Sunday 15 September 2019

HARLAN COBEN - RUN AWAY (2019)


Synopsis/blurb.....

A perfect family is shattered when their daughter goes missing in this "riveting" New York Times bestseller from the master of domestic suspense (Ann Patchett).

You've lost your daughter.

She's addicted to drugs and to an abusive boyfriend. And she's made it clear that she doesn't want to be found.

Then, by chance, you see her playing guitar in Central Park. But she's not the girl you remember. This woman is living on the edge, frightened, and clearly in trouble.

You don't stop to think. You approach her, beg her to come home.

She runs. 

And you do the only thing a parent can do: you follow her into a dark and dangerous world you never knew existed. Before you know it, both your family and your life are on the line. And in order to protect your daughter from the evils of that world, you must face them head on.

An enjoyable holiday read for my wife and one I caught up with on the plane home and finished the day after.  A typical Coben book in that you don't really know what is going on until the end when all the strands of the story are drawn together and all the secrets that have been kept are uncovered.

A fractured family, a child albeit an adult lost to drugs, desperation, a couple of hitters (i.e. a hitman and a female assistant), a cult, a list of names, a PI, two investigations, a murder, a family shooting, a skedaddling, a hunt, secrets, hidden histories, inheritance, an ally, more death, a reluctant You Tube sensation, the police...... all diced together, cut up, mixed and blended and a few other ingredients as well.

Decent story line, decent pace, interesting characters, New York (and a bit further afield) setting, satisfactory conclusion, did what it said on the tin.

I'm usually entertained when I read Harlan Coben without feeling the urge to immediately start another of his. This one was no exception.

Coben has been read a few times since the inception of the blog.
No Second Chance (2003)Home (2016)Play Dead (1990), Hold Tight (2008), Tell No One (2001), Shelter (2011) - this one before.

4 from 5

Read in September, 2019
Published - 2019
Page count - 384
Source - purchased copy
Format - paperback

4 comments:

  1. It does sound like an interesting premise for a story, Col. And Coben does have a way of drawing the reader in, so you care about what happens to the characters. I think that's one of his strengths as a writer. Glad you enjoyed this one.

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    1. He has certainly mastered the art of concealment and subterfuge until exactly the right moment Margot and his characters are people who's outcome you become invested in. I don't think I've read anything from him that I haven't liked, albeit some more than others.

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  2. I generally enjoy Coben's standalones, and this one sounds certainly deserving of a read. I have another of his on the shelf that'll take priority, The Stranger (if memory serves) but then . . .

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    1. I don't think I've heard of that one. Off to look it up - cos I do need more books!

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