Caught: Amazon.co.uk: Harlan Coben: Books

Review

A brilliant and complex thriller from a master of his craft (HUDDERSFIELD DAILY EXAMINER )

Review

'CAUGHT: The brilliantly tense, beautifully written new mystery thriller from Coben - possibly the most joyously readable crime writer in the world right now.' HEAT MAGAZINE 'If you haven't been caught by Coben's intelligent, gripping thrillers yet, this will hook you.' DAILY MIRROR 'His trademark is twists that you don't see coming and his writing is not just exciting but also thought-provoking' DAILY MAIL 'Caught is a superb thriller... Coben's trademark scenes of legal cut-and-thrust are as gripping as ever; his ability to wring the drama out of the most mundane of potential criminal scenarios is, after all these years, remarkable. Furthermore, the fact he manages to create an ending that is both moving and convincing is testament to the enviable fact that he has never written better.' -- Mark Sanderson EVENING STANDARD 'Coben's characters are believable archetypes, his dialogue honest and pleasingly familiar... as always with Coben, it's the fun of the switchback ride that counts.' FINANCIAL TIMES '[An] excellent thriller...Coben's plots are always ingenious but that is never the point of them, so much as the emotional turmoil into which his characters are plunged by what happens to them and by what they do.' INDEPENDENT 'Harlan Coben has rediscovered his mojo in spades with the super-serpentine Caught' DAILY TELEGRAPH 'Coben's trademark is twists that you just don't see coming, and his writing is not just exciting but also thought-provoking.' DAILY MAIL 'The magnificent Mr Coben is back with what might just be his most riveting novel yet: a masterful balance of impeccably story-telling and flawless characterisation. There's no such thing as the perfect thriller, but Harlan Coben is as close as it gets.' DAILY RECORD 'This latest from crime master Coben is a thrillingly tense yet emotional tale concerning a missing 17-year -old girl*****' HEAT (Book Charts) 'An absorbing page-turner, the theme of which is endurance and forgiveness' LITERARY REVIEW 'For all its complexity it's very fast moving and despite its pace, characters are distinctive and the dialogue is often very funny... Thoughtful, thrilling and funny - you can't ask for much more.' THE MORNING STAR 'If you're after a read that is something to merely ditch once completed, look elsewhere. If you want a novel that makes you think about the world in which we live and all that it implies whilst being thoroughly entertained, read Caught and enjoy yourself.' -- Chris High WRITING MAGAZINE 'Tense and intricate' WOMAN 'Coben has always been adept at creating tension and drama, but in his latest novel, he has produced a work that is much more nuanced than his usual thrillers.' SUNDAY MERCURY 'Harlan Coben has been a first-division writer for some years now, and Caught finds him at the top of his game... The sheer unputdownability of his books means this is a quick and deeply satifying read.' SUNDAY TRIBUNE 'A well-scripted read which would make great big-screen viewing.' NOTTINGHAM EVENING POST 'Harlan Coben has topped the best-seller lists with his previous fast-paced novels, and there is no reason why CAUGHT should not do the same.' LIVERPOOL POST 'You'll be ripping through the pages of this darker-than-usual, but disturbingly topical story' PETERBOROUGH EVENING TELEGRAPH 'This is a superb read, and for my money, one of Coben's very best novels... This is a book that is enormously difficult to describe without giving away too much. So I won't bother. Is it a good, fast, thrilling read? Undoubtedly - it's the best by far that I've read this year so far. But it's much more... a magnificent, thrilling and immensely satisfying book. Go out and buy it!' SHOTS 'Like a fisherman, Coben reels his readers in with some fancy hooks and cunningly concealed twists.' NORTHAMPTON CHRONICLE 'A superb thriller, complete with a double final twist, which proves "you'll never really know a person"' EVENING STANDARD - Books of the Year --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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15 of 15 people found the following review helpful

Good, not great - has HC gone to the suburban well once too often? 21 April 2010

By Big Jim TOP 50 REVIEWER

Format:Hardcover

Harlan Coben has become the master of the "suburban thriller" a fact acknowledged on the blurb for this book as if it has become a genre in itself, which no doubt it soon will.

This is well up to the standard of previous efforts but do I detect a hint of tiredness and ennui setting in? It seems like Mr Coben is releasing a book a year now and working under that, no doubt contractual, pressure is bound to leave a bit to be desired. Indeed this is the case here with some thin characterisation in parts, occasional plodding unreal dialogue and some amazing coincidences, all of which might undermine the overall story, but miraculously somehow doesn't as the plot is razor sharp and keeps you turning the pages, which is surely the point of such books. I read the book in one sitting, it is that gripping, and was pleasantly surprised by the ending but once read you will soon move on to other things.

All in all this is a perfect summer page turner that doesn't demand a great deal from you but the author has to break free of his suburban shackles to get back to "5 star" level.

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36 of 39 people found the following review helpful

Caught hook line and sinker 18 May 2010

By Ian Paterson

Why why why has Hollywood not knocked down Harlan Coben's door ?
All the ingredients are here a missing girl, suburban secrets, an ordinary person sucked into extraordinary circumstances, the ambitious journalist, the determined cop.
add a few twists and 1 large final twist and it's this years perfect beach companion

Ok so Harlan Coben's books are similar but he has the formula or recipe down to a fine art that he consistently delivers a great page turner thriller every year
A 17 year old girl has gone missing there are no clues to why this high achieving girl from a loving family should have disappeared.
Reporter Wendy Tynes a TV reporter who sets up and traps on camera paedophiles but has she got it wrong with her latest victim ?
For fans of his there is even a Cameo from a certain rich playboy and brief mention of a couple of other characters from previous books

If you plan to read this by the pool or on the beach make sure you use factor 60
because as always once you start this book you are going to find it hard to put down

53 of 58 people found the following review helpful

Poor 10 Jan 2011

By Jonathan Clark

Format:Paperback

I have read all Harlan Coben's (HC) books and found the majority of them of the highest order.
With HC what you see is what you get and the quality is usually consistently high.
I partcularly like the Myron Bolitar and friends series although the books which use other characters have been excellent i.e. The Woods and Tell No One.
I therefore looked forward to reading Caught and thought the storyline sonded very interesting (maybe a bit like Tell No One).
Having finished it I have to report that I was hugely disappointed.
The main characters were flaky, the relationships between Wendy, Charlie and Pops were contrived if not downright yuccy.
The story was OK although Harlan Coben writing as Wendy and assuming female traits, emotions et al didn't work (he almost parodied how women feel, think and act).
Others have summarised the story exremely well but if this is your first venture into HC please don't think that this is illustrative of other great books he has turned out.
Try The Woods and Tell No One and almost any featuring Myron Bolitar.
Hope that this helps!!