Gone Before Goodbye

by Reese Witherspoon, Harlan Coben

Maggie McCabe is teetering on the brink. A highly skilled and renowned Army combat surgeon, she has always lived life at the edge, where she could make the most impact. And it was all going to plan ... until it wasn’t.

Upside down after a devastating series of tragedies leads to her medical license being revoked, Maggie has lost her purpose, but not her nerve or her passion. At her lowest point, she is thrown a lifeline by a former colleague, an elite plastic surgeon whose anonymous clientele demand the best care money can buy, as well as absolute discretion.

Halfway across the globe, sequestered in the lap of luxury and cutting-edge technology, one of the world’s most mysterious men requires unconventional medical assistance. Desperate, and one of the few surgeons in the world skilled enough to take this job, Maggie enters his realm of unspeakable opulence and fulfills her end of the agreement. But when the patient suddenly disappears while still under her care, Maggie must become a fugitive herself—or she will be the next one who is ... Gone Before Goodbye

Genres: Thriller, Audiobook, Mystery, Fiction, Mystery Thriller, Book Club, Suspense

11 pages, Audio CD

First published October 14, 2025

About the author

Reese Witherspoon is an award-winning actress, producer, New York Times bestselling author and founder. In 2016, she established the media brand, Hello Sunshine, which puts women at the center of every story across all platforms– from scripted and unscripted television, feature films, animated series, podcasts, audio storytelling, and digital series. Hello Sunshine is also home to “Reese’s Book Club,” a community propelled by meaningful connections with stories, authors, and fellow members. Witherspoon is best known for her roles in feature films like WALK THE LINE, WILD, ELECTION and LEGALLY BLONDE as well as Emmy award-winning TV series “Big Little Lies,” “Little Fires Everywhere” and “The Morning Show.”

source: Amazon

Reviews

[Kylee Williams]

What, like it’s hard?

[sabrina · Rating 5 out of 5]

ELLE WOODS WROTE A THRILLER

[Matt · Rating 2 out of 5]

oh my fellow Reese’s Cups im so sorry but this book was a HOT ASS MESS. as a huge Reese fan i’d been so excited for this book to come out and that’s the only reason i didn’t just dnf this early on. Not sure how much input Coben had on this but I did not expect a Reese Witherspoon book to be such a ‘dad thriller’ complete with mobs, russian oligarchs, and cartoonish biker gangs.

let’s get this out of the way: the writing in this thing is straight of a high school creative writing class kind of bad. there is sooo much unnecessary exposition and everything is explained to you like you’re a 3rd grader. one egregious example:

“Is this a Bugatti?” Maggie asks.
She doesn’t know cars, never had any interest in them, never understood those fascinated by them. Cars aren’t her baby or friend; she doesn’t think they’re cool. They get her from Point A to Point B. Period, the end. She only guesses it’s a Bugatti because it just feels like money and because Charles Lockwood had told her that she’d be staying at the new ultra-exclusive Bugatti Residences by Binghatti, which is supposed to somehow combine Binghatti luxury living (whatever that means) with, well, Bugatti luxury automotive design. Didn’t make much sense to Maggie, but not much about the innovatively decadent (yet decidedly throwback) Dubai lifestyle did.”

Like????



it’s a mostly readable book, and around the 30% mark is where i stated getting invested in where the story was going and what reveals were in store, but again it’s just not very well done. this also feels a bit confusing coming from Reese as this book is much more suited to Coben’s audience than hers. maybe it’s because i associate her with books like Big Little Lies and Where the Crawdads Sing, but i definitely feel like people would expect more of a domestic mystery from her instead of an outlandish conspiracy/action thriller like this 🤷🏻‍♂️

[Kate Quinn · Rating 5 out of 5]

"The Night Manager" meets "Grey's Anatomy." I enjoyed this one SO much!

