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bill_lundeen's review against another edition
It took me a while to get to halfway, but the second half kept me up until almost 1am!
elizabethbunston's review
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.0
hayfray's review
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.5
storylover365's review
4.0
I’m not a fan of mystery or suspense novels. I don’t like having to memorize unrelated characters and their random situations until they eventually connect into the main plot and have meaning. It’s like juggling helium balloons and hoping none float away before you have a chance to tie them off to something solid.
Harlan Coben novels are my one exception and I think it’s because his metaphors are so descriptive (and often hilarious) that I don’t mind going on side branches for several chapters before finally connecting to the main trunk of the plot.
In honor of his humorous and hilarious writing style, here are a few of my favorite metaphors from this book:
“as though he'd just defecated on their salad fork”
“a voice flat enough to slip under a door crack”
“a gold chain thick enough to pull up a Carnival Cruise anchor”
“the buffet was a salmonella outbreak waiting to happen”
“like a marionette with his strings cut”
“forearms like marble columns at the Acropolis”
“My client is trussed up like an S-and-M prop”
And my favorite quote…
“It was obvious and a bit of cliché, but we don't really age in a straight line. We age in a circle, curving back to childhood, but in all the wrong ways.”
Harlan Coben novels are my one exception and I think it’s because his metaphors are so descriptive (and often hilarious) that I don’t mind going on side branches for several chapters before finally connecting to the main trunk of the plot.
In honor of his humorous and hilarious writing style, here are a few of my favorite metaphors from this book:
“as though he'd just defecated on their salad fork”
“a voice flat enough to slip under a door crack”
“a gold chain thick enough to pull up a Carnival Cruise anchor”
“the buffet was a salmonella outbreak waiting to happen”
“like a marionette with his strings cut”
“forearms like marble columns at the Acropolis”
“My client is trussed up like an S-and-M prop”
And my favorite quote…
“It was obvious and a bit of cliché, but we don't really age in a straight line. We age in a circle, curving back to childhood, but in all the wrong ways.”
goldenlife's review
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
yliimehenry's review
5.0
I cannot remember the last time I finished a 400 page book in a day, if ever. Harlan Coben may be my new favourite author.
_rachelreads_'s review
4.0
This was my first Harlan Coben novel, and I picked it up because I know Stay Close has now been adapted into a Netflix series. It was a wild and entertaining ride! While I found most of the characters to be more broad stereotypes — seedy Atlantic City types, horny, women down on their luck, et cetera — Coben knows how to write a darn good suspense narrative. His prose is simple, and sometimes borderline crass, but that works with the world he's built. Stay Close is gritty and a real page turner. I also found the characters of Barbie and Ken to be the most fascinating and fun pair of torturers I think I've ever read about in a book like this. I'm definitely going to watch the Netflix series now, and I anticipate reading more Coben novels in the future. It's clear he understands the genre for which he's famous.
chocolateyclaire's review
3.0
I don’t think this was one of Harlem Coben’s best books, it took a long time to gain momentum and wasn’t the usual page turner. The storyline was good, but took a long time to play out.