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Just One Look

Just One Look

List Price: $25.95
Your Price: $17.13
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 2 stars
Summary: Not His Best
Review: Having devoured the past three or four Coben books, I found Just One Look to be extremely disappointing and frankly boring. I kept reading the book in the hope that Coben's signature surprises and twists/turns would redeem the book. Unfortunately, such was not the case as the storyline is altogether implausible with characters that are hardly compelling. Finally, the story simply does not make sense. Hopefully, Coben's next book will be return to his previous efforts.

If you're looking for other enjoyable authors pick up anything by Lee Child (Jack Reacher series) or Clinton McKinzie (Antonio Burns series).

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: I love Coben,but this is not his best
Review: I agree with the other reviewers that this book is not Coben's best. It is not in the class of "Tell No One" or "Gone For Good". There are too many characters and none of them are as well developed (this is usually not a problem in Coben books), It gets confusing after awhile. It also does not have he originality of Cobens earlier works. All in all it is still better then Most the junk I read so do not let my negative comments turn you away I am just picky. I also recommend "A Tourist In the Yucatan" fun thriller thats become an underground hit.!

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: A MAJOR disappointment
Review: I have read most of Coben's books and particularly enjoyed "Tell No One" and "No Second Chance".
In fact, I was so excited I ordered an autographed copy immediately upon learning of the book.
I made a mistake. This book is very shallow and just not of the caliber of previous efforts.
After 50 pages or so, I realized things would not likely get better and that proved to be accurate. In previous books, you can hardly wait to turn the page and hope the book never ends.
In this one, you debate whether to turn a page or close the book.
Just One Look is a good title, take a look and pass it by.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A TERRIFIC LISTEN
Review: What can a woman do when her world is suddenly turned upside down, when everything and everyone once safe is now imperiled? That's the question posed by bestselling author Harlan Cohen in his latest thriller, "Just One Look."

Coben's not a newbie at the game of suspense having taken home an Edgar Award, the Shamus Award, and the Anthony Award. His tales are complexly plotted and compelling as attested to by "No Second chance" and "Gone For Good." He packs a knock-out punch and leaves readers wanting more.

Speaking of knock-out punches - two more are delivered by able readers. Carolyn McCormick, who delivers the abridged version, has multiple stage, screen and TV appearances to her credit. She's the voice of a woman pushed to the edge to protect her children.

A singer and spoken-word performer, Carrington MacDuffie, voice of the unabridged editions brings a wide range of vocal experience to her performance, imbuing it with passion and pathos.

With "Just One Look" listeners meet Grace Lawson who has picked up a recently developed set of family snapshots. She's surprised to find one photo that she doesn't fully recognize - there are five people in the photo, one of whom appears to be her husband. Where did this picture apparently taken some 20 years ago come from?

Her husband, Jack, denies any knowledge of the snapshot saying he's not the man in it. Yet, late that night he drives off with the photograph. There is no note for Grace who has no idea where he went or why he left.

As the days pass she finds no help from the police or friends. Yet, it becomes increasingly obvious that she is not the only one looking for Jack. Unknown others pursue him as Grace searches for answers, any answers in order to protect her children.

"Just One Look" is Harlan Coben at the height of his powers - a terrific listen.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Second-rate Coben
Review: I agree with Eric's review - Gone For Good and Tell No One were the sort of great books that keep you reading until 3am. Just One Look is in a different (lesser) league. Terrific beginning, then it all goes downhill.The plot doesn't really make sense, and I've read far too many crime novels where the hero or heroine happens to have a Mafia boss on tap to help them out when the going gets rough (I'm thinking of the Spenser novels in particular). Grace was a pleasant enough character but the endless stuff about how much she loved her kids, what they ate, what they wore, what they were reading and so on got very tedious. And is it just me or are his folksy little authorial asides (er, um) becoming really irritating?

This is a harsh review, because a new Harlan Coben is still a treat. But this is really not that great.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: One look only
Review: Having seen Harlan Coben's name on the covers of novels for years, I finally broke down and decided to read one. Unfortunately, I didn't pick the right one to start with.

JOL starts out well enough. There is a good mystery, and it definitely keeps you interesting. Then things start to unravel. The truth starts coming out, and bit by bit the story starts becoming more far-fetched. By the time this one is over, you'll be sitting there scratching your head and wondering why your name was left out of this book...after all, everyone else in the world was apparently in on this deception. The closest I can come to explaining this is a soap opera. As the end was revealed, it was like "Your brother-in-law's second cousin's third wife's stepmother was married to my twice-removed uncle's niece's third child's grandson". It was just too far out to be real.

I love a complex story as much as the next guy, but even the most complex plot needs to have SOME grounding in reality--unless it's a Dean Koontz or Stephen King kind of thing. This one just stretchs the believability too far.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Blind Dates and Lack of Emotion
Review: Reading a book can be like going on a blind date. The air is full of questions, and, as you lay eyes on that first page, you may find yourself only mildly intrigued or full-tilt attracted.

My first blind date with a Coben novel left me head over heels. I loved the pacing, the intricate plot, and most of all the attention to family and relationship. "Gone for Good" and "Tell No One" were masterpieces of suspense. "No Second Chance" felt a bit more contrived, but I still enjoyed it throughout.

"Just One Look" is full of suspense, no doubt about it. The plot unfolds in all the right places. The characters react as might be expected. Yet, I felt as though I was taking apart a music box that had been robbed of its melody. Coben's family rhythms and song seemed muted. The plausibility of the scenario was strained. Sure, I was entranced by Grace's search to discover the truth behind her husband's disappearance and a decades-old photo, but I was not emotionally invested.

That said, Coben is a master of the serpentine mystery. My love for his writing is steadfast. Next time around though, I hope his characters have a little more time to look me in the eye and draw me into their world. In this book-dating scenario, for me, it's all about relationship.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Not Coben's Best
Review: Harlan Coben is one of my favorite authors, but this is not his best. The story never engages the reader, and perhaps even more annoying, are all the typos in the book. A few typos would be understandable, but 30-plus is unexcusable in a major novel. The typos start in the book's second sentence ("stuck in that the (sic) lull when the music first starts...") , and continue throughout the book up to the third-to-last page ("I know all about it. I've seen in it (sic) lots of cases.") and second-to-last page ("He didn't go [] (sic) the concert"). Even in spots where the book starts to mount some suspense, the appearance of yet another typo yanks the reader out of the book and ruins the suspense. It almost seems like the uncorrected proof got published as a hardcover. (Harlan, get a new copy editor!!!) I can only hope that his next book will be better.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: I agree with Skip It--This one is awful
Review: I have enjoyed all of Coben's work but this one certainly had me wondering what kind of changes success is making in his attitudes. I couldn't decide who he had more contempt for: his own characters or me as the reader. This story was contrived, unbelievable, and unsatisfying. His tacked on surprise ending casting Grace in a dark role in her own tragedy was distasteful to say the least. His careless and senseless killing off of one person after another was even more so. The truth certainly didn't set any of these people free, everyone in the story was left inpoverished and diminished, and for what? All in all the whole story just left me with a very bad taste in my mouth.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Just One Look
Review: Harlan Corben is at it again, Just One Look will keep you turning the pages into the night, A photo picked up at a photomat by his wife with her husbands picture in it. But what was he doing in the picture that would make him disappear after looking at it? The hunt takes place by a wife that not only wants her husband back but wants to know why he ran. Later she finds out about a kidnapped person that just happens to be her husband and the plot thickens. You won't be unhappy about reading this thriller- Larry Hobson- Author- "The Day Of The Rose"


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