I have enjoyed several of Harlan Coben’s books, but have found him inconsistent — actually it is likely I who am inconsistent, he’s probably just fine. But in any case, I was happy to receive a copy of Win from Grand Central Publishing and NetGalley in exchange for this honest review. 

The story begins with a very rich guy at a basketball game, and my husband gave up on it, thinking it was about sports and a rich guy. Actually, the story revolves around Windsor Horne Lockwood III — known as Win. He is related to the heiress Patricia Lockwood who was abducted during a robbery of her family’s estate about twenty years back. She was locked inside an isolated cabin before she escaped, and some valuable items stolen from her family were never recovered. 

Fast forward to the discovery of a murder victim found alongside a stolen Vermeer painting and a leather suitcase bearing the initials WHL3. Finally, the FBI has a lead on the kidnapping and another cold case, both involving the victim. Win has no clue how the painting and his suitcase ended up with the victim, but he now knows the man who kidnapped the Patty-Hearst-like cousin on his was not only a kidnapper but also involved in domestic terrorism. 

So then Win gets involved (of course he would) and pursues the truth. It’s all very convoluted, and I am sure many Coben fans will love it.  It just didn’t work for me, mostly because I didn’t care about Win, his cousin, the painting, the victim — you get the idea. Three stars.