CD/abridged: I am beginning to think I like to being tricked when it comes to who-done-its.

Cope and his sister were teens at summer camp when a horrific murder happened in the woods. His sister's body was never found and he became a prosecutor. The story parallels between a rape trial and finding answers to the over decade old murder. There ends up being more questions. Cope reunites with his former summer love, a woman who was mentally scarred after the night of the murders. I recommend this.

I've had trouble reviewing this one because, in a way, I have two experiences of it.

First, I was listening to the audio book version of the novel, and it absolutely hooked me. Coben, as he typically does, has balanced multiple story lines up against one another. In the first, Cope, a district attorney on the rise (he's pretty well Myron Bolitar rewritten as a prosecutor--it works), is trying to wealthy frat-boys who raped a stripper at one of their parties. Their parents and lawyers will do anything to save their sons. They are evil dudes, and the victim is appealing, and so this trial is immediately gripping. That first narrative sits parallel, and is linked thematically, to the second, and main, one. Cope once attended a summer camp in which two teens ended up murdered and two other teens, including Cope's sister, ended up missing. Now, decades later, the night that has haunted him for so long has begun to resurface. The second of the missing teens, presumed dead, seems to have shown up murdered. And Cope's girlfriend from the time contacts him. I expected The Woods to be pretty silly, but compelling, fluff, and it delivered. There are a lot of unanswered questions that you want answered, and the narrative is well-paced, suspenseful, and funny. I was immersed enough as I was driving and listening to the story that I momentarily stopped paying enough attention and got myself a speeding ticket (which never happens to me).

So, I loved everything...until the very end. Once again, I expect reality to be stretched when I read or listen to a story like this, and I am quite willing to suspend disbelief a long way. Coben tried to tie everything up. And I think a lot of readers would be satisfied narrated by Scott Brick, runs at 12 ½ hours, and I totally enjoyed it for a good 11 of them. It was a good experience, all in all, and I do think that I'll be willing to give Coben's other, hopefully a little more sensible, books a try.

This is the first Harlan Coben book I've ever read and I wasn't disappointed.The Woods kept me on the edge of my seat the whole time and I never wanted to put it down.It was a great mystery/thriller that kept my interest and me wanting more.

I have read most of James Patterson's and David Baldacci's books, so I wanted to try something different.I tried one of Harlan Coben's books and was not disappointed.I couldn't put it down.It was suspenseful and not predictable.I loved the characters and the plot was brilliant!~I could never figure out what was going to happen.Don't miss this one!

Coben does it again and ruins all my plans to run errands, cook, clean and grocery shop today. I could not put it down! I need to plan when to start a Coben better! And just when I thought I had it all figured out, whammy a sneak attack! Loved it, Loved it!