The Corner

By Eddy Guerrier

From selling drugs in a street corner, Jonas Victor, through particular circumstances, opens his hearth and finds God. Unfortunately he also witnessed how low some men with the moral responsibility to elevate human souls, can let their basic twisted minds get the best of them. For Jonas all these represent a path to God.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Release date: Jun 26, 2014
• ISBN: 9781496922281

Eddy Guerrier

EDDY GUERRRIER has more than thirty years in the Insurance Business especially in his native country, Haiti. He graduated from Sheepshead Bay High School with honors and has a B.A. from Hamilton College, Clinton New-York. He is married, has children, and is a proud grandfather. Eddy enjoys reading, classical music and travelling.

Book preview

© 2014 Eddy Guerrier. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Published by AuthorHouse 06/25/2014

ISBN: 978-1-4969-2229-8 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4969-2228-1 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2014911436

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models,

and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

CONTENTS

Devil

The Story Of Jonas Victor

Illusory Happiness

The Steps Toward The Old Man

Why Those Dreams?

Pampuyo

The Beginning

Finding The Light

The Learning Process

The Vatican

The Power Of Evil

Doing The Right Thing

Doing The Wrong Thing

This Is My Blood, This Is My Body

The Detour

Peeping Tom

Be Aware Of Your Sins

Innocent Until Proven Guilty

The Mission

The Snap

Back To Pampuyo

About The Author

About The Book

To my friend of many years, Mr. Jean Lacombe

DEVIL

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Depiction of the Devil as seen in the Codex Gigas.

DevilsfromRilamonastery.jpg

The Devil (from Greek: διάβολος or diábolos = ‘slanderer‘ or ‘accuser’)[1] is believed in many religions, myths and cultures to be a supernatural entity that is the personification of evil and the enemy of God and humankind. The nature of the role varies greatly. It ranges from being an effective opposite force to the creator god at one extreme, where both are locked in an eons long holy war for human souls on what may seem even terms (to the point of dualistic ditheism/bitheism), to being just a comical figure of fun or even an abstract aspect of the individual human condition at the other.

Whilst mainstream Judaism contains no overt concept of a devil, Christianity and Islam have variously regarded the Devil as a rebellious fallen angel or demon that tempts humans to sin, if not commit evil deeds himself. In these religions – particularly during periods of division or external threat – the Devil has assumed more of a dualistic status commonly associated with heretics, infidels, and other unbelievers. As such, the Devil is seen as an allegory that represents a crisis of faith, individualism, free will, wisdom and enlightenment.

In mainstream Christianity, God and the Devil are usually portrayed as fighting over the souls of humans, with the Devil seeking to lure people away from God and into Hell. The Devil commands a force of evil spirits, commonly known as demons.[2] The Hebrew Bible (or Old Testament) describes the Adversary (Ha-satan) as an angel who instigates tests upon humankind.[3][4] Many other religions have a trickster or tempter figure that is similar to the Devil. Modern conceptions of the Devil include the concept that it symbolizes humans’ own lower nature or sinfulness.

People often put the concept of the Devil to use in social and political conflicts, claiming that their opponents are influenced by the Devil or even willingly supporting the Devil. In addition, the Devil has also been used to explain why others hold beliefs that are considered to be false and ungodly.

THE STORY OF JONAS VICTOR

I Am Nobody

Jonas was on his usual corner, waiting for his customers to come by and get their substance for the day. Jonas was a small pusher who hated everybody, including himself. He never knew his father, his mother was a prostitute, and he lived in a poor neighborhood. He thought of himself as just a nobody, living each day as it came and went. He used to be in high school, but he hung out with the wrong crowd and dropped out of school in the eleventh grade. When his former classmates were going to work or pursuing their studies, he was selling drugs on a street corner.

Today was his birthday. Jonas was twenty years old and had been working the corner since he was seventeen. Nobody told him happy birthday when he woke up that morning. He shared a small apartment with his mother in a project, but she was too high to even remember who she was, let alone that it was her son’s birthday. Jonas did not have a girlfriend, and the people who called themselves his friends were actually his clients. His best days were always Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas because, for some odd reason, a few of his customers found themselves obligated to give him a present, no matter how little it was. They were actually thanking him for helping them die quicker; how funny life can be! Hot or cold, he was always glued to his corner, knowingly selling death. He believed he was created by the Devil, and not once did it cross his mind that God existed for his kind.

No one would believe the things one could witness just by standing on a street corner; he had seen a lot, mostly the disintegration of his clients. At first, they usually came out of curiosity, but slowly and surely they became hooked on the merchandise and revealed the irreversibility of their situation. That was one of the reasons that he never touched his so-called medicine.

He had not arrived at that corner by accident or by his own choosing. They designated the place for him because of its convenience to where his supplier lived.

When he was in high school, the other students made life very hard for him. Since he suffered from asthma, he was not a good athlete, but gym class was a requirement, and he hated going. His physical looks were not that appealing. He grew to dislike his misfortune and the consequences that he had to endure because of his sickness and his frail looks.

The bullies used to walk by him making a wheezing sound and asking him if he was about to die. He always had to carry a vaporizer, which, to the delight of his classmates, he used frequently when he was short of breath. He had to take the medicine in order to regain normal respiration. For that they called him the pump man.

He grew up to practically hate them. One day he promised himself, he would get the last word. His mother did not like him either, especially when he started coughing endlessly when he had a crisis. Taking him to the doctor was another reason to complain. She said that he was costing her too much money, even though she always managed to be on welfare. As he got older, he matured slowly, and he wondered why on earth he had to be born. He was a loner with a sour face.

One day he met a guy in the neighborhood who seemed to give him the attention he’d longed for so many times. He thought that he was a sincere friend until he realized that he was grooming Jonas to sell drugs for him. At first he did not even know what those substances were. In orientation at school they always warned students against using drugs because they could either kill you or send you to jail for a long time. So far he had managed to avoid both those results, but there he was on that street corner, doing his job. When his feet were hurting him, he walked a few yards back and forth. He could not go too far from the corner because his customers did not have a schedule for coming to buy, and he had a quota to meet if he wanted to upgrade his commissions. His normal shift was about twelve hours every day, whether it was Sunday or Thursday or any other day. When he took a day off, he did not make any money. But his true motivation for being there was the hate he carried deep within his hearth against all the people who walked by as if they were better than him, those old schoolmates who were on the varsity team and only pretended that he was their best friend when their aching bodies were demanding their life substance.

Where he graduated from was one of the worse places in town. That street corner was a magnet for all races who needed to get high, buying from someone whose demeanor was as common as they came. Even the cops knew Jonah. He was such a small provider that they cruised by, just giving him a dirty look; they never apprehended him. They knew better: too small a fish. In order for him to be secure in the territory while doing his dirty job, he wore a small talisman made of two crossed axes with a two-fingered hand in the middle that all members of that gang of small dealers were given. Jonas never questioned the meaning of the medallion. He realized that anytime anybody wanted to pull him off his corner, by just flagging or showing it he was left alone. Now they were so used to him that he could go without that ID.

In school Jonas had always enjoyed the math and physics courses but was never too interested in the other subjects. He dreamed of becoming a big scientist, but instead the street corner became his laboratory. He had learned to detect deviant human creatures and their likes. Sometimes he was amazed to see them walk by as if they wished they were invisible against the walls; he knew very well what their problem was. They needed the stuff but did not want anybody to know that they were hooked. With them, the transactions had to be done quickly and discreetly. How discreet can you be if from time to time you came to him at that street corner? Anyone will finally get used to seeing you. Jason remembered one day he saw a young woman about his age just drop dead in front of him. The poor thing stayed too long in shock from deprivation, and when she finally had the money to sustain her habit, it was already too late; her entire system just shut down. And what about that guy who was suffering from post-traumatic stress? He never received one dime from the Veteran’s Bureau, a problem of lost or mistaken identity, Jason heard. He was still fighting an endless war. He turned to some illegal activities in order to sustain himself. Instead of a token thank you for defending his country, he instead received a kick in the butt. He was bitter, and the drug was his only way out of his depression. What about the housewife who could no longer bear the sight of her husband and the children she’d produced for him? She was so polite, as if apologizing for sneaking to that street corner to get enough substance to help her to not go overboard or kill her husband. Jonas heard that she could not get out of the house because some family members came to spend a few vacation days with her husband, which finally pushed her to commit suicide. They were all different people with one thing in common: they were drug addicts.

Jonas never had a chance to experience the existence of God. He was surrounded by death and knew for sure that the Devil roamed among human beings at all

Reviews for The Corner

[stevetempo_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

My first Koontz book...a page turner...I haven't read 100-150 pages in sitting in quite some time...he is one incredible story teller...very interesting and touching themes...with a wonderful satisfying ending....each of the over 800 pages worth it...

