The Woods

Written by Harlan Coben

Narrated by Scott Brick

NOW A NETFLIX ORIGINAL SERIES!

The bestselling author and creator of the hit Netflix drama The Stranger takes readers into the heart of family loyalty in this twisty page-turner that proves that the darkest secrets are often closest to home.

Paul Copeland, a New Jersey county prosecutor, is still grieving the loss of his sister twenty years ago—the night she walked into the woods, never to be seen again. But now, a homicide victim is found with evidence linking him to the disappearance. The victim could be the boy who vanished along with Paul's sister. And, as hope rises that his sister could still be alive, dangerous secrets from his family's past threaten to tear apart everything Paul has been trying to hold together....

• Language: English
• Publisher: Brilliance Audio
• Release date: Apr 17, 2007
• ISBN: 9781597376419

Harlan Coben

With more than seventy million books in print worldwide, Harlan Coben is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of numerous suspense novels, including Don't Let Go, Home, and Fool Me Once, as well as the multi-award-winning Myron Bolitar series. His books are published in forty-three languages around the globe and have been number one bestsellers in more than a dozen countries. He lives in New Jersey.

Reviews for The Woods

[pgchuis · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

There were a lot of different strands to this novel, and I got a bit lost in the KGB ones. Things came together in rather a rush at the end. I thought the final twist was excellent, although the last paragraph was corny.

[highlander6022 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A very good book, which basically keeps you guessing until the very end. Characters are well-established, plot line is plausible and well established. I was "somewhat" disappointed in the ending, but can accept it. You'll have to read it to understand that. I do recommend it. A warning: DO NOT view any Netflix movies made based on Coben books without reading the books first!!! I have seen two so far and they are so poorly done as to almost be unwatchable from the beginning. Yes, the loose-end snippets of plot lines do eventually get tied up at the end, but enduring the early episodes is absolutely painful, sometimes seeming completely unconnected, and I suspect many viewers stop watching due to each series being so hard to watch. Now that I've read this book, I plan to watch the Netflix version so I understand what is going on...but I expect to be disappointed - most likely because Coben's plot-revelation style in his books is very, very difficult to translate to the screen, even over 8 episodes.

[yshd91 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Gripping! My first ever Harlan Coben read. Couldn't get through the day without finishing the novel. The way he writes his novels just makes you want to keep turning the pages. Such a twist to his tale!

[susandennis-139327 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Plot wise... this is one of the best books I've read in a long time. Lots of lovely twists and turns and surprises. Writing wise... it was not wonderful but certainly good enough to sustain the excellent plot. It feels like sometimes Coben wants to be writing a romance novel. But, I'm a plot girl so 5 stars this gets :).

[susan.macura · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

This was another great tale by the master. In this nightmare, four young people go into the woods at night and allegedly, none return. What happened that night haunts Paul Copeland to this day as one of those who was murdered that night was his sister. However, he finds himself drawn back to the past when one of the four ends up dead - 20 years later! Filled with interesting twists, this tale keeps you guessing until the end. It was a great weekend read.

[brangwinn · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I enjoyed this mystery which was basically about missing teenagers. Not having read any others by Corben I had expected more. It seemed over the top and contrived. I really had trouble believing the convoluted storyline. While not my favorite mystery, I didn’t expect the ending of the book and I wonder how things worked out for everyone.

[aprilannamelung · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Fast paced suspenseful great murder mystery!

[buffalogr · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

Author lost me: takes a long time to get anywhere and has an enormous array of characters. I'm not feeling this one. The Woods should be a gripping story but I just can't care for any of the characters or the story.

[smik_3 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Paul Copeland, county prosecutor for Essex in New Jersey, has had an emotional roller coaster of a life. Right now he is the only immediate family his six year old daughter Cara has. Her mother died of cancer 5 years ago. Paul comes from Russian immigrant parents and recently his father died. But Paul's family was shattered twenty years ago when he and his sister Camille were on a holiday camp and Camille disappeared. Camille and three friends went into the woods near the camp at night. Two were found murdered but Camille and one of the boys were never found. Paul remembers that his father used to spend time searching the woods, digging for his sister's body. Now Paul recognises a murder victim as the boy who disappeared. So where is his sister? Is she still alive? An excellent read, that keeps you guessing until the final pages.

[adam.currey · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

My first Harlan Coben novel, and it won't be my last. A great mystery thriller with plenty of twists and turns to keep you guessing right to the end.