[Milosh · Rating 1 out of 5]

if you wanna love russians you must arrive in Ukraine and live here for a while. But not in the Lviv. Please, welcome to the Chernihiv! Welcome to the Sumy! But maybe you prefer something hotter? What about Bakhmut? Or maybe you would like Pokrovsk?
if you wanna love russians you must know what is it when they want 🍇 you and ☠️ you. Because this is all what they can do with you.

Awful book.

[Meagan (Meagansbookclub) · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm reviewing this book based off my audiobook experience.

Let's get this out of the way first, I find it infuriating (and insufferable) that Reese decided she was the right narrator for our main character, Maggie. I thought her narration was overly done and lacked any real depth that typically comes from our professional female audio narrators (January LaVoy, Julia Whelan, Saskia Maarleveld to just name a few). I get how excited Reese is for this book, but all I could picture was Elle Woods acting poorly as a troubled surgeon that has a father in law named Porkchop. It was a JOURNEY for me to listen to Reese for 10 hours. If you decide to pick this book up (but please- for the love, read my review before you think it's worth your time to read!!), read a physical. While the full-cast was intriguing....it was not good.

Next- the writing was high school creative writing class level. Since I did the audio, I wasn't able to grab any lines to share, but I did do a deep dive on the 1-2 star ratings and yall showed up! Thank you! Ok- here is a sample of what was basically every other page. Unnecessary over explanations and overall crappy sentence structure. (Harlan my man, you put your name on this *cue tears for Harlan*).

“Is this a Bugatti?” Maggie asks.
She doesn’t know cars, never had any interest in them, never understood those fascinated by them. Cars aren’t her baby or friend; she doesn’t think they’re cool. They get her from Point A to Point B. Period, the end. She only guesses it’s a Bugatti because it just feels like money and because Charles Lockwood had told her that she’d be staying at the new ultra-exclusive Bugatti Residences by Binghatti, which is supposed to somehow combine Binghatti luxury living (whatever that means) with, well, Bugatti luxury automotive design. Didn’t make much sense to Maggie, but not much about the innovatively decadent (yet decidedly throwback) Dubai lifestyle did.”

See what I mean? Whenever I encounter a book with an excess of stupid explanations and a heavy amount of dialogue, I tend to believe the author wrote the book thinking SCREENPLAY. It felt like a movie play by play with really dumb interactions over and over and over again. So couple ALL OF THAT with Reese's voice for 10 hours...pain.

The story in and of itself wasn't BAD per say, but it did loop us around and around and around. And maybe that's where Harlan comes into play with adding in his thriller/suspense expertise? The plot lacked focus and I think if Reese+Harlan spent more time really building that setting, we would feel more connected to the characters and what happened. I'm not sure how the jobs were divided in this book, but what I do know is that when the story is clouded by terrible writing, you kinda forget about the solidness of the story all together.

For the love, this was a hot mess and I'm shocked at the 5 star reviews. I don't believe yall.

[Ольга К. · Rating 1 out of 5]

хіба крім русні нема про кого писати, зайчік

what, like it’s hard?

[Katie Torosian · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was one of the stupidest god damn books I’ve ever read

[Elaina Kutz · Rating 1 out of 5]

Unforgettable suspense novel is correct…I will forever remember the time I wasted and how truly awful this was. I think “storytelling talents of Reese Witherspoon” are reserved for when someone else writes the story and she acts it out. It’s like someone had some thoughts, typed them out, said it was perfect and turned it in for a high school creative writing class, thinking they had something great because no one had ever told them they weren’t that good. Like there were so many cringy things that editors read it and looked at each other and said just send it, we can’t fix this, it’ll sell because it’s got big names attached and we can pretend like this never happened.

I wouldn’t recommend this to anyone else to read but at the same time, can someone else read it and hate it with me?