[melydia_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

First and foremost, this was a refreshing change from your Standard Koontz Novel (that is, one long chase scene as the main character desperately tries to figure out what's going on). The story revolves around three groups of people: Agnes, her amazing son Barty, and her two eccentric brothers; Celestina and the charming child Angel; and the psychotic Junior and his pursuer, Detective Vinadium. The connection between all the characters is not clear at first, but everything does get tied up in the end. Some of the pseudoscience was a touch painful, and the last couple chapters felt really rushed and more than a little bit contrived, but all in all I liked it. The characters were delightful. It's these sorts of books that keep me coming back to Koontz time after time. I just wish he was a bit more consistent in quality.

[carol420 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I thought that this was one of the most unusual books that Dean Koontz has ever written and those who read and follow his works can attest that he has written some very unusual ones in the past. It's filled with evil, love, mysticism, and above all...hope. There are lots and lots of characters and it spans at least three generations. The two characters that really carry the story are Bartholomew and Angel...who were born on the same day...born surrounded by death...and an entire continent apart... but joined in a like mission. The character of Enoch is a man that carries something that demands a sacrifice occasionally causing the reader to be undecided if you should like him...feel pity for him...or just outright hate him. What you will know is that you can never, ever trust him. It's a long, long book but a story that you just have to see to the last page.

[scoshie · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Again Koontz can write a story that enthralls and baffels. It is amazing how he can make the unbelievable sound reasonable. Another good story for an already great author. Nice way to spend a day in the sunshine

[margotmissedthesun · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This is the only book I have read three times. When I bought my hardcover version, I donated my paperback to my high school library for everyone else to enjoy.

[tinafrankrone · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

An excellent book that takes you to the depths of enlightenment. A wonderful/magical book that will catch your attention long after reading.

[harpua_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I'm just not really sure how I feel about this book. In one sense I really enjoyed it and it kept me reading despite when hundreds of pages passed without anything really happening. I’ve found over the years that despite Koontz being classified as Horror, he has really become more of a thriller writer. This I would qualify more along those lines as well. This novel has some science-fiction elements as it’s basis, quantum physics, but it is primarily a psychological thriller. We see into the head of self-aggrandizing serial killer and suffer through his delusions and paranoia. You may think that he is the primary character as his viewpoint dominates the book. But in reality he plays just a bit piece in the whole book, mainly just to drive the true primary characters together. Most of the book takes place over about a three year period, despite being teased in the opening paragraph of a major event occurring 13 years down the road. Well we really don’t see that until the last 50 pages or so (which those pages cover about 40 years). This skewed pacing while confusing at times does work and keeps you moving forward. The climax comes with about 50 pages or so to go and is a bit of a let down, yet seems completely appropriate in the overall context. Everything then wraps up nicely and I’m now left with a confused outlook on this book. This isn’t one I will rush back to read again, but it is one that will keep me thinking about it for some time to come. For that alone, it was a success and well worth the read.

[lauriebrown54 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

When I think of Dean Koontz, I tend to think of his horror writing. This book, while having horrifying things happen in it, is more a combination of science fiction and philosophical tract. It’s plain good versus evil, where the bad is very, very bad and the good is very, very good. The villain, Junior Cain, is a psychopath with an exaggerated view of himself- he thinks he’s cultured, very smart, and a chick magnet. Also, he’s a serial killer and rapist. The good people – all the other characters- are kind, giving, and selfless. We’ve got a girl who is raising the boy, Bart, who’s father died the day he was born. She, Agnes, is known as the Pie Lady because she bakes pies and delivers them to the less fortunate. Celestina is raising her dead sister’s girl, Angel- who is the child of the rapist/killer. Thomas Vanadium is a homicide detective who is stalking Cain, because the death of Cain’s wife seems suspicious. Vanadium also likes to do tricks with coins, making them appear and disappear. At three years of age, Bart develops a cancer that requires him to have his eyes removed (this cancer really exists, and children *do* have to have their eyes removed to keep it from spreading). A few years later, though, his mother realizes that he can see. His explanation? That there are other dimensions, and a lot of them, he still has eyes. So he checks from one of those dimensions to see what path is clear. Also, he can stay dry by walking between raindrops. It all has to do with quantum physics. Cain is searching for Bart, because he happened to be listening to a sermon on tape while he was raping Celestina’s sister. For whatever reason, he’s decided that Bart is his child from the rape, and that if he kills Bart his miseries will end… yeah, I was confused. It’s a long book (730 pages), and I felt that in places it was just *too* long. It takes a very long time for all the characters to come together, and then, with just a nudge of a quantum physics trick, the story ends. I was left feeling rather let down. I can only give it four stars because of these problems.

