‘The Friend of the Family’ by Dean Koontz

Published by Thomas & Mercer,
20 January 2026.
ISBN: 978166253330-3 (HB)

Dean Koontz’s latest novel is set in 1930s America during the Great Depression and tells the story of a young girl called Alida.  From childhood she has been ill-used by Captain Farnham who claims to be her legal guardian and displays her as a live exhibit in his Museum of the Strange.  Paraded before audiences who pay to see, and sometimes touch, her tiny, disfigured body, the solitary child’s only consolation is found in books.  The stories she devours provide her with another perspective on life and an escape from her awful situation. 

Alida rapidly becomes the main attraction in Farnham’s grotesque travelling exhibition and when she is seventeen the show arrives in California.  Here her fortunes change; Hollywood couple Franklin and Loretta Fairchild see the show and are outraged at the way the young woman is abused.  A financial inducement persuades Captain to release Alida into the care of the Fairchilds, and she is overwhelmed when they invite her to live with them and their three young children.  Encouraged by the love of her new family, she further develops her literary interests and her generous personality blossoms.  She acknowledges that she is still different from most other people and discovers gifts that she didn’t know she possessed – gifts that she will need when trouble threatens both her and those she loves.     

Alida’s story is told through a gripping first person narrative.  She confronts the physical difficulties that have challenged her since birth as well as the psychological impact this has had on her.  The disadvantages of her birth might have led Alida to become introspective and succumb to self-pity, instead she focuses on those things she can do and makes the most of every opportunity that comes her way. 

It is appropriate that Alida’s enigmatic personality thrives in the magical world of Hollywood during the first half of the 20^thcentury.  The text abounds with references to hit movies from the beginning of cinema’s golden age.  Similarly, the Fairchilds’ involvement in film production is reflected in the host of well-known movie stars from the period along with popular musicians from the jazz world.  Like Alida’s novels, the silver screen provided American film goes with an escape from monetary worries and the fear of a second global conflict.  Underlying the glitz, however, even Tinsel Town feels the horror of war just as the sun does not always shine on the Fairchild family.  The unpleasant traits of some characters in the novel provide a chilling reminder that humanity includes some bad apples and when they turn up, watch out. 

The Friend of the Family is a compelling novel that explores themes as diverse as the universal battle between good and evil, notions of beauty, extra sensory perception and the possibility of miracles.  A story that is heart-warming and devastating in equal measure.  

A super read and highly recommended.
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 Reviewer: Dot Marshall-Gent 

Dean Koontz is acknowledged as "America's most popular suspense novelist" (Rolling Stone) and as one of today's most celebrated and successful writers. He has earned the devotion of millions of readers around the world and the praise of critics everywhere for tales of character, mystery, and adventure that strike to the core of what it means to be human. He lives in Southern California with his wife, Gerda.

Dot Marshall-Gent worked in the emergency services for twenty years first as a police officer, then as a paramedic and finally as a fire control officer before graduating from King’s College, London as a teacher of English in her mid-forties.  She completed a M.A. in Special and Inclusive Education at the Institute of Education, London and now teaches part-time and writes mainly about educational issues.  Dot sings jazz and country music and plays guitar, banjo and piano as well as being addicted to reading mystery and crime fiction.