[emilybookedup · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 rounded to 4 for GR. this book is getting low reviews that i’m surprised by—i had a GRAND ole time reading it!

best part about it: so bingeworthy and grabs you immediately
meh part about it: the ending? went in a way i wasn’t expecting at all and began to feel more like a fam drama vs thriller

sooooo, if want need a book that grabs you immediately and is quick/fast paced and has lots of action, this is the one. i was in a slump when i read it and it pulled me right out and i finished it in maybe 2 sittings. it was so fun!

where it fizzled for me was the ending. maybe it’ll have a sequel? if not it feels like there were some plot holes and also some like “what about this” moments so that’s why i rounded down the 3.5 vs 4. the first half was looking like a strong 4+ star. i woulda liked more on the surgeon aspect of it all, that was so fascinating to me and well written.

the AI plot of it all was very fascinating too. makes you wonder if that’s in play right now? how…spooky?!

i’ll say i was waiting for a big WOW twist and this one doesn’t have that, but it has a bunch of little twists sprinkled throughout. which is fine! i like both in my thrillers.

felt like a suspenseful action movie with how much was going on and i think if casted well, it could be a fun 🎬 adaptation… just saying 👀

TLDR; this is fun, i enjoyed it and recommend it, it’s good for book clubs and easy to read / moves quick. but, not the best thriller i’ve read all year.

[Kate · Rating 1 out of 5]

No way to write about russia when they perform genocide against Ukrainians.

[Renata Annese · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hold my coffee ☕… this book was WILD! 🔥

Twisty, fast-paced, and full of attitude! It had me hooked from page one and didn’t let go. Every time I thought I knew where it was going, another jaw-dropper hit. 😱 The pacing, the tension, the emotion… chef’s kiss. 👌

Reese crushed the narration... 🎧 fierce, funny, and full of heart. She gave Maggie so much depth and edge, I could practically see her rolling her eyes and kicking butt. 💁‍♀️ And Coben? Oh, he did what he always does... dropped those jaw-dropping twists that make you gasp, grin, and question your life choices. 😅

It’s suspenseful, sharp, and impossible to put down. One minute I was laughing, the next I was holding my breath. The perfect mix of heart and chaos… and yes, I need this to be a movie ASAP. 🎬 Does anyone know someone at Netflix? 👀

Unputdownable 🔥 Addictive 💫 Electric ⚡ One of my favorite reads this year. 🙌

[Yana Vansovych · Rating 1 out of 5]

Looks like schooling didn’t do much for Reese. Praising russia in times like these is beyond disgusting. Next time, try “going” to israel — I bet it’ll be a nice ride.

[Linzie (suspenseisthrillingme) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Intermingling a globe-trotting game of cat-and-mouse with a poignant look at love and loss, Gone Before Goodbye was everything you would expect from this new writing duo. From the genuine dialogue laced with cute banter to the action-packed scenes that had my adrenaline pumping, the plot was the perfect combo of psychological/action thriller and women’s fiction. You see, despite the overriding sense of foreboding and constantly escalating tension, the underlying emotions were what popped off the page. Making you feel all of the feels while also giving you the ride of your life, this quick, easy read was exactly what I thought I’d find from this brand-new collaboration.

What do I mean by that, you might ask? Well, thanks to the compelling characters and onion-like plot, I was fully invested from beginning to end. Throughout the book, I found myself rooting for Maggie while I also desperately wanted to know all the whos, whats, and whys behind the layers of dark, long-buried secrets. But it was Reese’s voice that added depth to the plot. Bringing in a flawed female main character that was also smart, strong, and brave, she’s the kind of persona women want to read. Add in Porkchop and his crew, and it just couldn’t have been better. Well, I take that back. Coben’s standard unguessable twists and turns made the book sing.

All said and done, while the conclusion didn’t quite work for me in the end, I still had a blast riding shotgun with Maggie through this tour de force of a read. Suspenseful and well-plotted, there were even a few times that I could sense Hitchcock’s hand in a scene. After all, I didn’t foresee the big, giant reveal coming at all. A script-flipping moment that hit me just right, it still fit with how I saw each of the characters. Emotionally charged yet also palpably tense, it was the perfect mix of everything I love. So if you adore a full-service story that is both a tear-jerker and a heart-pounder in one, grab a copy today. It had me verklempt and thrilled all in one go. Rating of 4.5 stars.

