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    The Crooked Staircase: A Jane Hawk Novel
    The Crooked Staircase: A Jane Hawk Novel
    The Crooked Staircase: A Jane Hawk Novel
    Audiobook15 hours

    The Crooked Staircase: A Jane Hawk Novel

    Written by Dean Koontz

    Narrated by Elisabeth Rodgers

    4.5/5

    ()

    About this audiobook

    NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • Jane Hawk—who dazzled readers in The Silent Corner and The Whispering Room—faces the fight of her life, against the threat of a lifetime, in this electrifying thriller by #1 New York Times bestselling suspense master Dean Koontz.

    “I could be dead tomorrow. Or something worse than dead.”

    Jane Hawk knows she may be living on borrowed time. But as long as she’s breathing, she’ll never cease her one-woman war against the terrifying conspiracy that threatens the freedom—and free will—of millions. Battling the strange epidemic of murder-suicides that claimed Jane’s husband, and is escalating across the country, has made the rogue FBI agent a wanted fugitive, relentlessly hunted not only by the government but by the secret cabal behind the plot. Deploying every resource their malign nexus of power and technology commands, Jane’s enemies are determined to see her dead . . . or make her wish she was.

    Jane’s ruthless pursuers can’t stop her from drawing a bead on her prey: a cunning man with connections in high places, a twisted soul of unspeakable depths with an army of professional killers on call. Propelled by her righteous fury and implacable insistence on justice, Jane will make her way from southern Southern California to the snow-swept slopes of Lake Tahoe to confront head-on the lethal forces arrayed against her. But nothing can prepare her for the chilling truth that awaits when she descends the crooked staircase to the dark and dreadful place where her long nightmare was born.

    Don’t miss any of Dean Koontz’s gripping Jane Hawk thrillers:
    THE SILENT CORNER • THE WHISPERING ROOM • THE CROOKED STAIRCASE • THE FORBIDDEN DOOR • THE NIGHT WINDOW

    Praise for The Crooked Staircase

    “An absorbing thriller full of fresh touches . . . Writing his unusual heroine, Koontz keeps the pages alive with attitude as well as action. . . . For Hawk, who is as fearless as she is beautiful, no obstacle is too great, especially with the well-being of her hidden-away five-year-old son on her mind.”—Kirkus Reviews

    “Spellbinding . . . Beautifully plotted and written with notable care and flare . . . The Hawk series . . . is among [Koontz’s] best work.”—Booklist (starred review)

    “Unrelenting . . . [Jane] rivets readers’ attention. . . . Michael Crichton fans and thriller aficionados who appreciate a fierce female protagonist . . . should be urged to meet Jane Hawk.”—Library Journal

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherBrilliance Audio
    Release dateMay 8, 2018
    ISBN9781543627251
    The Crooked Staircase: A Jane Hawk Novel
    Author

    Dean Koontz

    Dean Koontz is the author of more than a dozen New York Times No. 1 bestsellers. His books have sold over 450 million copies worldwide, and his work is published in 38 languages. He was born and raised in Pennsylvania and lives with his wife Gerda and their dog Anna in southern California.

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    Reviews for The Crooked Staircase

