What do you think?
Rate this book
Hold Tight
Tia and Mike Baye never imagined they'd become the type of overprotective parents who spy on their kids. But their sixteen-year-old son Adam has been unusually distant lately, and after the suicide of his classmate Spencer Hill - the latest in a string of issues at school - they can't help but worry. They install a sophisticated spy program on Adam's computer, and within days they are jolted by a message from an unknown correspondent addressed to their son - 'Just stay quiet and all safe.'
Meanwhile, browsing through an online memorial for Spencer put together by his classmates, Betsy Hill is struck by a photo that appears to have been taken on the night of her son's death and he wasn't alone. She thinks it is Adam Baye standing just outside the camera's range; but when Adam goes missing, it soon becomes clear that something deep and sinister has infected their community. For Tia and Mike Baye, the question they must answer is this: when it comes to your kids, is it possible to know too much?
Meanwhile, browsing through an online memorial for Spencer put together by his classmates, Betsy Hill is struck by a photo that appears to have been taken on the night of her son's death and he wasn't alone. She thinks it is Adam Baye standing just outside the camera's range; but when Adam goes missing, it soon becomes clear that something deep and sinister has infected their community. For Tia and Mike Baye, the question they must answer is this: when it comes to your kids, is it possible to know too much?
416 pages, Hardcover
First published April 15, 2008
About the author
Harlan Coben
165 books39k followersHarlan Coben is a #1 New York Times bestselling author and one of the world's leading storytellers. His suspense novels are published in forty-five languages and have been number one bestsellers in more than a dozen countries with seventy-five million books in print worldwide.
His books have earned the Edgar, Shamus, and Anthony Awards, and many have been developed into Netflix Original Drama series, including his adaptations of The Stranger, The Innocent, Gone for Good and The Woods. His most recent adaptation for Netflix, Stay Close, premiered on December 31, 2021 and stars Cush Jumbo, James Nesbitt, and Richard Armitage.
His books have earned the Edgar, Shamus, and Anthony Awards, and many have been developed into Netflix Original Drama series, including his adaptations of The Stranger, The Innocent, Gone for Good and The Woods. His most recent adaptation for Netflix, Stay Close, premiered on December 31, 2021 and stars Cush Jumbo, James Nesbitt, and Richard Armitage.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 3,322 reviews
May 29, 2018
Of course I love this author's Myron Bolitar books the best (I am a seriesaholic) but I enjoy his stand alones like this one as well.
Hold Tight is one of those books it is very hard to put down. It moves in short chapters between several separate story lines which eventually intertwine in a very clever way. Of course, being Coben, there are lots of twists and turns along the way with one I was really not expecting right at the end.
Coben excels at writing this sort of middle class family drama/mystery. The children and parents in the story all suffer from problems which come along with reasonably affluent life styles - drugs and alcohol, helicopter parenting and teenagers fighting back. Where does the parent draw the line in letting their children grow up and yet still protecting them?
An interesting book and a very enjoyable read.
Hold Tight is one of those books it is very hard to put down. It moves in short chapters between several separate story lines which eventually intertwine in a very clever way. Of course, being Coben, there are lots of twists and turns along the way with one I was really not expecting right at the end.
Coben excels at writing this sort of middle class family drama/mystery. The children and parents in the story all suffer from problems which come along with reasonably affluent life styles - drugs and alcohol, helicopter parenting and teenagers fighting back. Where does the parent draw the line in letting their children grow up and yet still protecting them?
An interesting book and a very enjoyable read.
February 28, 2021
The plot plod like a plow in pudding. I'm off Harlan Coben. He's not the author to distract my attention when I need it.
I asked for the minimum and for a while things looked hopeful. But I think that it takes real hard work to write a story on multiple fronts.
Harlan Coben ought to think like a writer who wants us to enjoy his books, not merely buy them and then grow tired of them like a lamp from IKEA. He seems easily satisfied and I'm strongly deliberating that the genre is moribund to me.
I asked for the minimum and for a while things looked hopeful. But I think that it takes real hard work to write a story on multiple fronts.
Harlan Coben ought to think like a writer who wants us to enjoy his books, not merely buy them and then grow tired of them like a lamp from IKEA. He seems easily satisfied and I'm strongly deliberating that the genre is moribund to me.
October 14, 2017
I just downgraded my rating from 4 to 3. This was a good holiday read, always quick to move along as all of HC reads are. I know a few characters pop up in many of his stories, but I couldn't place who the DA was marrying, although I could place the character of the DA. I have the worst book memory! Who can help me here?!
I do prefer the Myron Bolitar series to his stand alones, but his reads are always a good pick for me. Perhaps a bit convoluted, but it's all in a days work where this author is concerned. Lots of doctors and lawyers as parents.. Regardless, I will keep reading HC. Easy reading and I get on well together.
I do prefer the Myron Bolitar series to his stand alones, but his reads are always a good pick for me. Perhaps a bit convoluted, but it's all in a days work where this author is concerned. Lots of doctors and lawyers as parents.. Regardless, I will keep reading HC. Easy reading and I get on well together.
January 22, 2009
Very mediocre thriller. Ridiculous plot (the "crazed" killer was laughable), and very cardboard characters - the parents trying to decide in a very stagey way whether or not to install spy software on their son's computer and then discovering a strange exchange of instant messages, the bitch lawyer who has never had kids, blah blah blah.
The writing was the last straw really - the paragraph below is the dramatic ending. A confession has been made - Hester is the bitch lawyer, LeCrue and Duncan are cops.
"The room pretty much exploded then. There were tears, of course. Hugs. Apologies. Wounds were ripped open and closed. Hester worked it. She grabbed LeCrue and Duncan. They all saw what happened here. No one wanted to prosecute the Bayes."
Could you have wrapped it up a bit neater in one paragraph, Harlan? I think my favourite sentences in this paragraph are the first ("I can't be bothered actually writing any sort of moving scene, so I'll just say that the room pretty much exploded - that'll do") and the wounds being ripped open and closed - what the hell kind of imagery is that? Lazy, boring writing, crappy cardboard characters, no more Harlan Coben for me.
The writing was the last straw really - the paragraph below is the dramatic ending. A confession has been made - Hester is the bitch lawyer, LeCrue and Duncan are cops.
"The room pretty much exploded then. There were tears, of course. Hugs. Apologies. Wounds were ripped open and closed. Hester worked it. She grabbed LeCrue and Duncan. They all saw what happened here. No one wanted to prosecute the Bayes."
Could you have wrapped it up a bit neater in one paragraph, Harlan? I think my favourite sentences in this paragraph are the first ("I can't be bothered actually writing any sort of moving scene, so I'll just say that the room pretty much exploded - that'll do") and the wounds being ripped open and closed - what the hell kind of imagery is that? Lazy, boring writing, crappy cardboard characters, no more Harlan Coben for me.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 30, 2020
Stand alone thriller by Harlan Coben published 2008.
I have yet to read a book by Harlan Coben that didn’t grab me in the first few pages and hold me fixed until the final jaw dropping conclusion and this book is no exception.
An affluent neighbourhood where the residents seem to live privileged prosperous lives but is it a happy prosperous life? Behind closed door the veneer of the privilege is stripped bare.
There are many tales just waiting to be told.
There are the parents, grieving for a dead son, cause of death, suicide.
There are the parents who are worried sick about a son who is becoming emotionally removed and is now missing.
There are the parents desperately seeking a kidney donor before it is too late to save their son from an early death.
There is the young girl whose life went down the toilet after an off hand, callous comment by a much respected teacher.
Then there is the much respected teacher whose life also went down the toilet after the said callous comment.
Then last, but definitely not least, there is the monster with the worst case of uncontrolled anger you have ever seen.
Six very different stories all with one thing in common, they are all racing towards the same collision point. When that collision happens it will become a force of nature. Some will survive and some will not but even for the survivors life will never be the same.
