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3.72 AVERAGE
3.72 AVERAGE
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Finished reading: March 9th 2025
"They say you can't bury the past. That was probably true, but what they really meant was that trauma ripples and echoes and somehow stays alive."
I admit that I actually incorrectly assumed that I had already read Fool Me Once when I requested an audio ARC of the second Detective Sami Kierce book... So when I was approved, I decided to read the first book before to avoid any spoilers. I'm a fan of Harlan Coben's writing; he always gives us an entertaining and suspenseful ride even if his plots aren't exactly the most credible. Fool Me Once is no exception to this rule, and you definitely have to suspend your disbelief to be able to enjoy the story. Like I said before, it's something I expect from his books, so I personally had no issues with that aspect of the plot at all. What I do have to say is that this story in particular felt a bit overlong, and there were too many subplots along the way that distracted from the main plot. The ending definitely came as a surprise, although I did suspect some of it... But the journey itself could have been shorter. I think the fact that it's quite hard to warm up to Maya as a main character doesn't really help either. I like how she is determined to figure out the truth and the PTSD element was well done, but I wasn't a fan of how she interacted with her daughter or the other people close to her. This made it harder to root for her along the way, although I can't deny that I still enjoyed the ride. I was a bit surprised to see that detective Sami Kierce only plays a minor role in the plot considering the series is named after him, but I guess the next book is going to center around him from what I've deducted from the blurb. All in all Fool Me Once ended up being an entertaining enough crime thriller with a conspiracy vibe and an explosive ending you most likely won't see coming. I wasn't a fan of the epilogue though!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Cancer, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Mental illness, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Medical content, Grief, Stalking, Murder, Gaslighting, War, Injury/Injury detail, Classism
Twisty and a perfect distraction during long train journeys. Just lacking depth.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Former soldier is seemingly followed by bad luck, her sister tortured and murdered and then her husband killed right in front of her. She investigates. Everyone's paranoid. In-laws have lots of money. Connections are made where there really aren't any. Red herrings abound.
What I want to know iswhy was Maya so freaked out when she saw Joe on the camera when she knew he was dead??? That should've been an instant clue that someone knew what really happened All in all, I didn't find this very engaging, a lot of ~military people are built differently, rich people are barely people, the mentally ill should/should not be hidden away~ and a lot of it fell pretty flat for me. Tons of paranoia that may or may not have been deserved, but hey, it builds things up for sure.
What I want to know is
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Harlan Coben does it again!
The plot is interesting and suspenseful but the characters just feel one dimensional. This seems to be a theme with every Coben book I've read
Started really strong and then just went downhill in the last quarter.
This was my first book by Harlan. What a GOOD read. I started it because of the Netflix series. But I’m so glad I did. What a beautifully written story. The ending was very sweet. Def recommend!
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes