Win (Windsor Horne Lockwood III #1) by Harlan Coben

EXCERPT: ‘We found one item in the closet of this bedroom.’ Brynn smiles. She has, I notice, a nice smile. ‘Only one.’

I wait.

Lopez reenters the room. Behind him, a crime scene technician carries an alligator-leather suitcase with burnished metal hardware. I recognize the piece, but I can’t believe it. It makes no sense.

‘Do you recognise this suitcase?’ Brynn asks.

‘Should I?’

But, of course, I do. Years ago, Aunt Plum had one made up for every male member of the family. They are all adorned with the family crest and our initials. When she gave it to me – I was fourteen at the time – I tried very hard not to frown. I don’t mind expensive and luxurious. I do mind vulgar and wasteful.

‘The bag has your initials on it.’

The technician tipped the luggage so I could see the tacky baroque monogram.

WHL3

‘That’s you, right? WHL3? Windsor Horne Lockwood the third?’

I don’t move, don’t speak, don’t give anything away. But, without sounding overly dramatic, this discovery has given my world a shove off its axis.

ABOUT ‘WIN’: Over twenty years ago, the heiress Patricia Lockwood was abducted during a robbery of her family’s estate, then locked inside an isolated cabin for months. Patricia escaped, but so did her captors — and the items stolen from her family were never recovered.

Until now. On the Upper West Side, a recluse is found murdered in his penthouse apartment, alongside two objects of note: a stolen Vermeer painting and a leather suitcase bearing the initials WHL3. For the first time in years, the authorities have a lead — not only on Patricia’s kidnapping, but also on another FBI cold case — with the suitcase and painting both pointing them toward one man.

Windsor Horne Lockwood III — or Win, as his few friends call him — doesn’t know how his suitcase and his family’s stolen painting ended up with a dead man. But his interest is piqued, especially when the FBI tells him that the man who kidnapped his cousin was also behind an act of domestic terrorism — and that the conspirators may still be at large. The two cases have baffled the FBI for decades, but Win has three things the FBI doesn’t: a personal connection to the case; an ungodly fortune; and his own unique brand of justice.

MY THOUGHTS: Why does Win have to be such a egotistical, entitled, narcissist? I really disliked him. I didn’t even admire his well-intentioned vigilante episode, mainly because I don’t think that it was well intentioned. It was just Win, flexing his muscle and doing something he enjoyed with what he regarded as benevolent justification.

I struggled with WIN. The storyline may have held my interest had Win been more relatable, but it is very wearing having to listen to Win endlessly tell us just how good and wonderful Win is.

There is a distinct lack of suspense and tension. The book is slow-paced, almost boring, and by the time I got to the admittedly very surprising twist, I was just over it. That twist earned an extra half star from me.

There are numerous references to Myron Bolitar, the main character in another series written by Coben; one I sampled a couple of books of, but didn’t enjoy and didn’t continue with. I don’t remember Win from my brief foray – he apparently features – and I probably wouldn’t have picked WIN up to read had I known of the connection.

I have read some brilliantly good books by this author, unfortunately WIN isn’t counted among them.

⭐⭐.5

#Win #NetGalley

I: @harlancoben @randomhouse

T: @HarlanCoben @randomhouse

THE AUTHOR: Harlan Coben was born in Newark, New Jersey. He still lives in New Jersey with his wife, Anne Armstrong-Coben MD, a pediatrician, and their four children.

DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Random House UK, Cornerstone, Century via NetGalley for providing a digital ARC of WIN by Harlan Coben for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.

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