Fool Me Once by Harlan Coben is a mystery thriller that is hard to put down once you pick it up. You want to know what is going on and who done it! If you love a good puzzle and want to solve it before the last pages, then this book is for you!
Fool Me Once: Summary
It all starts when Maya Stern, a helicopter pilot, returns from a tour from Iraq that went wrong. She returns home to her husband Joe but soon after, he is killed while they were at the park at night. A few days after Joe’s death, Maya sees Joe on her Nanny cam and now we wonder if Joe is really dead or was his death faked?
Coben takes us on a wild journey and sets up a brilliant puzzle. He does cheat by not letting us know the full details of the mystery until he wants to. Without spoiling it, I can say that misdirections in the book were great and as someone who hasn’t read Coben before, I did not see them coming.
Conclusion
I grew up reading Agatha Christie and loved her mysteries. She was the master of mystery novels and that is true even today. Coben’s novel does a good job setting a tough mystery but he does withhold information and that is something Christie would never have done. She reveals all her cards and still is able to keep you guessing.
While Coben is not Christie, he is still a good storyteller. Fool No One has a good narration and the story opens up great. We the readers are given bread crumbs to solve the whodunnit novel and that makes the ride a fun one. I will say Coben fits the genre well and knows how to keep you reading!
After reading this novel, I will definitely give Coben another read and see how I like his other books. I would definitely recommend this novel because it is still entertaining and does a wonderful job of setting up a great ending.
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