Thriller with interesting twists that kept me guessing until the end. Thank you Netgalley & Harlan Coben for the arc.

Disgraced NYPD detective Sami Kierce’s past comes back to haunt him when a strange woman enters his classroom. He just knows in an instant that she’s Anna, the woman he met in Spain 25 years ago. But how could that be since he killed her???

Another one hard to put down. Just when you think you have things figured out, Coben throws in another twist.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early copy in exchange for an honest review.

Awesome! This was fantastic! The story kept me constantly guessing and never wanting to put it down. Harlan is always such a dependable good read and this one does not disappoint. One of his best!

“Nobody’s Fool” is marketed as Sami Kierce #2, but it’s more a #2 to Coben’s Netflix series, then to the 2016 book “Fool Me Once.” In the first book, Kierce is a lesser character, the NYPD detective from Jersey investigating a murder (actually named Roger), but he’s not the main protagonist. He has a much bigger part in the episodic series produced by Coben (with a significantly larger backstory from that) and the Netflix Kierce is British of Southeast Asian descent. Here we’re back to an American character (of Pakistani parentage now — it takes awhile to flesh that out in this novel), but Kierce is a now disgraced NYPD cop, working as an investigator for a law firm with a baby genius junior partner named Arthur, and teaching criminology to pay-by-class students. Sami is happily married to Molly and has a one year son Henry, but we know that Sami’s previous cop fiancée Nicole was murdered, presumably by her ex, Tad Grayson. The book starts with a double nightmare for Sami: Nicole’s killer is being freed from prison on a technicality and simultaneously, the twenty-something girl he met on a drug fueled European post-college backpacking trek twenty years ago, Anna, who he also thought was murdered in Spain, shows up in his criminology class as a forty-ish observer who quickly flees.

This novel can be definitely read as a standalone. There are a few crossover characters from events in the first novel, but there are also slight references to a medical condition only shown in the series. Since continuity isn’t paramount, reading this without knowing anything else will still be a complicated, action-packed thriller, typical of a Coben book.

There’s a clever plot, lots of twists, and made-for-cable quirky characters — especially Kierce’s recruited investigators from his eager class: the Pink Panthers, Golfer Guy, the Three Dead Hots influencers, Lenny, Polly, and unhoused Raymond plus ex-partner Marty — all unique people who give Kierce an edge to offbeat surveillance/research as he gets further involved in both cases of the murdered women who he loved. I loved the story and I’m pretty sure there will be a Sami Kierce #3 to fill in more of his backstory. 5 stars!

Literary Pet Peeve Checklist:
Green Eyes (only 2% of the real world, yet it seems like 90% of all fictional females): Not quite: Sami can’t remember Anna’s eye color, but they turned out to be hazel.
Horticultural Faux Pas (plants out of season or growing zones, like daffodils in autumn or bougainvillea in Alaska): NO But Sami does make an observation: do any non-rich people have rooms called conservatories in their homes?

Thank you to Grand Central Publishing and NetGalley for an advanced reader copy!

Disgraced detective Sami Kierce is barely making ends meet teaching a crime class when a woman from his past enters the classroom. Except the last time he saw this woman she was dead and he was holding a bloody knife. Or was she? This was a great, suspenseful read. Loved seeing more of Kierce! And the cliffhanger at the end has me excited for more! Thanks to NetGalley and Hachette Books for the opportunity to read another amazing novel by the great Harlan Coben!

Sami Kierce returns for another enjoyable mystery in Nobody's Fool. To be honest I didn't remember much about his character from the first book, but he's smart and endearing in unexpected ways. Sami is at a low point in his career after losing his job in a grim and public way, and is now reduced to teaching questionable sleuthing classes at night to some peculiar and interesting people. When someone he believed dead suddenly appears in his classroom, he is thrown into a chase through the city and time as he looks for answers and redemption. Plenty of twists and mystery down to the end, and a truly enjoyable read.