[pamv-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I thought that this was very suspenseful and it sure kept us entertained on a 13 hour car ride!

[dunsh01 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The Woods was recommended to me by another Harlan Coben fan. Without a doubt this has to my favourite so far out of the seven I have read.

I keep thinking I'm going to get sick of the same formula Coben weaves through all his stories.. murder, betrayal, twist. But I get sucked in every time. It really is starting to impact on sleeptime!

In true Coben fashion, this is a fast paced, page turner that is hard to put down. It's not pretentious, it's not literary, its just good old fashioned, strap on your belts for a ride, easy weekend reading. (I suggest weekend because you'll end up reading all night).

As other reviewers have pointed out... scenes are corny, characters are not necessarily well developed (but are likable - or unlikable - enough) and at times the writing isn't even all that great, though not bad enough to distract you from the story.

But as I said - Coben is not pretending to be Dickens. But he is a master of story telling. And like most of his books, "the Woods" packs a great story. If you enjoy fast paced thrillers and suspense, twists that are hard to pick, then you should enjoy this offering from Coben.

[mseva-1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Fantastic Read!! I was hooked from page one ... As with all Harlan Coben books, I couldn't put it down.

[shannon.dolgos · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Paul Copeland, County Prosecutor of Essex County, NJ is trying to fraternity brothers of raping a young African American stripper/prostitute. Of course, the defendants want this to go away, but when Paul pursues the case, that's when things get ugly. Threatened by the parents of the boys, Paul finds his past returning to haunt him...

Twenty years ago, Paul was a camp counselor, and four co-eds were murdered when he was supposed to be watching over the cabins. Instead, Paul was in the woods with his girlfriend, Lucy. One of the co-eds that was murdered taht night was his sister, Camille. Secrets are revealed that were best left untouched, and everything he thought he knew about night...and his life is once again changed...

You got to read it to find out!

[jarratt_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

"The Woods" has some nice twists and turns. I liked how the sub-plots meshed well with the main plot. (This is usually done rather poorly in TV dramas.)"The Woods" is about the 20 year-old murder of several teens at a summer camp. Paul, our protagonist, was a camp counselor whose sister was one of the victims. Now, as a county prosecutor, the past comes back in ways he can't imagine.

[rascalstar · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is a good murder mystery with plenty of twists. It wouldn't be among my favorite books, but for the kind of book it is, it's well done. I listened to it on CD and the reader lends enough difference to the voices to make it interesting. It's not a profound book, if you will, but it's good entertainment for its genre. I enjoyed it and didn't guess ahead of time how things would really turn out. It wasn't predictable. I did guess that they wouldn't be predictable.

[brokentune · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

‘I don’t understand. What makes you so sure your sister is alive?’
‘I’m not sure,’ I said.
‘But I think there’s a decent enough chance.’
‘Why?’
‘Because of Manolo.’
‘What about him?’

Yes. What about him? What about any of them?

I don't know, but i'm not feeling this one. The Woods should be a gripping story but I just can't care for any of the characters. It's not that the writing is bad but the dialogues are making me feel sleepy. It's like the characters want to pretend that they are telling a story, but play act as if they cannot communicate anything to each other - and much less to me as a reader.

Nope. Not feeling this one.

DNF @ 40%

[alan1946 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

My first Harlan Coben, and I thoroughly enjoyed it for a number of reasons. Not only was it tautly written with believable characters and a well thought out plot line involving many of those characters not wanting to reveal what actually happened in those woods, but it showed a great deal about police procedural and how the rules can be bent. In addition to that I obtained it for free from Kindle, and for a small amount I was also able to obtain the audio book as well (this is another first) which made driving long distances that much more pleasurable! Very good value for money. I will be reading others in the near future.

[floratina · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

READ IN DUTCH

This is another stand alone thriller by Harlan Coben. I'd heard great things about this book, so I wanted to try it.



It's a book that's very hard to put down once you start reading. You want to know what happened exactly, how it happened and who did it. That's a good thing. But for me, near the end of the story, it felt all a bit predictable and I was a little bit disappointed by the ending. The writing isn't really anything special, but it is fast and nice to read. This is what I like to call a 'snackbook'. Easy reading when you're busy with more important stuff.

[carmenmilligan · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I really enjoyed this book! It was a good mystery, had some serious and surprising twists, was clean (no sex, language, drug use) and had a very satisfying ending. I had the large print edition, and read its 635 pages in three days. I would highly recommend this book, and I plan to read more by its author.