SYNOPSIS:

Maggie McCabe is teetering on the brink. A highly skilled and renowned Army combat surgeon, she has always lived life at the edge, where she could make the most impact. And it was all going to plan...until it wasn’t.

Upside down after a devastating series of tragedies leads to her medical license being revoked, Maggie has lost her purpose, but not her nerve or her passion. At her lowest point, she is thrown a lifeline by a former colleague, an elite plastic surgeon whose anonymous clientele demand the best care money can buy, as well as absolute discretion.

Halfway across the globe, sequestered in the lap of luxury and cutting-edge technology, one of the world’s most mysterious men requires unconventional medical assistance. Desperate, and one of the few surgeons in the world skilled enough to take this job, Maggie enters his realm of unspeakable opulence and fulfills her end of the agreement. But when the patient suddenly disappears while still under her care, Maggie must become a fugitive herself—or she will be the next one who is…Gone Before Goodbye.

Thank you to Harlan Coben, Reese Witherspoon, and Grand Central Publishing for my complimentary copy. All opinions are my own.

PUB DATE: October 14, 2025

Content warning: death of a loved one, grief, gun and knife violence, car accident, violence, mention of: drug use

[Veronica Anrathi · Rating 1 out of 5]

What a time to be romanticising russia, huh?
Never write again.

[Maren’s Reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5-5⭐️ RTC.

[Майя Ставитская · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love the actress Reese Witherspoon; I have great reverence for what she does to promote reading: I even have a perfume called "In Bloom", the perfume composition of which was composed by Reese - with a magnolia in a heart note, reminding her of her childhood in her parents' garden in Louisiana. Her literary debut happened in collaboration with the master of the sharp plot Harlan Coben, allowing her to hope for a bombshell novel.

Maggie McNabb is a plastic surgeon, and you're mistaken if you think that this specialization is limited to nose shaping, buttock implants, and braces for the rich. The real revolution in the industry began during the First World War, when many young men were disfigured by shrapnel wounds, and only aesthetic surgery gave them a chance for a normal life in the future. Maggie is a military doctor, she worked with her husband in hot spots, she is from a medical dynasty, her mother even founded a foundation for medical assistance to victims of local conflicts, and her daughter proudly served the noblest of professions.

Until everything collapsed. It didn't take long for Maggie's house of cards to shatter. At first, her mother was diagnosed with inoperable cancer, and to be with her, Maggie returned to the States from Africa, where she worked with her husband. At that time, the marriage of her sister Sharon, a digital genius and developer of superapps, collapsed - her husband, a part-time manager, disappeared with all their money, leaving a lot of debt on loans. And then came the news of the death of Mark, Meg's beloved husband. The militants carried out a massacre in the refugee camp where he worked in a field hospital. She completely fell out of reality at that time and, realizing that a cocktail of antidepressants with tranquilizers was the surgeon's enemy, she nevertheless operated, making a mistake that cost her a trial and the revocation of her license.

It's hard to think of a deeper hole, but the last humiliation lies ahead - at the foundation's annual ceremony, where she traditionally presented the prize to the best doctor, they explained to her that Maggie is now persona non grata. Experiencing the deepest humiliation and wondering how to leave the event unnoticed, she meets one of the former teachers, who radiates contentment and prosperity, reports that he owns a pharmaceutical company, several clinics and is generally on the Forbes list of the richest doctors, and then offers to earn extra money, naming the amount that will more than cover his sister's debt on loans and it will allow them to keep the house. The client, a Russian oligarch, does not care about the loss of her license, the main thing is professionalism, for which a colleague vouches.

