I haven't read a Dean Koontz novel in years, but the blurb for The Whispering Room (Jane Hawk #2) caught my attention. Although I have not read The Silent Corner, which precedes TWR, the plot is simple, and Koontz includes enough background to make this an easy read.

TWR is a fast-paced, action-driven novel about conspiracies,
hi-jacked science, nanotechnology, and the lack of privacy that is now an ever-present part of the human condition.

Jane Hawk is a rogue FBI agent on the run and pursued by the very agencies people believe can keep them safe. The conspiracy involves the mega-wealthy and has devotees in many branches of government. Jane knows how difficult it is to find trustworthy allies; she has a few, but needs someone who can expose the conspiracy.

Jane finds an unexpected ally in Luther Tillman. Tillman is the sheriff of a small town that has just experienced a deadly suicide attack. Luther can't understand why 40-year-old Cora suddenly becomes not only willing to commit suicide, but willing to take dozens of innocents with her. After a government agent shuts down the investigation and Cora's house is burned down, Luther begins reading Cora's journals which he rescued before the fire. Cora's repeated phrases about a spider in her brain and the phrase "Play Manchurian with me" set Luther on his own investigation.

Suicides, nanotechnology, and mind-control?

Is it scary? Yes. Believable? I'm not sure, and I wish I could say, "absolutely not!" But science can always be abused, and there are always people who think they know what is best for others. In a world where technology reveals everything about an individual's personal and financial life, there is no way to go off-grid completely, but what if the tech is implanted in your brain? "Every move breath you take/Every move you make...I'll be watching you." (from Every Breath You Take by The Police)

Not a book of any depth, no fully developed characters, plenty of violence, and guaranteed to make readers more paranoid about agencies they are supposed to trust. TWR must be read for what it is--action and suspense, combined with paranoia-inducing fears about the future!

Koontz' clever use of The Manchurian Candidate was my favorite part of the novel.

Read in Sept. Blog review scheduled for Nov. 8.

NetGalley/Random House

Techno-thriller. Nov. 21, 2017. Print length: 528 pages.

The Whispering Room is book #2 in the Jane Hawk series. The story follows on from #1 The Silent Corner, but it is not necessary to have read book #1 in order to understand the gist of the storyline. In some ways I was disappointed with how the storyline developed. Jane Hawk seems to have spent most of the book chasing around, interrogating people in order to extract information from them. The book was boring at times and not as enjoyable as The Silent Corner. I will be reading book #3 because I do want to know what happens. Hopefully, book #3 will not disappoint.

After Cora Gunderson's spectacular suicide mission, Sheriff Luther Tillman begins to realise that somehow people are being controlled. He decides to go to Iron Furnace in a bid to find out what happened to Cora whilst she was there. Tillman and Hawk paths cross in Iron Furnace and they team up to rescue the children from the 'school'. They transport the children to safety, then go their separate ways. Tillman tries to get his family to safety, but that doesn't go quite as he planned. Hawk continues in her bid to find out how to get to D.J. Michael in the Far Horizons building.

Many thanks to Netgalley for the advanced proof digital copy.

I received an ARC from NetGalley to read and review. The below is my honest, unbiased opinion. Thank you, Dean Koontz, the publisher, and NetGalley, for allowing me to review.

The Whispering Room by Dean Koontz is the second book in the Jane Hawk series. It picks up immediately after the events of the first book, The Silent Corner. Jane Hawk, a blacklisted CIA agent, is on the run and trying to prove her innocence and solve the conspiracy she discovered in the previous book.

I wasn't a big fan of this novel, because I didn't feel the character development that can be seen in many of Koontz's other novels. This book is very straightforward: much of it involves Hawk chasing after or running away from something. Sadly, that made it less exciting, which is interesting, because there is quite a lot of action in this book. I'm usually an action lover, but when it's hard to connect with the main characters, it's hard to feel for their struggles.

Jane Hawk the new Dean Koontz heroine couldn't be better. The second book in this series is even better than the first. The characters are more complex, the plot lines twist and turn and the conspiracy is bigger than Jane could have imagined. The people who lend a hand along this treacherous journey are a wild variety and mix of personalities, every bit as interesting as Jane herself. I believe I have read every Dean Koontz book out there and I have to say he never gets old, the story lines continue to develop, multifaceted jewels..