Nobody's Fool is a bitingly funny and equally horrifying mystery by the bestselling author Harlan Coben. From the outset, I knew I'd enjoy this book. It was easy reading, amusing despite the terrible things happening, and a great mystery arc. I haven't read Sami Kierce #1 and that wasn't a barrier to entry (although now I do plan to go back and do that).

Sami Kierce is a washed up police officer. He was fired from the force after a sloppy death happens on his watch. Now, Kierce teaches a night course on mystery at the local community college, trying to make ends meet. One night during his lecture, a woman he slept with in his college days, who he thought was dead, shows up. Kierce chases off after her and the mystery begins.

The story isn't easily guessed. It's fast-paced. As I mentioned twice, funny. Great twists and I enjoyed the characters. Highly recommend. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I am a huge fan of Harlan Coben and look forward to every new release. This story fell a little short for me compared to his other books,

There were a couple of plots going on and their common denominator was the primary character's students that he teaches and an ex-partner. Sami used to be a cop, but he is off the force due to his behavior. He tries to rebuild his life with his wife and newborn child. The challenge is that the plots span 22 years but do not intersect. Sami is reunited with his past and asked to investigate a disappearance that he only agrees to because he will provide closure for him. He starts to get answers that are too difficult to face, and he needs to decide if he has the courage to face the truth.

By the time you get to the end, you have wrapped up one of the plots, but there are still loose ends that need attention, and the epilogue feels insufficient to do that.

Wow! One of Harlan Coben’s best books in a long time! Very fast paced, and a lot of twists and turns. Sounds like maybe a sequel in the making, and I wouldn’t be disappointed, thank you NetGalley for the advanced copy!

Wow! Harlan has done it again. To be honest I did not know this was a follow up to a book I really a long time ago but I do not think that really matters. This was such an intricate story and I love how the author developed the characters throughout the story. The way I started to feel about one character was shattered by the end. Harlan Coben is one of my favorite authors of all time because of the way he can make me feel as if I am watching a movie unfold and feel such emotions. Another home run!

I have read many books by Harlen Coben and was really looking forward to reading Nobody’s Fool. I wasn’t disappointed. The story had many twista and turns as Sami Kierce investigates the kidnapping of Victoria Belmont who he believes looks like the woman Anna whom he thought he killed in Spain over 20 years ago. It is filled with twists and turns that keep you interested until the very end!!

Nobody’s Fool by Harlan Coben features former Detective Sami Kierce, a relatively minor character in one of the author’s previous books. Kierce, whose original plan to attend medical school was derailed after an early life crisis, has now just ended a 20 year career with the NYPD due to an embarrassing dismissal. In this book, he performs “investigations” for a high-priced divorce attorney, and earns extra cash teaching criminology to wannabe sleuths in a somewhat sketchy night school. No longer able to rely on fellow police officers to provide crime-solving help, Kierce enlists assistance from this eclectic and enthusiastic band of amateurs by giving them class assignments related to his “detecting,” and the descriptions of their antics and personalities were some of the most enjoyable aspects of this book. Writing of this group’s often amusing activities, Coben has created a unique and entertaining feature, and I found myself wondering if he might be considering using this as a prominent theme in future novels. However, since Coben’s reputation derives not from light, humorous stories but primarily from serious thrillers, he significantly heightens the intensity of the plot for his loyal fans by linking in three extremely sensational unresolved crimes from the past. Although the interconnectedness of all these events seems highly improbable, there’s no question that including them adds considerable page-turner intrigue and tension, making it another likely Coben crowd-pleaser.

Thanks to Grand Central Publishing and Net Galley for this ARC in exchange for my honest review

Sadly, I did not care very much for this book. Not really sure why, I have read all his books and usually really enjoy them. I think I was irritated from the first, with all of Kierce's "Crazy Me" thinking. I never really identified with any of the characters. This book showed what people can do when they have basically unlimited money, how they can brush aside things that other people would get in trouble for. I read this book as an ARC, so thanks for the chance, NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing.

