“Six Years” by Harlan Coben – Stranger than Fiction

Six Years by Harlan Coben is a sort of mystery story, one that is a level above the rest in my opinion. It starts off with the introduction of our great hero, Jake Fisher. Six years ago, his wife left him to marry another, and he coped with it by investing himself in his career.

For all this time he has promised to leave Natalie alone, but on a faithful day, he sees the obituary of the man she left Jake for. Unable to contain himself, Jake goes on to attend his funeral, but while there, something strange happens: he sees the man’s wife, but she is not Natalie.

What’s more, the woman standing there has been married to Todd for over two entire decades. Nobody remembers Natalie, nobody remembers Jake, and that’s if he’s lucky enough to find old friends and acquaintances. Just like that, Jakes’ entire life is turned upside down.

First, let me say that I though the story to have been not only original, but also well-played out. I know that you are probably going to show me an example of some sort of where that type of story was already used, to which I will reply: there is literally nothing new under the sun. At this point, pretty much everything has already been done by someone, somewhere, especially when it comes to book stories.

In this case, you get to travel with Jake through the entire experience, learning bit by bit that the life he remembers having may have been a fake one, carefully-orchestrated for a sinister purpose. It’s just one of those storylines you take pleasure in watching develop, always trying to figure out what the truth is.

In addition to that, I think that the whole story is a bit of an allegory for a man searching for a new identity. The definition of himself he clang to in the past has been proven erroneous (Natalie is not who he remembers), and now he is desperately trying to find some kind of meaning in his life.

He starts with his past, and after painfully learning that there is nothing left for him there (none of his friends remember him or his acquaintances), he moves onwards and tries to find a new meaning (tries to solve the whole mystery).

All in all, this book works on many levels and can entertain, making it a book I can safely recommend.

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Harlan Coben Personal site Harlan Coben is an American author whose body of work mainly revolves around thrillers and mystery novels. In many cases he seems to want to explore unresolved events of the past, an approach which won him multiple awards, including the 1996 Anthony Award for Best Paperback Original.