Manhattanites Simon Greene - a financial advisor, and his wife Ingrid - a pediatrician have three children and an upscale lifestyle.
But the drug scourge touches people of all socioeconomic levels, and their daughter Paige was a college freshman when she ran away, took to the streets, and became a full blown drug addict.
Simon and Ingrid are desperate to get Paige into rehab, but the girl is elusive and hard to find. Then Simon gets a tip about Paige busking in Central Park and - when he goes over - finds his precious daughter - skinny, dirty, and disheveled - performing for spare coins.
Simon tries to grab Paige but gets into a scuffle with her druggie boyfriend Aaron. The crowd - who thinks Simon is trying to abduct the girl - descend on the financial advisor and the two addicts get away. The video of the incident, which blows up on the internet, makes Simon look like a vicious bully.
When junkie Aaron is murdered in a Bronx drug den, Homicide Detective Isaac Fagbenle shows up on Simon's doorstep asking questions. Fagbenle - who's hot on the trail of Aaron's killer - considers Simon and Paige prime suspects. Simon, determined to save his daughter from a homicide arrest and her druggie lifestyle, sets out to find Paige once again. Despite Simon's protestations, his wife Ingrid tags along.
Simon and Ingrid go to the Bronx, find Paige and Aaron's bare bones apartment, and meet the addicts' landlord Cornelius - who's sympathetic but doesn't know where Paige is.
The distraught parents then confront the drug dealers nearby and things take a bleak turn.
As Simon continues to search for Paige, he joins forces with Elena Ramirez, - a former FBI agent who's now a Chicago private detective.
Ramirez is searching for a missing young man named Henry Thorpe.....who seems to have had some connection with dead Aaron.
Meanwhile, a young couple called Ash and Dee Dee - who met years ago in a foster home - are driving around the country murdering men on a 'kill list.'
To say much more would give away spoilers, but - as would be expected - all the above threads eventually come together.
Additional characters in the book include Simon and Ingrid's adolescent daughter Anya and college age son Sam; Simon's business partner Yvonne - who happens to be his sister-in-law; Simon's client Michelle - a lonely old woman who looks forward to Simon's monthly visits; Simon's lawyer Hester Crimstein - a fierce, capable defense attorney (who also shows up in Coben's 'Myron Bolitar' series 😊); several gangbangers; and more.
I'm a Harlen Coben fan, but this book was disappointing. Some aspects of the plot are so overblown they're cartoonish. Moreover, intelligent characters walk into traps that would have been sussed out by a sixth grader. This last plot device doesn't belong in a book by an accomplished, experienced writer.
That said, the novel was fast-moving and kept my interest, and I'd recommend it to readers who enjoy mysteries, especially Harlen Coben fans.
Thanks to Netgalley, the author (Harlen Coben), and the publisher (Grand Central Publishing).
Rating: 3 stars
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