A high speed thriller that will keep you glued and guessing right to the very end.
A highly recommended 4 star read.
I have yet to read a book by Harlan Coben that didn’t grab me in the first few pages and hold me fixed until the final jaw dropping conclusion and this book is no exception.
An affluent neighbourhood where the residents seem to live privileged prosperous lives but is it a happy prosperous life? Behind closed door the veneer of the privilege is stripped bare.
There are many tales just waiting to be told.
There are the parents, grieving for a dead son, cause of death, suicide.
There are the parents who are worried sick about a son who is becoming emotionally removed and is now missing.
There are the parents desperately seeking a kidney donor before it is too late to save their son from an early death.
There is the young girl whose life went down the toilet after an off hand, callous comment by a much respected teacher.
Then there is the much respected teacher whose life also went down the toilet after the said callous comment.
Then last, but definitely not least, there is the monster with the worst case of uncontrolled anger you have ever seen.
Six very different stories all with one thing in common, they are all racing towards the same collision point. When that collision happens it will become a force of nature. Some will survive and some will not but even for the survivors life will never be the same.
A high speed thriller that will keep you glued and guessing right to the very end.
A highly recommended 4 star read.
February 20, 2013
Over the last few years, Harlan Coben has pretty much cornered the market on the middle-class suburban New Jersey family thriller genre.
Hold Tight explores a number of difficult issues that confront lots of families, including the matter of how to balance parental oversight with giving your children the room to grow and become strong independent individuals, the question of how one attempts to balance a career with your family responsibilities, and the difficulties of managing as a single parent.
Mike and Tia Baye are becoming increasingly concerned about their son, Adam, who is sixteen. Adam's best friend, Spencer, recently committed suicide, and since then, Adam has become increasingly withdrawn and moody. He comes and goes without accounting for his actions, and Mike and Tia fear that he is slipping away from them.
Accordingly, they install spyware on Adam's computer to track his on-line activities in an effort to get a handle on what's going on in his life. They worry that this is a violation of his privacy, but that concern is trumped by their larger concern for his well-being. What they discover will throw the entire family into jeopardy.
Meanwhile, a vicious serial killer is kidnapping and killing women; a thoughtless teacher has made a cruel remark about a young girl that will basically destroy her life as her peers pile on and begin to mock her mercilessly; and a neighboring child is in desperate need of a kidney transplant.
Coben weaves all of these themes into a seamless tale that is fairly engrossing, at least until the last few pages. I've enjoyed Coben's books for years, but if I have a complaint about some of his later efforts, it lies in the fact that for some reason, he apparently feels compelled to cram one hard-to-believe twist after another into the end of his books, until the reader (or at least this reader) can no longer suspend disbelief.
This book is no exception, and there's a sub-plot in the book that seems to exist for no purpose other than to allow for a totally unbelievable development right at the end. As good as they are, I think that Hold Tight and at least a couple of Coben's other recent books would have benefitted had he been able to restrain himself a bit in this regard.
Hold Tight explores a number of difficult issues that confront lots of families, including the matter of how to balance parental oversight with giving your children the room to grow and become strong independent individuals, the question of how one attempts to balance a career with your family responsibilities, and the difficulties of managing as a single parent.
Mike and Tia Baye are becoming increasingly concerned about their son, Adam, who is sixteen. Adam's best friend, Spencer, recently committed suicide, and since then, Adam has become increasingly withdrawn and moody. He comes and goes without accounting for his actions, and Mike and Tia fear that he is slipping away from them.
Accordingly, they install spyware on Adam's computer to track his on-line activities in an effort to get a handle on what's going on in his life. They worry that this is a violation of his privacy, but that concern is trumped by their larger concern for his well-being. What they discover will throw the entire family into jeopardy.
Meanwhile, a vicious serial killer is kidnapping and killing women; a thoughtless teacher has made a cruel remark about a young girl that will basically destroy her life as her peers pile on and begin to mock her mercilessly; and a neighboring child is in desperate need of a kidney transplant.
Coben weaves all of these themes into a seamless tale that is fairly engrossing, at least until the last few pages. I've enjoyed Coben's books for years, but if I have a complaint about some of his later efforts, it lies in the fact that for some reason, he apparently feels compelled to cram one hard-to-believe twist after another into the end of his books, until the reader (or at least this reader) can no longer suspend disbelief.
This book is no exception, and there's a sub-plot in the book that seems to exist for no purpose other than to allow for a totally unbelievable development right at the end. As good as they are, I think that Hold Tight and at least a couple of Coben's other recent books would have benefitted had he been able to restrain himself a bit in this regard.
November 9, 2017
Can you ever know too much about your children? When does keeping an eye on things turn to spying? In this day and age a parent does have to be vigilant about what their child is doing...especially online. However, we want to have our children grow up feeling they have a right to privacy, so it's a really fine line.
In "Hold Tight" Mike and Tia Baye are concerned about Adam, their sixteen-year-old son. Adam seems to be pulling away from them and acting secretive. He's been very distant since the suicide of his classmate, Spencer. Mike and Tia become increasingly concerned and decide to install a spy program on Adam's computer. Soon after they come across a message telling Adam to "Stay quiet".
Meanwhile Spencer's mom has come across a picture taken the night of Spencer's suicide and it looks as though Adam was actually with Spencer that night.
Then Adam goes missing....
"Hold Tight" was a good read with some interesting characters. There are a few storylines, so at times it was tough keeping track of everything. I also found that this was a bit slower paced than some of the author's other novels. However, once I was a few chapters in, I was thoroughly engrossed in what was happening and found it hard to put down.
All in all this was quite an enjoyable read and I was really impressed with how the author tied everything together. It kept me guessing with it twists and turns until it's unexpected but satisfying ending.
I look forward to more from Harlan Coben.
In "Hold Tight" Mike and Tia Baye are concerned about Adam, their sixteen-year-old son. Adam seems to be pulling away from them and acting secretive. He's been very distant since the suicide of his classmate, Spencer. Mike and Tia become increasingly concerned and decide to install a spy program on Adam's computer. Soon after they come across a message telling Adam to "Stay quiet".
Meanwhile Spencer's mom has come across a picture taken the night of Spencer's suicide and it looks as though Adam was actually with Spencer that night.
Then Adam goes missing....
"Hold Tight" was a good read with some interesting characters. There are a few storylines, so at times it was tough keeping track of everything. I also found that this was a bit slower paced than some of the author's other novels. However, once I was a few chapters in, I was thoroughly engrossed in what was happening and found it hard to put down.
All in all this was quite an enjoyable read and I was really impressed with how the author tied everything together. It kept me guessing with it twists and turns until it's unexpected but satisfying ending.
I look forward to more from Harlan Coben.
April 6, 2016
[4.5 Stars]
January 2, 2022
This one sucked me in when I cracked it open this morning and never let go. Comprised of a compelling plot (and twists), believable characters and a pace that would put a cheetah to shame, this was quite an enjoyable stand alone novel from that crafty Mr Coben!!
4 Highly Illuminated Stars
4 Highly Illuminated Stars
October 22, 2009
I’m fully aware that I often need a good, swift kick in the ass, but seldom do I realize it so fully when I state that I treasure my time living this humdrum life above anything else on this planet, and proceed to squander it by reading something like Harlan Coben’s Hold Tight. Worse yet, I’ve got no one to blame but myself; I often reassure myself that a bad recommendation was someone else’s mistake, or a book endowed with awards and acclaim should have been better, and I was merely duped. This one was entirely my call, and I’ve got no excuses.