[kat32969 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Ok, now this book is one of my all time favorites!! I love how Dean takes what the average person thinks is fake, and spins it into a very believable reality. I am a big fan of the unexplainable and Dean brings that into everything he writes but makes it feel very real. This book is about an amazing combination of phenomenons

[madamejeanie · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Koontz is a master storyteller, able to weave such an intricate story from so many varied threads, all coming together with the deliberate and stunning intent of two freight trains moving ever closer to a head on collision that is going to change everything. With every turn of phrase, every small act of kindness or malevolence, the culmination of this story seems as inevitable and as awe inspiring as the explosion of fireworks that fill the sky seconds after you hear it shot upwards. The story and characters in this book will stay with me for a very long time. It was wonderful. It gets a very strong 5.

[jbemrose_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I never read any of Dean Koontz books before. When I started the book I could not put it down. I was hooked. I couldn't wait to read what nexts. Enoch ( Junior) Cain was a very evil man. I will read more of his books.

[lmeza-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Great as always, I love Koontz, what can I say?

[joe73-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

My favorite Koontz book. He was really on to something when he wrote this. The characters are so real you can touch them. Good, Evil and everything in between. Fantastic story.

[librarycin · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

2.5 starsJunior is a rapist and murderer, including pushing his wife off a cliff. Anges goes into labour and has her baby, Bartholomew, shortly after she and her husband are in a car crash and her husband dies. Bartholomew is a prodigy and loses his eyes to cancer when he is only 3 years old. Fimmy (sp? aka Seraphim) has a baby after being raped by Junior; her sister Celestine brings up baby Angel. How are they all connected?Not a very good summary, I know. I listened to the audio, and it just didn’t hold my attention much, so I missed a lot. I was tempted to rate it ok (3 stars), but I don’t know. Although I’m a tough rater and don’t give out 5 stars often, on the other side, I feel like I’m often not harsh enough on some books. This is definitely not your usual Dean Koontz.

[cyndavaz · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Wow - this was one of those Koontz books that had a ton of depth to it. The cast of characters were so realistic and compelling that the long, drawn-out final chapters/ending can be forgiven.

[jayne_charles_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Once in a while Dean Koontz comes up with an absolute stonker, one that doesn't sem like he knocked it up in a couple of days. This is such a book. Starting off with a fascinating conundrum, and a tragic accident, it goes on to introduce a host of intriguing characters, whose motivations and interconnections are tantalisingly ambiguous. The book is at once moving (Bart losing his sight had me blubbing) and humorous (the vomitus/ejecta exchange). There's a little thread of magic running the whole way through it, and it ties itself off nicely at the end.Just a small criticism - I skipped most of the sections where Edom spouted facts, I'm not sure what they added to the story, except to demostrate that Koontz knows a lot of stuff, possibly.

[pumpernickleme · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Captivating. I typically don't like sci-fi/fantasy so the end was a bit of a disappointment for me, but I loved this book. I read it 5 years ago and still think of it often. First Koontz book. I'm axious to find more like it.

[conradrader · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

An odd story given that he tried to personify the uncertainty of the quantum state. The first scene of an totally unprovoked killing was certainly a slap in the reader\'s face.

