Hideaway

New York: Putnam, 1992. First American edition. Fine/very good +. First impression. Tight white pages. Some light scuffing to lettering on unclipped dj, otherwise fine. From the DJ blurb: "In his most profoundly felt - and terrifying - novel yet, Dean Koontz compels us to explore the meaning of death, the nature of sociopathic evil, and the transcendent power of love. ... Hideaway has the breathless pace, suspense, lyrical prose, deeply drawn characters, and surprises that readers have come to expect in a Koontz novel - yet it is entirely fresh, breaking new ground for the author and taking the reader into the beating heart of darkness. Although accident victim Hatch Harrison dies en route to the hospital, a brilliant physician miraculously resuscitates him. Given this second chance, Hatch and his wife, Lindsey, approach each day with a new appreciation for the beauty of life - until a series of mysterious and frightening events brings them face to face with the unknown. Although Hatch was given no glimpse of an Afterlife during the period when his heart was stopped, he has reason to believe that he has brought a terrible Presence back with him from the land of the dead. When people who have wronged the Harrisons begin to die violently, Hatch comes to doubt his own innocence - and must confront the possibility that this life is just a prelude to another, darker place. He and Lindsey are forced to fight not only for their own survival but for that of Regina, the delightful and exceptional disabled child who has given meaning and purpose to their lives. With growing desperation, Lindsey and Hatch seek the truth along a twisted trail that leads eventually to an abandoned amusement park - and a confrontation with purest evil. Emotionally affecting and powerfully suspenseful, Hideaway may be Dean Koontz's finest work to date.