Adam Baye is a typical teenager, he’s generally a good kid that loves his family and playing on the school hockey team, but isn’t totally without his faults; he might occasionally skip a trig class to finger-pop that pimply girl with a low self-esteem who’ll do anything for a smidgen of acceptance, he might steal a few of mom’s Xanax to assist in his quest to get whack while chugging 40’s with his peeps, he’s cut in line at the cinema, and rumor has it that he once kicked a puppy. After the suicide of his best friend Spencer, Adam’s folks notice that he’s become increasingly withdrawn and behaving off kilter, and unable to effectively communicate with the kid in his time of duress, they decide to put spyware on his computer in the hopes this will give them a glimpse into what’s happening to their son. Mike Baye, Adam’s father and an accomplished surgeon, is against the idea, but his wife Tia eventually talks him into it, citing that it’s his responsibility as a father to protect his family and this is sadly part of the deal at this junction. Initially, their shady program uncovers distressing habits they would expect but are still a little uncomfortable having confirmed; the kid’s jacking off to bukkake videos, he’s pirated some Matchbox 20 songs (why, Lord, why?), and he’s friends with me on goodreads. These minor errs in judgment are completely cast aside when some of his IM conversations begin getting cryptic and seem to suggest their son might be getting involved in something a tad too dangerous and potentially illegal along with the son of the neighborhood cop, always a bad sign as those kids end up either total punks or policeman themselves, an undesirable fate either way. Concurrently, Spencer’s grief-stricken mother is playing Sherlock Holmes from home between snifters of cooking sherry and has come across some pretty solid evidence establishing that her son wasn’t alone on the night he allegedly committed suicide. When she presents this to the Baye’s, there’s no longer a doubt that something rotten is afoot.
As if this isn’t enough white-knuckle action, there are a few other storylines running through this clunker. A maniac named Nash is on a killing spree, and also menacing the local dive-bar denizens with his theory that if the bible is factual, than Adam and Eve’s children were either incestuous or monkey-fuckers to kick-start the human population. This absurdity provides an invitation for the inclusion of a wily female investigator, Loren Muse, following these irrational crimes and her valiant struggles to obtain and maintain respect in her nepotist precinct which refuses to take her seriously based solely on her gender. One of the Baye’s neighbor’s, a well-meaning-but-oft-shat-upon dude and his hairy, outcast daughter (befriended only by the Baye’s daughter, Jill, showing how prudently the focal family has imparted the concept of ‘seeing beneath the surface’ as their parental teachings) are used mainly as filler until their deeper involvement is uncovered. Lastly, Tia Baye is about as minor a major character as you can have, and while not acting as a privacy-invading tyrant at home, she’s a paralegal or something (I have no idea what a paralegal actually does) for an established ball-busting bitch who is finally giving Tia an opportunity to advance her career as her family begins falling apart. While the last does somewhat flesh out Tia’s character, the storyline itself is a failure from the start, as I wasn’t expecting the wife of a transplant surgeon to be hard up enough for employment to completely disregard her family in dire straits.
All of these elements eventually converge to form the sort of hokey climax which can be expected of the typical NY Times Bestseller in this day and age.
Now, nobody has actually approached me demanding an explanation for why I bothered to read this, but I really wish they would, as I’ve already got my alibi worked out, so I figure it would be a shame not to share it. I’d seen this book on the best-seller rack at the grocery store a few times, and actually managed to avoid giving in to the temptation of paying $9.99 for it. This was mainly because I couldn’t possibly justify spending ten bucks on a paperback. And even though I’ve recently been given some very sound advice from a fellow goodreader “if you wouldn’t buy it a cover price don’t buy it on sale” I hadn’t been clued in to this wisdom when I read Hold Tight and was ecstatic to save $9.49 by picking it up used. What had me intrigued was the whole spyware angle, I was totally sold on a story which vilifies this practice and exposes this software as the devil’s work. This is because my crazy girlfriend has spyware on this very computer, some shit called Specter Pro and a ‘keylogger’, which might be one and the same program, I’m unfortunately about a tenth as computer savvy as she is and I’m not really sure. This has proved to be somewhat inconvenient for a former scoundrel such as myself, and also seems a bit unfair seeing as this is a pretty one-sided deal, as I have no such methods of gathering intelligence on her activity. Now, I should probably confess that I’ve done things in the past which certainly tarnish my standing as a mate, and that a little heightened surveillance is probably warranted, but where this logic fails is assuming that it’s happening on the computer, as none of my actual wrongdoings involved email or instant messaging. What the hell am I going to do, talk all raw and nasty to someone and hump the floppy drive? Even if I did, is that so wrong, hell, that’s a shameful egg on my face, sister. In spite of years of walking the straight and narrow, the stigma lingers, and the Specter Pro remains, utilizing copious amounts of the computer’s memory/RAM stuff and causing it to run slower than a Biggest Loser contestant with diarrhea.
Everyone I’ve related this story to has asked why I put up with it. And that’s a pretty good question, isn’t trust supposed to be an integral part of a healthy relationship? At the same time, I also seem to see the sense in her assertion that if I have nothing to hide, what’s the big deal? These two points of view have proved irreconcilable over the years, and needless to say, my desire for continued intercourse with her has trumped my moral standings on the issue. Also, I do have to say that if there was anything of a computer-related nature which could have resulted in my behaving badly, constant fear of Big Brother keeps me in line (even though I’m still routinely bitched out at for things, which never ceases to amaze me, such as accepting a Facebook friend invitation from people I’ve never gotten my freak on with).
So, having firsthand experience as a tragic victim of the spyware epidemic begat by insecure significant others and paranoid parents the world over, I thought that I’d have some sort of commonality with this book making it more interesting, but unfortunately, none of my shenanigans were as remarkable as to involve teenage prescription drug abuse and a former black ops agent gone homicidal, only making me feel as if I’m not living my life to its fullest potential.
Adam Baye is a typical teenager, he’s generally a good kid that loves his family and playing on the school hockey team, but isn’t totally without his faults; he might occasionally skip a trig class to finger-pop that pimply girl with a low self-esteem who’ll do anything for a smidgen of acceptance, he might steal a few of mom’s Xanax to assist in his quest to get whack while chugging 40’s with his peeps, he’s cut in line at the cinema, and rumor has it that he once kicked a puppy. After the suicide of his best friend Spencer, Adam’s folks notice that he’s become increasingly withdrawn and behaving off kilter, and unable to effectively communicate with the kid in his time of duress, they decide to put spyware on his computer in the hopes this will give them a glimpse into what’s happening to their son. Mike Baye, Adam’s father and an accomplished surgeon, is against the idea, but his wife Tia eventually talks him into it, citing that it’s his responsibility as a father to protect his family and this is sadly part of the deal at this junction. Initially, their shady program uncovers distressing habits they would expect but are still a little uncomfortable having confirmed; the kid’s jacking off to bukkake videos, he’s pirated some Matchbox 20 songs (why, Lord, why?), and he’s friends with me on goodreads. These minor errs in judgment are completely cast aside when some of his IM conversations begin getting cryptic and seem to suggest their son might be getting involved in something a tad too dangerous and potentially illegal along with the son of the neighborhood cop, always a bad sign as those kids end up either total punks or policeman themselves, an undesirable fate either way. Concurrently, Spencer’s grief-stricken mother is playing Sherlock Holmes from home between snifters of cooking sherry and has come across some pretty solid evidence establishing that her son wasn’t alone on the night he allegedly committed suicide. When she presents this to the Baye’s, there’s no longer a doubt that something rotten is afoot.
As if this isn’t enough white-knuckle action, there are a few other storylines running through this clunker. A maniac named Nash is on a killing spree, and also menacing the local dive-bar denizens with his theory that if the bible is factual, than Adam and Eve’s children were either incestuous or monkey-fuckers to kick-start the human population. This absurdity provides an invitation for the inclusion of a wily female investigator, Loren Muse, following these irrational crimes and her valiant struggles to obtain and maintain respect in her nepotist precinct which refuses to take her seriously based solely on her gender. One of the Baye’s neighbor’s, a well-meaning-but-oft-shat-upon dude and his hairy, outcast daughter (befriended only by the Baye’s daughter, Jill, showing how prudently the focal family has imparted the concept of ‘seeing beneath the surface’ as their parental teachings) are used mainly as filler until their deeper involvement is uncovered. Lastly, Tia Baye is about as minor a major character as you can have, and while not acting as a privacy-invading tyrant at home, she’s a paralegal or something (I have no idea what a paralegal actually does) for an established ball-busting bitch who is finally giving Tia an opportunity to advance her career as her family begins falling apart. While the last does somewhat flesh out Tia’s character, the storyline itself is a failure from the start, as I wasn’t expecting the wife of a transplant surgeon to be hard up enough for employment to completely disregard her family in dire straits.
