Greetings,
Every now and then, I come across a book that has just too much going on for me as a reader, and for some reason, I can have trouble following the story. On the other hand, there are books that have a whole lot going on and that's what engages me, draws me in and keeps me there until I reach the end. Ashley Bell by Dean Koontz is one I would describe as the latter.
Ashley Bell is about a young woman named Bibi Blair. Yes, I know. I thought the main character's name would be something else, too. All in good time, though. Anyway, she is twenty-two years old and a writer, who is doing quite well in her career. She has these great parents who are very hippie-ish, but in a delightful way and she has a wonderful fiance who is very much in love with her. Basically, she has an extremely great life. However, out of nowhere, she is hit with a dire medical crisis, one that doctors say she cannot be cured from. She and her loved ones begin to prepare for the worst, but miraculously, she is cured. No one can figure out how or why it happened. Yet Bibi begins to believe that her life was spared to save the life of someone else. Someone named Ashley Bell. And this is what leads her to begin an exciting and dangerous adventure.
As I started to read this book, I wondered to myself where it was going exactly. At first, we get to know Bibi and her parents quite well, and I enjoyed that aspect of it because I really enjoyed these characters. I liked so much how this family was portrayed, very loving and caring and even fun. Then, all of a sudden, they're pushed into this horrible situation, and you can sense the love between these family members even more so than before. Not to mention the immense love that Bibi's fiance has for her, almost in a way that goes far beyond our understanding.
After a while, though still curious about the direction of the plot, I truly began to get sucked in. For me, it was as though being hit with so many unexpected turns is what made me want to know more. And it does jump around quite a bit. We delve into Bibi's past a lot and into her childhood where there are many interesting secrets to be revealed. I'm not always a fan of books that do this, but in this case, it's what held my interest.
I have read a few reviews that had some complaints about this book. Some did not like all the jumping around and others had issues with the ending, which clearly leaves way for a sequel. I had no problem with that, probably because I went into this thinking we weren't going to get the whole story just yet. I mean, on GoodReads, it is called Ashley Bell #1, after all. One other complaint was about the length. And I will admit, it is a very long book. Nearly 600 pages. At first, I thought it would be daunting, but once I got into it, it didn't seem to be as long as I thought it would be. Maybe, if I was nitpicking, I would say it could be trimmed just a bit, but I think pretty much everything served its purpose to the whole story.
So, as you can see, this book had some mixed reviews, but I really did like it. I have enjoyed many of Dean Koontz's books and this would be rather high on my ranking list. Perhaps it is an acquired taste. Still, I found Ashley Bell to be compelling and very interesting. Interesting enough that I hope we do, indeed, get that sequel someday. Although, if it comes before the third Chris Snow book, people who have been waiting years for that one may be a little upset. I'm just saying.
Love and full moons,
Becky the Writer
