This is my first Harlan Coben book and it did not disappoint. It’s a hard to put down and suspense grabbing story. 
Paul Copeland is a Russian immigrant that has become a County Prosecutor.  As a teenage he worked summers at a camp for affluent kids. His sister and 3 other kids run off into the woods and never found. Two are found dead and two vanish never to be found including his sister.  Twenty years later some new evidence has come to light. Paul goes searching for answers about his missing sister. As the book progresses there are twists and mysteries along the way. I really enjoyed the ending as I did not see it coming. 
Harlan Coben has been added to my favorite suspense/thriller authors. I have added more of his books to my TBR.

I love Harlan Coben books because they suck me in from beginning to end and are so engaging!  The Woods was full of suspense with many different twists and turns throughout!  I was sitting on the edge of my seat while reading and really enjoyed this one.  I’m a sucker for thrillers set that feature summer camp settings, so I knew I’d love this one.  If you’re looking for a thrilling page turner, pick this one up!

***Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review***
Harlan Coben does it again! He creates a story that pulls you in from the very beginning and doesn't let you go until the thrilling end.

The Woods is an excellent introduction to Harlan Coben if readers haven't yet experienced him. The suspense is strong with plenty of twists throughout. The characters are all well-developed and interesting to follow. And the ending will make your jaw drop! Highly recommended to readers who enjoy mysteries. Coben is a great author to check out.

Twenty years ago eighteen-year-old Paul Copeland was working as a counselor at a summer camp in which four teenagers walked into the woods one night... two were murdered, and two went missing, never to be seen again (they were thought to be dead, their bodies were never found, some of their clothing had blood on it). One of the missing was Paul's sister, Camille. Twenty years later Paul (now a County Prosecutor) is being asked questions by detectives about a man who was recently murdered who had Paul's address on him and clippings about the camp murders. When Paul goes to the morgue and sees a tattoo on the dead man's arm that he recognizes, Paul is convinced the murdered man is the other man who went missing (like his sister). But if this man (who was just murdered) was alive for the past twenty years, maybe his sister could still be alive too.

Eventually Paul gets together with his ex-girlfriend (Lucy) from the camp (whom he hasn't seen in twenty years) after she contacts him because strange things are occurring in her life that have to do with that long-ago camp incident in which she was also involved.

I don't want to give any more of the plot away since it's more fun to read the book to find out what happens. I found the characters very interesting. I liked Paul, who was raising a young daughter (Paul's wife died of cancer). I also liked Lucy, who never really seemed to get over that long ago camp incident. (Her father ran the camp and he is now in a home.) The secondary characters were a lively group. I especially got a kick out of attorney Flair Hickory, the well-dressed/flamboyant attorney.

I really liked this fast-paced suspense story. There were moments of humor in the book that I find enjoyable from this author. And some surprises. This was a captivating and entertaining read.

This book was received as an ARC from PENGUIN GROUP Dutton in exchange for an honest review. Opinions and thoughts expressed in this review are completely my own.

I have read a lot of Harlan Coben's novels and having them mostly be a murder mystery plotline and this one was no different. New Jersey County Prosecutor Paul Copeland's sister disappeared in the woods one night and was never seen again. Paul gets handed a case where there is a boy dead in the woods and the boy may be the boy that was with his sister the night she disappeared. As Paul is working the case, secrets of his past came to surface and starts to question everything he thought he knew and now it becomes more than just a murder case. I was invested from beginning to end and could not stop reading!

We will consider adding this title to our Fiction collection at the library. That is why we give this book 5 stars.

This was not one of my favorite Coben books. The plot and writing was not a crisp as his novels usually are. It seemed more like a throwaway novel for him. The characters were really one-dimensional and the plot wasn't written in an engaging manner.

The Woods
A Suspense Thriller
by Harlan Coben
PENGUIN GROUP Dutton
 You Like Them
Dutton
General Fiction (Adult)
Pub Date 01 Apr 2008   |   Archive Date 31 Dec 2020

One of my favorites of Harlan Coben.  His fans will love this book!  Thanks to Netgalley and Penguin group Dutton for the ARC. 
5 star

One of Harlan's best! I couldn't put this book down. He is the king of suspense and this one was no exception! I loved all the unexpected twists and turns while reading. I can't wait to pick up Win when it comes out!

Date reviewed: July 31, 2020


When life for the entire universe and planet turns on its end and like everyone else you "have nothing to do" while your place of work is closed and you are continuing to be in #COVID19 #socialisolation,  superspeed readers like me can read 250+ pages/hour, so yes, I have read the book … and many more today. And it is way too hot to go outside, so why not sit in from of the blasting a/c and read and review books??  BTW - stay home and save lives!!!!!!!! No tan is worth dying for.

I requested and received a temporary digital Advance Reader Copy of this book from #NetGalley, the publisher and the author in exchange for an honest review.  

From the publisher, as I do not repeat the contents or story of books in reviews, I let them do it as they do it better than I do 😸.

NOW A NETFLIX ORIGINAL SERIES!

The bestselling author and creator of the hit Netflix drama The Stranger takes readers into the heart of family loyalty in this twisty page-turner that proves that the darkest secrets are often closest to home.

Paul Copeland, a New Jersey county prosecutor, is still grieving the loss of his sister twenty years ago—the night she walked into the woods, never to be seen again. But now, a homicide victim is found with evidence linking him to the disappearance. The victim could be the boy who vanished along with Paul's sister. And, as hope rises that his sister could still be alive, dangerous secrets from his family's past threaten to tear apart everything Paul has been trying to hold together....

I have been loving Mr. Cobens work on Netflix and am excited to see this book (that I first read in 2008) come to the streaming world.  The characters are well written and although the plot is a little convoluted at times. overall it is a cracking good read.  Highly enjoyable and worth picking up.

As always, I try to find a reason to not rate with stars as I love emojis (outside of their incessant use by "🙏-ed Social Influencer Millennials/#BachelorNation survivors/Tik-Tok and YouTube  Millionaires/etc. " on Instagram and Twitter... Get a real job, people!) so let's give it n🦉🦉🦉🦉

A quick page-turner and an engaging plot. The characters were pretty realistic and interesting as well. Though some of the plot settings were kind of convoluted and over the top, the entertainment these settings provide is enjoyable.

Coben fans will be happy with the book for sure especially with an interesting twist at the end!

Coben sure knows how to write a compelling thriller!

Paul lost his sister 20 years ago at a summer camp, one of 4 victims of this serial killer. He feels guilty because he was supposed to be guarding the camp and snuck off with his girlfriend, Lucy, instead. 
When one of the boys, who was thought to have died in those same woods, ends up dead just recently... Paul has to find out what's going on.

The ending was just so shocking to me. There were so many twists and they just kept coming and coming. 

Coben is definitely a must read author for me!

This book was a bit of a miss for me. There were far too many different plot lines going on, I felt like the author was very unsure which direction to take the novel in. The most interesting of the three plot lines was the court case which was basically forgettable and unresolved at the end. I liked the characters and it had real potential. It just feel unfinished and left the door open for a sequel which wasn’t needed.