    4.5/5

    285 ratings18 reviews

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    • 3/5
      The Crooked Staircase is the third of the Jane Hawk novels and the story is not yet finished. In fact, this book feels incomplete as the reader is left with a cliff-hanger of an ending. This is a dark, dark story with not even a glimpse of hope. Jane seems to be fighting a battle in which she can barely stay alive and save her son, while she endangers everyone close to her. I’m not sure if I will read the next (and hopefully) final book in the series. One thing I do dislike is the current trend for books in a series not to function a stand-alone stories and to leave the reader of the middle books with no true ending. As always, Dean Koontz’s characters are well-done and the story well-written.
    • 5/5
      Dean continues to draw the reader (me) into the moment with details and storylines that are extremely realistic. Every moment of this book was fraught with a sense of urgency and frustrating circumstances. Now I’m happily on the hook for the next book!
    • 5/5
      Love Dean Koontz, 3rd book in the Jane Hawk series, can't wait to listen to the rest
    • 4/5
      Next please, can’t wait , good good good good good
    • 5/5
      Loved the action every minute. Jane Hawk is an engaging main character that keeps a person wanting to keep reading.
    • 5/5
      Suspenseful and poetic! This was part of a series, but the best so far! I love how the Writer tucks in jewels of wisdom and beauty in the midst of suspenseful drama!
    • 5/5
      love how the plot of the story keeps twisting and turning . when putting this book down i need t get the next one to continue the story right away.
    • 3/5
      Jane Hawk is still fighting the bad guys and the bad gals, but book #3 was some what predictable, and seemed to be a set up for book #4. I will wait to read reviews before continuing onward with book #4 - disappointing given how strong the first two books are in this unusual fast paced, character driven series.
    • 4/5
      Picking up right where book #2 left off, "The Crooked Staircase" has Jane Hawk continuing her pursuit of the Techno Arcadians in her goal of bringing them down so that she can finally go to her son Travis, whom she has hidden with trusted friends. In this third book in the series, Jane's relentless pursuit of the Arcadians -- and their relentless pursuit of her -- keep the book moving at a fast pace. At the conclusion of this book, Jane is even closer to finding out the truth behind the Arcadians, even as the Arcadians are nail-bitingly close to finding her.Kudos to Dean Koontz, who has managed to keep every book in this series just as fast-paced, taut, well-written, and engaging as the last. The only thing that kept me from giving the book 5 stars is that the extended subplot about Tanuja and Sanjay ends abruptly with no follow-up. Although follow-up on this subplot was not necessary to the overall plot of the book, it would have been more satisfying to have it.I'm very much looking forward to book #4!
    • 5/5
      The third installment of the Jane Hawk series does not disappoint! I raced through this book, barely pausing to catch my breath! And, after I finished, I was looking at The Forbidden Door and thinking I would start it in about a week but literally couldn't wait and dove straight into it as well!. It's just so much fun when a series grabs you and will not let you go! This book takes Jane Hawk to Lake Tahoe to confront head on the lethal forces that mean to see her dead! By the time, she makes it to The Crooked Staircase, you will literally be limp with fear and trepidation! You need to read this series, but please start with the first book, The Silent Corner and read in order!
    • 4/5
      The Crooked Staircase by Dean Koontz is a 2018 Bantam publication. Our vigilante superhero Jane Hawk is back. With each chapter of the series, Jane’s adversaries become more difficult to conquer, more diabolical, and evil. This is one of the biggest challenges to date. The Techno-Arcadians- and the mastermind- Booth Hendrickson are whom Jane has zeroed in on. On this stop she must deal with Booth’s brother, Simon- a truly charming chap, who picks a female target, romances them, then proceeds to rip their world apart, just for kicks and giggles. Jane is out to prove her husband did not commit suicide, to restore his good name, and to keep her son safe, but the deeper she dives into these murky waters, she realizes that the mind control program threatens the entire world as we know it. With the government on her tail as well as the Arcadians, Jane must always be one step ahead- and she manages to do so with aplomb. This is one of the most chilling installments in the series. The Crooked Staircase, once it is broken down and explained is horrifying!! There are a few sub-plots at play here as well, and Jane’s son is in more vulnerable than he’s been since this adventure started, adding even more tension to the atmosphere.With thrillers like this one several things must be explored. First, is it plausible? Well, truthfully, I’m not a conspiracy nut- but I like them in fictional books. But, what drew me to this series in the first place was that I honestly don’t doubt the possibility that mind control is something that governments have attempted, and with the climate we are in currently, I don’t know if I could discount the theory that rich, powerful, tech savvy men who seek to control the world would really try something like this. Do I have to suspend belief? Of course. It’s fiction, and there are plenty of aspects to the story that could only happen in books, could only come from the imagination of an author whose made a career out of dreaming up fantastical tales. Still, there is enough truth here to plant a few uneasy thoughts in my mind. This book has the best storyline to date, but the book has some issues- all of them are purely personal pet peeves. Short chapters tend to create the illusion of reading a lengthy book, such as this one, at a faster clip. However, I loathe them and find them distracting and annoying. I also hated the ending. I know there is another installment coming, but it’s not just the cliffhanger aspect- which I really, really, really despise, but the way the book just stopped. There really isn’t an ‘ending’ to it at all. This is annoying to the extreme, but because this series has more positives than negatives I will let it pass, but I hope it doesn't become a habit. Overall, despite a few personal misgivings, this is a stellar installment in the series and I’m waiting with bated breath for the next book in the series!! 4 stars