Jane Hawk is brave, smart and tough. Can't wait for the next Jane Hawk novel.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for this review copy in exchange for an honest review.

Alright, when we last left the characters I was excited for a sequel and found that I had more questions instead of answers. Kootnz still has a brilliant strong character in Jane and he doesn't falter here. The only complaint I had much like last time is that Koontz is still a bit wordy in his descriptions but even though that makes it longer it's still enjoyable even though the pace drags a slight bit in still itching to get my hands on the next novel to see where he takes Jane especially after that ending.

The Whispering Room: A Jane Hawk Novel by [Koontz, Dean]

On the one hand, this was completely over the top. On the other hand, this was really fun to read.

Review copy provided by publisher.

Jane Hawk is back kicking ass and taking names. Conspiracy theorists will love this one. Dean Koontz just made a believer out of me! So plausible. So scary. And so thoroughly addicting. Go Jane Hawk!!

*ARC provided by NetGalley for an honest review.

Don't read this before bedtime. The psychological tension the author brings to your world is the expected brilliance of Koonz's work not through graphic violence (well, not too extensive violence) but through his use of language that makes even the most improbable happenings seem plausible in your real world. The only thing I didn't care for was, what seemed to me, an incomplete ending. There are plenty of subplots to be in a sequel: jane, travis, sheriff and his family, the children in the ranch...how do they move forward? I think they should all live together happily after on the ranch. Ah but that isn't going to happen as long as thousands are still 'playing the game'.

This followup to THE SILENT CORNER is follows in the steps of the first book. There is a lot action new characters and plot that curls your toes. Jane is still on her quest to destroy the man who she believes is funding the technology that reduces ordinary humans into automatons. She is taken across country in this pursuit. She has a few allies but tons of enemies. Who will win in the end. The author has reinvented himself and I am not sure if I like this one or his earlier writings more.

This is the second book in Koontz's new Jane Hawk series. At the end of the first novel, The Silent Corner, Jane had lots of unfinished business to attend to and loose ends to tie up. Koontz starts this novel with the same intensity that the previous book left off with. Whereas the first novel was slow and methodical in ratcheting up the suspense in order to build the plot, this one punches you in the gut right from the start and never lets up. Jane Hawk is once again relentless in her search for truth and justice as she tracks down those responsible for the death of her husband and other successful people. The rash of suicides may seem inconsequential, but Jane has linked them to a group that manipulates subjects through the use of nanotechnology to achieve their goal of creating a perfect world.

Jane's quest takes her cross country and she encounters many adventures along the way, always maintaining an edge of suspense that will keep you turning the pages. She also receives assistance or the promise of safety from several friends she makes on her journey, one of which is a sheriff that is investigating a suspicious murder/suicide on his own time named Luther Tillman.

There is a sinister subplot that is introduced about halfway into the book. This sheds a little more light on the activities of the group that Jane is tracking, and it will eventually become the primary focus for the rest of the novel. Jane and Luther must navigate the murky waters while remaining vigilant and always suspicious of everyone they encounter, even close friends and family members.

I believe it would be beneficial to read The Silent Corner before you read this novel as most of the content and characters overlap. The characters in this novel are complex and the suspense is palpable. Koontz once again proves that he is the master of suspense. At the end of this book Jane once again finds herself with a plethora of unanswered questions. I eagerly look forward to the next installment in this series.

I would recommend this book to fans of suspense and thrillers. I received this as a free ARC from Bantam Books, Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine on NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The Wispering Room by Dean Koontz...a fun and captivating read!

"In a time when the multitudes of the earth seemed to be dividing into just two categories, prey and predators, it was remarkable how unattained the gazelles could be to the gathering leopards all around them."

"Once truth was known, it could not be unlearned, nor could it be forgotten, but lay always in the heart, a darkness for which all the years ahead would be spent seeking whatever light could be found to compensate."

Honestly, I picked this advanced reader copy from NetGalley as an experiment-- I had never read Koontz (despite having seen so many of his best sellers in airports all over the world) and this is the second in a series in which I had (obviously) not read the first. I wondered if this would render me a little lost, and feared that I just wouldn't 'get it' (whatever 'it' was). As it turned out, I truly enjoyed this novel. It is an extremely compelling thriller with a fabulous protagonist, intriguing characters throughout, a complicated twisty plot, and Koontz has a wonderful writing style. I have read other reviews by readers who read the first in this series and state that one must read the first to understand this second. Not true! This novel stands alone and is a fun David and Goliath (correction: Jane and Goliath) thriller that is delightfully entertaining.