All of these elements eventually converge to form the sort of hokey climax which can be expected of the typical NY Times Bestseller in this day and age.
Now, nobody has actually approached me demanding an explanation for why I bothered to read this, but I really wish they would, as I’ve already got my alibi worked out, so I figure it would be a shame not to share it. I’d seen this book on the best-seller rack at the grocery store a few times, and actually managed to avoid giving in to the temptation of paying $9.99 for it. This was mainly because I couldn’t possibly justify spending ten bucks on a paperback. And even though I’ve recently been given some very sound advice from a fellow goodreader “if you wouldn’t buy it a cover price don’t buy it on sale” I hadn’t been clued in to this wisdom when I read Hold Tight and was ecstatic to save $9.49 by picking it up used. What had me intrigued was the whole spyware angle, I was totally sold on a story which vilifies this practice and exposes this software as the devil’s work. This is because my crazy girlfriend has spyware on this very computer, some shit called Specter Pro and a ‘keylogger’, which might be one and the same program, I’m unfortunately about a tenth as computer savvy as she is and I’m not really sure. This has proved to be somewhat inconvenient for a former scoundrel such as myself, and also seems a bit unfair seeing as this is a pretty one-sided deal, as I have no such methods of gathering intelligence on her activity. Now, I should probably confess that I’ve done things in the past which certainly tarnish my standing as a mate, and that a little heightened surveillance is probably warranted, but where this logic fails is assuming that it’s happening on the computer, as none of my actual wrongdoings involved email or instant messaging. What the hell am I going to do, talk all raw and nasty to someone and hump the floppy drive? Even if I did, is that so wrong, hell, that’s a shameful egg on my face, sister. In spite of years of walking the straight and narrow, the stigma lingers, and the Specter Pro remains, utilizing copious amounts of the computer’s memory/RAM stuff and causing it to run slower than a Biggest Loser contestant with diarrhea.
Everyone I’ve related this story to has asked why I put up with it. And that’s a pretty good question, isn’t trust supposed to be an integral part of a healthy relationship? At the same time, I also seem to see the sense in her assertion that if I have nothing to hide, what’s the big deal? These two points of view have proved irreconcilable over the years, and needless to say, my desire for continued intercourse with her has trumped my moral standings on the issue. Also, I do have to say that if there was anything of a computer-related nature which could have resulted in my behaving badly, constant fear of Big Brother keeps me in line (even though I’m still routinely bitched out at for things, which never ceases to amaze me, such as accepting a Facebook friend invitation from people I’ve never gotten my freak on with).
So, having firsthand experience as a tragic victim of the spyware epidemic begat by insecure significant others and paranoid parents the world over, I thought that I’d have some sort of commonality with this book making it more interesting, but unfortunately, none of my shenanigans were as remarkable as to involve teenage prescription drug abuse and a former black ops agent gone homicidal, only making me feel as if I’m not living my life to its fullest potential.
November 23, 2023
Story 3.75 stars**
Audio 4 stars**
Narrator Scott Brick
Audio 4 stars**
Narrator Scott Brick
January 8, 2024
Everyone has secrets. When those secrets are exposed through spying there are more consequences than simply broken trust. Suburban snooping leads to an intricate web of deceit and deception with deadly and horrific results. This will have you questioning what you believe is rightful and justified snooping under the pretense of protecting those you love.
October 23, 2020
An excellent read with some topics that are highly relevant to parents today.
February 9, 2016
Not my favorite from Coben, but nonetheless a fast paced thriller as are all of his novels.
May 13, 2008
Tia and Mike Baye make the controversial decision to install spy software on their teenage son's computer after they notice he has become increasingly withdrawn. They discover more about their son than they ever bargained for.
Next door, Lucas Loriman is in desperate need of a kidney transplant. In an effort to find the best matched donor, a shocking secret concerning Lucas' paternity surfaces.
A well-loved teacher makes a terrible mistake by humiliating one of his students in front of her classmates and the effects will be catastrophic.
Chief Investigator Loren Muse is desperate to prove her worth as 'the boss' in the all boys club of the police department. When a mangled body wearing questionable attire is found in a sketchy neighborhood, Muse seeks an alternative answer to the obvious question of what happened, and in doing so faces the ridicule of her subordinates.
A devastating tragedy has triggered Nash's 'crazy' to emerge again. He seeks to squelch his itch under the guise of keeping a promise to the former love of his life.
The lives of each of these characters will join together like the complicated pieces of a jigsaw puzzle in the exciting climax of Harlan Coben's latest novel. I finished reading this book late last night after picking it up at the library last Monday evening. This book was on the 'Rapid Reads' shelf which means I only had seven days to read it! I finished just in time. I love how Coben never fails to keep me on the edge of my seat, and this particular novel made me consider an interesting moral dilemma- what would I do if my child were becoming more and more withdrawn and was spending all his time on the computer? How would I handle it if shortly after his behavior changes, my son's best friend commits suicide? Is it ever okay to spy on your own kids? If you like mysteries/suspense, Harlan Coben is definitely an author you should try!
Next door, Lucas Loriman is in desperate need of a kidney transplant. In an effort to find the best matched donor, a shocking secret concerning Lucas' paternity surfaces.
A well-loved teacher makes a terrible mistake by humiliating one of his students in front of her classmates and the effects will be catastrophic.
Chief Investigator Loren Muse is desperate to prove her worth as 'the boss' in the all boys club of the police department. When a mangled body wearing questionable attire is found in a sketchy neighborhood, Muse seeks an alternative answer to the obvious question of what happened, and in doing so faces the ridicule of her subordinates.
A devastating tragedy has triggered Nash's 'crazy' to emerge again. He seeks to squelch his itch under the guise of keeping a promise to the former love of his life.
The lives of each of these characters will join together like the complicated pieces of a jigsaw puzzle in the exciting climax of Harlan Coben's latest novel. I finished reading this book late last night after picking it up at the library last Monday evening. This book was on the 'Rapid Reads' shelf which means I only had seven days to read it! I finished just in time. I love how Coben never fails to keep me on the edge of my seat, and this particular novel made me consider an interesting moral dilemma- what would I do if my child were becoming more and more withdrawn and was spending all his time on the computer? How would I handle it if shortly after his behavior changes, my son's best friend commits suicide? Is it ever okay to spy on your own kids? If you like mysteries/suspense, Harlan Coben is definitely an author you should try!
June 17, 2008
When Alfred Hitchcock said that whodunnits can basically be summed up in an epilogue, he wasn't exaggerating.
I've tried, my friends––I've tried so hard to accept the mystery/thriller genre. I've taken classes, read the best authors, examined everything from Edgar Allen Poe to Elmore Leonard. I figured that since I've got a reading list pretty stacked with horror, fantasy and scifi, I might want to shake things up a bit, add a little variety, and take a look at Harlan Coben. That, and he happens to be my father's favorite author. Nothing against my old man, but this book is lacking.
First of all, Coben has two speeds: dialogue and exposition. When he's not cramming same-speaking characters into scene after scene of noirish banter, he's got his writerly cap on, trying desperately to make me care about his cast of stock characters. Oh sure, I suppose they each have a trait or two that helps me distinguish them, but they're all universally uninspiring.
