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 OVERKILL! July 10, 2008
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
Maui H.S.Overkill! There was overkill in the book and in the drama. This is the third Harlan Coben book on my read shelf. I didn't care for the first two, but I doubt I will ever read another Coben novel.
The drama was too intense, too bloody, too gory, to extreme, too many characters, too many subplots.
Yes, it is brought together in the end like the rest of his books, but this was definitely overkill! A teen suicide, drug gothics, A rape victim killing a rapist, a drug club in New York, a teen disappearance, a suburban doctor nearly beaten to death, prescription pads appearing as DEA evidence, a troubled suburb mother flailing between career and motherhood, a divorced wife tortured and murdered, a loving mother tortured and murdered, a latvian survivor turned killer partner, a psycho killer, a girl with facial hair harassed by peers, a girl that takes a gun and kills a psycho murderer, A druggie mama leader, gothic killers and drug dealers, a suburban kid with a kidney disease, psycho catching a loving mommy and a daddy, a teacher with issues,a dectective on the trail of the murderer, ending with a wedding! Yeah, OVERKILL! I couldn't take anymore and fast forwarded to the end. You can keep your books Mr. Coben. No more for me.
The three books have too much in common. Suburb insanity, ex jock, troubled teens, psychotic murderer. I get bored with writers that have the same theme over and over again. The authors bore me! I'll go on to find another.
 Hold Tight July 6, 2008
A must read for any parent. Could not put down until I finished it once I started it.
Could NOT stop reading this edge of seat thriller! July 2, 2008
I know that line, "I could not stop reading it" is an old one, but there's a reason it has become a cliche. If I could have stayed awake all night, I probably would have read it in one sitting. This book, like several of his others (Just One Look, Innocent) grabs you by the throat, takes several seemingly unrelated story lines and brings them together. This one explores the nature of what it means to help a friend (in MANY surprising and unanticipated ways!) and the issue of parental supervision (also in surprising, unique ways). Coben does an excellent job of maintaining the breathless pace. Bravo!! The world could use more books like this.
 Should We Spy On Our Kids? June 27, 2008
In his latest mystery novel, "Hold Tight," Harlan Coben explores the dark side of parental oversight. The underlying question is this: What happens if we spy on a teenager's electronic communications and find something shocking, such as drug abuse, murder or a planned suicide? Can we take the appropriate action without destroying trust forever?
It's an interesting premise with frightening implications. (I have a 16-year-old son myself.)
PLOT SUMMARY: Mike and Tia Baye live in an upscale suburban community in northern New Jersey. Their teenage son, Adam, is distraught and withdrawn following the suicide of a close friend. Meanwhile, a psychopathic murderer and his accomplice are kidnapping, torturing and murdering grown women for some reason we don't understand. Mike and Tia install a monitoring program on their son's computer to find out what's happening to him. Adam, his parents and their entire community get drawn into a swirling maelstrom of suspicion and crime that nearly engulfs several families.
As the old saying goes: "The road to hell is paved with good intentions."
If you've read Harlan's other novels, you'll find this one particularly grisly and violent. I hope that's not a harbinger of things to come because we certainly have enough blood and mayhem in modern fiction today. On the other hand, you will enjoy the cameo appearances by Paul Copeland and Detective Muse from previous novels.
Generally speaking, I enjoyed this novel but found some of the characters a bit stiff, particularly the teenagers. Harlan has several younger kids of his own, so perhaps he'll improve the dialogue next time around as he gains more experience with this mystifying age group.
BOTTOM LINE: A fast summer read, but not for the faint of heart. Harlan gets a solid "B" from me.
Hold Tight June 27, 2008
A real page-turner. Harlan Coben brings you directly and intimately into the story. It made you think.
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