terrifying technological breakthrough.
Driven by love for her lost husband and by fear for the five-year-old son she has sent into hiding, Jane Hawk has become an unstoppable predator. Those she is hunting will have nowhere to run when her shadow falls across them.
Don’t miss any of Dean Koontz’s gripping Jane Hawk thrillers:
THE SILENT CORNER • THE WHISPERING ROOM • THE CROOKED STAIRCASE • THE FORBIDDEN DOOR • THE NIGHT WINDOW
Praise for The Whispering Room
“Koontz has never exactly shied away from complex characters or situations. And this situation gets very complex indeed, as Jane pursues the people behind the conspiracy with the kind of single-minded relentlessness that makes the book absolutely spellbinding. As good as The Silent Corner was, this one’s even better. . . . Koontz is on another roll with a new series that boasts a juicy premise and a compelling star. . . . Pure gold.”—Booklist (starred review)
“A deeply layered, satisfying thriller that is character-driven and nearly impossible to put down . . . grounded in many real-world, current issues . . . [The Whispering Room] never loses sight of the classic political/sci-fi/thriller elements that make it so much fun to read.”—Bookreporter
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What can I say? The second Jane Hawk doesn’t disappoint even as Jane enters the phase of her story where the problem is so large and overwhelming that she may not be able to succeed even with the help of the few people she meets along the way who are also overcome by the conspiracy to place everyone under the thrall of a shadowy conspiracy.
Great job, Mr. Koontz!
Dean Koontz can take you in for a stay in the mind of a very twisted mind and make you glad you have the functionality God has given you, but you didn’t mind taking a glimpse of what Satan has given others as long as you can get safely out fast!
Love his prose , I’ve read everything he has written… Get the book!
This is the 2nd in the Jane Hawk series, and continues the story begun in THE SILENT CORNER. More tragedy, greater stakes involving secondary characters, and deeper conspiracy make this another stand out.
Delicious intrigue and fascinating protagonist, a former FBI agent Jane Hawk gone rogue. She’s on a one-woman crusade to track down super villains who are responsible for a mysterious and unlikely spate of suicides. In a disintegrating, dark vision of the US she’s struggling to stay one step ahead of government agencies and enemies determined to stop her, and possibly steal her soul as they’ve done with others.
Loved Jane Hawk from the beginning. Already read the 2nd book in the series.
With Koontz’s smooth and detailed story telling, this book starts right where the last ended! As we have already met Jane Hawk and so many of the characters in the previous story, we are able to jump right into the action and adventure which is all we have been waiting for! After the unimaginable attack by a much loved school teacher, this non-stop, action packed novel takes us across the country to a small town in Kentucky, in the attempt to find the heart of the mind controllers. Many important people have been taken out of the game and Jane is hopefully one step ahead of the game. While working closely with Sheriff Luther Tillman, Jane continues her epic journey to find and conquer the mind control programmers. We are introduced to new characters that will steal our hearts and others that we wish we could fight with right along Jane. An absolute wonderful continuation in the Jane Hawk series and I can’t wait to continue the journey in the continuation of this series! Jane is a heroine we can believe in and fight the good fight along side!
4.5 stars because unlike some of Koontz’s books, it is not complete unto itself.
Mature Audiences
No sex, although it is referred to
Some strong language – appropriate to the circumstances
Violence. Graphic at times, but acceptable in context
Engrossing continuation of the trilogy: readers who enjoyed the first, will enjoy this, but be aware that the third will be required reading to reach the hoped-for conclusion to the horrors of the evil and power-hungry villains.
Plot (no spoilers)
Nanotechnology has been introduced into certain individuals in order to create a perfect society. Perfectly creepy, that is. In this instalment Jane continuous her quest to find and stop those who would make themselves gods.
Of particular delight is the articulate 17 year old daughter of a small town sheriff who, among others, is helping Jane.
OF COURSE we will want to read on so we can defeat this evil in our world.
Recommended!
Dean never disappoints me. This series just gets better and better as it goes along.
I won this book through Good Reads Giveaways and although I like Dean Koontz, I felt lost in this book, There were some good parts in the beginning but it started losing me around 50% in. I feel like I did something wrong, or the book just lost me. Was there really a big part about crazy monkeys?
