REVIEW: "Win" by Harlan Coben

I. 👏 Love. 👏 Words.

I delight in encountering unique words or memorable phrases in my reading and I absolutely adore later using these linguistic treasures in my own writing.

Despite the fact that I consider myself relatively adept at using words skillfully, there is a certain type of exchange in which I too often find myself at a loss. This lack of verbal dexterity is neither tied to a specific place nor a specific time, but instead a specific emotion.

And that emotion is anger. 

I, probably like so many of us, have engaged in countless disagreements — be they verbal or via the internet — only to find myself dissatisfied with my performance. After I reflect and find myself wanting, I mentally revisit the discussion. I rehash it, sometimes even aloud, for some odd reason almost always in the shower. And every time I engage in one of these utterly pointless, almost self-flagellating, revisits, I always present my case much more eloquently than I did during the initial conversation. 

I honestly wish that I were better at finding the right words, pushing past the emotions that obviously are preventing me from accessing my usual lexicon. I wish that, emotional or not, I could express myself plainly yet eloquently. That I could communicate my thoughts and feelings just as well in the moment as I can later that evening, as I raise my voice passionately, filling the otherwise empty bathroom.

I'm not sure, though, that this is a skill that you can learn. It might honestly be one with which you are born.  And if this skill is a birthright and not something you develop later in life, then one person who was definitely blessed with it was Win, the eponymous protagonist of this Harlan Coben novel.

The ability to craft a sublime comeback is not the only thing that Win was born with. He was also born into immense wealth. Wealth that undoubtedly shaped his childhood, and wealth which will inarguably impact his adulthood.

For all of the luxuries Win has enjoyed, his life hasn’t been without trauma, most notably the murder of his uncle and the abduction of his favorite cousin.

Perhaps it was this trauma that inspired in him an almost unquenchable desire to see wrongdoers pay — or maybe this, too, he was born with. But, either way, Win spends much of his time doing just this. He dispenses a form of vigilante justice that not all agree with, but from which he cannot be dissuaded.

He is still basking in the afterglow of one such experience — this one a particularly brutal exchange with a particularly brawny and abusive man — when Win gets an unexpected call.

He is summoned by law enforcement to an apartment that is as pricey as it is private. In this apartment the police find several things of interest. First, a dead man. Second, a long-ago stolen painting that belongs to Win’s family. And third, a piece of luggage emblazoned with Win’s initials.

Win isn’t lying to the police when he tells them that he knows nothing about what happened to that man in that apartment. But he’s also not being entirely upfront. 

While the items they found do more to inspire questions than provide answers, Win knows to whom to pose these queries. And he’s not afraid to do so. Because, along with his desire to ensure that those who have done wrong pay for their transgressions, he is almost preternaturally driven to solve any mystery that is laid at his feet.

Even though he knows that the answers to the questions this discovery begs may prove personally problematic, he simply cannot help but seek them out.

Remember the enthusiasm I expressed for words at the top of this review? Well, my enthusiasm for this book is equally 👏 clap 👏 emoji 👏 worthy.

Given my past experiences with Coben, my expectations were high going into this novel.

And he exceeded them.

One particular point of strength was the pacing. It was, and I am not exaggerating here, beyond parallel. 

There was not a single moment in which this book dragged. There were no scenes that felt unnecessary or felt laborious to read. The plot progressed beautifully, event leading to event seamlessly, the tension never letting down for even a moment. This was particularly impressive given the complexity of the mystery depicted in this novel. One that involves not only family dynamics, but a long ago crime that forever altered the lives of both the perpetrators and the victims.

Another strength was the protagonist himself. 

Given that this book is named after the central protagonist it will probably come as no surprise that it was almost singularly focused on this key character. Sure there were other characters orbiting him, but the center of the universe was Win. 

Doing this — putting so much emphasis on one character — is a risk. For an author, setting up a book like this is a gamble, because ultimately the success or failure of the whole novel will depend on both the strength and, to a smaller degree, the likability of this character. 

In this case though, Coben hit it out of the park. 

Win was a strong, engaging character. He was deep, with a naturally intriguing back story. But, what was most amazing to me, was that he was so likable. 

Win is not, really, an inherently likable character. 

He was spoiled, raised with a privilege about which he was unapologetic.  

He was a womanizer. Win was, by his own admission, not interested in forming romantic attachments. He was only interested in the most basic physical exchanges between him and a female “partner” —  and I want to emphasize the quotation marks, which, were I speaking to you, would be finger quotes, around the term partner. 

But, despite all of these things — despite these things that should make me dislike Win — I really liked the guy. When he was in peril, I was worried.

Coben succeeded in accomplishing this feat by tempering all of these unlikeable characteristics with an underlying nobility. 

Win was committed to writing wrongs, and this simple fact made it impossible not to root for him.

Just like the protagonist for which it was named, this book was a clear winner. 

It earns 5 out of 5 cocktails.

Coben is an auto-read author for me. Who are you auto-reads? Tell me about them in the comments, below.

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*I was provided a gifted copy of this title by the publisher*