Harlan Coben

Orion, 2001, £5.99

ISBN 0 752 84471 7

Rating: ***

David Beck and his wife Elizabeth return to Lake Charmaine to celebrate the 13th anniversary of their first kiss. Elizabeth is snatched and later murdered; David is beaten up and left for dead. Three days after Elizabeths body is found in a ditch, the police conclude that she is the latest victim of the serial killer known as KillRoy.

Eight years on, David is working as a paediatrician, still struggling to come to terms with his wifes death. On what would have been the 21st anniversary of their first kiss, he receives an email containing a link to a web camera. An image of Elizabeth appears on his screen and seconds before the link closes she says two words, “Im sorry.” The same day Sheriff Lowell—who led the investigation into Elizabeths murder—contacts Beck. The police have uncovered new evidence and soon Beck finds himself fleeing from his normal life. Someone clearly wants to silence him; he is desperate to discover who is sending him the mysterious messages, and the police will stop at nothing to frame him for Elizabeths murder.

Harlan Coben is the first author to win all of Americas biggest crime fiction prizes, and he is best known for his novels featuring sleuth Myron Bolitar, the sports agent. Tell No One is a different kind of book and reads suspiciously as if it has been written for film.

The cast of Tell No One borders slightly on the ridiculous. Theres Wu, the Korean hard man who is employed by Becks shady enemies to “extract information.” Tyrese is a drug dealing gangster whose son Beck saved (“My kid gets sick, I go to the expert right? Something bads happening with you, Doc. Bad is my world, Im the best tour guide there is.”)

Coben manages to maintain the pace throughout, weaving a gripping story, despite its implausibility. The book is sadly let down, however, by its ending. By the final pages it seems like the story has taken one twist too many, especially as Beck has a big secret which has an impact on the story but is only revealed at the end. I was completely and utterly confused as to who had done what to whom. Classic literature this certainly isnt, but if youre looking for a bit of gripping escapism, give this a go.