On a backpacking trip in Spain Sami when he wakes up to find that his girlfriend is dead. He is not sure what happened but he has a knife in his hand and is bloody. Not sure what to do he runs away from there. Fast forward twenty some years and he is teaching a class and at the back of the classroom he recognizes the woman who he thought was dead from his camping trip.
She makes contact with him and very quickly leaves out of the room. At that moment he decides that he needs to find her and makes all efforts to do so.
Another fabulous book by such a talented author. I highly recommend this book.

Mr. Coben has done it again!

This was a terrific read. I was riveted by our mystery and completely horrified and heartbroken by what really happened here.

However, my absolute favorite thing about this book was the motley crew of amateur sleuths our MC puts together. And, honestly? I was ready to hate them. I want them in further books, please!

This is fast moving, the plot is unusual, and the book was a delight!

Nobody's Fool
by Harlan Coben
Pub Date: March 25, 2025
Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.
A year after the devastating events that took place in Fool Me Once, Harlan Coben’s bestselling thriller and #1 Netflix series, a secret from former Detective Sami Kierce's college days comes back to haunt him. Present day is hard enough for the disgraced Kierce, but his past isn’t through with him yet…
This book is not a continuation of the previous novel mentioned and could easily be read as a standalone.
I’ve read plenty of Harlan Coben’s novels over the years and I know he will always deliver a cracking engaging read. This plot is well thought out, it connects the seemingly random, the pace is quick and so there’s never a dull moment. It’s also chock full of interesting characters, plenty of shocking revelations and multiple dastardly deeds making it the very definition of a thriller. I love it and it’s just my kind of book. Five stars all the way.

Sami Kierce, a former police detective and current private investigator, is teaching a night class of amateur detectives when he glimpses Anna, a woman he thought died over 22 years ago. In fact, he was sure he killed her in Spain when he woke from a drug induced haze, holding a knife and Anna was lying dead next to him covered in blood. He fled the scene and eventually called his father who encouraged him to fly home immediately.
Thus begins another Harlan Coben mystery as Sami tries to find Anna and discover what really occurred all those years ago. Oddly, the return of Anna connects to the kidnapping of wealthy Victoria Belmond. Finally, added as a side story, is the release of the killer of his former fiancé who claims his innocence in that crime and wants to team up with Sami to find the real killer.
All three stories culminated in surprise endings after Coben takes the reader on a roller coaster ride of shocking truths with many twists and turns that keep the reader guessing right to the end of the novel.
Thank you to NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing for this ARC.

Coben grabs readers by the throats and doesn't let go, another twisty captivating read, hard to put down, thrilling, loved every suspenseful minute of this!

Thanks to NetGalley for an ARC of “Nobody’s Fool” in exchange for an honest review. Harlan Coben’s fantastic new thriller (and future Netflix series, I’’m sure) features disgraced former detective Sami Kierce receiving a surprise fleeting visit from Anna, a woman he had a brief, but intense relationship with years earlier. The only problem is that the last time he saw her, she was dead….and he may or may not have killed her.

In classic Coben form, things take off quickly from there with twists and turns abound. Almost nothing is what it seems, and Sami has to tap into his old detective instincts to reveal truths that have long been buried. All the while, his disturbance of the past seems to be putting himself and his family at risk as they are stalked and threatened by an unknown assailant.

The amount of big “reveals” is staggering, and “Nobody’s Fool” propels to a thrilling conclusion that leads the reader to question the personal costs and rewards of seeking the truth. Overall, another terrific story from the best thriller-writer in the business. Five stars.

Harlan Coben's books always offer the reader a puzzle. He gives you all the pieces, just like a jigsaw, but shakes the box pretty hard before you get to start. In the first section of the puzzle, Sami Kierce meets a girl in Spain and has a wild few days in the sun and sand before he wakes up covered in blood. Then the book skips 22 years. Now he's married. happy and has a one year old son but has made enough mistakes along the way that the story takes some detours that seem to have no connection to his past life and few with the current life. Then Coben spins the table and Kierce is taking us along an investigation that finds a new twist every day. Did I mention that Harlen Coben is well known for keeping his readers on their toes? He hands you all the threads of the story but you have to weave them together.....and it's always an excellent thrill to see how wrong you are at the reveal. 5 easy stars.