Hold Tight [Mass Market Paperback]

Harlan Coben (Author)

Book Description

Release date: March 3, 2009

The #1 New York Times Bestseller

Mike and Tia Baye decide to spy on their son Adam, who has become moody and withdrawn since his friend’s suicide. The software they install on his computer exposes every website visited, every e-mail and instant message sent or received. But each keystroke draws them deeper into a maze of mayhem and violence that could destroy them all.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. Parents will find this compulsive page-turner from Edgar-winner Coben (The Woods) particularly unnerving. A sadistic killer is at play in suburban Glen Rock, N.J., outside New York City, but somehow he's less frightening than the more mundane problems that send ordinary lives into chaos. How do you weigh a child's privacy against a parent's right to know? How do you differentiate normal teenage rebelliousness from out-of-control behavior? When and how do you intervene if suicidal signs appear? Other issues include single parenting; career versus family; marital honesty; and how much information you should share with a child at what age. Coben plucks each of these strings like a virtuoso as Mike and Tia Baye try to deal with the increasing withdrawal of their 16-year-old son, Adam, after a friend's suicide. A pair of brutal, seemingly senseless killings, punctuate the unfolding domestic troubles that ratchet up the tension and engulf the Baye family, their friends and neighbors in a web of increasing tragedy. The this could be me factor lends poignancy to the thrills and chills. (Apr.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

Suspend your disbelief at the almost mind-boggling coincidences that inform HOLD TIGHT and have a thoroughly gripping time as Tia and Mike Maye find their lives in danger after installing a spy program on their son's computer. -- Kati Nicholl DAILY EXPRESS --This text refers to the Audio CD edition.

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 496 pages
• Publisher: Signet; Reprint edition (March 3, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 045122650X
• ISBN-13: 978-0451226501
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 4.2 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (256 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #36,582 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Harlan Coben is the bestselling author of sixteen previous novels, including the #1 New York Times bestsellers "Long Lost" and "Hold Tight." Winner of the Edgar Award, the Shamus Award, and the Anthony Award, Coben lives in New Jersey with his family.

Amazon Author Rankbeta 

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#51 Overall (See top 100 authors)

#13 in Books > Mystery, Thriller & Suspense > Thrillers

#14 in Books > Mystery, Thriller & Suspense

#15 in Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Mystery & Thrillers

#16 in Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Mystery & Thrillers > Thrillers

#22 in Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Mystery & Thrillers > Mystery

#13 in Books > Mystery, Thriller & Suspense > Thrillers

#14 in Books > Mystery, Thriller & Suspense

#15 in Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Mystery & Thrillers

#16 in Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Mystery & Thrillers > Thrillers

#22 in Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Mystery & Thrillers > Mystery

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

63 of 67 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Thriller By a Master of the Genre May 29, 2008

By Joshua Fowler

Format:Hardcover

Harlan Coben has a tendency to create mulitiple plot threads that never seem like they will ever come together. This book is no exception.

In his new book, Coben, explores a problem in today's society. Privacy. He explores how the internet changed everything. Now, that anyone can post anything they want about you and there isn't much you can do.

At the center of these themes is the Baye family (pronounced "by"). Mike and Tia have recently installed a spy program to keep an eye on their sixteen-year-old son, Adam. They do this after a friend of Adam has recently commited suicide. After a cryptic IM, Mike tries to keep Adam home but then he runs away. So begins the search for the teenager. The search takes Mike into the seedy part of the Bronx.

Meanwhile, a killer is at large and killing what seems to be random women. The reason behind it all will keep you guessing until the end. Also, a patient of Mike and his partner needs a kidney transplant and the mother holds a devestating secret. A father tries to come to terms with the fact that he cannot keep his daughter from harm after a popular teacher embarrasses her in class. We also see the police working the killer's case.

All threads converge very nicely into a sweet bow. Some are a little too forced but all in all, the suspense never relents and Coben once again keeps you guessing until the very end when the final secret is revealed.

82 of 90 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars A complex jigsaw that marks a change of pace May 6, 2008

By Julia Flyte TOP 500 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover

Harlan Coben specializes in writing intricate and suspenseful mysteries that keep you turning pages late into the night. His first (and to my mind, his best) standalone murder mystery was "Tell No One". Since then he has written several more novels which have been increasingly similar in plot. I was pleasantly surprised that "Hold Tight" marks a departure in formula, in that it doesn't center on an ancient murder case or the long ago disappearance of a family member. While this does mean that the book struggles a little to find its own momentum, at least Coben is trying something different instead of giving us more of the same.

"Hold Tight" juggles a number of different stories, all of which in some way center on the theme of parents trying to protect and/or understand their children. While initially they seem to be quite disparate plotlines, eventually the connections between them become apparent and it is this process of putting the jigsaw pieces together that is the most satisfying part of reading "Hold Tight". One of the things that I really like about Harlan Coben's writing is that there are never any loose ends or things that get left unexplained.

"Hold Tight" is a little slower in pace than his other novels and at times it gets confusing keeping track of so many people, but it's still is a satisfying mystery that keeps the suspense going right until the final pages.

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars an excellent read April 22, 2008

By Maxine S. Gauthier

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

I have read all of Harlan Coben's books - I was totally addicted to Myron, Win & Esperanza and at first, was disappointed that his new books did not include these favorite characters. But once I read the first non-Myron book, I had a different opinion about Coben's literary skills. I believe he not only develops interesting and pertinent plots and subplots, but does so with a commanding literary skill. I do not believe the Myron books were as skillfully written as his recent books.

I could not put this book down once I started reading. It took hold within the first pages and I felt this is the best book he has written. I especially like how he develops subplots that seamlessly come together until there is only one plot. I also like the way he chose a topic that is very prevalent to every parent today - internet, text messaging. Before the advent of this technology it was easier to keep track of your child/teenager without totally invading their privacy. With this technology, it becomes almost impossible to know what your child is doing.
I can't wait for his next book! or the TV series being developed on Myron.