His style is blunt. No-nonsense. You want frills and pink doilies? Piss off. That is, of course, until he realizes that his own characters lack backstory and world view. At varying times throughout the 416 page novel the plot gets put on hold while he delves for a page or two into the life and times of Character X, Y, or Z. Half of it pertains to the obligatory ending; the other half is just...well...there.
Perhaps my scathing criticism is a product of my tastes, but with nearly every mystery I've ever read, the author seems to simply be going through the motions. Mr. Coben is particularly guilty of a class 1 felony, Failure to Develop Characters. The only––and I mean only––reason I can muster as to why people read a book like this is simple.
Airports.
You've got four hours to Florida, and four hours back, plus or minus ten in waiting, delays, etc. You're not looking for depth, you're not looking for substance. What you need is a question presented to you on page one which should, if all goes well, be answered on page 400. Don't waste time with characters, don't waste time with a theme. Give me the cotton candy book and help me take my mind off the stench of the guy sitting next to me. I suppose that's okay, but for me, without a more attractive premise, you'd better bring something besides twenty pages of explanation at the end of the journey to make up for the desert that was the first 9/10 of the novel.
Take a pass on this. There's too many good books out their to sink your time into another formulaic mystery/thriller.
I've tried, my friends––I've tried so hard to accept the mystery/thriller genre. I've taken classes, read the best authors, examined everything from Edgar Allen Poe to Elmore Leonard. I figured that since I've got a reading list pretty stacked with horror, fantasy and scifi, I might want to shake things up a bit, add a little variety, and take a look at Harlan Coben. That, and he happens to be my father's favorite author. Nothing against my old man, but this book is lacking.
First of all, Coben has two speeds: dialogue and exposition. When he's not cramming same-speaking characters into scene after scene of noirish banter, he's got his writerly cap on, trying desperately to make me care about his cast of stock characters. Oh sure, I suppose they each have a trait or two that helps me distinguish them, but they're all universally uninspiring.
His style is blunt. No-nonsense. You want frills and pink doilies? Piss off. That is, of course, until he realizes that his own characters lack backstory and world view. At varying times throughout the 416 page novel the plot gets put on hold while he delves for a page or two into the life and times of Character X, Y, or Z. Half of it pertains to the obligatory ending; the other half is just...well...there.
Perhaps my scathing criticism is a product of my tastes, but with nearly every mystery I've ever read, the author seems to simply be going through the motions. Mr. Coben is particularly guilty of a class 1 felony, Failure to Develop Characters. The only––and I mean only––reason I can muster as to why people read a book like this is simple.
Airports.
You've got four hours to Florida, and four hours back, plus or minus ten in waiting, delays, etc. You're not looking for depth, you're not looking for substance. What you need is a question presented to you on page one which should, if all goes well, be answered on page 400. Don't waste time with characters, don't waste time with a theme. Give me the cotton candy book and help me take my mind off the stench of the guy sitting next to me. I suppose that's okay, but for me, without a more attractive premise, you'd better bring something besides twenty pages of explanation at the end of the journey to make up for the desert that was the first 9/10 of the novel.
Take a pass on this. There's too many good books out their to sink your time into another formulaic mystery/thriller.
October 9, 2010
Hold Tight (Harlen Coben)
Psychological/Thriller
Adam Baye has become remote and withdrawn since the suicide of his friend. His parents, Mike & Tia decide to spy on him by installing software on his computer, to monitor every keystroke. One day they read a cryptic email and then Adam disappears. Mike decides to track down his son and the suspense begins.
Fast pace page turner, a definite all night read. Sub plots that are filled with suspense blend perfectly up until the dramatic end.
Psychological/Thriller
Adam Baye has become remote and withdrawn since the suicide of his friend. His parents, Mike & Tia decide to spy on him by installing software on his computer, to monitor every keystroke. One day they read a cryptic email and then Adam disappears. Mike decides to track down his son and the suspense begins.
Fast pace page turner, a definite all night read. Sub plots that are filled with suspense blend perfectly up until the dramatic end.
September 2, 2008
Coben should again be commended for his accurate portrayal of men, women, teens, and tweens. But I have to wonder what Coben's personal obsession is with having all the characters in his books marry their first love (aw shucks, how sweet), having these marriages end almost never in divorce but in the untimely death of a partner, having those who cheat duly (and violently) punished for straying, and constantly reminding readers that his couples keep no secrets from each other and, when they do, are likewise punished. Is Coben doing this to convince his own wife he made the right decision in marrying her, has no secrets, would never think of another woman, and still thinks she's as beautiful as the day he married her? Hmm. Wouldn't a Valentine's Day card suffice? Must each character drum in the same values?
**************
******SPOILER****
**************
Coben rarely disappoints me with his writing, which is clean and gets the job done, but on p. 404, Frank and I were brought to a screeching halt with perhaps the hokiest paragraph Coben has ever written:
"The room pretty much exploded then. There were tears, of course. Hugs. Apologies. Wounds were ripped open and closed. [. . .:]"
Yeah, we got the picture. I'm reaching for my tissues right now.
**************
******SPOILER****
**************
Coben rarely disappoints me with his writing, which is clean and gets the job done, but on p. 404, Frank and I were brought to a screeching halt with perhaps the hokiest paragraph Coben has ever written:
"The room pretty much exploded then. There were tears, of course. Hugs. Apologies. Wounds were ripped open and closed. [. . .:]"
Yeah, we got the picture. I'm reaching for my tissues right now.
August 5, 2016
We've all heard the phrase "Must See TV!", well this is the book equivalent to that phrase!! As a parent, how far would you go to protect your teenager? Is there a gray area?? To spy or not to spy? Is spying an invasion of privacy or a parent's right to know?? We, as parents, want to protect our children but where do we draw the line? Mike and Tia Baye feel the same way about their 16 year old son, Adam. They cross the line...or do they??
Another wonderfully crafted story by this author. Twists, turns, suspense. Page-turning at it's best!
Another wonderfully crafted story by this author. Twists, turns, suspense. Page-turning at it's best!
August 8, 2020
I usually quite like Harlan Coben, but I found this one really hard to get in to. I did find it more engrossing towards the end, but then I had a different issue of finding it incredibly far fetched and unbelievable, and there were too many coincidences.
February 28, 2016
Very enjoyable and entertaining from beginning to end. I am a fan of Harlan Cohen and HOLD TIGHT did not disappoint!
March 1, 2010
Yes, this is me, not writing on a fantasy novel.
I've actually, I think, read all of Coben's novels. He is the the author of the everyday, writing characters who lead lives like yours and mine. He also explores how fragile our everyday lives are--how our dedication to lives and family and children can come undone by the smallest thing--an unkind remark from a teacher, a car accident, or the fact that we resemble someone else and are mistaken for them.
In Coben's world, the consequences are dire, but in some ways that makes his plots more believable. What happens to his characters, who are usually in thier 30s and 40s leading normal lives and have families, could happen to nearly every one of us.
Coben's main plot device is always the disappearance; he has staked out a corner of northern New Jersey where all his novels happen and where we meet similar characters over and over. These are not series novels; the main character in one novel appears in a few scenes in the second--but the effect is one of accretion; you feel as if you're getting to know these people, this town, that neighborhood.
This novel follows the disappearance of Mike Baye's teenage son, who simply does't come home one day--a parents' worst nightmare come to life. There are a series of interrelated plots, all of which come together in a surprising yet logical way, and, just when you think the plot is solved, there is another twist.
Great read, great author, great book.
Everytime I finish one of Coben's novels, I am profoundly grateful for my workaday life.
I've actually, I think, read all of Coben's novels. He is the the author of the everyday, writing characters who lead lives like yours and mine. He also explores how fragile our everyday lives are--how our dedication to lives and family and children can come undone by the smallest thing--an unkind remark from a teacher, a car accident, or the fact that we resemble someone else and are mistaken for them.
