In the shocking new thriller from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Run Away, a man whose past is shrouded in mystery must find a missing teenage girl before her disappearance brings about disastrous consequences for her community . . . and the world beyond. Thirty years ago, Wilde was found as a boy living feral in the woods, with no memory of his past. Now an adult, he still doesn’t … his past. Now an adult, he still doesn’t know where he comes from, and another child has gone missing.
No one seems to take Naomi Pine’s disappearance seriously, not even her father-with one exception. Hester Crimstein, a television criminal attorney, knows through her grandson that Naomi was relentlessly bullied at school. Hester asks Wilde-with whom she shares a tragic connection-to use his unique skills to help find Naomi.
Wilde can’t ignore an outcast in trouble, but in order to find Naomi he must venture back into the community where he has never fit in, a place where the powerful are protected even when they harbor secrets that could destroy the lives of millions . . . secrets that Wilde must uncover before it’s too late.
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Dollycas’s Thoughts
As soon as I find out the release date for a new Harlan Coben book I rush to my reading calendar and make sure I keep a date open to review it. Then I anxiously wait for the book to pop up for review. Coben is my favorite author when it comes to suspense and he never disappoints.
The story starts out with Naomi Pine being bullied and soon after the teenager disappears. No one seems to care that the girl is missing except a classmate who feels guilty for not stepping up to defend her and even played along with some of the pranks played on her. He is worried so he reaches out to his grandmother, Hester Crimstein, a television criminal attorney. Hester then reaches out to Wilde, a man who was found in the woods near her home 30 years ago and was befriended by her son. Wilde feels he has things in common with Naomi and immediately begins his search. A search that could cost him. A search that could hurt others. A search that will reveal secrets that could destroy lives.
This story is absolutely fabulous!
If you have read other Coben thrillers the name Hester Crimstein may be familiar. She is a woman who is tough as nails but we now see she has a soft spot for her grandson. Until now she has been a supporting character that pops up here and there. Through this story, we finally get to know more about this sassy broad who comes to town to see what her grandson Matthew really knows about a girl he says is missing.
We also meet Wilde, a boy found living in the woods about 30 years ago when he was between 6-8 years old. He spoke English but didn’t know his name or anything about where he came from. He soon became known as Wilde. No family ever claimed him so he was placed in foster care and he excelled in school. Upon graduation, he joined the military excelling there as well. That led to a post-military career in security and investigation. But the man is clearly a loner and is happiest living in the woods that will always be his home.
The thing Mr. Coben really does well is create characters with many layers. Some like Hester’s are revealed over time. Other’s like Wilde, Naomi, and Matthew are peeled back over the course of the story but I always feel like he holds just a bit back in case he wants to revisit them again in the future. All the characters are interesting and held my attention and I wanted to know more.
He has wrapped these characters into a story that starts as a missing person case and quickly becomes so much more. Wilde truly was all in when it came to finding Naomi and went to great lengths to get answers. He runs into roadblocks but pushes through, literally at times, to get in people’s faces to find out what the know or what they did. A surprising twist changes the game and ratchets up the suspense and takes us in new directions.
Coben blends social and political themes, really highlighting how far the rich will go to keep their secrets. We are immersed in the dark side seeing people who have created a great public facade but who truly have no morals or ethics. It made my cringe in places.
Mr. Coben also shows us a softer side as characters deal with loss and grief while trying to move forward. Grieving the loss of a loved one is something I am very familiar with and he captured and told this part of the story in a heartwarming and believable way. It was a nice little subplot alongside all the action and suspense.
As I said, this story is fabulous, it is filled with twists and thrills. I totally escaped into every aspect of the story. Well-plotted and written, with a perfect pace. The ending was a complete surprise, The Boy From The Woods is a complex story that was so compelling. I loved it! My world completely stopped when I started reading. In fact, Harlan Coben is responsible for my latest book hangover because I stayed up until the early morning hours to finish this book.
The Boy From The Woods deserves more than 5 stars. It earns my Paradise Rating and a place on my Best Reads of 2020.
I love that question: What did you like about this book? Can I just answer everything?
I haven’t read his entire backlist, but I’m a huge Harlan Coben fan, and the world stopped for 24 hours while I tore through an advanced reader copy of his latest: a fast-paced thriller full of twists, turns, layers, and unique characters.
There are many threads to THE BOY FROM THE WOODS, which opens with a bullied teenager and the current political moment in which the differences between the extreme left and the extreme right often blur. When the teen goes missing, the reader is quickly introduced to two of my favorite characters EVER: Hester and Wilde.