[erleen_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Title:From the Corner of his EyeAuthor: Dean KoontzGenre/s: Suspense Thriller, MysterySynopsis: Bartholomew Lampion is born on a day of tragedy and terror that will mark his family forever. All agree that his unusual eyes are the most beautiful they have ever seen. On this same day, a thousand miles away, a ruthless man learns that he has a mortal enemy named Bartholomew. He embarks on a relentless search to find this enemy, a search that will consume his life. And a girl is born from a brutal rape, her destiny mysteriously linked to Barty and the man who stalks him. At the age of three, Barty Lampion is blinded when surgeons remove his eyes to save him from a fast-spreading cancer. As he copes with his blindness and proves to be a prodigy, his mother counsels him that all things happen for a reason and that every person’s life has an effect on every other person’s, in often unknowable ways. At thirteen, Bartholomew regains his sight. How he regains it, why he regains it, and what happens as his amazing life unfolds and entwines with others results in a breathtaking journey of courage, heart-stopping suspense, and high adventure.My Thoughts:Ever since high school, I’ve had heard Dean Koontz’ name was one of the most amazing writer in the world but I’ve never read any of his books until last year. I was skimming title after titles of novels in a local bookstore when I stumbled upon this novel called “From the corner of his eye.” My first impression was it doesn’t look very interesting for two main reason: 1.) it has almost 800 pages and; 2.) it’s font size is 10px. But because I’m curious to know how well Dean Koontz is, I bought the book. And here’s my reaction after I read it.My jaw dropped, my mouth drooled, and I was so blown away I cried. I don’t even know what to say or how to react on what I just read. I’ve never read anything as profound and brilliant as this. EVER!The characters are very well written, the plot is so complex and everything is flawless. Barty Lampion is so adorable and admirable on how he perceived everything around him. His optimism is so contagious it oozes out in the pages of the book.I would totally recommend this to everyone. This is a must-read.

[sarahfig_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

It was a great story that had a sci-fi feel to it. Good anticipation, and ending.

[weebaby_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is an example of when an author gets to write whatever he wants to write because he's guaranteed a spot on the bestseller list.Not that I'm complaining.Koontz waxes philosophically much the same way that I do, so I appreciate what he's writing about in this book. I have to admit that I am a little disappointed that he is re-using the same quarter-vanishing plot device he used in the Frankenstein series.

[john_warner-1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This novel describes a "perfect storm" in which three forces of good and evil begin separately, the story develops and the forces converge for a final battle. One force involves Enoch Cain, a narcissist who in the spur of the moment pushes his loving wife off a fire tower. Another force involves a rape and impregnated young woman who gives birth to a daughter who she names Angel, later dies and the child is raised by the mother's sister. The final force involves a woman known as the Pie Lady, who while in route to the hospital driven by her husband, is hit by another car which kills the husband but the mother survives to deliver a young boy with a special gift. Dean Koontz's novels, at their core, is the triumph of good and noble over evil forces. This novel's other themes include an coming-of-age tale emphasizing the conquering of life's obstacles. The novel had me on the edge of my seat, turning the pages, until I reached a satisfying end.

[kerryalandenney · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Another all-time favorite from an all-time favorite author.

[clstaff · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Before you let the low star rating that I gave this book turn you away, know that I would have given the book 4 and a half, maybe even 5 stars if it wasn't for the dismal, utterly disappointing ending. Up until maybe the third last chapter this was an amazing book that I found very hard to put down. The twists and turns were superb, the suspense palpable and Junior Cain (the bad guy) is easily one of the most well written antagonists I have come across. It is because of the excellence of the majority of the story that the ending was such a hideous anticlimax. An extremely well written book, which unfortunately left me feeling empty and disappointed.

[stephiesmith_1 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I only discovered Dean Koontz in 2009 and I've been busily reading him ever since. I don't like every single one of his books (they are always superbly written, but sometimes I don't care for the setting or a main character or something else), but this book was an absolute delight to read and I did not want it to end. I checked it out from the library and now will buy it so I can read it again. What did I love about it? (1) It draws you in from the first paragraph. (2) The main characters are endearing; you'll cheer for them from the moments they arrive. (3) There is a profound spiritual slant to it that really makes you think about life as you think you know it. (4) The plot is complicated (but not confusing) with many strings that all come together at the end. However, the main reason I love this book is because I laughed all the way through it. Koontz seemed to have great fun with the characterization of the serial killer, a narcissistic megalomaniac who suffered physically every time he killed someone (but at the same time was pleased to know that he was such a sensitive guy that his killings would affect him so), was filled with self pity to the point of crying, when, for example, he killed someone he had cared for and would now have to live without, and who congratulated himself on his logical analyses and deductions, which were, in fact, quite deluded. Not often do I read a book where a character is as entertaining to read as this one was. It drew me to the treadmill and kept me on it for an hour every day--no small feat!

