Devoted [Paperback] Koontz, Dean

A boy who doesn't speak. A woman whose past won't let go. A dog whose intelligence borders on the impossible. Dean Koontz weaves them together in this genre-bending thriller that asks what happens when nature gets rewritten in the lab — and what breaks free when experiments fail. Woody, a brilliant 11-year-old on the autism spectrum, lives a quiet life with his widowed mother Megan in the mountains. When mercenaries come hunting, their survival depends on Kira, a golden retriever with abilities no animal should possess. What starts as a chase becomes something stranger: a meditation on love, loyalty, and what separates human from animal. Koontz leans into his strengths here — breakneck pacing, genuine warmth between characters, and a willingness to go weird. If you want a thriller that moves fast but lands emotionally, this one delivers. Perfect for readers who like Michael Crichton's bio-tech paranoia with a beating heart.