Odd Thomas series buddy read (spoiler warning)

[Kasia]

Hey guys, I'm joining in, got Jonathan's message.. I will have to quickly skim the 1st book again as it's been a while since I read it but i loved it. Thanks so much for the invite!

kas

[Mehmet]

Welcome Kasia. I am enjoying the 1st book myself also.

[Kasia]

Thanks you Mehmet! I got the 1st book on my kindle app now so I'm good to go, I've been thinking about this series so I'm happy to get back into it.

[Mehmet]

The first book, while it has some gory moments it really is more of a mystery, then straight horror.

[Jonathan]

Yeah. I would say it is a paranormal mystery. Welcome and thank you for accepting my invite :)

[♥♡¢σσкιє♥♡ (Krystle)]

Hi, I'm Krystle! Jonathan contacted me about the read and this is one of my favs so I thought I'd join in on the conversation. Never read the short story though, and I think I have to now. The more Story Llewellyn I get to read, the better! 😁

[Mehmet]

Hello and welcome Krystle :-)

[R.S.]

It's going to take all my spare reading time to catch up on the comments! Love it so far. Odd Thomas is in my top ten books of all time. I love the way Koontz writes and the way it's funny creepy all at the same time. I saw someone on the thread likened it to Buffy and I totally agree. As far as trying to compare it to the movie. I actually thought the movie was pretty good it can just never capture all the rich character details Koontz drops in.

Who said Ouja board? I say just learn sign language and find he ghost of Helen Keller! I think there's something more specific than just speaking. i think the ghosts are forbidden from communicating certain aspects no matter how much the y want to communicate them. Leads to frustration (Poltergeist!)

Excited to hear other peoples points about the story and how they see it and think the Universe works. It's weird how deep this can go if you dig into the story line a little more versus just kind of skimming the surface and enjoying the narrative.

[Jonathan]

Welcome back Krystle. It is good to see you here. It is just like old times! I hope to read your thoughts and theories as you make your way through the book. :-)

[Jonathan]

R S Merrit thank you for your comment and feedback on the book. I enjoyed reading your thoughts on the series. I am glad you enjoyed the comparison to Buffy. I would love to see Joss Whedon take on the series someday. I have to watch the movie again now that I started the second book in the series. How far did you get in the series? Did you read all of the books?

[Mehmet]

I have only started the series myself, so am a beginniner to the world dean Koontz has created for the series. One thing that caught my interest though

(view spoiler)[are the bodachs, they seem to act as portents for Odd but I wonder what they hold for the future and what does happen if they catch on to Odd awareness of them ? (hide spoiler)]

[Mehmet]

(view spoiler)[Why did that have to happen at the end :-( i am ashamed to say i cried. I have not read a book which pulled my heart strings so well in ages. (hide spoiler)]

[Mehmet]

just starting Forever Odd

[Jonathan]

I listened to the book a lot over the weekend. It is fun so far and a nice evolution from the first novel and short story that we read. I now got a sense of Odd’s character arc and appreciate his various challenges .

[Jonathan]

I liked the second book! It was fun. If anyone wants to explain a certain part at the end please private message me. Lol

[Atlanta]

I need to start reading this after I finish ghost story

[♥♡¢σσкιє♥♡ (Krystle)]

Mehmet wrote: "[spoilers removed]"(view spoiler)[
I'm still so torn up from the ending that even though the short story wasn't sad, I cried. I knew what he was foreshadowing and I didn't like it!
(hide spoiler)]

Jonathan wrote: "Welcome back Krystle. It is good to see you here. It is just like old times! I hope to read your thoughts and theories as you make your way through the book. :-)" Thank you for the invite! 😁

Just finished the short story and it was so good. Spoilers for short story:(view spoiler)[it was nice the read about teenage Stormy and Odd. Their relationship always surprises me with how beautiful it is.
I forgot how prominent Elvis is in this series, and how much I love his character.
And it was a good choice to make the ghost evil instead of a victim. Wasn't expecting it. Great little story that ties in perfectly with the first book. (hide spoiler)]

Jonathan wrote: "I liked the second book! It was fun. If anyone wants to explain a certain part at the end please private message me. Lol" Darn it, I read it so many years ago I dont remember. Guess I wont be able to continue without a reread. This hurts the lazy reader on me. Lol

[Jonathan]

So one minor complaint is the antagonists aren’t always the most fleshed out. Maybe it is because the story is told through the first person view so it makes sense we won’t know the full motivations of the villains.

