My Rating: 
Author: Harlan Coben
Narrator: Scott Brick
Publisher: Brilliance Audio
Length: 11 hrs and 8 mins
Publisher’s Summary:
Megan is a suburban soccer mom who, once upon a time, walked on the wild side. Now she’s got two kids, a perfect husband, a picket fence, and a growing sense of dissatisfaction. Ray used to be a talented documentary photographer, but at the age of 40 he finds himself in a dead-end job posing as a paparazzo, pandering to celebrity-obsessed rich kids. Broome is a detective who can’t let go of a cold case—a local husband and father who disappeared 17 years ago—and spends the anniversary every year visiting a house frozen in time, the missing man’s family still waiting, his slippers left by the recliner as if he might show up at any moment to step into them.
Three people living lives they never wanted, hiding secrets that even those closest to them would never suspect, will find that the past never truly fades away. Even as the terrible consequences of long-ago events crash together in the present and threaten to ruin lives, they will come to the startling realization that they may not want to forget the past at all. And as each confronts the dark side of the American dream—the boredom of a nice suburban life, the excitement of temptation, the desperation and hunger that can lurk behind even the prettiest façades—they will discover the hard truth that the line between one kind of life and another can be as whisper-thin as a heartbeat.
Master of domestic suspense Harlan Coben delivers his trademark combination of pause-resistant thrills and unrivaled insight into the dark shadows that creep into even the happiest communities.
©2012 Harlan Coben (P)2012 Brilliance Audio, Inc.
My Review:
I discovered Harlan Coben’s books by chance several years ago. I remember seeing a coworker reading one of his titles and after reading some reviews I decided I would give it a shot. After that first book I plunged through every other stand alone novel of Coben’s that I could get my hands on. I still haven’t tried the Bolitar series but I have read just about every stand alone novel and I have never been disappointed.
That being said it seems like a long time since I have read one of his books so it felt good to start listening to Stay Close. Before I had even pressed play I was confident that I was going to enjoy this book.
Coben didn’t let me down. All of the characters are brought to life with intriguing back stories and character flaws that force the listener to almost instantly relate to them. The story itself is full of twists and turns that keeps the reader on their toes.
My wife is currently listening to this audiobook and she seems to really be enjoying it as well. It’s fun to watch her out of the corner of my eye for her reaction to some of the more interesting “cringe worthy” sections of the book.
Audio Production: I’ve always been a fan of Scott Brick (my favorite performance was in The Passage) so I wasn’t surprised at all that he turned in another excellent performance.
Overall: I had a really good experience with this book. Stay Close is a solid mystery/thriller. I couldn’t wait to find out what was going on. When I finally did figure it out I was patting myself on the back until I realized that I had pieced it together exactly when the author had intended me to.
Disclosure: I purchased this audiobook from audible.com
Download your copy of Harlan Coben’s Stay Close now !
This is one of the few Coben Books I haven’t yet listened to. Love the Myron Bolitar series. I plan to get to this one some day.