There is a pitfall, and a serious one - they will have to operate on Rublevka (which, as Maggie knows, is the traditional base of the Russian oligarchy, Lenin and Stalin had dachas there, Khrushchev and Gorbachev had summer residences.) Everything will take place in an atmosphere of strict secrecy, the oligarch Ragarovich will be delivered to the place by a personal jet, the first half of the money will fall into her account after consent, the second - upon fulfillment of obligations. Well, the heroine has no choice, and on a golden plane, wrapped in a traveling sweater from Brunello Cuccinelli, Maggie flies to snowy Moscow. Where he gets into a helicopter to get to Gelendzhik, which is no less snowy, where the client has a summer palace with the original Mona Lisa (there's a copy in the Louvre, you know).

However, the rich are so rich because they know how to count money, and Dr. McNabb's job is "2 for the price of 1" - Ragarov's mistress Nadia Strauss will also have to have her breasts enlarged. However, for $10,000,000, why not recycle, the problem is that the girl has one kidney cut out, and this is always a risk of complications. But the main surprise awaits Maggie when she sees Nadia's tattoo - the only person who had the same one, her dead lover. In the Gelendzhik palace, among forests and snowdrifts (!), the Internet does not catch, but this does not prevent the heroine from contacting the main person in her life and receiving his wise advice.

Russian oligarchs and corrupt American officials did not take into account Sharon's genius. There is one more thing that they did not take into account - Porkchop, Maggie's father-in-law and the leader of the New York bikers, who became a single father at 17 and is now ready to tear anyone up for his daughter-in-law, even in frosty Russia, even in hot Dubai. Dr. McNabb's adventures are just beginning, and there's so much more to come that if you're worried about spoilers, don't worry, I've just lifted the edge of the novel's patterned veil. In fact, it would be cool if it weren't for the blatant gaffes that were unacceptable in the days of the developed Internet.

What promised to be a bombshell novel ended up looking more like a fart pillow from a joke shop.

Развесистая клюква в морозном Геленджике
Я люблю актрису Риз Уизерспун; с большим пиететом к тому, что она делает для популяризации чтения: у меня даже духи есть "In Bloom", парфюмерную композицию которых сочинила Риз - с магнолией в ноте сердца, напоминающей ей о детстве в саду родителей, в Луизиане. Ее литературный дебют случился в соавторстве с мастером острого сюжета Харланом Кобеном, позволяя надеяться на роман-бомбу.

Мэгги Макнейб пластический хирург, и вы ошибаетесь, если думаете, что эта специализация ограничивается коррекцией формы носа, ягодичными имплантами и подтяжками для богачей. Настоящая революция в отрасли началась в годы Первой Мировой, когда множество молодых мужчин оказалось изуродовано осколочными ранениями, и лишь эстетическая хирургия давала им шанс на нормальную жизнь в дальнейшем. Мэгги военврач, работала с мужем в горячих точках, она из врачебной династии, мама даже основала фонд медицинской помощи пострадавшим в локальных конфликтах,и дочь с гордостью служила благороднейшей из профессий.

Пока все не рухнуло. Чтобы разлетелся карточный домик благополучия Мэгги понадобилось совсем немного времени. Сначала у мамы диагностировали неоперабельный рак, чтобы быть с ней, Мэгги вернулась в Штаты из Африки, где работала с мужем. В это время рухнул брак ее сестры Шерон, цифрового гения и разработчицы суперприложений - супруг, по совместительству менеджер, исчез со всеми их деньгами, оставив кучу долгов по кредитам. А потом пришло известие о гибели Марка, любимого мужа Мэг. Боевики устроили резню в лагере беженцев, где он работал в полевом госпитале. Она тогда совсем выпала из реальности и, понимая, что коктейль из антидепрессантов с транквилизаторами враг хирурга, все же оперировала, допустив ошибку, которая стоила ей судебного разбирательства и лишения лицензии.

Глубже яму трудно придумать, однако последнее унижение впереди - на ежегодной церемонии фонда, где приз лучшему врачу традиционно вручала она, ей объяснили, что теперь Мэгги персона нон-грата. Переживая глубочайшее унижение и прикидывая, как бы незаметно покинуть ивент, она встречает одного из бывших педагогов, который лучится довольством и достатком, сообщает, что владеет фармацевтической компанией, несколькими клиниками и вообще в списке самых богатых медиков Форбс, а затем предлагает подзаработать, называя сумму, которая с лихвой покроет задолженность сестры по кредитам и позволит им сохранить дом. Клиента, российского олигарха, не волнует потеря ею лицензии, главное профессионализм, за который коллега ручается.

