Tell No One (Mass Market Paperback)

~ (Author) "Another girl was about to break my heart..." (more)
Key Phrases: autopsy file, kiss time, street cam, Brandon Scope, Rebecca Schayes, Larry Gandle (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

David Beck has rebuilt his life since his wife's murder eight years ago, finishing medical school and establishing himself as a pediatrician, but he's never forgotten the woman he fell in love with in second grade. And when a mysterious e-mail arrives on the anniversary of their first kiss, with a message and an image that leads him to wonder whether Elizabeth might still be alive, Beck will stop at nothing to find the truth that's eluded him for so many years. A powerful billionaire is equally determined to make sure his role in her disappearance never comes to light, even if it means destroying an innocent man.

In David Beck, Harlan Coben, the author of the popular series starring sports agent Myron Bolitar (Darkest Fear et al.) has created a protagonist who shares many of Bolitar's best qualities--he's a decent, generous, gentle guy whose loyalty to those he loves is unquestionable. So when he discovers that people he was close to may be responsible not only for Elizabeth's murder but also the "accidental" death of his father, Beck's sense of betrayal is as understandable to the reader as his uncharacteristically violent reaction. Coben is a skillful storyteller with a gift for creating likable characters caught up in circumstances that illuminate their complex emotional lives and deep humanity. This should be the thriller that breaks this talented writer out of the mystery genre and earns him the recognition he deserves. --Jane Adams --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Publishers Weekly

Every writer likes to stretch his legs, and here Coben, author of seven acclaimed Myron Bolitar mysteries (Darkest Fear, etc.), stretches his. He doesn't quite kick his reputation aside in the process. This thriller, Coben's first non-Bolitar novel, is a breezy enough read, but it's not up to snuff. It's got a nifty setup, though. David Beck and Elizabeth Parker, just-married childhood sweethearts, are vacationing at the Beck family retreat when Beck is knocked unconscious and Elizabeth is kidnapped. Cut to eight years later: Beck is a young physician working with ghetto kids in Manhattan, and Elizabeth, we learn, is dead, victim of a serial killer known as KillRoy. Or is she? For immediately after two bodies eight years old are uncovered on the Beck land, Beck receives a series of e-mails apparently from Elizabeth. His frantic search to find out if she lives dovetails with the equally frenzied efforts of cops to pin Elizabeth's murder on Beck, as well as the antic moves of a mysterious billionaire an old friend of the Beck family and his two hired thugs to frame Beck for that murder. Beck finds himself a man on the run from the cops his only ally a black drug dealer whose child he's treating for hemophilia caught in an overcomplicated tangle of lies and vengeance. Coben knows how to move pages, and he generates considerable suspense, but there's little new here. The narrative style is cloned from James Patterson, alternating first-person with third. The villains, particularly the billionaire and a Chinese martial artist, are as old as mid-Elmore Leonard or even Chandler. The black drug dealer isn't a character, he's a plot device, and the climax packs the emotional wallop of a strong episode of The Rockford Files. (June 19)Forecast: Heavy-hitting blurbs from Jeffery Deaver and Phillip Margolin, among others, indicate more about the solidarity of the mystery community than about this book's excellence, but should attract browsers. The publisher will pitch this as a summer beach read, and it's not a bad one. In fact, it may outsell Coben's mysteries, despite its flaws.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: Dell; 1st THUS edition (February 26, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0440236703
• ISBN-13: 978-0440236702
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 3.9 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (438 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #30,154 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

59 of 64 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Be careful with Harlan Coben..., August 26, 2001

By	L. Quido "quidrock" (Tampa, FL United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

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This review is from: Tell No One (Hardcover)

If you are a fan of his prior series' featuring the sports hero Myron Bolitar, you will probably like this book, but be a little wistful at some of the missing elements as he changes genre. Bolitar is the hero of 7 prior novels that fall in the "Comic Mystery Thriller" category populated by Lawrence Sanders, Lawrence Block and Janet Evanovich. Characterizations in the Bolitar books are so over the top that they make you giggle, even as you are consumed in a pace so fast that you finish the book without taking time to get a snack. Conversation is witty and cynical and you wonder if the author was a stand up comedian in a prior life. When looking for a beach book or just a great read to get over the rest of the stress, Coben is a hero to most.

So, "Tell No One" is a big departure, and only Shauna, Tyrese & Eric Wu, supporting characters in the story, will remind you that this is Coben. If you loved "Tell No One", be prepared that you may find Coben's earlier books too light for your taste, if you believe a thriller is a thriller and any comic touches are just wasted words.

Only 2 things hold "Tell No One" back from a five star rating. Coben's hero, his weaving of a tale of romance and familial loyalty, his pace and his ability to leave you guessing as his plot twists and turns are terrific! His cops are believable and admirable and his hero spins in every direction when discovering how easily he has been duped about the murder of his wife and how he has incredibly passed 8 years since her murder in absolute ignorance.

The 2 things: The final unveiling of the murderer was one twist too many...we could have left the tale much more enthusiastically without it. And, the dust jacket is horrific and looks as though a middle school child covered his English text in something his mom brought home. Small things. Tell No One might be the most exciting book you read this year!

40 of 44 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A psychological thriller that packs a punch., April 16, 2002

By	Denise Bentley "Kelsana" (The California Redwoods) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Dr. David Beck lost the love of his life eight years ago. The story of her death is so gruesome he can't bear to think about it. Elizabeth was the love of his life; they were two halves of a whole. So how can he explain the e-mail that appears so mysteriously on their anniversary, mentioning things that only they would know?

This is only the beginning of a novel that reads like the twists and turns of a mountain highway. When I became ensconced comfortably in a plausible scenario, honestly believing I had finally figured things out, the author ripped the rug out from under my feet and hit me with the finale. I still shake my head at the outcome.

This books reads so fast you hardly have time to hold the pages as they breeze by. When I was away from it I couldn't wait to get back to it. I had been in a reading slump until I picked up this unexpected pleasure. Coben slams the story home with believable characters and a plot that speaks to everyone who enjoys a good thriller. An Excellent book. Kelsana 4/16/02

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars TELL EVERYONE, December 2, 2001

By	Nancy R. Katz "NancyK18" (NJ) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Tell No One (Hardcover)

Harlan Coben, the author known for his series about the sports agent Myron Bolitar, has crafted a fine thriller in his book Tell No One. In this stand alone title, Coben takes his readers on the ride of a lifetime. From the first page till the last, my heart raced and I found myself staying up late at night to finish this book.

David Beck, once married to Elizabeth, has finally rebuilt his life since the kidnapping, disappearance and assumed death of his beloved wife several years before. Now, a respected doctor with a practice in New York City, David finds himself experiencing some very strange events which lead him to wonder if Elizabeth could still be alive. First, an e mail arrives with information known only to the two of them, then two bodies are found on property owned by the Beck family which may have been involved in the kidnapping, and finally an image appears on a web camsite which looks suprisingly just like Elizabeth. With fury and determination, Beck begins to investiage Elizabeth's kidnapping and what has happened in the intervening years. Along the way Becks efforts are thwarted by a billionaire who may or may not be involved, the father of one of his patients who uses his street smarts to help out and a cast of other characters who are quite memorable.

The pace is fast, the book becomes wet from holding it too hard with perspiring hands and you most liely will might find yourself holding your breath as the book moves along to a startling conclusion. But readers need to be warned to slow down a bit for the last 50 pages as the plot and action moves quickly fronm page to page with complicated and somewhat convoluted twists and turns.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and instead of Telling No One I tell everyone to read this book. This may have been my first Harlan Coben book but it certainly won't be the only book of his I plan on reading.