Harlan Coben

A shocking genetic match exposes a family's darkest secret in this gripping thriller from the creator of the #1 hit Netflix series Stay Close.

After months away, Wilde has returned to the Ramapo Mountains in the wake of a failed bid at domesticity that confirms what he's known all along: He belongs on his own, free from the comforts and constraints of modern life.

Suddenly, a DNA match on an online ancestry database brings Wilde closer to his past than he's ever dreamed, and finally gives Wilde the opening he needs to track down his father. But meeting the man brings up more questions than answers. So Wilde reaches out to his last, most desperate lead, a second cousin who disappears as quickly as he resurfaces, having experienced an epic fall from grace that can only be described as a waking nightmare.

Was his cousin's downfall a long time coming? Or was he the victim of a conspiracy as cunning as it is complex? And how does it all connect to the man once known as The Stranger, a treacherous fugitive with a growing following whose mission and methods have only turned more dangerous with time?

The Match

In this gripping new thriller from the No 1 Sunday Times bestselling author and creator of The Stranger, Wilde follows a tip that he hopes will finally solve the mystery of his abandonment, but instead sends him straight into the arms of a serial killer. As a young child, Wilde was found living a feral existence in the Ramapo mountains of New Jersey. He has grown up knowing nothing of his family, and even less about his own identity. He is known simply as Wilde, the boy from the woods. But when a match at an online ancestry database puts him on the trail of a close relative - the first family member he has ever known - he thinks he might be about to solve the mystery of who he really is. Only this relation disappears as quickly as he's resurfaced, having experienced an epic fall from grace that can only be described as a waking nightmare. Undaunted, Wilde continues his research on DNA websites where he becomes caught up in a community of doxxers, a secret group committed to exposing anonymous online trolls. Then one by one these doxxers start to die, and it soon becomes clear that a serial killer is targeting this secret community - and that his next victim might be Wilde himself ...

Nash

I will begin by saying that if the first book was good and I almost had a heart attack, this one killed me all the way. I enjoyed reading this book even more than I anticipated. Harlan Coben will never be overrated. This man delivers an amazing story with such ease and every chapter packs a punch in them that you never see coming. 

The only characters you can trust are the ones we already knew from the previous book and even then we get a surprise that I don’t think anyone was expecting. I did not see that coming. If you know… you know. 

The beginning of the story is exactly where we left off. It is so refreshing having a character like Hester Crimstein in the story. She makes everything better. She clearly sees Wilde as a son, but she is so direct and straightforward. I think she told him in the first book that it is not because she wants to compensate for not having her David anymore. I mean, talk about a slap in the face. This guy was abandoned in the woods when he was a toddler. The only family he truly knows is David’s and he is no longer with them, even though he is super present in the story. 

When Wilde matches with someone on a DNA website and he begins to look for his biological relatives, he was definitely not expecting to be sucked in the mother of all conspiracies. I’m 100% sure that there are some things we’re better off not knowing. Wilde is the type of person that has to see things through. If he starts something, he will finish it. Even when the only thing it brings is trouble, he keeps pushing forward. 

If it wasn’t for the support system he has, I don’t think he would’ve been able to pull it off. When I tell you that it is a mess that goes up and down, keeping you on your toes. Not letting you believe anything but at the same time not leaving you confused… that’s exactly what you’re getting out of this. 

I loved how the story ended and I’m happy with how much the experience changed him and enabled him to open up to Laila. That was my cherry on top. 


Thank you to Netgalley and Grand Central Publishing for the opportunity to read another masterpiece. I didn’t even wait to finish it when I was already at Barnes and Noble purchasing the physical book. It’s that good.

Nicola Sarah Brooks

I've finally got my hands on a Harlan Coben before it becomes a hit series!

I haven't read the first book in this series, which I plan to rectify tout suite, but I don't think it hampered me in any way from enjoying the Wilde ride!  

Wilde has been satisfied with his lot for most of his life.  He may have been found abandoned in the woods, unaware of who he was or how long he had been alone but he managed to find his way.  He became more than the feral boy, Tarzan Boy. But when he finally decides to seek out his family - using an online DNA ancestry site, he unleashes a world of problems.

He may have found a parent but he also seems to have unlocked a bevy of deep, well-hidden secrets.

I loved the relationship between Wilde and Hester, it was almost parental-child.  But more intriguing is the relationships he has with his late friend's wife and college-aged son.  He was so busy trying to keep secrets, not rock the boat and allow everyone their space that he never noticed that Hester and Matthew were well aware of what was actually going on LOL.

There were plenty of twists/turns and red herrings.  My day job really should have helped me decipher who was the "bad guy" earlier than I did. (I do work in law enforcement) although not an officer - that's my defence and I'm sticking with it!)

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley and the publisher and I have left this honest review voluntarily

The Match

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