Overall I am happy with the stories

[Jonathan]

Welcome ATL I hope you stick around for the full series!

@Krystle

It is great to have you with us. It feels like all of the original group is here! :-)

[♥♡¢σσкιє♥♡ (Krystle)]

Just started book 3. (I'm too lazy to reread 1 and 2)
I forot how charming and likable Odd is. Even after all these years, he is still one of my favorite characters. He's so genuine, and his heroics never feel forced.

Spoilers for ch 1-6 of third book: (view spoiler)[
His grief for Stormy is written beautifully. Instead of falling apart completely, her love and memory are giving him strength. That's a lovely tribute to her.

I really enjoyed Odd's description of Brother John's incredible life versus the way the media portrayed him and others perceived him.
(hide spoiler)]

@Jonathan, I think your right, and I've read a few other Dean Koontz books and noticed that he focuses more on his heroes than villains. I think he keeps the villains one note so he can highlight good triumphing over evil.

[Jonathan]

I agree with Krystle. Odd’s personality is definitely the highlight the books so far. His sarcasm and wit is very entertaining!!

I could see Odd Thomas become a awesome series of movies under the direction of someone like Edgar Wright. I would love to see a director with that level of skill make the dialogue pop the way he does.

[♥♡¢σσкιє♥♡ (Krystle)]

Jonathan wrote: "I agree with Krystle. Odd’s personality is definitely the highlight the books so far. His sarcasm and wit is very entertaining!!

I could see Odd Thomas become a awesome series of movies under the..."

Agreed! Hope someone can pick up and complete the story. The Netflix movie was good and Anton Yelchin did a great job. So that proves the story translates well.

I'm up to chapter 19 and really enjoying it so far. Brother Knuckles is so cute, in fact all of the monks and nuns have interesting and unique personalities. The way Odd describes them gives just enough information so I become fond of them right away.

I do feel like the book can be repetitive in between the moments when something important happens. (view spoiler)[
I know he will reunite with Stormy someday on the other side, I know the kids in the orphanage have been abused or abandoned by people who should have cared for them, I know Odd's parents are lower than pond scum. I don't need a reminder every 2 chapters. I think I'm anxious for more action. Not enough has happened for the book to become this repetitive this early.
(hide spoiler)]

[Kasia]

Just wanted to drop in and apologize for not being a great buddy reader here, I had a death in the family last week and it's been difficult just to get through work and even the book I started before this, so I'm so sorry ..Im not giving up, even got the 2nd book delivered but it look me a week to even open the box.. Ill try to get to reading with you guys as soon as I can:)

kas

[Mehmet]

No need to apologise Kasia. Wish you and your family our condolences. Grieving is very hard, but important.

[Mehmet]

Still on Forever Odd

(view spoiler)[Miss Stormy a lot in this story. Although she was not that active in the first novel, she was still important to the story.<\spoiler> (hide spoiler)]

[Jonathan]

I am so sorry to hear that Kasia . :-(


The second book was fun for me. It might be my favorite of the first three novels. The third novel is good but felt like a few plot threads were left unresolved intentionally at points

[♥♡¢σσкιє♥♡ (Krystle)]

Kasia wrote: "Just wanted to drop in and apologize for not being a great buddy reader here, I had a death in the family last week and it's been difficult just to get through work and even the book I started befo..."

I'm so sorry, Kasia, please take care of yourself and take all the time you need. If and when you feel like reading the books, we can always talk about it with you then no rush.

@Mehmet, I agree. (view spoiler)[Stormy is the best, and I wish she was around longer. (hide spoiler)]

[Kasia]

<3 ty means a lot

[♥♡¢σσкιє♥♡ (Krystle)]

Just finished the third book. I really enjoyed it.

(view spoiler)[
Even though there were a lot of characters, Odd introduced them well and gave enough information so that I felt they all had charming personalities. If fact, if I had to describe this book using one word, it would be "charming". I liked everyone so much.