My experiment question--Can the virgin Koontz reader plop themselves into the middle of a series and come out more than satisfied at the other end?--was answered with a resounding: Yes!

Thank you to Netgalley and Bantam for the ARC, which was given in exchange for an honest review.

Oh what may man within him hide, though angel on the outward side."

This second book in the Jane Hawk series was amazing as was the first. I think I may die, or inject myself with nanobots, if I don't get to read #3 soon. The blend of thriller and science fiction is so highly addicting that I could barely put the book down and though I didn't want to finish knowing that I was going to have to wait for the final in the trilogy, I couldn't help myself.

You must read these in order, and this followup to THE SILENT CORNER is every bit as absorbing as the first. Nonstop action, interesting characters, and a plot that freezes your soul. In this outing, Jane continues her quest to find and destroy the man she thinks is funding the technology that is reducing ordinary humans into automatons. Her quest takes her across the country and tests every fiber of her being. Her allies are few, her enemies are legion, but somehow she survives and is committed to ending this annhilation of mankind's humanity. I loved the pace and the narrative though I have the same complaint about Koontz's verbosity, I didn't seem to mind it so much this time. This is a story that resonates with the times and all of the unrest and rebellion in the world. Is the science and the theme believable -- you bet. We don't even know what forces come into play to tap into the minds of innocents and turn them into sycophants.

The first book by this author that I ever read was WHISPER. It was Dean Koontz who turned me into the thriller reader I am today and for years I have waited for him to return to form and write another series that engaged me as much as those early works. I think I've read most of his books, but this one has stood out for me and returned me to the fold of fandom. I cannot wait for more of Jane Hawk and her exploits. I highly recommend this series.

----------
"You're dead already... They'll all know about you in the whispering room."
----------

I just LOVE this series! I reviewed the first book - The Silent Corner - earlier this year and was so intrigued by Jane Hawk and the evil she is battling that I could not wait for the next installment... In this, the second, Jane is still on the run, still facing untold and nearly unimaginable horrors. Well, nearly unimaginable until you start *really* thinking about the pervasive nature of technology - then they become altogether TOO imaginable, which makes them even more horrific. The investigative aspects of this story are engaging. As Jane teases out the ever-increasingly widespread reach of this conspiracy, the elements slowly come together and apart with a subtle tension that is delectable. The characterization in this installment is really great. As Jane journeys across the country and over and through the devastation that opens the book, she discovers not only layers of evil scattered throughout, but also bright spots of hope in the form of a truly extraordinary supporting cast that renews my faith in humanity. The people who dance into and out of Jane's path are such polar opposites - the magnificently evil and phenomenally good are sprinkled in the most unlikely places, and discovering them and teasing out which are which is a very enjoyable part of the reading.

I've read other reviews of this book that criticize it for not having the shock value and non-stop action of the first book. That is a true issue, but I don't think there was really any way to avoid it. This is a living, breathing plot - a lot of this second book lays out the next steps on Jane's journey against D.J. Michael and his (for lack of a better term) cabal, and by definition the next steps in any journey are never as novel as the first... Still, Koontz manages to blend in plenty of interesting character development in this one and that helped me over some of the bits that would have otherwise seemed slower in pace and activity. The plot is thickening, and like anything that thickens, the process takes time. I have the patience to wait it out, because I have no doubt that the result will be utterly worth the wait. I've seen mention of at least two more Jane Hawk books in the works, and I look forward to both!

----------
"...if there was any hope of freedom in the future, it resided in the ironic fact that the highly perfected technology of this age was operated by fallible human beings who might never quite control it for maximum oppression..."
----------

Loved this book. Just as good if not better than The Silent Corner! Bring on book 3!

A good second book in this author's newest series. Overall a fun to read book of mystery and suspense. However, if I had not read the first book in this series parts would have been difficult for me to follow. So read the first book first if you have not done so. The one criticism I do have is that I thought the last ten per cent of the book dragged on with too much description and not enough suspense.