Подводный камень есть, и серьезный - оперировать придется на Рублевке (которая, как Мэгги знает, традиционная база российского олигархата, у Ленина и Сталина были там дачи, у Хрущева и Горбачева - летние резиденции.) Все будет происходить в обстановке сугубой секретности, на место доставят личным джетом олигарха Рагаровича, первая половина денег упадет на ее счет после согласия, вторая - по выполнении обязательств. Что ж, выбора у героини нет, и на золотом самолете, укутавшись в дорожный свитер от Брунелло Кучинелли, Мэгги летит в заснеженную Москву. Где пересаживается в вертолет, чтобы попасть в не менее заснеженный Геленджик, где у клиента летний дворец с подлинником "Моны Лизы" (в Лувре копия, вы ж понимаете).

Однако богатые потому так богаты, что умеют считать деньги, и на месте доктора Макнейб ждет работа "2 по цене 1" - придется еще увеличить грудь рагаровичевой любовнице Наде Штраус. Впрочем, за $10 000 000 отчего не переработать, проблема в том, что у девушки вырезана одна почка, а это всегда риск осложнений. Но главный сюрприз ждет Мэгги, когда она видит татуировку Нади - единственный человек, у которого была такая же, ее погибший любимый. В геленджикском дворце, среди лесов и сугробов (!) интернет не ловит, но это не мешает героине связываться с главным человеком своей жизни �� получать его мудрые советы.

Русские олигархи и коррумпированные американские чиновники не учли гениальности Шерон. Есть и еще одно, чего они не приняли во внимание - Поркчоп, свекор Мэгги и предводитель нью-йоркских байкеров, который стал отцом-одиночкой в 17 и теперь готов за невестку порвать кого угодно, хоть в морозной России, хоть в жарком Дубае. Приключения доктора Макнейб только начинаются, впереди еще столько всего, что если вы переживаете за спойлеры - не волнуйтесь, я лишь приподняла краешек узорной вуали романа. На самом деле, это было бы круто, если бы не вопиющие ляпы, недопустимые во времена развитого интернета.

То, что обещало стать романом-бомбой, в итоге скорее похоже на подушку-пердушку из магазина приколов.

[Ellen Willaert · Rating 1 out of 5]

huh?? biggest disappointment of the year for sure

[Maria · Rating 1 out of 5]

In a time when Russia is attacking Ukraine, writing about the “grandeur” and “wealth” of Russia is not just tone-deaf — it’s morally rotten. You have to be profoundly disconnected from reality, or simply indifferent to suffering, to romanticize an aggressor state while people are dying.

As for the book itself — it’s badly written. The plot is thin, the characters are flat, and the dialogue is painfully unnatural. The story drags without purpose, packed with empty descriptions instead of meaning or emotion. It’s not immersive — it’s exhausting.

The idea may have had potential, but the execution is shallow, dull, and careless. A forgettable book from someone who clearly didn’t think about the world they live in — or simply didn’t care.

[Magdalena Miękińska (getbooky) · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Meredith H. · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was either written by AI or by a college freshman who just declared a creative writing major because someone once told them they “had a way with words.” They don’t. They should be an accountant.

It reads like they got feedback to “be more descriptive,” then took that as a personal challenge to make sure you actively resent every paragraph. No spoilers, but here’s a taste:

“The heat starts in your lungs. The sun is relentless. Merciless. It finds you. It beats down upon you. It’s just you and the sun. You have a personal one-on-one relationship with… THE SUN. There is no middle man, no filter, no cloud cover, no escape. You get the purest hit of the sun. The sun love bombs you. It’s dry and heavy and clingy. It swarms you with an all-consuming furnace-like heat. It suffocates you from within and from without. It saps your energy first… then your spirit.”