I laughed, teared up a couple times, I even got a little spooked out in the more suspenseful scary moments. Can't ask for a book to do much more than entertain, and this one definitely did that.

It was too repetitive at times, and there was a lot going on so It's not my favorite in the series, but I enjoyed it. Hope there's more "endgame" story development in the next book though.
(hide spoiler)]

[Mehmet]

i am still reading slowly through the 2nd book. sorry guys

[♥♡¢σσкιє♥♡ (Krystle)]

Mehmet wrote: "i am still reading slowly through the 2nd book. sorry guys"

Don't be sorry about that! I finished a buddy read a month ago, and it took me 5 months to finish just that one book. Lol

Take your time. :)

[Mehmet]

i got in a bad habit of only reading one chapter a night, after work.

[Atlanta]

I’m still on the first book and I’m on the fence about it.

[♥♡¢σσкιє♥♡ (Krystle)]

@Mehmet that habit sounds fine to me. I would be dragging too, but I want to finally finish the series.

@Atl, I hate it when that happens, I'd much rather instantly love or hate it. Also, I used to live in Atlanta is that the inspiration for your name?

[Mehmet]

krystle are you planning on reading whole series ?

[♥♡¢σσкιє♥♡ (Krystle)]

Mehmet wrote: "krystle are you planning on reading whole series ?"

Yeah, I've already read most of it, but it was years ago so I don't remember too much. Decided this was a good time to reread and finish the series.

[Atlanta]

So I finished the first one and reviewed it on my profile. I was unimpressed.

[Jonathan]

Yeah if the first one didn’t get you the rest definitely will not win you over either. Each book is different in certain ways, but the themes and tone carry over throughout the series so far.

@Krystle

Have you seen Mob Psycho 100? It is very much like One Punch Man. I actually love it slightly more. They are both created by the same creator

[Atlanta]

@jonathan it’s just not my type of book, not edgy enough

[Jonathan]

Fair enough. To be honest certain parts felt like it would be more interesting to me if they went straight up horror like Brian Keene or dark fantasy like Joe Hill. It is missing that spook factor that I desperately crave in my ghost stories. It has it charm though and I am sticking with the ride because I am multiple books in and want to see if some of the plot holes get wrapped up or forgotten about

[Atlanta]

I like Joe
Hill, I’m on my third book by him nos4us. I haven’t read the other author yet. I’m sure I’ll pick up another odd Thomas at some point, when I want a softer read.

[Mehmet]

The Odd Thomas series is not splatterpunk horror that is for sure. Its true that its soft horror. Like Jonathan its has gripped me also and I want to continue to read the series. I enjoy the character Odd Thomas and want to discover more about his gift and the strangeness of his world. Plus I really want to know about that weird room in book one. Hope that is explained at some point !

[Jonathan]

I totally forgot about that weird room with the time manipulation! Thanks for reminding me about that!! Also I want the story to revisit his relationship with his parents and hopefully bring a more satisfying resolution to that plot.

[Atlanta]

@mehmet I didn’t know I was a fan of splatterpunk horror but I guess I am

[Mehmet]

I am a big fan of a number of authors who fall partly in the splatterpunk part of horror. Atl, I also enjoy certain types of books depending on the mood. Some times Laymon or Hutson when i am in a wham bang mood, or sci fi and fantasy when I am in a adventurous or thoughtful mood. classic literature when I feel like something special. Dean Koontz is good for me at the moment as work is stressful and need something to help me unwind.

[Atlanta]

@mehmet I’m sure I’ll pick it up again but the romance aspect turned me off. I haven’t read all of the authors you’ve mentioned yet.

[Mehmet]

Well Atl the world is our oyster when it comes to books. If you ever would like suggestions on books to try and read let me know anytime

[Atlanta]

Thanks m my Tbr list is 280+ lol

[Mehmet]

I do not use my TBR list on GR as it would be to many also.
Just started book 3 Brother Odd

[Atlanta]

I’m listening to NOS4A2 by joe hill and little heaven by nick cutter and reading the wastelands by Stephen king and ghost story by Peter straub