THE MATCH

5 stars out of 5

I loved the first book in this series, The Boy from the Woods, so I was super excited to get my hands on a pre-release copy of this, the second (many thanks to the publisher via NetGalley). I certainly wasn't disappointed, although I must say I was never worried in the slightest - I've loved every single book I've read by this talented and prolific author. 

The central character, known as Wilde, is a grown man who, as a young boy, was found living in the Ramapo mountains of New Jersey. He has no memory of a family, or how he got to the woods - but he's managed to carve out a successful life that includes graduation from West Point. Still, he remains for the most part reclusive; and his closest friend, the son of feisty attorney Hester Crimstein, has died. His love interest is David's widow, Laila, but even to her, he's unable to make a serious commitment.

As this one begins, Wilde apparently has found his father through a DNA website. They meet, but the man - who has a wife and family and lives in Nevada - has no knowledge of fathering another child since, he says, he's always been faithful to his wife. Well, almost; it seems he sowed some wild oats while in the military stationed in Europe - basically one-night-stands with eight women whose names he doesn't remember.

As all this transpires and Wilde tries to decide where to go next, readers get a glimpse of an uber-clandestine group called Boomerang. The group keeps their identities top secret, even from each other; their mission is to exact vigilante-style payback on folks who have done nasty things to other folks. After careful consideration of proposals submitted online, they pick and choose which cases to follow up. 

Hester comes into play after her grandson, Matthew (David's son) tells her he's worried about not hearing from Wilde from far too long. Wilde, who's been laying low and focusing on finding out who he really is and why he was left in the woods, gets a text from a man who claims to be his cousin. That guy, as it happens, has made quite name for himself in the reality show business - and not necessarily a good one. The rest of the book follows Wilde's attempt to locate his real relatives and work on relationships with the people he loves as much as he's capable of (yes, he does reconnect with Matthew, Hester and Laila, but you'll just have to read it to get the details). Trust me, it's quite a ride that leads up to a bit of a surprise ending (nope, not gonna spill the beans on that, either). As for me, I just have to dial down my impatience level while I wait to get my hands on the next installment!

The Match by Harlan Coben (Grand Central Publishing, March 2022); 400 pp.