Blog Tour: Ask Anna By Dean Koontz

I would like to introduce all of you to a wonderfully fun new book by Dean Koontz and his dog Anna. Here is a little bit about the book:

Bestselling author DEAN KOONTZ’s latest, ASK ANNA: ADVICE FOR THE FURRY AND FORLORN (publishing 10/07) is a fun, image filled coffee table book where dogs write to Anna (Dean’s golden retriever) for advice about love, food— even how to cope with lazy owners!

Anna begins her counseling by putting dogs at ease. Her motto: " Let Me Hold Your Paw and Help." Anna' advice to owners is: "Read this book and get a clue about what your dogs really think of you!” 

All proceeds go to Canine Companions for Independence. 

Here is an interview from Dean and Anna:

Dean Interviews Anna

DEAN: Hey, sweetie, how does it feel to see your first book, Ask Anna, in print?

ANNA: Better than a bee stinging me on the nose, maybe not as good as being given a membership in the Sausage-of-the-Month Club. I'm a little worried about the celebrity thing, so I've ordered a custom disguise that makes me look like a poodle.

DEAN: When did you first realize you had the Dear Abby gene and could give meaningful advice?

ANNA: Remember a year ago, Dad, when you went shopping and came home with those hideous shoes? I just had to pee in them to prevent you from being seen wearing them in public. You went out and bought another pair of the same, and I peed in those, and you decided to

take my advice. I realized then that I had something to offer that might help people and dogs. I don't mean pee. I mean common-sense advice. Who in the world makes lemon-yellow patent-leather platform shoes, anyway?

DEAN: Never mind. I was flashing back to my disco days. Now that you have written a book of advice for dogs, might you write advice for some other species?

ANNA: Cats need a lot of help, but they don't take advice well. You never know when they'll respond to a friendly suggestion by clawing your nose. Offering counsel to cats is like being the psychiatrist for Tony Soprano.

DEAN: There's an article in your book that reveals how people like Noah and Albert Einstein changed history by listening carefully to their dogs' advice. Are you aware of any more recent famous people who failed to heed the advice of their dogs?

ANNA: Tragically, yes. Mr. Johnny Depp's dog warned him not to play

Tonto.

DEAN: Is there any down side to a dog being a successful author?

ANNA: Carpal-tunnel paw. Hollywood wanting to buy the film rights and recast me as a gerbil to be played by Adam Sandler in a furry suit.

Perhaps a catty review here and there. Static electricity from the computer screen standing my fur on end, so that for hours at a time I go around looking as if I stuck my tongue in a wall plug.

**Make sure you check out this fun loving books for yourself. You can find more information on the facebook page at: https://www.facebook.com/AskAnnaBook

Book Review: The Frankenstein Series by Dean Koontz

Frankenstein Series Books 1-5 by Dean Koontz
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I love retellings of classic books. When I started this series, I thought that's what this was, but it's not. I would refer to this series as an "add-on". When I say "add-on" I mean that this story picks up after the events of the original Frankenstein and continues the story in modern day. Having said that, I think this series as great! I enjoyed through all 5 books. Dean Koontz is a master story teller and it comes through in this series.

The plot is fantastic. I would say that it incorporates action/adventure, suspense, thriller, and sci-fi genres all into one nice package. Often times with series of this size there are books that are a let-down along the way (usually book 2 or 3). Not so with this series. They are all page turners. The plot starts us off in New Orleans in the modern day. This is a great location due to the mystery that comes with New Orleans all by itself. It makes the idea of a battle between Dr. Frankenstein and his original monster seem somewhat plausible. I don't like to go into the plot too much because I don't like spoilers in my reviews. But, the gist of the series is the battle between Dr. and monster. It is worth the read, I promise. The plot moves very well in these books and is rich in depth. There are the twists, turns, and surprises that us Koontz fans have come to know and love. There is also some darkness to the plot that can bee seen throughout most of his books.

The characters of this series are wonderful. Some authors make the mistake of trying to cram too many people into the story so that they can fill the content of this many books. Not so with Koontz. There wasn't any time through the series that I had to go back and remind myself of who someone was or what they were doing in the story. He does a good job of keep the core characters at the core and bringing in support characters as needed. It is wonderfully balanced throughout.

The readability of these books is great. They are page turners from start to finish. There aren't any parts of the book where you are willing your way through it so that you can get to the next "good" part. It flows very naturally and makes for any easy read.

The readership of this book would probably be high school and up. It's not that the language is hard to understand or that there are difficult words to get through, but there are some themes that run throughout the book that would make it suitable for an older audience.

Overall, this series was very enjoyable for me. I would put it in my top 10 series of all time right now. It's on the low end, but in the top 10 for sure. Well crafted and well worth the read, especially if you are a Koontz fan.

Overall rating: 5/5



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