I’m sorry this just wasn’t the book for me.
Thank you Good Read Team for at least giving me the opportunity.
Cherie’
Love the character, can’t put it down!
A great story from a master storyteller. Koontz always manages to catch me by surprise!
Immediately read this book (#2 in the series) as soon as I finished the first. I am on the waiting list for The Crooked Staircase and I understand the 4th in the series will be out in October of this year. Can’t wait!!
The sequel to Koontz’s The Silent Corner is filled with enough action and suspense to keep you reading into the wee hours of the morning. Jane Hawk has become my favorite heroine. She is smart, gutsy, resourceful, and tenacious. When she sets her mind to investigating a series of suicides she won’t let go until she finds the people behind the grisly deaths and brings them to justice.
I had stopped reading Koontz for awhile. Even though I loved Odd Thomas, I got tired of the series. I’m so glad I found the Jane Hawk books and bit the bullet and bought them.
I’ve been a bad blogger and this is another book from my blogger shame pile. I don’t have a good excuse for being so late with this review, other than sometimes its hard reading to a calendar. When you come up to a certain book on the schedule, sometimes you just aren’t in the mood for that story or genre or trope. I think that is what happened here. I’m a long time Koontz fan, and I really enjoyed the last book in this series, so it has nothing to do with the writing or author or even the book itself. It’s just me being moody, and I need to get better at that.
So the Jane Hawk series started with a bang in The Silent Corner, and the writing seemed to be classic Koontz. Dynamic suspense and chock full of action and conspiracy theories – the things that I loved most about his writing style. I am happy to report that the momentum was carried through with this next installment, The Whispering Room.
Our capable and tragic heroine, Jane Hawk, is the most wanted “criminal” in America as she traverses the country taking on evil incarnate. Our villains, calling themselves the Arcadians, are playing on the theme of the Manchurian Candidate, brainwashing humans with the use of nanotechnology to make them mindless automatons willing to do whatever their programs require, to include suicide, sexual slavery, and mindless killing. It starts as a migraine, then is reported to feel after there is a spider laying eggs in your brain. (((SHUDDER)))
Jane makes for a great crusader. She is sympathetic, relatable, resourceful, intelligent and determined. She sees the bigger picture and knows how important it is to stop the Arcadians, not only as a means of her vengeance, but also to make the world safe for herself, her son and millions of innocent people. I liked that Jane wasn’t blinded by the big picture though, she is still able to recognize lesser injustices and intervene when necessary. She also has the knack of picking up uber interesting partners and sidekicks, and I have liked them all immensely. I was a little sad to see that our partner from the first book didn’t reappear in this installment, but I have hopes for future books.
I enjoyed the story and the pacing was such that I didn’t want to put it down. The only drawback came with the conflict resolution toward the end, which felt weak and rushed. I was left feeling unsatisfied with how things panned out, even though I would have never predicted the outcome. But it wasn’t a HUGE letdown, I would have just liked something a little more explosive. The story was great otherwise. I will be jumping right into the next installment, The Crooked Staircase, so stay tuned for that review.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book that I received from the publisher, Bantam.
Dean Koontz writes books that you can’t put down. This one is no exception. Now we have to wait until the next one is published!
I really enjoyed this 2nd entry in the Jane Hawk series. The suspense and action were great with quite a few surprises and plot twists. Several new characters added to the fun. I was a little disappointed in the ending. It came out of nowhere and left almost no clue about where the plot will go next. On the other hand, it makes me more excited for the 3rd book to come out.
I am a long time Koontz fan, and I really like this series. Looking forward to the next book in the series.
I received an advanced copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review. This is an awesome sequel! This is another Jane Hawk Book. If you haven’t read any Jane Hawk books, welcome to the world of nanotechnology! Where humans are controlled by people who think they can make the world better by killing people off, by controlling entire towns, by making women have no memories and be completely compliant to the men who want to use them. There is a “Hamlet” list and anyone on it needs to be eliminated in order for the world to be “a better place”, according to this group. Jane’s husband was on the list. He “committed suicide”. She knows he was controlled by the nanobots. She is out to make sure no one else does by the hand of this group. Welcome to the world of Jane Hawk!
Love this new series