Author : Harlan Coben
Title : Don’t Let Go
Pages : 368
Publisher : Century
Publication date : September 26, 2017
Suburban New Jersey Detective Napoleon “Nap” Dumas hasn’t been the same since senior year of high school, when his twin brother Leo and Leo’s girlfriend Diana were found dead on the railroad tracks—and Maura, the girl Nap considered the love of his life, broke up with him and disappeared without explanation. For fifteen years, Nap has been searching, both for Maura and for the real reason behind his brother’s death. And now, it looks as though he may finally find what he’s been looking for.
When Maura’s fingerprints turn up in the rental car of a suspected murderer, Nap embarks on a quest for answers that only leads to more questions—about the woman he loved, about the childhood friends he thought he knew, about the abandoned military base near where he grew up, and mostly about Leo and Diana—whose deaths are darker and far more sinister than Nap ever dared imagine.
It’s always a treat to read a new Harlan Coben book so I was quite pleased when my request to view Don’t Let Go on Netgalley was approved. However, this one didn’t quite work for me.
Fifteen years ago, Nap’s brother Leo and his girlfriend were found dead on railroad tracks. That same night, Nap’s high school girlfriend Maura disappears. All these years, Nap has been trying to find out what really happened that night and it looks like he might finally get to the truth when Maura’s fingerprints turn up at the scene of a murder. Are current events connected to those from fifteen years ago? Can Nap trust the people closest to him?
Don’t Let Go is quite a quick read with a rather likeable main character who plays by his own rules and it seemed to have oodles of potential. While I thought the story was entertaining and enjoyable with many witty chuckle-out-loud moments, I also felt it was trying just a little bit too hard at being funny and lacked the suspense it needed to be a truly gripping thriller and keep me hooked.
As always, Harlan Coben excels at naturally flowing conversations and fast dialogues. He also kept me guessing until the end as I tried, and failed, to figure out the connections and what really happened. It’s always a good thing when I can’t predict the outcome and this one completely took me by surprise. But overall, I feel things just fell flat. I’ve read and enjoyed quite a lot of this author’s previous work but I’m sorry to say that, while Don’t Let Go is entertaining, I just felt somewhat disappointed in this one. However, this will in no way stop me from reading another Harlan Coben book in future.
Many thanks to Random House for my advanced copy, which I received via Netgalley and chose to review honestly!
Don’t Let Go is available now!
I’ve read mixed reviews about this one before.. a bit disappointing that it lacked tension and couldn’t grip you as it should. Let’s hope his next novel will prove he’s back in the game. Nice review Dee!
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Me too. Seems to divide people quite fiercely. I didn’t think it was bad, I just expect more from him.
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I still haven’t read anything by him, even though everyone raves about his books!
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I find him quite hard to put my finger on. That sounds weird. Anyway! He’s a bit hit or miss with me. Some of his books are brilliant, some are like they were written by someone else.
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Oh that’s very interesting! I wonder if he has a ghost writer?
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I’m all for theories like that! 😂
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I did read a recent blog post by a book blogger, about a prolific writer who uses them but never mentions their name. It could be him?
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Pity this one didn’t quite do it for you. I love Harlan Coben but I’ve felt he’s been quite variable over the last few years. But I still always find them enjoyable to read – his writing style is so easy somehow.
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