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tloring's review
5.0
My first Coben novel and it won't be my last. I haven't read a lot of mystery novels. Now I think I will, certainly Coben's subsequent books. This was a good story with plenty of twists and turns. Yeah, okay it was his first novel and not his best writing but a good read nonetheless. I don't usually race through books, mostly because I read more non-fiction, but this kept me going at a good clip.
bthompson80's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Murder and Violence
meme_too2's review
1.0
I am usually a Harlan Coben fan, but this is probably the last one I'll read. This was rough, with a capital R. Apparently, this was the first book he wrote and he reissued it recently. Maybe that explains it. Clive Cussler's early books were pretty rough (and I mean explicit), but later on his books had a pretty girl in it, but that's as far as anything went. Maybe that's the case with Coben.
Be warned!
Be warned!
frecks90's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
traceyanneg's review
3.0
I probably have read too many of the Myron Bolitar series in a short time period because this one didn't really rock my world. It was good, but not in the kind of way where I couldn't put it down.
warri0rprincess's review
1.0
horrible, one of his first books. Full of language, sex and just poor writing. Not worth my time.
jacki_f's review against another edition
2.0
This is Harlan Coben's first book, which has been out of print for several years but was recently re-released. The author has written an introduction in which he essentially admits that it isn't up to the standard of his other books - and he's quite right. Play Dead is a convoluted, poorly written mess. The early chapters of this book were so bad that I almost gave up, but it does improve (slightly) and I was sufficiently curious about how the plot would resolve itself to stick it out until the end.
The story kicks off with Laura and David celebrating their honeymoon in Australia. She is a former supermodel who is now a highly successful businesswoman and he is an NBA superstar. David goes for a swim and doesn't return. A few days later a body is found and identified as David by his best friend. Laura is devastated, but as time passes she starts to suspect that his death wasn't a simple accident. From the outset it's clear that several friends and family members are keeping secrets and that at least some of them know more about David's disappearance than they are letting on.
It's pretty obvious to the reader from the word go that David's death is a cover up, but the why isn't revealed until quite late in the piece. Perhaps a better writer - an older Harlan Coben - could have held it all together, but the end result is far too drawn out, riddled with implausibilities and loose ends and just way too silly. I would advise you to avoid this one and to quote from Harlan's introduction: "Return it. Grab another (of his books). It's okay."
The story kicks off with Laura and David celebrating their honeymoon in Australia. She is a former supermodel who is now a highly successful businesswoman and he is an NBA superstar. David goes for a swim and doesn't return. A few days later a body is found and identified as David by his best friend. Laura is devastated, but as time passes she starts to suspect that his death wasn't a simple accident. From the outset it's clear that several friends and family members are keeping secrets and that at least some of them know more about David's disappearance than they are letting on.
It's pretty obvious to the reader from the word go that David's death is a cover up, but the why isn't revealed until quite late in the piece. Perhaps a better writer - an older Harlan Coben - could have held it all together, but the end result is far too drawn out, riddled with implausibilities and loose ends and just way too silly. I would advise you to avoid this one and to quote from Harlan's introduction: "Return it. Grab another (of his books). It's okay."