In Coben's world, the consequences are dire, but in some ways that makes his plots more believable. What happens to his characters, who are usually in thier 30s and 40s leading normal lives and have families, could happen to nearly every one of us.
Coben's main plot device is always the disappearance; he has staked out a corner of northern New Jersey where all his novels happen and where we meet similar characters over and over. These are not series novels; the main character in one novel appears in a few scenes in the second--but the effect is one of accretion; you feel as if you're getting to know these people, this town, that neighborhood.
This novel follows the disappearance of Mike Baye's teenage son, who simply does't come home one day--a parents' worst nightmare come to life. There are a series of interrelated plots, all of which come together in a surprising yet logical way, and, just when you think the plot is solved, there is another twist.
Great read, great author, great book.
Everytime I finish one of Coben's novels, I am profoundly grateful for my workaday life.
January 7, 2015
Tia and Mike Baye never imagined they'd become the type of overprotective parents who spy on their kids. But their sixteen-year-old son Adam has been unusually distant lately, and after the suicide of his classmate Spencer Hill - the latest in a string of issues at school - they can't help but worry. They install a sophisticated spy program on Adam's computer, and within days they are jolted by a message from an unknown correspondent addressed to their son - 'Just stay quiet and all safe.'
Meanwhile, browsing through an online memorial for Spencer put together by his classmates, Betsy Hill is struck by a photo that appears to have been taken on the night of her son's death and he wasn't alone. She thinks it is Adam Baye standing just outside the camera's range; but when Adam goes missing, it soon becomes clear that something deep and sinister has infected their community. For Tia and Mike Baye, the question they must answer is this: when it comes to your kids, is it possible to know too much?
This was my January book Pal read, and yet another great Harlan Coben book, full of great characters, twists and turns, with the whole story and different characters weaving in and out of the plots very intertestingly and all coming together for an exciting and frightening few chapters.
A story filled with the life behind closed doors of four families, and how one thing said can sent the whole ball running and cause a chain effect of events and deaths.
Brought together so well by the author.
Meanwhile, browsing through an online memorial for Spencer put together by his classmates, Betsy Hill is struck by a photo that appears to have been taken on the night of her son's death and he wasn't alone. She thinks it is Adam Baye standing just outside the camera's range; but when Adam goes missing, it soon becomes clear that something deep and sinister has infected their community. For Tia and Mike Baye, the question they must answer is this: when it comes to your kids, is it possible to know too much?
This was my January book Pal read, and yet another great Harlan Coben book, full of great characters, twists and turns, with the whole story and different characters weaving in and out of the plots very intertestingly and all coming together for an exciting and frightening few chapters.
A story filled with the life behind closed doors of four families, and how one thing said can sent the whole ball running and cause a chain effect of events and deaths.
Brought together so well by the author.
February 16, 2016
Harlan Coben does it again, Hold Tight was him at his BEST!
Hold Tight tells the story of 3 different families who all end up in troubles of their own, and they all end up coming together in the end. 1# Michael and Tia Baye, who's son Adam, who has become very distant and acting strangely different since recently losing a close friend, so they install a spy program on his computer to find out why. 2#Ron and Betsy Hill, who's son Spencer (who was also Adam's friend I'd mentioned above) had committed suicide by drug overdose for unknown reasons. And #3 Susan and Dante Loriman, who's son Lucas is in urgent need of a kidney transplant and their care physician who is Michael Baye, who finds out that neither parent is a suitable match to give Lucas a kidney, and tries to find out why.
The story pulled me in right from the beginning and most nights I would be reading up past my bedtime it was so good! Many twists and turns that you won't see coming, and you'll say what just happened. A lot of characters to keep track of, but very interesting characters with great development! Highly recommended to any Mystery book or Harlan Coben fans!
Hold Tight tells the story of 3 different families who all end up in troubles of their own, and they all end up coming together in the end. 1# Michael and Tia Baye, who's son Adam, who has become very distant and acting strangely different since recently losing a close friend, so they install a spy program on his computer to find out why. 2#Ron and Betsy Hill, who's son Spencer (who was also Adam's friend I'd mentioned above) had committed suicide by drug overdose for unknown reasons. And #3 Susan and Dante Loriman, who's son Lucas is in urgent need of a kidney transplant and their care physician who is Michael Baye, who finds out that neither parent is a suitable match to give Lucas a kidney, and tries to find out why.
The story pulled me in right from the beginning and most nights I would be reading up past my bedtime it was so good! Many twists and turns that you won't see coming, and you'll say what just happened. A lot of characters to keep track of, but very interesting characters with great development! Highly recommended to any Mystery book or Harlan Coben fans!
August 22, 2015
This was a book that lived up to it's title. There were multiple stories going on that I just could not see how they were connected. Each page made me go to the next. The characters are so well formed that even in death you could envision their lives, their struggles and pain. The way Harlan Coben has written the scenes in the book is movie like, not just going from scene to scene or event to event; he describes scenes and events within a scene. I listened to the audiobook in the car and read the book in the house. I'm so glad I had both. What a good read.
December 7, 2019
I kept going back to this novel over a long period of time, so it definitely has its draw. Started reading it in a waiting room on a loooooong wait; then I bought it. Then... I spilled a glass of water on it and thought it was ruined. Weeks later, I found myself drawn back to this story and realized the pages were only wrinkled! So I pressed on and finished my water-logged book. Great plot. Very gripping. All themes tied together nicely at the end. I recommend this one.
March 20, 2020
Mana patika pret Ričardu Armitidžu man lika noskatīties miniseriālu "Stranger", savukārt tas man patika tik ļoti, ka uzlausīju ieteikumu noskatīties arī agrāk uzņemto "Safe" - un tā kā abi ir balstīti uz Hārlan Kolbena romāniem, likās tikai loģiski atrast, vai viņa darbi nav izlasāmi tulkojumā un bibliotekā (kas vēl arvien ir mana iemīļotākā lasīšanas kombinācija). Tā nu nokļuvu līdz "Klubs Jaguārs" - droši vien šis nav viņa veiksm;igākais darbs, ja jau tulkojumi nav sekojuši un latviešu lasītāji viņu neiemīļoja, bet atzīstu, ka man seriāli patika labāk par šo grāmatu. Tajos teju visu laiku jutu sevī tādu iekšēju spriedzītu un ļoti sakāpinātu ziņkāri, kas nu tur ir noticis īstenībā. Neteikšu, ka te sapratu visu uzreiz, bet kaut kā tādas ievilkšnas darbā sajūtas gan iztrūka. Un sāku manīt detaļas, ko viņš laikam izmanto visu laiku - kas nav nekas nosodāms, bet ja sāk krist acīs, tad nedaudz "niez" gan. Taču lasīt tomēr bija interesanti un seviški man patika gala secinājums, ko autors rkastīja par pusaudzi - . Un vispār nostiprinu savu pārliecību, ka trilleri nav detektīvromāni: vieni man patīk, otri ne visai.
August 18, 2008
In Harlan Coben's latest thriller, Hold Tight, Mike and Tia Baye experience a chilling couple of days because of a decision to put spyware on their son's computer.
When Mike and Tia learn through an e-mail that Adam is going to attend a party with drinking and drugs, they set out to intercept him and prevent him from going without letting on to the fact that they know, and even more importantly HOW they know. But something goes awry when there is no party. But where is Adam? That's when Mike starts following him via the GPS in Adam's cell phone. This plan leads Mike to a shady neighborhood where HE is attacked, and he still hasn't found Adam.
As if Mike Baye doesn't have enough to worry about, his medical partner, Ilene Goldfarb is treating Lucas Loriman, the son of his next door neighbors Susan and Dante Loriman. Through blood testing to find a kidney donor, they learn that Dante is not Lucas's father. The young boy doesn't have much hope unless they can locate his actual father or a paternal relative.
AND the plot continues to layer with the abductions and murders of two women connected to this same neighborhood. Those murders tie into a whole separate element of the novel - or so it seems to be separate.