[msphotogirl · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

The narrator gets 4 stars!

[carl_alves_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

The action and events that take place in The Woods are triggered by an event that happened twenty years previously. Paul Copeland, now a prosecutor in New Jersey, was in the woods and was supposed to be patrolling the summer camp where he worked. That night, two counselors died, and his sister and another boy disappeared, never to be seen again until the boy who disappeared shows up twenty years later murdered. This leads Paul to think that his sister might still be alive since her body was never found. While this is going on, Paul is embroiled in prosecuting a rape case of two wealthy frat brothers, whose fathers are willing to destroy Paul’s life and those around him in order for him to back off the case. Meanwhile, Paul rekindles the romance he had with his girlfriend all those years ago at camp.This novel is a bit of a mixed bag. There is a lot of suspense and drama. I found myself compelled to go forward and continue reading to find out what really happened in those woods. I also found the writing to be very competent and professional. Paul is a good character, a man of high integrity who is haunted by his past. An interesting theme in this novel is the depths that parents are willing to go to in order to protect their children, something that was pervasive throughout the novel. There were two things I didn’t like about the novel. The first is that when the reveal was finally made, it was a bit convoluted and hard to believe. The second is that there were multiple people who committed murders in this novel—too many for my liking. I think it’s hard for a person to kill another person, and it came too easily in this novel.Carl Alves – author of Blood Street

[brucemmoyer · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

OK, I know it isn't great literature and I am a bit embarrassed to give it four stars, but I liked it! Easily readable, and keeps you guessing all the way and you will never see the end coming. Unlike many of the genre, this is a believable story which adds to the interest and doesn't strain the reader to accept events that just don't make sense. Remarkable enough to hold your interest and well written in a breezy manner typical of Coben. One of his best! As an aside, I don't understand why reviewers insist on giving away important plot lines in their reviews. Tell me what YOU thought of the book, not the Butler done it.

[serenity_tigerlily · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

The synopsis for The Woods immediately grabbed my attention my attention when I stumbled upon it at the thrift store. When I began reading I couldn’t put it down because I just had to know what happened in those damned woods. The story was okay all the up until the end. There was a lot going on within the pages of this book which I didn’t mind since all the mini storylines seemed to come together well enough, except for the ending. It felt rushed and didn’t sit well with me. It mainly left me with an overall feeling of “meh” for this book.

[moonshineandrosefire · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

On his deathbed, Paul Copeland's father grabs his hand and urgently whispers one final directive to his son: "Paul, we still need to find her." Two decades before, four teenage campers had wandered into the woods one sultry summer night. Some time later, two of the missing campers were found murdered, but the other two teens were never seen again. The lives of four families were changed forever. Now, twenty years later, they are all about to change again.Paul 'Cope' Copeland's life was turned upside down twenty years ago with the loss of his younger sister, Camille. Even now, he still feels the muted pain of that loss, although life has inevitably moved on for him. He is now the county prosecutor for Essex, New Jersey - a widower who recently lost his wife to cancer; learning to parent his six-year-old daughter as a single father. Balancing family life and a rapidly ascending career as a prosecutor distracts Cope from all his past traumas, but only for so long.When a homicide victim is found with evidence linking him to Cope, the long-buried secrets of the prosecutor's family are threatened. Might this homicide victim actually be one of the campers who disappeared with his sister? Could Camille still be alive? Cope can't be entirely sure, but he knows that he needs to find out.Yet, investigating this case will ultimately force Cope to face so many things from his past; people and emotions he believed he'd effectively left behind during that summer of twenty years ago. There will be Lucy, Cope's first love; his estranged mother, who abandoned her family; and the secrets held by his Russian parents, secrets which they might have been hiding even from their own children. Cope must decide what is better left hidden in the dark and what truths can be set free into the light.This is the first book by Harlan Coben that I've ever read, although I do have a least two others hidden somewhere on my bookshelf. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book; I found it to be very well-written and the story itself completely held my attention. I also really felt connected to the characters, and was quickly engrossed in the plot. I give this book an A! and this will most definitely not be the last book by Harlan Coben that I read.