Hester is a 70 year-old kickass criminal attorney and Nana who lusts after the police chief and answers her cellphone with “articulate.” Wilde is a highly trained ex-military dude who lives off the grid in the woods where he was found as a feral boy. Hester is full of fire and compassion; Wilde is full of mystery and control. And some degree of OCD.
Add a wealthy family with well-guarded secrets and a manipulative presidential wannabe who deploys bots to muddy issues and uses the “fake news” battle cry, and this novel is one heck of a ride! Pre-order it now and thank me in March.
I won this ARC from a Goodreads giveaway. The opinions expressed in the following review are my own.
The Boy from the Woods is a great book. It has so many twists and surprises that I couldn’t put it down. Every time I thought that I had a certain scenario figured out, I found out differently. There were a few characters to keep up with which kept the proverbial ball rolling. There were two different stories being told but they were connected by Wilde’s involvement in both.
Without spoiling the book for everyone else, I’ll just say that if you like a good mystery/thriller/whodunnit…this is a book that you will want to read.
First, I want to thank Harlan Coben, Grand Central Publishing and NetGalley for providing me with this book so I may bring you this review.
Harlan Coben once again wrote an incredible must read book with The Boy From The Woods!!! Each book this man writes gets better and better and this one is no exception. He hooks you right from the first page and does not loose your attention at all through the book. I couldn’t put it down til I knew what happened to Niaomi.
I have been a fan of Harlan’s for many years as he was the one that got me hooked in this genre. Out of all the books I have read from him this is one of my favorites.
Like all of his books the story lines are filled with a lot of twists, turns, incredibly interesting characters (especially Wilde), intense suspense, an amazing storyline that will leave you speechless at the end.
This book deals with bullying, adoption, missing people, a challenge game, not a great home life.
Harlan did an incredible job of keeping me on my toes wondering what happened to Niaomi! I was just fascinated by all the stories that went into that one main story. Just something about a missing person story that I seem to be always drawn to.
My favorite character in the whole book had to be Wilde. He was such a unique character and a little off the wall. Unlike any other character Harlan has ever written about. However, he was such an important character in this book.
One of Coben’s best! Hope to see these characters again.
I like this book and this character. Kinda miss Myron. Would read more about this guy. Who am I kidding? I read everything by Coben.
Harlan is a favorite of mine. He weaves a brilliant web and his writing is perfection.
Another winner from Cohen
In 1986 a 6-8 year old feral boy is found living in the forest near Westville, New Jersey. He remembers nothing of his past and becomes known as Wilde.
Now it’s 2020 and Wilde still mostly lives in the forest, doesn’t like being around crowds, and works part-time as an investigator with a firm he helped found.
He gets involved in a case with two missing teenagers, a crooked politician, a kidnapping and is working for the lawyer mother of a long ago friend.
I loved this story and its characters, especially Wilde and Hester, the lawyer who hires him. I’m betting we will see more books with these characters because there are still unanswered questions after this story wraps up.
If you like thrillers, especially ones with twists and turns, try this one. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.
I received this book from Grand Central Publishing through Net Galley in the hopes that I would read it and leave an unbiased review.
A bit much going on.
Wilde and Hester are two of the interesting and gelatin characters I’ve met this summer by far! I felt like a fly on the wall observing all their relationships and challenges. They were true to their personalities and I wish there were more people like them in our struggling world. Hester actually moved me away from thinking all lawyers were bottom feeders…
It was a page turner.
Reading it now and it is really good! People always say they can’t stop reading it is so good. I rarely find that true. But this book is the exception. It is mesmerizing and you seriously won’t be able to stop reading it!
The title of this book threw me, because the boy from the woods is now a man, and really not central to the story. Too many side stories, unrelated to the main story, made me lose my attention and interest. I don’t recommend!
Love everything written by Harlan Coben!!!!!
I hope this becomes a series!
Reading a Harlan Coben book is like meeting up with an old friend. You know what to expect, yet there’s always a few twists and surprises. And you know it’s going to be hard to put that book down. Fast paced, lots of witty dialog, and a tough-as-nails seventy-year-old lawyer who has plenty of vulnerability to be real. Throw in an OCD boy-from-the-woods as a protagonist who is still trying to find how he fits in the world, and you have an awesome duo working together against the clock. Another great read by one of my favourite thriller authors.
Good, twisty, unpredictable mystery as expected from Harlan Coben!!
His books are all fun reads
Don’t bother. The main character is ridiculous in every macho way.
Good read. Left unanswered questions.