Coben juggles a lot of characters and plot lines in this novel. He does bring them together at the end of the book, but you may want to have a small chart to keep track of everyone in the book. I found myself asking, "now which character is this again?" quite often throughout the book.
If you're a parent, this book might just scare the bejeebers out of you. The obvious question threaded throughout the entire book is "should you spy on your children?" And Coben doesn't give you his opinion one way or the other. That's the point of the multi-dimensional plot. He gives you a look at the evils of both options.
Coben has this knack for slowly giving you clues that you don't know you're getting. So you feel like you're in the dark with no idea where you're headed - and with the twists and turns in this novel, that just intensifies the feeling of being completely lost. But then he starts to bring all the pieces together and they make sense. I found myself saying, "of course!" more times than once as the book was drawing to a close. I will admit that there was one element I found too convenient in the end, but you can have that with fiction, I guess.
I think I've said this before about Coben, but every time I pick up one of his books I think it should be locked in a time capsule. He defines the statement "art imitates life." This book deals with present-day technology and the ethics surrounding that technology, but it also imitates the language and values of the present. While I do hope the events of this book aren't happening (or haven't happened) anywhere in the world, it isn't hard to imagine them happening because of the realism in all other elements of the book.
One of the other heavy topics that comes up in this book is teenage suicide. One of the characters commits suicide before the story begins. Coben gives the reader a glimpse of the effects this event has on both parents as well as the character's best friend. I've not had a child commit suicide, but I could definitely connect with Betsy Hill after this insight:
Don't look for a lot of character development in this novel. The focus is more on the ethical question of spying and on the plot development. Of course at 415 pages, if Coben had put in more character development, I might have been reading for another week. But I think the lack of character development was intentional. This approach made the scenario open to anyone. This isn't something that could happen to only a select, specific group of people, but rather it could happen to the family down the street...or even the family right there in your own home. And that is the scariest part of all.
When Mike and Tia learn through an e-mail that Adam is going to attend a party with drinking and drugs, they set out to intercept him and prevent him from going without letting on to the fact that they know, and even more importantly HOW they know. But something goes awry when there is no party. But where is Adam? That's when Mike starts following him via the GPS in Adam's cell phone. This plan leads Mike to a shady neighborhood where HE is attacked, and he still hasn't found Adam.
As if Mike Baye doesn't have enough to worry about, his medical partner, Ilene Goldfarb is treating Lucas Loriman, the son of his next door neighbors Susan and Dante Loriman. Through blood testing to find a kidney donor, they learn that Dante is not Lucas's father. The young boy doesn't have much hope unless they can locate his actual father or a paternal relative.
AND the plot continues to layer with the abductions and murders of two women connected to this same neighborhood. Those murders tie into a whole separate element of the novel - or so it seems to be separate.
Coben juggles a lot of characters and plot lines in this novel. He does bring them together at the end of the book, but you may want to have a small chart to keep track of everyone in the book. I found myself asking, "now which character is this again?" quite often throughout the book.
If you're a parent, this book might just scare the bejeebers out of you. The obvious question threaded throughout the entire book is "should you spy on your children?" And Coben doesn't give you his opinion one way or the other. That's the point of the multi-dimensional plot. He gives you a look at the evils of both options.
Coben has this knack for slowly giving you clues that you don't know you're getting. So you feel like you're in the dark with no idea where you're headed - and with the twists and turns in this novel, that just intensifies the feeling of being completely lost. But then he starts to bring all the pieces together and they make sense. I found myself saying, "of course!" more times than once as the book was drawing to a close. I will admit that there was one element I found too convenient in the end, but you can have that with fiction, I guess.
I think I've said this before about Coben, but every time I pick up one of his books I think it should be locked in a time capsule. He defines the statement "art imitates life." This book deals with present-day technology and the ethics surrounding that technology, but it also imitates the language and values of the present. While I do hope the events of this book aren't happening (or haven't happened) anywhere in the world, it isn't hard to imagine them happening because of the realism in all other elements of the book.
One of the other heavy topics that comes up in this book is teenage suicide. One of the characters commits suicide before the story begins. Coben gives the reader a glimpse of the effects this event has on both parents as well as the character's best friend. I've not had a child commit suicide, but I could definitely connect with Betsy Hill after this insight:
"The house was dead.
That was how Betsy Hill would describe it. Dead. It wasn't merely quiet or still. The house was hollow, gone, deceased - its heart had stopped beating, the blood had stopped flowing, the innards had begun to decay.
Dead. Dead as a doornail, whatever the hell that meant.
Dead as her son, Spencer."
Don't look for a lot of character development in this novel. The focus is more on the ethical question of spying and on the plot development. Of course at 415 pages, if Coben had put in more character development, I might have been reading for another week. But I think the lack of character development was intentional. This approach made the scenario open to anyone. This isn't something that could happen to only a select, specific group of people, but rather it could happen to the family down the street...or even the family right there in your own home. And that is the scariest part of all.
April 16, 2021
"Tell Cassandra I love her."
একচুয়ালী ৩.৫ তারা। বরাবরের মত এটার আখ্যানও ফ্যামিলি ক্রাইসিস নিয়ে। তবে এটার মধ্যে সবচেয়ে বেশী ফোকাসড হয়েছে গার্ডিয়ানদের মনঃস্তত্ত্ব। ড্রাগস-অ্যালকোহল, টেকনোলজির নেশায় পড়ে বখে যাওয়া সন্তানের অভিভাবকের মনস্তত্ত্বকে তুলে ধরেছে লেখক। গল্পে দুইটা ধারায় চলেছে। ১. সুইসাইড করেছে মিকি বয় আর টিয়া বয়ের একমাত্র সন্তান এডামের ঘনিষ্ঠ বন্ধু। এরপর থেকেই এডামের মাঝে বিরাট পরিবর্তন দেখতে পায় তারা। বিষয়টা যাচাই করতে তদন্ত করতে গিয়ে তারা আভাস পায় তাদের ছেলে জড়িয়ে পড়েছে ড্রাগস আর বিভিন্ন টিনেজ অপরাধের সাথে। কেন?। ২. হতাশাগ্রস্ত, একাক���ত্বে ভোগা ম্যারিয়েনকে কারা যেন খুন করে তার মুখ বিকৃত করে তাকে চালিয়ে দেয় বেশ্যা হিসেবে। এদিকে তদন্ত করতে গিয়ে বুঝতে প��র�� সে কোনো কলগার্ল ছিলো না, অ্যালিবাইটা ছিলো কেসটাকে অন্যদিকে প্রবাহিত করার প্রচেষ্টা। তাহলে তাকে খুন করলো কারা এবং কেন?