[brokenangelkisses · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

What if the past didn't happen the way you thought it did? What if you could dig up the truth? Would you want to? Should you? What might you learn if you did? Such is the premise of Harlan Coben's seventeenth crime novel, 'The Woods'.What's it about?Twenty years ago four teenagers enjoying summer camp were brutally murdered by a serial killer. Or were they? When a surprising corpse is found, County prosecutor Paul Copeland realises that the truth about that long-ago night may finally be coming to the surface. As Cope investigates what really happened that night, he is forced to confront his own guilt and the abrupt ending of his teenage romance; he was meant to be on watch duty when the campers, including his own sister, Camille, disappeared.As past crimes clamour to divert his attention, Cope's also trying a rape case in court and the defendants' fathers are viciously determined to use his history against him in any way they can. Oh, and his own father, who had his own secrets, has recently died. Can Cope uncover the truth? And if he can, what might it cost him?Opening sentence:'I was sitting in an elementary school gymnasium, watching my six-year-old daughter, Cara, nervously navigate across a balance beam that hovered maybe four inches off the floor, but in less than an hour, I would be looking at the face of a man who'd been viciously murdered.'What's it like?This standalone novel is well constructed, full of twists and turns. Most of the twists are predictable but that doesn't affect the drama, which remains high throughout. All the details eventually tie neatly together and fit the overarching theme of parents protecting their children. If you're looking for a thriller to relax with - nothing too demanding - this should fit the bill.I found some elements a tad implausible. The lengths the boys' fathers are willing to go to in order to persuade Cope to drop the case are extreme, but I suppose having your child face a life-changing conviction and prison sentence in their teens is a strong motivator. Similarly, the relationship that swiftly develops between Cope and ex-love Lucy seemed rather sudden, but the intense pressure of their situation (and the plot of just about every action novel / film ever) makes it less surprising, if not more convincing. And... Oh, just be prepared to suspend your belief. A lot. Constantly, in fact. I only found this a problem when the KGB angle developed; I'm not interested in this kind of spy stuff, and it seemed designed to create an easy explanation for some otherwise difficult-to-explain events.The drama's further heightened by Cope's involvement in, well, everything. His search for answers is also, clearly, a search for absolution, but the ending is a complex one, with guilt shared in multiple directions and ambiguity about the future.Final thoughtsIf you like your crime fiction served with a large helping of detective angst and personal trauma then this should suit you. Cope has also lost his wife to cancer, seemingly just to darken his life further, and though he's a successful single parent, his daughter's well-being is threatened by his devotion to his case, allowing Coben to introduce a bit of philosophising. He's an admirable protagonist who learns that in a world of black and white right and wrongs, he might need to start perceiving greys.Expect multiple revelations, musing on family and loss, and a world in which eventually all will be revealed, if not resolved.

[lilywren · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

My first Harlan Coben book and it didn't disappoint. If you're a fan of the crime/mystery genre then this one is for you. It's a classic crime/investigation formula that has been trodden many times before. It is predictable at certain parts but nonetheless well written, gripping and enjoyable as prosecutor Paul Copeland goes digging into his past, uncovering family secrets and lies.I'll certainly pick up another Coben book. It reminds me of my distance mid-teenage years when I became obsessed with reading all the Ruth Rendell mysteries there were. I may do the same with Coben especially when he has had the power to get me out of a reading block which has lasted several months.

[samarnold1975 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

As a fan of Harlan Coben I am always excited to start a new book from him. I have to admit this book took me a while to get into but I think that was more to do with me than the quality of the writing. The book is trademark Coben and that is what I like about the author you always know what you are getting. The book is centred round two central characters who's life is changed early on. I liked both the lead characters and like the fact that some familiar faces from other books pop up such as Loren Muse and Hester Crimstein to name a few. The action is fast paced and the book has the traditional twists and turns right through to the end. Some of the twist I had my suspicions about but most were a surprise. A really good fast paced beach read that I loved.

[dawnlovesbooks · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

i dont usually read thrillers, but this one was written well enough and had enough character development that i was able to enjoy it. had me wondering what really happened all the way up to the end!

[librarycin · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Twenty years ago, when Paul Copeland was a teenager at summer camp, four other teens disappeared, but only two of the four bodies were found. Paul’s sister was one who hadn’t been found. “Cope” is now a prosecutor, and the body of a man in his 30s has been found. Cope believes it to be the other of the teens who had disappeared all that time ago. At the same time, Cope is working on prosecuting a rape case: a poor black girl was raped by two rich white boys. And there are many more layers to the story than I’ve even mentioned here. I listened to this on audio (my third audio book ever).Wow! This book was so good. There were so many twists and turns and it was always interesting, and I just wanted to keep going. It was very hard to set it aside. This was my first Coben book, and I will definitely be reading more!