Ripples and repercussions from unsolved mysteries can persist for decades, refusing to relent until the truth appears. Long-hidden facts emerge in keep-you-guessing dribs-and-drabs throughout The Woods (2007, Orion Books, 405 pages), another crime thriller by talented and prolific Harlan Coben.
Although successful as a New Jersey county prosecutor, Paul Copeland, a man with aspirations for high political office, has skeletons in his closet and guilt in his past. He's the hero – so imagine the untold wrongdoing by almost everyone else.
Does human evil have no limits? “Those who believe that we are anything other than animals are blind. All humans are savages. The ones who are well fed are just lazier. They don't need to kill to get their food. So they dress up and find so-called loftier pursuits that make them believe that they are somehow above it all. Such nonsense.”
Twenty years ago, Paul's sister Camille and three other teenagers at a rural summer-camp disappeared into the woods late at night when he was supposed to keep watch. But Paul had abandoned his post to indulge in forbidden pleasures with Lucy, his first girlfriend. Bodies of two murdered youngsters were discovered, but Camille and a boy named Gil Perez remained missing.
Suddenly two policemen appear, insisting that Paul visit a morgue to view a modern murder victim. Surprisingly, he recognizes the long-unseen Perez. If one missing person survived the long-ago night of mayhem, could his sister have too?
Now a widower, Paul knows the value of family. “My father has always made me feel safe, even now, even though I am now an adult with a child of my own. We went to a bar three months ago, when he was still strong enough. A fight broke out. My father stood in front of me, readying to take on anyone who came near me.”
As the forces of rumor and scandal lurk, Paul renews a long-futile search for answers. Soon he renews acquaintances with Lucy, and sparks of passion reignite.
More than mere entertainment, The Woods stresses key themes about parental devotion, enduring love, nagging guilt, death's finality, truth's liberating nature and life's fragility. “I have learned over the years – in the most horrible ways imaginable – that the wall between life and death, between extraordinary beauty and mind-boggling ugliness, between the most innocent setting and a frightening bloodbath, is flimsy. It takes a second to tear through it.”
Even clinging to hope takes a heavy toll. “I loved my sister. We all did. Most people believe death is the cruelest thing. Not so. After a while, hope is a far more abusive mistress. When you live with it as long as I have, your neck constantly on the chopping block, the axe raised above you for days, then months, then years, you long for it to fall and lop off your head.”
Amid serious themes, the author injects occasional humor. “Cara steered the Barbie Jeep in a circle. The battery was fading fast, the electric vehicle churning at a speed slower than my Uncle Morris reaching for the check.”
Likewise: “...I detest the music they play in Indian restaurants. Right now it sounded like a sitar was torturing a cat.”
The author enjoys startling his readers with unexpected plot twists. But there are so many that he loses the element of surprise and some final “turns” can be seen coming.
Based in New Jersey, Coben routinely writes bestsellers. His earlier titles include Darkest Fear, Tell No One, Gone For Good, Just One Look, The Innocent and Promise Me.
Judging by the merits of The Woods, Coben should remain popular. By no means has he worn out his welcome on bookshelves.
As for the ultimate truth, it comes near the end. “...that line between right and wrong grows so blurry sometimes. It grows blurry here in the bright sunshine of the real world. And, of course, it grows blurry in the dark of those woods.”
Approval rating: 78 per cent.
For more information: www.harlancoben.com or www.orionbooks.co.uk
(December 26, 2011)
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