Title:	Six Years
	Author:	Harlan Coben
	Published:	2013, Signet
	No. of Pages:	428
	Cover Price:	$9.99 US

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Harlan Coben’s standalone novel, Six Years begins as Jake Sanders attends the wedding of his one true love. Jake and Natalie Avery fell deeply in love while attending a retreat. Without warning, Natalie broke off the relationship and married another man. At Natalie’s request, Jake made a promise that he would never attempt to contact her.

Jake keeps his promise for six years, not one day going by that he doesn’t think of her. When he comes across the obituary of Todd Sanderson, Natalie’s husband, Jake feels that the promise is no longer valid; he attends the funeral hoping to see Natalie and discovers that Todd’s wife isn’t Natalie.

Jake, a professor of political science at Lanford College, begins to diligently search for Natalie, and contacts relatives and friends that might be able to help him; everyone he contacts insists he is delusional and that they don’t remember him. As soon as he begins the search, he is kidnapped and almost killed; because of the incident, he is suspended from his job, and as more attempts on his life and dangerous close calls become the norm, he is forced to hide out while he investigates. Jake is definitely in a quandary, doesn’t understand why he is being targeted, and can’t accept the fact that Natalie, if she is even alive, is impossible to find. As he becomes closer to the truth, the danger escalates, and Jake’s main focus must change to keeping himself alive. It seems several different sets of bad guys are after him, including some ruthless mafia men, and it becomes doubtful that Jake will survive.

As usual, Harlan Coben tells his story like no other author can. He has the ability to weave a suspenseful, gripping tale, and insert his unique brand of dry humor where it’s least expected. His characters come across as real people, and it’s easy for a reader to relate to what Jake is going through. Coben is able to keep the readers’ interest until the very end, and the dénouement is a complete surprise.

While this bestselling novel isn’t perfect – there are too many deaths and murders for my taste - the writing style is vintage Coben, and unlike some of his bestselling author counterparts, he doesn’t rely on the use of stereotypes and falsehoods (some authors are simply too lazy to do the research) to fill up the book. The facts, events, and travel information ring true, and he leaves no unexplained portions of plot. Be prepared to stay on the edge of your seat and also to stay up late.

This book was purchased with personal funds and no promotion of the book was solicited by the author or publisher.

This book may be purchased at Amazon: Six Years