Tell No One
by Harlan Coben
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Book Reviews of Tell No One
Book Review: Conspiracies and cover-ups abound in this complex thriller.
Summary: 4 Stars
Harlan Coben's "Tell No One" is like a giant jigsaw puzzle. This book is so convoluted that when I reached the end, I had to double back and reread certain passages to clarify how all the pieces fit together. For the most part, however, "Tell No One" is a satisfying, fast-paced and exciting thriller.Dr. David Beck is a widower who is still grieving after having lost his wife, Elizabeth, eight years ago. She was apparently abducted and murdered by a serial killer, who is now on death row. Suddenly, some mysterious events occur which call into question everything that David thought was true about the past. He starts investigating on his own, hoping to unearth the truth about the events surrounding his wife's death. Suddenly, David finds himself on the run from the police who suspect him of murder, and from some bad guys who have their own reasons for wanting him silenced.
Although this plot sounds trite and is reminiscent of many similar thrillers, Coben pulls it off. One way that he does this is by creating some colorful characters such as David's lawyer, Hester Crimstein, a ruthless barracuda who takes no prisoners in defense of her clients, David's friend Shauna, a lesbian/model whose loyalty is exceeded only by her aggressiveness, and Eric Wu, one of the most menacing and deadly villains that you will ever come across. The most entertaining character is Tyrese Barton, a street smart drug dealer whose friendship for Dr. Beck proves to be a life-saver.
The book's dialogue is fresh and witty and the action scenes are thrilling. My biggest reservation about "Tell No One" is that some of the explanations at the conclusion of the novel were extremely far-fetched. However, if you enjoy a lively thriller that will keep you on your toes from the first page to the last, you will probably be entertained by "Tell No One."
Book Review: Couldn't put it down!
Summary: 5 Stars
Harlan Coben was born in 1962 in Newark, New Jersey to Carl Gerald and Barbara (Kronberg) Coben. In 1988 Coben married his wife Anne, who had been his sweetheart since the age of twenty, and together they had four children. In the 1990s Coben made his mark as a mystery novelist that embraced the professional sports world. Some of his other novels including "Play Dead", "Miracle Cure", "Gone for Good", and seven novels in his "Myron Bolitar" mystery novels, including "Deal Breaker", "Dropshot", "Fade Away", "Back Spin", "One False Move", "The Final Detail" and "Darkest Fear."Annotation: On their yearly trip to Becks grandfathers' cabin, his wife Elizabeth is killed. Now, eight years later it seems that Elizabeth may still be alive. It turns out that after escaping the police looking for Elizabeth that he isn't the only one who is searching for Elizabeth.
I fully enjoyed "Tell No One", and at times it was hard to set it down when I was left hanging after a chapter or while at school, when the bell rang for the period to end. This book followed me every where, from school, to home, even to work. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes a little mystery in their life, and to anyone who doesn't mind be a little confused until the end of the book. One thing I would recommend would be to sit down and try to read the book in a few sittings, for extended it over a period of time may leave you utterly and confusing, also not being tired while you read it. I would say being alert and awake is the key in figuring out what Coben is hiding behind the next page, for he is an excellent writer and i can't wait to read "Gone For Good."
Book Review: Very enjoyable read
Summary: 5 Stars
I read this book in 5 days...which is rare. I usually take my time with most books, but this book is really fast paced for the most part, it pulls you in. A real page turner, as they would say. Beck, the man character is quite likeable, and his relationship with his wife is very sweet. All the other characters in the book are very well drawn out and all very enjoyable to learn about as well.The book can get somewhat confusing- so many characters linked to so many others in so many different ways. Even when you fly thru this book really quickly, things get mixed up sometimes. The author does a great job of tying things together nicely to make sure we remember what has happened throughout the book. That all said- there are tons of twists and turns, and a lot of surprises. Nice twists and turns at that.
I noticed that the book seemed to get better and better, but then it started to drop off. I think the ending was somewhat of a let down, but it's ultimately satisfying. It's not perfect, but it's pretty close.
Coben has a great style. Dr. Beck, the main character, basically tells most of the story, and I think that's a great angle to take. The author is also clearly gifted in his craft...great use of description to really put you into the story, great character development to keep you interested.
I liked Tell No One a lot, and it's actually somewhat sad that Dr. Beck isn't a regular character (I find that I become attached to a lot of characters in books, which I guess is normal.) It's always an added bonus to read a great mystery with a great lead character that you can relate to. It felt as tho I could have been in his shoes the entire time...just an average guy on a really big adventure. Hope to read more from Coben soon...
Book Review: Fast Paced Story that Holds Together
Summary: 4 Stars
This review is for the Bantam Dell reissue paperback edition, June 2006, 370 pages. TELL NO ONE, first published in 2001, was on the USA Today top 150 best sellers list for 24 weeks between July 2001 and June 2006, reaching a peak position of fifteen. Mr. Coben's first two books, Play Dead and Miracle Cure, are collectables. Starting in 1995, he published seven novels in the Myron Bolitar series about a Sports Agent sleuth. These were followed by five stand-alone thrillers beginning with TELL NO ONE. He recently published another Myron Bolitar story. All five of the stand alone thrillers and the most recent Bolitar book have been on the USA Today top seller list.
TELL NO ONE begins with David Beck, in a prologue, recounting his near death and the kidnapping of his wife, Elizabeth, at a remote lake in New Jersey. Several days later, his wife's body is discovered, apparently the victim of KillRoy, a serial killer who is soon caught and eventually convicted of murder, although not Elizabeth's.
The story continues eight years later when the bodies of two thugs are discovered near the lake. The sheriff links the dead men to Elizabeth's kidnapping and soon the FBI thinks maybe David, not KillRoy, killed her. Then, David receives an e-mail that suggests Elizabeth is still alive, and we learn that Elizabeth's father, a cop, and his brother, a Federal Agent, identified Elizabeth's body, which was cremated.
The plot continues with a cast of colorful characters and bit players, I counted fifty-seven in all, and many twists and turns that do not require large leaps of faith (until the very end). It's a good, fast paced story that holds together.
Book Review: Someone please help
Summary: 1 Stars
Someone please help me...has anyone read a good book in the past year? Like The Gold Coast or Charm School or even The Corrections or even The Firm? Where are all the storytellers? Where are the pageturners?
This is what we're left with, Harlan Coben? An author so bad the publisher has to resort to using bright neon colors to sell the books? I only finished this book just in case Harlan could salvage it in the last few pages--alas, it was worse than I expected.
Bottom line--it sucks. First--Coben jars the reader every other chapter by switching points of view from first person to third, back to first, first again, and then third and I think at one point there was even a fourth person point of view thrown in to keep the reader confused. I'm surprised the dog wasn't given a few pages for his viewpoint, which would've been at least midly humerous. Second- the characters in the book were sooooo idiotic and overdone...can we have some original characters again? A doctor that could be the best doctor on the planet but instead helps inner city youth . ..now I really, really, really like him . . . blah, blah, blah . . . and a lesbian sister and a lesbian (I think) woman attorney named Hester? Hester is almost as ridiculous a name as Harlan. Third--the plot is so over the top and ridiculous and confusing that I'm still not sure what happened or if anything happened.
This was not an enjoyable book. Don't buy it. I won't buy any other Harlan Coben novels again. I read this book recently called Manhunter because I liked the cover at B&N and it was actually pretty good. Try that one. And someone let me know where are all the writers?