The Watchers by Dean Koontz has been given much credit for establishing Dean Koontz as a best-selling author.
A novel about a dog is, of course, a good formula, but this thriller holds your attention through every page.
Travis Cornell, a former Delta Force operative, and Nora Devon are the critical characters next to Einstein, the dog. Travis starts going into a remote canyon near his home to escape his depressing life. He meets up with two genetically engineered creatures that have escaped from a top-secret government lab. One is a golden retriever with enhanced intelligence who saves him from the other creature, known as the Outsider, a one-of-a-kind monster obsessed with killing the dog. Travis gets away and takes the dog home, where he learns of the dog’s superior intelligence.
Nora Devon is stalked by a dangerous man when Travis and Einstein save her, not just once in the park but again later. They become fast friends.
Federal agents have been called in to find the lab escapee,s and the Outsider is tracking the dog leaving a trail of gruesome death on the way. Travis, Nora, and Einstein go on the run to get away.
Vince Nasco, a professional killer, has been hired by Russians to kill several targets that worked at the lab, and he gets drawn into chasing the dog.
Quotes from Watchers by Dean Koontz
“I assure you the law isn't a line engraved in marble, immovable and unchangeable through the centuries. Rather...the law is like a string, fixed at both ends but with a great deal of play in it-very loose; the line of the law-so you can stretch this way or that, rearrange the arc of it, so you are always short of the blatant theft or cold-blooded murder-safely on the right side.”
“It's so damn hard to bloom... to change. Even when you want to change, want it more than anything in the world, it's hard. The desire to change isn't enough. Or desperation. Couldn't be done without...love,”
“You've taught me that we're all needed, even those who sometimes think we're worthless, plain and dull. If we love and allow ourselves to be loved, a person who loves is the most precious thing in the world, worth all the fortunes that ever were. That's what you've taught me, fur face, and because of you, I'll never be the same”