    • 5/5
      Disgraced FBI agent Jane Hawk, still on the Bureau’s most wanted list and still on the run, continues her battle against the secretive Techno Arcadians who conspire to remake the country according to their own vision, using nanotechnology to control selected individuals and to remove those deemed detrimental to their malevolent cause. That the Arcadians, and those who do their bidding, can commit such heinous crimes with no compunction speaks to the evilness of the group and serves to justify Jane’s continuing efforts to put a stop to their nefarious plans.As Jane continues her fight, she must confront herself as she determines exactly what she will . . . and will not . . . do in her quest to protect her son Travis and to stop the Techno-Arcadians. Continuing the story begun in “The Silent Corner” and the subsequent “The Whispering Room,” this dark, intense, and terrifying tale details one woman’s efforts to derail a villainous, subversive consipracy. The telling of the tale alternates between several scenarios, all frighteningly horrific. The tension is unrelenting, the narrative riveting and suspenseful. With several questions answered, the cliffhanger ending leaves Jane’s quest to continue in “The Forbidden Door.”Highly recommended.
    • 4/5
      The Crooked Staircase: A Jane Hawk NovelDean KoontzUnrelenting tension and an unyielding female protagonist are the highlights of this well-plotted novel. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️SUMMARYAn epidemic of murder-suicides is sweeping the nation. It claimed Jane Hawk’s husband and many others and it is escalating rapidly. Jane, an FBI agent, has gone rogue against a horrific conspiracy that threatens the freedom and free-will of millions. As a wanted fugitive she relentlessly hunts for the secret organization behind the plot. Jane’s enemies, both the government and those involved in the conspiracy will stop at nothing to see her dead. But Jane has a plot of her own. She has her sights set on one of the twisted leaders in the conspiracy. How far will she go to protect her young son Travis, and discover the truth behind the technology that is creating a new world order. “There is not much news in the news anymore. The lies they tell don’t leave a lot of time for the facts about anything.”REVIEWJane Hawks is waging a one woman war against the most powerful conspiracy ever. She is phenomenally brave and determined, and readers like me, who are looking for strong female protagonists, will be in awe. The conspiracy is so scary you have to put it down at times and tell yourself “it’s only a book, it’s not real.” The unrelenting tension, interspersed with occasional spots of humor, was one of the things I liked most about the story. I also like many of the characters in the book, particularly the “good guys.” Cornell’s character was fascinating, as was Jessie and Gavin. Five-year-old Travis was adorable and he will wiggle his way into your heart. THE CROOKED STAIRCASE is the first Koontz book that I have picked up in several years and find that I have jumped right in the middle of a series. What was I thinking...it’s the third one in the series, no less. The others books, The Silent Corner and The Whispering Room, surely have a wealth of information to provide, but having not read them did not prevent me from understanding and enjoying the intensity of this one. With a major cliffhanger at the end, you know there will be more books to come. This one had just a bit to much of a cliffhanger for me, just meant to hook you into buying the next book. If you like thrillers, series and a strong female protagonist this is definitely the book for you. I listened to the Audible version of the book and loved the narration. Publisher Brilliance Audio. Publication DateMay 8, 2018Narrated Elizabeth Rodgers“None of us ever has more than this moment. Tomorrow becomes today, today becomes yesterday. The best I can do for my boy is give him enough todays that he can make a past for himself that will have had some meaning in it.”
    • 5/5
      I am loving this Jane Hawk series. She is one bad a$$ woman. And smart? Wowza! Along the way she gives explanations as to her thought process and how she determines her next step. While ruthless in many ways, she does have a conscience and it is definitely tested numerous times during this book. The suspenseful action in this book was intense (just like the other ones, but maybe a little more for this one). It kept leading me to say to myself "no, not him"; "no not her"; "no not them" etc many, many times. I could seriously feel the enemy crowding in and my pulse was racing.This Techno Acadian stuff is super scary! I hope it stays just fiction.However, it left off at an extremely high point that had me holding my breath while I read "to be continued" (shocked face!!) Why??? Although since then I have read a review that explained that if I read that excerpt, I will have one question answered. But now, we have to wait. Mr. Koontz you better be writing fast is all I got to say! Ha!Excellent series, excellent read.Thanks to Random House Ballantine and Net Galley for providing me with a free e-galley in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.
    • 4/5
      I haven't read a Dean Koontz novel for some time. I am glad to see that his writing is still done in captivating style.I have not read any of the other Jane Hawk books, and this is number 3 in the series. I was not lost, though, as the reader is informed of Jane's objective and given enough background to read this comfortably as a stand alone. I am, however, looking forward to reading the previous two in the series and any that may follow.This was an adventure for sure. Jane is a formidable character and she is determined beyond belief. She has lost so much that was important to her in her life and refuses to lose more. There are those who want her gone and will use any means to achieve that goal. Her goal is to stop them, let the truth be known, and save her family at the same time. Not your typical day at the office, but what a story! Keeps you turning the pages in anticipation and rooting for good.All of the characters are interesting in their own right, and I thoroughly enjoyed this adventure. Can't wait to read more.My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with this copy.
    • 4/5
      I wasn't so sure that I was going to think much of this book because I didn't particularly like the 2nd in this Jane Hawk series. I WAS WRONG!!!!!!! This is a fast paced, action filled thriller that I had a hard time putting down.

