Dean Koontz’s latest offering, The Good Guy, delves into familiar territory for anyone who’s read much of his work. Like Velocity and The Husband (or, for less recent fare, Dark Rivers of the Heart or Intensity), The Good Guy centers around a (sort-of) ordinary guy finding himself pulled into a conflict with a killer who seems almost unstoppable.

The titular “Good Guy” is Tim Carrier, a stone mason who tries to keep the lowest profile he possibly can. A regular at a local bar, Tim enjoys striking up conversations with some of the eccentrics that come in. A conversation with someone he’s never seen before leads to a case of mistaken identity, and before Tim has time to clear it up, the newcomer is gone, having left Tim with an envelope of money and the identity of the woman he’s supposed to kill to earn it. Following a run-in with the real killer, Tim finds himself unable to just sit back and do nothing, and his attempt to rescue the target drags him into a game of cat-and-mouse with a killer whose resources seem almost endless.

I’ve been reading Dean Koontz novels for many years now, and I can’t say that this is one of his best, but it’s certainly not one of his worst, either. Other than reading a few pages when I first bought it at the store, I finished this book in one sitting, and it never dragged. The ending did seem a bit rushed, as the secret Tim’s past is revealed just in time to act as a deus ex machina to save the pair from the hired gun’s employers, but it doesn’t come out of nowhere, and the explanation makes a reasonable amount of sense. Besides, the rest of the book was a fun enough ride to more than make up for a quick wrap-up to those issues.

All in all, if you’re already a fan of Koontz’s work (especially if, like me, you’ve enjoyed most of his recent works with the exceptions of The Taking and the Odd Thomas novels), you should enjoy this one. If you’re not already a fan, I’d recommend going back and starting with a different book. Velocity, Lightning, From the Corner of His Eye, Watchers or Tick Tock are all good choices, in my opinion, but just about anything you find with Koontz’s name on the cover is worth a read.