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The Good Guy
The Good Guy
Author: Dean Koontz
Timothy Carrier, having a beer after work at his friend’s tavern, enjoys drawing eccentric customers into amusing conversations. But the jittery man who sits next to him tonight has mistaken Tim for someone very different—and passes to him a manila envelope full of cash. — “Ten thousand now. You get the rest when she’s ...  more »

The stranger walks out, leaving a photo of the pretty woman marked for death, and her address. But things are about to get worse. In minutes another stranger sits next to Tim. This one is a cold-blooded killer who believes Tim is the man who has hired him.

Thinking fast, Tim says, “I’ve had a change of heart. You get ten thousand—for doing nothing. Call it a no-kill fee.” He keeps the photo and gives the money to the hired killer. And when Tim secretly follows the man out of the tavern, he gets a further shock: the hired killer is a cop.

Suddenly, Tim Carrier, an ordinary guy, is at the center of a mystery of extraordinary proportions, the one man who can save an innocent life and stop a killer far more powerful than any cop…and as relentless as evil incarnate. But first Tim must discover within himself the capacity for selflessness, endurance, and courage that can turn even an ordinary man into a hero, inner resources that will transform his idea of who he is and what it takes to be The Good Guy.
Info icon
ISBN-13: 9780553589115
ISBN-10: 0553589113
Publication Date: 4/29/2008
Pages: 480
Rating:
  • Currently 3.9/5 Stars.
 554

3.9 stars, based on 554 ratings
Publisher: Bantam
Book Type: Mass Market Paperback
Other Versions: Hardcover
Reviews: Member | Amazon | Write a Review

Top Member Book Reviews

celticscrapper27 avatar reviewed The Good Guy on + 54 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 6
While there has only been one Koontz book I couldn't force my way through, his stories tend to grab me and keep me reading ever spare second until I finish it or be enjoyaable, but put downable. This one definetly falls in the first category! From the first chapter, I was hooked. Full of loveable characters that you can't wait to learn more about and a plot that moves so fast you're on page 400 before you realize it!
wss4 avatar reviewed The Good Guy on + 389 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 6
This was another book in a string of books by Koontz that tends to follow the same path. Reminiscent of 'The Husband' this book is about a man, who is unknowingly dragged into a circumstance that he would rahter have no part of but handles brilliantly. Tim Carrier is just another guy having a drink in a friend's bar when he is approached by a man and mistakenly identified as a hit-man. Then a few moments later as he is trying to digest what is has just happened to him, he is mistakenly identified by the real hit-man as the person who has contacted him about a job. This sets Tim on a path of intrigue and danger that a normal mason would be ill equipped to handle. But then Tim is so much more than he appears to be at first glance.

I like how Koontz introduced us to the main characters with very little information about them, and throughout the book adds a few more details at a time, until finally we see who Tim and Linda really are. I enjoyed the book and really liked the way that everything was tied together in the end.

An enjoyable read, by one of my favorite authors, even if he does seem to have mellowed a bit with age. I enjoyed his earlier books that had elements of supernatural, but these books recently, that are basically thrillers, are okay.
reviewed The Good Guy on + 94 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 6
I'm a Dean Koontz fan, have read most of his books, and believe this is one of his best. The pace is fast, and it's a scary story.
reviewed The Good Guy on + 53 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 5
Once again I am amazed at this man's ability to write yet another pageturner and still not be listed as one of the "Seven Wonders of the World" LOL....I loved this book and unlike a box of chocolate was devoured guilt free.
reviewed The Good Guy on
Helpful Score: 4
A good friend of mine gave me this book. It was an great read. I think if you liked his last book The Husband. I think you'd like this book.
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Tunerlady avatar reviewed The Good Guy on + 581 more book reviews
A riveting read from one of my favorite writers! The story was fast paced and the characters rich. Loved it!
reviewed The Good Guy on
This is one of those books that you can't put down. Lots of twists.
reviewed The Good Guy on + 131 more book reviews
An ordinary man having a drink in a bar is mistaken for a hit man and given half of the money to kill a woman, the rest to be delivered to him when the job is complete. What happens next is a very exciting roller-coaster ride. A very satisfying read.
reviewed The Good Guy on + 2 more book reviews
Another beauty by koontz.
Angeleyes avatar reviewed The Good Guy on + 217 more book reviews
Awesome page turner. Very suspenseful. Great character development. If you liked "The Husband", you'll like this one.
reviewed The Good Guy on
I am a big fan of Dean Koontz. He is a terrific writer, but this is not his best book. The character development and dialogue is very good, the story is fast paced and suspenseful, but the book comes to a rather abrupt end after the denouement. I was left feeling unsatisfied. It would not surprise me to learn that this was a manuscript that Koontz dug out of a closet, updated, and sent to his publisher to meet a publication deadline. I can only give The Good Guy 3 stars.

