The Bottom Line: Koontz’s foray into short-form fiction yields another gold nugget for both fans and newcomers.
Late last year, legendary author Dean Koontz dropped six books in the new “Nameless” short story series. Among the best is Photographing the Dead, which packs a morality story about karmic justice in a fast-moving, action-packed tale that will immediately hook newcomers.
A self-styled artist is getting away with murder in Death Valley. If all goes well, so will Nameless. In part two of the series, the relentless avenger is haunted by nightmares of the past and visions of what’s to come.
Palmer Oxenwald’s hunting ground is the Mojave wasteland. His victims are random tourists and hikers. His trophies are cherished photographs of the damage he’s done. His greatest threat is Nameless. Two men with one thing in common: memories of the dead. For a psychopath like Palmer, they’re a clear rush in black and white. For Nameless, they’re visions of violence buried and erased. But for how long?
Regardless of format, this is Koontz at his most observant and thoughtful. The audiobook version, brilliantly narrated by Edoardo Ballerini, the length is just about long enough for an average commute.