If you made it through that without rolling your eyes, congratulations. I had to make an appointment with my eye doctor for strained muscles.

The “plot” (and I use that term loosely) felt like four unrelated stories got into a car wreck and no one called for help. I kept waiting for it to get better. It did not. At one point, I genuinely wondered if Reese Witherspoon had any idea what she was endorsing, but since she narrates the audiobook, I guess she’s read it at least once. Which is, frankly, one too many times.

As a nurse and a woman, I found some of the writing insulting. And not subtly so. I was bludgeoned with the obviousness. At one point, a character literally says: “She hands me the , yes, the other surgeon is a woman.” Thanks. We know how pronouns work.

I didn’t love this book. I didn’t even like it ironically.

[Scott Lyons · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay, so I DID enjoy this. It was a bit over the top for me, but it was a page turner. Harlan Coben is a personal favorite of mine and I can kind of see how he fleshed out the story for this and helped Reese get from point A to point B… but like I said, it’s a little over the top.

Maggie McCabe is a beyond talented surgeon… she specializes in plastic surgery, but can basically do anything. With that being said, she’s lost everything after her life fell apart when her husband (another brilliant surgeon) is murdered overseas, her mothers passing, and her partner and friend (yet another brilliant surgeon) has gone missing. With all her grief, she loses her medical license when a surgery goes horribly wrong. Flash forward and Maggie is recruited (for a ridiculous amount of money) to perform some surgeries in Russia for some Uber Billionaires… and basically all hell breaks loose.

This is fast paced and entertaining, just not really believable. And that’s okay for me honestly, but it was just… A LOT. Glad I read it, it was fun, but wasn’t one of my favorites of the year.

[Teju A · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay! i didn't hate this, but i just couldn't put my finger on what i wasn't keen on. Love Coben. so ill just blame Reese for this. 😏🤣🤣.

Not to talk of the subject so outside of what i thought Witherspoon's first novel would be.

The king of twists delivers as usual and so did not see that end coming!

When a disgraced surgeon is hired for a secret job, she comes to discover that her dead husband may be her saving grace, when things start to go left!!!

Solid 3.5 stars!!!

[MarcyLikesToCry · Rating 1 out of 5]

Дайте вже Різ оскара. Вміло зіграти роль розумної людини в фільмі, коли насправді ти тупа мабуть збіса складно fr fr

[Bkwmlee · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

Before I go into my thoughts on this book, one thing I feel compelled to start with is that I’m a bit of a cynic when it comes to books written by celebrities and/or other famous public figures who are very much “not” authors. Part of this could be because I’m a writer myself and understand how much work (blood, sweat, tears, and sacrifice) goes into writing something worth reading – in a sense, writing is an activity bordering on “sacred” for me, so I can’t help feeling disappointed when I see celebrities attach their names onto books that they didn’t actually write themselves, but they are given all the credit for it (yes, I’m looking at you, ghostwritten celebrity memoirs). Now before I get attacked by any fans, I need to make it clear that I am not saying that’s what happened here, since, to Reese’s credit, she has been very forthcoming from the getgo about the fact that she did not write this book herself, rather it is a “collaboration” with established author Harlan Coben. Further, Reese has said in interviews (as well as in the Acknowledgements pages at the back of the book) that she provided the “seed of an idea” for the story and Coben was the one who turned it into “a fully fleshed-out, page-turning thriller” – so yes, I acknowledge that this situation is not on the same level as those ghostwritten books where the “real” author is given little to no recognition.