[addictedtomorphemes · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

From the Corner of His Eyeby Dean KoontzThis is my first Koontz. The suspense started off so well with murder, rape, personal tragedy, and surprising ties between different characters. We were able to see inside the mind of a sociopathic serial killer, reading his thoughts and seeing his paranoia increase along with his ego. There were some humorous asides as the killer thought all women were after him because they just couldn't help it. He was so handsome, so skilled, so et cetera, et cetera. He was so deluded. He would describe the reactions from women (who were in reality horrified by him) and he would twist those reactions to benefit himself, i.e. they were "pretending" to be coy, or they were just teases, or they really wanted him but they wanted him to take the decision away from them. It was supposed to be frightening, I think, but the way he described his assets and his skills made me laugh. As we were alongside him as he committed his horrific and unemotional kills, we were inside his mind to see why and how he was able to rationalize the need for these murders. There was a weird sense of something supernatural thrown in that was confusing for most of the book, as the killer is haunted and stalked by his own prey--those who are already dead. It didn't really end up that way, however, although a strange element is left in the book in the form of quantum mechanics/physics, i.e. the possibility of our other selves living in parallel universes.This ended up being a disappointing read for me. Although the premise was interesting, it was such a meandering read, that it became more of a chore to finish it. It had too many things going on, too many murders thrown in just to up the suspense but not really adding to the plot, multiple people who were considered prodigies who held unique skills (relating back to the quantum mechanics thing), and an unsatisfying ending. It was just too much all around. I think the book got away from the author.

[booklovers2 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Listened on Audible Audio. Not exactly my normal genre, but was interesting and kept me engaged. It did become unrealistic in various scenes throughout but otherwise suspenseful.

[rebeccaann_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Though normally I'm a big fan of Dean Konntz, this book just didn't sit well with me. For starters, the description of this book seems a bit misleading. I went into it thinking this was mostly going to be about the character Bartholomew, yet most of the book occurs while Barty is somewhere between not even born and three years old. Instead, the book seems to focus on many different people. There's Agnes Lampian, Barty's mother and Celestina White, the older sister of Serafina, Angel's mother. Tom Vanadium is the aged detective investigating the death of Naomi, Enoch Cain's late wife. And then of course, there's Enoch Cain himself (Junior, as he prefers to be called), the clear and unrivaled antagonist of the book. There's also Jacob and Edom, Agnes's brothers, as well as a few others that I can't remember the names of at the time. As I listened to this book rather than read it, you can see how I found the man different characters a bit confusing to keep up with at times.Besides the misleading description of the book, there's also the lack of character depth. There was really no gray area in the story. People were either amazing good, almost angelic, or they were Junior Cain, the only bad guy in the entire book. Not only was he bad, but we was a psychotic-insane-sociopath-delusional type of bad. There was no area in between and therefore, no one really felt real. Apart from bad character development, there was way too much theology for me. I have no problem with religion, but neither do I really have any interest in it. Therefore, I tend to dislike literature that focuses heavily on religion, and From the Corner of His Eye was immersed in it. Most of Koontz's books tend to have some element of religion in them, but I've yet to see one so completely imbued in theology and for me, it was a turn off.If you're already a serious fan of Dean Koontz, then I might recommend this book. The story as a whole is decent. It's also an interesting look at the theory of quantum physics. I will admit, though, that had I had another audiobook available at the time I was listening to this, I doubt I would have finished From the Corner of His Eye.

[msfjones · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Although I enjoyed this book, for the most part, it's got major flaws.

If you're familiar with Dean Koontz, you know that sometimes (well, most of the time), he overdoes it. Describes things in entirely too much detail, takes 5 pages to explain something that could be told in 3 paragraphs, etc. He does not sway from that in this book. In my opinion, it could have been cut by about 200 pages and still told the story just fine.

The story centers around 2 characters, mainly: a boy named Bartholomew, who is born under extreme circumstances and loses his sight at the age of 3, and a man named Junior, who is a nutcase of the first order, basically. Essentially, the book is about how their lives intertwine, in a strange/mystical way, and...that's really about all I can tell you, without spoiling the story at all.

There are other characters you'll meet along the way who also have large parts in the story: mainly, a detective named Tom Vanadium; a young woman named Celestina White and her family; Barty's mother, Agnes, and her brothers Jacob and Edom (who, frankly, were my favorite characters in the book).

The story is great, for the most part, and again, I really enjoyed it. However, the thing was too long, went on far too much, and the ending was wrapped up so neatly that it was rather frustrating. Having said that, however - if you're a Koontz fan, I recommend it.

[ripleyy_1 · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

I don't think I've ever been as disappointed in an ending as I was with this one. The story was ok but then he completely lost me. Like another reviewer here, I wanted to throw the book across the room.