কোবেনের লেখার সাথে শ্রদ্ধেয় তামিম ইকবালের ব্যাটিংয়ের অনেকটা মিল পাওয়া যায়। তামিম যেমন বাউন্ডারির উপরে নির্ভর করে স্কোর পপ আপ করে, কোবেনও টুইস্টের মাধ্যমে কাহিনী এগিয়ে নেয়। বইয়ে যা কিছু ভাল্লাগছে :
১. ভালোর কথা বললে সেই থোর বড়ি খাড়া—খাড়া বড়ি থোড়। লেখনী ভালো। সাসপেন্স ধরে রেখেছে। একতালে কাহিনী এগিয়েছে।
২. গার্ডিয়ান হিসেবে মিকি বয় আর টিয়া বয়ের মাইন্ডসেট দারুণ ভাবে ফোকাসড করেছে। ওভার প্রটেক্টিভ গার্ডিয়ান হিসেবে পাক্কা।
৩. শেষ পঞ্চাশ পৃষ্ঠায় ঘন ঘন টুইস্টে মাথা ঘুরাইবার জোগাড় হইছে। কেন কোবেনকে টুইস্ট মাষ্টার বলা হয় সেটা আরেকবার দেখলাম।
ভাল্লাগে নাই যেগুলা:
১. অতিরিক্ত স্লো। ৩৪২ পৃষ্ঠার বইয়ে (আমি যেই কপি পড়ছি আর কী) প্রায় দু'শ আশি পৃষ্ঠা ধরতে গেলে তেমন ঘটনাই ছিলো না। একেবারে বোর করে ফেলছে। এডামের কম্পিউটারে স্পাই সফটওয়্যার লাগাতেই লেখক আমার ঘাম ছুটাইয়া দিছে।
২. হসপিটালে কিডনি ট্রান্সপারেন্ট নিয়ে অনেক প্যাচাইছে। কাহিনীতে এর তেমন কোনো প্রভাবই পাই নাই।
৩. তদন্ত শুরুর সময় খুনী বইতে মাত্র একটা খুন করেছে। এর মধ্যেই তাকে সিরিয়াল কিলার তকমা দেওয়াটা কেমন যেন লাগছে।
৪. সংলাপে বরাবরের মতই প্যাচাইছে। কাহিনীর সাথে অসামঞ্জস্য অনেক ঘটনা-সংলাপের অবতরন করেছে লেখক।
৫. সব বলবো কী, আমার একচুয়ালী প্লটটাই ভাল্লাগে নাই। ফ্ল্যাপ দেখে ইন্টারেস্টিং লাগছিলো। তবে ভেতরটা খুশি করতে পারে নাই।
তবে টুইস্ট-সাসপেন্সে ওভারঅল ভালো লেগেছে।
বিঃদ্রঃ এক্কেরে উপরের বাক্যখানা দেইখা কেউ ভূল বুইঝেন না। এই বাক্যখানা বইতে একাধিকবার ব্যাবহৃত হইছে। কোথায় হইছে আর কে করছে, সেটা স্পয়লার এড়াতে বললাম না।
একচুয়ালী ৩.৫ তারা। বরাবরের মত এটার আখ্যানও ফ্যামিলি ক্রাইসিস নিয়ে। তবে এটার মধ্যে সবচেয়ে বেশী ফোকাসড হয়েছে গার্ডিয়ানদের মনঃস্তত্ত্ব। ড্রাগস-অ্যালকোহল, টেকনোলজির নেশায় পড়ে বখে যাওয়া সন্তানের অভিভাবকের মনস্তত্ত্বকে তুলে ধরেছে লেখক। গল্পে দুইটা ধারায় চলেছে। ১. সুইসাইড করেছে মিকি বয় আর টিয়া বয়ের একমাত্র সন্তান এডামের ঘনিষ্ঠ বন্ধু। এরপর থেকেই এডামের মাঝে বিরাট পরিবর্তন দেখতে পায় তারা। বিষয়টা যাচাই করতে তদন্ত করতে গিয়ে তারা আভাস পায় তাদের ছেলে জড়িয়ে পড়েছে ড্রাগস আর বিভিন্ন টিনেজ অপরাধের সাথে। কেন?। ২. হতাশাগ্রস্ত, একাক���ত্বে ভোগা ম্যারিয়েনকে কারা যেন খুন করে তার মুখ বিকৃত করে তাকে চালিয়ে দেয় বেশ্যা হিসেবে। এদিকে তদন্ত করতে গিয়ে বুঝতে প��র�� সে কোনো কলগার্ল ছিলো না, অ্যালিবাইটা ছিলো কেসটাকে অন্যদিকে প্রবাহিত করার প্রচেষ্টা। তাহলে তাকে খুন করলো কারা এবং কেন?
কোবেনের লেখার সাথে শ্রদ্ধেয় তামিম ইকবালের ব্যাটিংয়ের অনেকটা মিল পাওয়া যায়। তামিম যেমন বাউন্ডারির উপরে নির্ভর করে স্কোর পপ আপ করে, কোবেনও টুইস্টের মাধ্যমে কাহিনী এগিয়ে নেয়। বইয়ে যা কিছু ভাল্লাগছে :
১. ভালোর কথা বললে সেই থোর বড়ি খাড়া—খাড়া বড়ি থোড়। লেখনী ভালো। সাসপেন্স ধরে রেখেছে। একতালে কাহিনী এগিয়েছে।
২. গার্ডিয়ান হিসেবে মিকি বয় আর টিয়া বয়ের মাইন্ডসেট দারুণ ভাবে ফোকাসড করেছে। ওভার প্রটেক্টিভ গার্ডিয়ান হিসেবে পাক্কা।
৩. শেষ পঞ্চাশ পৃষ্ঠায় ঘন ঘন টুইস্টে মাথা ঘুরাইবার জোগাড় হইছে। কেন কোবেনকে টুইস্ট মাষ্টার বলা হয় সেটা আরেকবার দেখলাম।
ভাল্লাগে নাই যেগুলা:
১. অতিরিক্ত স্লো। ৩৪২ পৃষ্ঠার বইয়ে (আমি যেই কপি পড়ছি আর কী) প্রায় দু'শ আশি পৃষ্ঠা ধরতে গেলে তেমন ঘটনাই ছিলো না। একেবারে বোর করে ফেলছে। এডামের কম্পিউটারে স্পাই সফটওয়্যার লাগাতেই লেখক আমার ঘাম ছুটাইয়া দিছে।
২. হসপিটালে কিডনি ট্রান্সপারেন্ট নিয়ে অনেক প্যাচাইছে। কাহিনীতে এর তেমন কোনো প্রভাবই পাই নাই।
৩. তদন্ত শুরুর সময় খুনী বইতে মাত্র একটা খুন করেছে। এর মধ্যেই তাকে সিরিয়াল কিলার তকমা দেওয়াটা কেমন যেন লাগছে।
৪. সংলাপে বরাবরের মতই প্যাচাইছে। কাহিনীর সাথে অসামঞ্জস্য অনেক ঘটনা-সংলাপের অবতরন করেছে লেখক।
৫. সব বলবো কী, আমার একচুয়ালী প্লটটাই ভাল্লাগে নাই। ফ্ল্যাপ দেখে ইন্টারেস্টিং লাগছিলো। তবে ভেতরটা খুশি করতে পারে নাই।
তবে টুইস্ট-সাসপেন্সে ওভারঅল ভালো লেগেছে।
বিঃদ্রঃ এক্কেরে উপরের বাক্যখানা দেইখা কেউ ভূল বুইঝেন না। এই বাক্যখানা বইতে একাধিকবার ব্যাবহৃত হইছে। কোথায় হইছে আর কে করছে, সেটা স্পয়লার এড়াতে বললাম না।
January 8, 2009
This book really only deserves 2.5 stars, but it carried me along on such a wave that I leaned toward the higher number rather than the lower.
There's a lot going on in this book - maybe too much for its own good. Yes, the threads all tie together in the end, sort of, but I think one or two subplots could have been eliminated without too much problem. And I think some of the "connections" ended up being a bit too convoluted to really be convincing. I also felt like there was too much "gee whiz, who knew technology could do all this?!". I mean, are there really people who don't know that you can track computer keystrokes or that cell phones have GPS locator capability? In spite of the many weaknesses, though, the book was hard to put down, and many of the themes - particularly spying on one's kids - are relevant in today's world. I'll have to read something else by this author, just to see how he holds up.
There's a lot going on in this book - maybe too much for its own good. Yes, the threads all tie together in the end, sort of, but I think one or two subplots could have been eliminated without too much problem. And I think some of the "connections" ended up being a bit too convoluted to really be convincing. I also felt like there was too much "gee whiz, who knew technology could do all this?!". I mean, are there really people who don't know that you can track computer keystrokes or that cell phones have GPS locator capability? In spite of the many weaknesses, though, the book was hard to put down, and many of the themes - particularly spying on one's kids - are relevant in today's world. I'll have to read something else by this author, just to see how he holds up.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 3,322 reviews