Release Date: 11.21.17

Picking up immediately after the action of this novel's predecessor, The Silent Corner, The Whispering Room — Dean Koontz's latest thriller — hits the ground running. Jane Hawk, blacklisted CIA agent, is still on the run and working hard to solve the massive conspiracy she uncovered in Koontz's previous release. Certain people have been chosen to kill themselves, for no apparent reason . . . except to manage the gene pool, perhaps?

In a lot of ways, this book feels like the antithesis of The Silent Corner. I thought that book was exciting, fresh. It was a techno thriller that, for the most part, felt original and believable. I read it in three days and gave it a glowing review. The Whispering Room . . . is a sequel. Bringing nothing new to the table, this is Silent Corner redux. Jane is a boring cipher here; before, I thought she was perhaps one of Koontz's finest creations. Everything that interesting about her before is not really present here. Like Koontz's 2005 novel Forever Odd, this is a sequel that saps all the energy and vitality from its main character. And the villains . . .? I'm going to be totally honest and say I'm not exactly sure who the villains were in this one, aside from the mysterious "government agents" Koontz LOVES to use this century, to varying degrees.

In essence, this is a chase novel. There's no character development — it's all action: running, gunfights, boom boom boom. And at one point Jane helps children from an orphanage of sorts, in a scene straight out of Brother Odd. Laaaame.

Yeah, this book is pretty terrible. I dreaded reading it every day, which is why it took me so long to finish. It was just a big bore, that's all. Constant action isn't for me. I like world building and character development. I will give it two stars for its first 25% or so, which did hook me in. And, as usual, Koontz's prose is professional and without error.

Overall, this is a disappointment.

Thanks to Netgalley and Bantam for the ARC, which was given in exchange for an honest review.

For good reason there a genre called thrillers, if you looked the term up in the dictionary no doubt a picture of the cover for The Whispering Room (TWR) would be one of those books featured prominently.
Rogue FBI Special Agent Jane Hawk is back in her continuing crusade against the cabal that is trying to control the world through implanted nanotechnology.
Jane has acquired proof but since she is #1 on the FBI's most wanted list and since the NSA and other sources can mess with whatever she posts on a the web, Jane is desperate to find a way to get the information out to the public and to those government officials not yet ensnared.
Fast paced might be an understatement. Koontz starts at 60 mph and speeds up from there. I welcome Jane's nightly vodka and coke; I need the break too for my heartbeat to slow. Hey, does that mean reading TWR is a cardio exercise?
FBI Special Agent, rogue agent, crusader, cold blooded killer; the true definition of Jane is mother, wife, and now widow. Jane is as compelling as she was in the first book, The Silent Corner. In the Silent Corner the inexplicable suicide of her husband and thousands of others set Jane on her journey and is what inspires Jane to keep moving, to keep searching for payback and justice, and most of all to keep her hidden five year old son safe.
Jane has acquired an ally, Sheriff Luther Tillman from Minnesota. A beloved teacher in his town commits an unbelievable act of terrorism sending him on a search for answers after it becomes clear the Feds have no interest in looking into the inexplicable crime. Jane and the sheriff come across each other in a resort town hiding a dark secret. He ends up paying a terrible price for his knowledge and loyalty after combining forces with Jane to fight the growing evil.
Koontz is so polished in his characters and plotting, there isn’t much to say other than he carries on this tradition with The Whispering Room too.
He also continues with his very strong anti-government stance, which always amuses me since I, myveryownself work for the government as does my husband and most of our friends and neighbors. Who devote their best effort for this country. But I’ve never let this put me off from the pure magic of his writing.
My only complaint, not enough dog. Koontz is the master of dog characters.
A great second book, in what I hope is a long running series.
Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC in return for a fair and honest review.

Koontz has provided us with a razor-sharp thriller involving a rogue FBI agent on the run, mind-control, twisted conspiracies, bizarre suicides, hi-tech surveillance, hidden pockets of survivors, distrust, paranoia, gun battles, and all kinds of continual non-stop action. He effectively combines elements of crime thrillers and science fiction elements and provides one helluva rocking story.

Thanks to Random House -Ballantine for providing an advance readers copy of this book. Normally I avoid popular airport newsstand authors, but I am glad to have finally discovered Koontz. This is actually book two in the series, but I found that, while reading "The Silent Corner" would have been helpful, it was not a prerequisite. What was at stake - freedom, individuality, personhood - was made quite clear.

Jane Hawk is a bold new heroine in a strange new world where no one can ever be fully trusted again. Do you want to play Manchurian?