      The Jane Hawk series must be read in order to be able to weave your way through effortlessly. I am looking forward to #4.

      My thanks to Netgalley and Random House/Bantam books for this advanced readers copy.
    • 3/5
      Fast, violent, deadly, with intense suspense.I think an ultimate fear is losing control of our own minds, or choices. This book dives into that fear and drags it into that dark place, then it adds rape, torture, sex salvery, and running for your life. It is intense. Jane the main character, rams though her targets, try to find her husbands killer, and save her son from an unspeakably horrific threat. The bad guys are so ruthless, my stomach churned during several scenes. Jane is an incredible character, smart, and twisted enough to do what needs to be done.Why only 3 stars ? Several reasons. One, it was too dark, there was so little hope and too much taken away. It left me with a hopeless feeling, I didn't want to continue many times. Oi, to feel such despair it hurts. The threat to the child, was too much for me. I will not continue the series for fear of where Mr. Koontz will go with that. I can't go there, can't fear for that happening. Then there was the fact that this book had two separate time lines going on switching back and forth with each short chapter. I found that really disruptive. Finally the ending, it just stoped, like mid breath just stoped-cliffhanger extreme. I think it did what it was ment to do. It shocked, upset and drove adrenaline rushing through my body. It just wasn't my idea of an entertaining read.
    • 5/5
      In this third installment of the Jane Hawk series, Jane is still on the run, still trying to take down those who are trying to make a better world by pacifying millions with implanted nanobots. Somehow, she still finds a way to elude capture yet get closer to the answers. This is one determined woman! Like the others before this, the book is filled with action, suspense and a lot of unanswered questions. It is never-ending and ends on a cliffhanger, drawing me in to want, no need, to read the next installment. Koontz hasn’t certainly created an intense series and a heroine in Jane Hawk.