“We pay attention to what works with our narrative. We tend to dismiss that which does not.”
Harlan Coben is one of the best mystery-thriller writers in the world. But, to our shame, we haven’t read anything of his since taking on The Stranger. We’d seen a few fellow readers talking positively about his 2017 book, Don’t Let Go, online so when we came across it in our local bookshop we knew we couldn’t ignore this sign from the universe. ‘Cops who don’t do things by the book’ aren’t always our favourite tropes, but we knew we’d be in safe hands with Coben, right? Join us at What We Reading as we lift the lid on what we thought of this thriller with our Don’t Let Go book review!
Date Published: 2017
Author: Harlan Coben
Genre: Mystery, Thriller
Pages: 351
Goodreads Rating: 4.05/5
Premise
Napoleon “Nap” Dumas is a suburban New Jersey detective who still hasn’t moved on from his senior year in high school. It was during that time when his twin brother Leo and Leo’s girlfriend Diana were found dead on the side of the railroad tracks, and Maura, the woman he was convinced was the love of his life, disappeared. Fifteen years on, and Nap is still searching for Maura and the truth behind his brother’s death.
When Maura’s fingerprints turn up at a crime scene, he is suddenly catapulted into a series of investigations into the woman he loved, the classmates and childhood friends he thought he knew, and the mysterious abandoned military base on the outskirts of town. By digging up the secrets of the past, he soon learns the deaths of Leo and Diana are far darker than he could have ever dared imagine.
What Worked
Off the bat, Don’t Let Go feels like such an authentic, tried-and-true Harlan Coben book. And that is a compliment in the fullest way we can deliver it. Everything from the characters and settings to the abundance of dry humour and wit, as well as the mysteries at the centre of the plot, all combine for a read that is seriously compelling and easily devourable.
First off, let’s talk about our protagonist. As we mentioned, the ‘cop who plays by his own rules’ trope isn’t something we find ourselves leaning into very often, but thanks to Coben’s skill, Nap comes out as one of the most layered and enjoyable leads we’ve read in some time. Not only is he sharp-witted and at times hilarious, but he shows himself to be an astute and capable protagonist, equally skilled at assessing situations, reading people, and handling himself out on the street. What we also enjoyed about Nap is not only his complexities but also his awareness of how layered he is. He’s aware of his hypocrisies and how certain things affect him more than others. It shows a depth that not many other protagonists possess and certainly stands to make him far more relatable and believable.
This portrayal of emotional depth and the complexity of character is carried throughout the book. Everyone in Don’t Let Go is shown to possess their secrets and motivations for holding onto them, some of which go wildly against Nap’s, but all of them are shown to be equally ‘valid’ or worthy of understanding to some extent. It never feels like readers are being pushed down a path of categorizing characters as ‘good’ or ‘bad,’ which makes it feel more authentic to real life.
Finally, how Coben unravels more and more of the mystery showcases his mastery of the craft. The overarching plot is always omnipresent, yet the pacing always makes it feel like something substantial is being revealed with every passing chapter. Rather than tossing readers about in all manner of directions, this is a carefully woven case that stays on a set course, and it is all the better for it.
What Didn’t
For as good as Don’t Let Go is the theme of an abandoned military base hiding nefarious secrets that the government is doing all it can to hide does veer into cliché territory at times. You never feel like a resolution that isn’t predictable enough isn’t at the heart of the story, and that isn’t dispelled once you reach the book’s close.
By the final few chapters, it does feel like Coben activated his ‘wrap it up and move on to the next one’ mode. He seems in a real hurry to tie up all his loose ends and send Nap on his way. It’s not offensive and certainly works fine enough, but we can’t help but feel it might be an example of a novelist used to pumping out a book or two a year being aware of a deadline coming up and somewhat rushing to the finish line.
Verdict
Don’t Let Go demonstrates all of the traits that make Harlan Coben one of the best fiction writers around right now. Led by the layered and interesting Nap Dumas, the book demonstrates how multi-layered and complicated people can be. Through his trademark humour and wisecracks, Nap and Coben successfully create a mystery where there are no real heroes or villains, where the line between law and vigilantism and right and wrong can all be flipped with a simple change in perspective.
Secret government projects and their clandestine efforts to keep them from the public aren’t anything new, and Coben doesn’t exactly reinvent the trope here. Ultimately, the overall plot didn’t quite match the emotional punch of a book like The Stranger and its premise.
Nevertheless, this was a story that we ripped through and had a blast doing so. Whether you’re a hardcore Coben fan or a newcomer to his work, Don’t Let Go is a perfect embodiment of what he’s all about as a fun and captivating mystery thriller.
Our Rating: 4/5
Part-time reader, part-time rambler, and full-time Horror enthusiast, James has been writing for What We Reading since 2022. His earliest reading memories involved Historical Fiction, Fantasy and Horror tales, which he has continued to take with him to this day. James’ favourite books include The Last (Hanna Jameson), The Troop (Nick Cutter) and Chasing The Boogeyman (Richard Chizmar).