With that said however, I will be honest in saying that, after finishing this book, I can’t help but wonder about Reese’s involvement in its writing – specifically, did she write some of it or none at all? The reason I say this is because the entire novel felt very “Coben-esque” in the sense that it read very much like a plotty action thriller with too many macho male characters, too few underdeveloped female characters, and tons of action scenes involving gun fights, helicopters, car and motorcycle chases, death-defying stunts, etc. In other words, the book seems to be geared more toward Coben’s fans than Reese’s. I also can’t help but be reminded of a question that had come up back when the Reese Witherspoon/Harlan Coben collaboration was first announced: given that Reese’s Hello Sunshine media brand “puts women at the center of every story across all platforms” (this is from the blurb on the book’s back cover) and the books she chooses for her Book Club are all written by female authors, why would she choose a male author to collaborate with for her debut novel? Doesn’t this contradict what Reese tries to do with her brand? Indeed, judging from her book club picks (for the record, I’m not a Reese fan, but I do follow her book club because majority of the books she chooses to feature happen to fit my reading tastes), I was expecting Reese’s debut novel to be a collaboration with a female author (perhaps one she has featured in her book club) and more in the vein of a high concept literary suspense / thriller with a strong female protagonist at its center. Turns out I had the wrong expectations.

Don’t get me wrong – this book had an interesting premise and I would say that I did “enjoy” it overall, but it didn’t blow me away. There were the expected twists and turns (Coben is a seasoned suspense / thriller writer after all), though as usual, I was able to figure most of the plot points out early on, so the suspense portion was a little lacking. Also, the ending kind of left me scratching my head -- it felt anti-climactic to me given how “action-packed” the rest of the story was (though it could be that I just didn’t “get” the ending).

In any case, this was an overall entertaining read that I’m sure fans of action thrillers will love, but if, like me, you’re not keen on action thrillers, then you might want to temper your expectations if you decide to pick this one up. Also, one last thing to note is that, given the premise, there are a lot of details related to the medical and technology fields throughout the book – personally, I felt it was a bit much and at times, the technical jargon kind of bogged down parts of the plot, but again, this could just be me not being into the “science-y” stuff…my guess is that this won’t be a problem for most folks who decide to read this one.

[Lavins · Rating 2 out of 5]

2 stars

A book full of action, felt like a blockbuster movie that was trying to be converted into a book and failed.

The theme is okay-ish but it starts to go downhill in a heartbeat when the main character is opening her mouth. Yeah, i couldn't stand Maggie McCabe. She is entitled, asks a million questions, she's very noisy and she says the dumbest things at the worse possible time. I am not even going to bother to give examples. Take your pick. There's plenty.

Then the book itself... it felt like a joke. Especially towards the end and the actual finish. Not only that not so smart Maggie figures out everything in a glance and she succeeds to get out of situations where even 007 would ask for help, but she's putting together all these puzzle pieces by seeing 2 letters in the wind. Give me a break. Oh and let's not forget about the end, where actually everyone admits to knowing it all (how some people died and so on), but not wanting to say it out loud.

[Lorry · Rating 2 out of 5]

No thanks. I'm not sure why a highly successful writer like Harlan Coben would feel the need to partner with someone in the film industry especially with all his also incredibly successful Netflix mini-series.

Mr. Coben writes books that have a great hook, move quickly, has a cast of interesting characters, good dialogue and satisfying endings. This was not that. One would have hoped that he would have edited out anything that didn't meet his standards but he didn't. Perhaps that was their editors choice. Whatever the case, this book lacks. Mr. Coben is prolific writer, there are many other wonderful Coben books, read one of those.

Aside from this book, I find Ms. Witherspoon's interference with the book industry somewhat disturbing. Publishing is already in a precarious place and the treatment of authors, even successful ones, is getting to be quite poor. In my opinion, this will continue to be damaging for writers and readers.

[Mariia Krepkikh · Rating 1 out of 5]

Great stupid attempt to romanticize bloody russian culture. It worth even less the 1 star

[Tina · Rating 1 out of 5]

Oh, romanticizing Russians in 2025 is pretty much like writing a novel about Nazi in 1944. Well done! I hope Russians at least paid her well. Otherwise she is just a useful idiot.

[Angelina · Rating 1 out of 5]

So… Crimea has been occupied since 2014 and there’s been a full-scale war in Ukraine since 2022 — and you still love Russia? Wow, impressive 🤢💩