The fourth installment in the Jane Hawk series, I have been hanging out for The Forbidden Door since the whopping cliffhanger The Crooked Staircase left us on. And, I wasn’t disappointed. In fact, this one offered more closure than it’s predecessor, but still gave us the wild ride we’ve come to expect from Dean Koontz.

Badass Mama Bear, Jane Hawk has learned her best friends, tasked with taking care of her five-year-old son, have been killed. It’s up to her to travel to Borrego Springs, where The Arcadians, a group indulged in a conspiracy to take over the world, are no doubt waiting for her. She has to rescue Travis, who has been left in the care of autistic loner, Cornell, and bring him once more to safety. She enlists the help of a couple of characters we’ve met before, even if they seem a very unlikely group of aides, and springs into action.

Of course, it doesn’t all go according to plan. In Texas, her in-laws are being hunted, and in Borrego Springs, a batch of newly adjusted people have gone bat-shit crazy and Jane, along with former lawman Luther and adorably hysterical grandfather Bernie, must deal with the unexpected.

The Forbidden Door is written from a few viewpoints and focuses on more than a couple of characters. And that’s where Mr. Koontz really shows his mastery, flitting in and out of each complex, occasionally dark and often seriously disturbing personality with ease. I have no clue how he does it, but I’m a true fan. He keeps up a hectic pace, alternating between the plains of Texas and the Mojave Desert. Having spent a wedding anniversary riding my motorcycle to the Anza-Borrego State Park just outside of Borrego Springs, I could actually picture the places where some of the events took place, which added a terrifying element of reality to the whole thing and the short preview of the next in the series automatically threw me in to “I want it now” mode!

Once again, if you’re into strong female characters and fast-paced thrilling action with a heaping helping of conspiracy, the Jane Hawk series is a must for you.

And I’m still off digging that bunker I started a while ago…