The plot line is one that Konntz has used successfully many times before. An ordinary guy comes to the aid of an attractive woman who he must protect from unspeakable evil. The two of them become a good team, overcome their adversary, decide they like each other, etc. etc.

The book is sprinkled with fun Koontz prose: Under a charcoal sky lay a soot-black sea. Like gray smoke, the froth on the low waves drifted ashore, dissipating on an ashen beach. Unfortunately, the obligatory 4 legged (dog) character found in all of Koontzs books only makes a cameo appearance in this one. Additionally, the villain in this piece failed to creep me out. The bad guy was definitely bad. I certainly didnt like him, but he did not give me the chills that many of Koontzs other antagonists have.

Buy this one is only if you already like Koontz. Dont make it the first Koontz book you read... I recommend Watchers for your maiden voyage.
reviewed The Good Guy on
I am a big fan of Dean Koontz. He is a terrific writer, but this is not his best book. The character development and dialogue is very good, the story is fast paced and suspenseful, but the book comes to a rather abrupt end after the denouement. I was left feeling unsatisfied. It would not surprise me to learn that this was a manuscript that Koontz dug out of a closet, updated, and sent to his publisher to meet a publication deadline. I can only give The Good Guy 3 stars.

The plot line is one that Konntz has used successfully many times before. An ordinary guy comes to the aid of an attractive woman who he must protect from unspeakable evil. The two of them become a good team, overcome their adversary, decide they like each other, etc. etc.

The book is sprinkled with fun Koontz prose: Under a charcoal sky lay a soot-black sea. Like gray smoke, the froth on the low waves drifted ashore, dissipating on an ashen beach. Unfortunately, the obligatory 4 legged (dog) character found in all of Koontzs books only makes a cameo appearance in this one. Additionally, the villain in this piece failed to creep me out. The bad guy was definitely bad. I certainly didnt like him, but he did not give me the chills that many of Koontzs other antagonists have.

Buy this one is only if you already like Koontz. Dont make it the first Koontz book you read... I recommend Watchers for your maiden voyage.
reviewed The Good Guy on
I am a big fan of Dean Koontz. He is a terrific writer, but this is not his best book. The character development and dialogue is very good, the story is fast paced and suspenseful, but the book comes to a rather abrupt end after the denouement. I was left feeling unsatisfied. It would not surprise me to learn that this was a manuscript that Koontz dug out of a closet, updated, and sent to his publisher to meet a publication deadline. I can only give The Good Guy 3 stars.

The plot line is one that Konntz has used successfully many times before. An ordinary guy comes to the aid of an attractive woman who he must protect from unspeakable evil. The two of them become a good team, overcome their adversary, decide they like each other, etc. etc.

The book is sprinkled with fun Koontz prose: Under a charcoal sky lay a soot-black sea. Like gray smoke, the froth on the low waves drifted ashore, dissipating on an ashen beach. Unfortunately, the obligatory 4 legged (dog) character found in all of Koontzs books only makes a cameo appearance in this one. Additionally, the villain in this piece failed to creep me out. The bad guy was definitely bad. I certainly didnt like him, but he did not give me the chills that many of Koontzs other antagonists have.

Buy this one is only if you already like Koontz. Dont make it the first Koontz book you read... I recommend Watchers for your maiden voyage.


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