Reviews with content warning for Child death - I Will Find You

Reviews tagging 'Child death'

I Will Find You by Harlan Coben

35 reviews

chloebear21's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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zosiablue's review against another edition

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dark emotional tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

I'll always read Harlan Coben, but this was mixed for me. The scales tipped too action-adventure - prison breaks and small town gangs and the most annoying good cop/bad cop routine I've ever read in a book. (Please don't let them be recurring characters.) And yet. The father/son dynamics on all sides rang true and tender and made the action bearable. And, of course, no one paces a thriller like Coben. I stayed up past my bedtime to finish. I always do.

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savijax's review against another edition

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emotional mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes

4.25

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readingwithleslie's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny mysterious reflective sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

5 stars!! This was one of my most anticipated 2023 reads and it delivered, I think this may be my new favorite novel by Harlan Coben. I love how well he ties a story together down to (what we think at the time) are inconsequential facts. This was well written and sucked me in from the first sentence! I was nervous about reading it because of the subject matter, but stick with it because it’s worth it. It was fast paced and keeps you on the edge of your seat. I highly recommend.

David’s story was compelling and it was a real adventure reading. I also really loved the exchanges between the FBI agents, Max and Sarah. Their characters and the way they verbally sparred with people was highly entertaining. I would love to see more books with them in it.

Thank you to Grand Central Publishing and NetGalley for letting me read an eGalley in exchange for an honest review.

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yvo_about_books's review against another edition

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4.0

Finished reading: February 13th 2023

"Memories always sting, don't they? The good ones most of all."

*** A copy of this book was kindly provided to me by Netgalley and Century in exchange for an honest review. Thank you! ***

I always seem to enjoy Harlan Coben's thrillers, and the blurb of his newest story I Will Find You sounded particularly enticing. I mean, have you seen it?! The whole innocent father being imprisoned for the murder of his son, the prison escape, the hunt for the truth... It sounded like the perfect recipe for an action slash crime thriller, and I've been looking forward to read it. And what an exhilarating ride it turned out to be! If you like your thrillers lightning-fast and action-packed, I Will Find You will more than deliver.

The premise of this story is absolutely fascinating, and I do always love a thriller with a prison angle. I Will Find You isn't just about an innocent man trapped in prison though; this story is about so much more. I did love the chapters set in prison, and especially those featuring how David managed to escape against all odds. This is probably where the real exhilarating part of the plot started, although there were already some quite intense scenes inside the prison as well. The whole man hunt and David trying to evade both the police and FBI added a sense of urgency and danger to it all, and I was on the edge of my seat the whole time.

The mystery around the supposed death of David's son Matthew, the boy in the photo looking just like Matthew and the hunt for the truth were absolutely intriguing. It's true that things can be said about the credibility of certain plot twists and especially the final reveals are quite over the top, but I personally didn't mind too much. Why? This is one of those story where what really counts is the entertainment factor, and I Will Find You most definitely delivered on that count. It felt like I was in the middle of a Hollywood action movie the whole time, and this can work both ways... But in this case, it was a success for me.

My main (and probably only) issue with I Will Find You lies with FBI agents Max and Sarah and the way they behaved. Their dialogues were simply cringeworthy and it felt like they were trying too hard to be a comedy duo instead of a pair of FBI agents taking things seriously. They just didn't fit the tone of the rest of the book, and they kind of put a damper on things for me. I would probably have given this story 5 stars otherwise! Max did redeem himself a little in the final part, but as a whole their characters and dialogue were a total miss for me.

I did like most of the rest of the cast. The main focus is on David and his ex sister-in-law Rachel, and I enjoyed spending time with them. It was interesting to see both characters develop and see them trying to overcome obstacle after obstacle... The hunt for the truth about Matthew was fascinating, and I kept turning page after page to find out what really happened that night. True, some of the plot twists were a bit too over the top and quite far-fetched, but like I said before, I personally didn't mind too much. It made for a very entertaining couple of hours reading, that's for sure!

As a whole, I Will Find You turned out to be another gripping, action-packed and simply excellent crime thriller that will take you on a true rollercoaster ride. If you don't mind things getting a bit too far-fetched and over the top and like your thrillers on the fast and exhilarating side, this is the book for you!

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