12 Harlan Coben Series, Ranked

In this Polish series, a mother (Magdalena Boczarska) goes on the investigative warpath in suburban Warsaw after her teenage son disappears shortly after the death of his best friend. “Straining my involvement are, first, digressions to unnecessary misogynistic violence and, second, tangential subplots,” KDHX critic Diane Carson said. “They are intrusive, artificially trying to generate added suspense not intrinsic to the central issues.” Average IMDb rating: 6.2

All it takes is “juste un regard” at an old photo for Eva Beaufils to start to understand her life so far has been a lie in this French series. And then her husband vanishes. “[Just One Look] starts well, and has a great lead in Virginie Ledoyen playing Eva … but the finale is pure Scooby-Doo nonsense,” Den of Geek’s Louisa Mellor declared. “Prepare yourself for that, and this six-episode French mystery will fill your time well enough.” Average IMDb rating: 6.3

This French adaptation follows Guillaume Lucchesi (Finnegan Oldfield) as he recovers from two tragedies — the deaths of his ex-girlfriend and his brother — only to be walloped by two more: the death of his mother and the disappearance of his girlfriend. “While the mystery itself is intriguing, the show is slow and steady,” said Common Sense Media’s Marty Brown. “Without the dramatic arcs and twists that episodic drama really needs to engage viewers, Gone for Good is for mystery fans only.” Average IMDb rating: 6.3

Another Polish transposition of a Coben story, The Woods (or W głębi lasu) stars Grzegorz Damiecki as a Warsaw prosecutor and Agnieszka Grochowska as a professor ex of his, as the two characters investigate a decades-old crime at a summer camp. The series “can be monotonously grim … but Damiecki and Grochowska sharply convey the anguish that their characters have carried with them for decades via haunted glances and halting speech patterns,” wrote Slant’s Josh Bell. Average IMDb rating: 6.6

Though Prime Video canceled this series in November 2023, it does give Harlan Coben fans a chance to see his YA hero Mickey Bolitar on screen. In the story, Mickey (Jaden Michael) uncovers the dark underworld of his new suburban home when he becomes involved in a missing-girl case not long after his father’s sudden death. “It feels odd to call an adaptation of a Harlan Coben thriller ‘charming,’ but the eight-part Shelter series is just that,” observed The Guardian’s Lucy Morgan. Average IMDb rating: 6.6

Featuring Richard Armitage in his third Harlan Coben adaptation, Fool Me Once has Michelle Keegan playing ex-army captain Maya Stern, who is shocked to see her seemingly-dead husband (Armitage) on her nanny cam. Meanwhile, Maya’s niece and nephew have a mystery of their own to solve. “It would be a lie to say that this is anything other highly bingeable fare,” admitted the Evening Standard’s Hamish Macbain. “I devoured all of its eight hours one after the other, just as the Netflix algorithm ordained that I would.” Average IMDb rating: 6.8

A secretive mother (Cush Jumbo), a jaded detective (James Nesbitt), and a down-on-his-luck paparazzo (Armitage) have their lives upended when a man’s disappearance echoes a years-old case. “Stay Close builds its puzzle slowly, through subliminal editing of past violence and through the silences in what the characters don’t say to each other — empty spaces that invite us to imagine what happened to these people all those years ago,” wrote the San Francisco Chronicle’s Chris Vognar. Average IMDb rating: 6.9

The first Coben novel to be adapted for television, this French series centers on a doctor (Alexandra Lamy) who goes vigilante after she is shot in the back, her husband is slain, and her infant daughter is kidnapped. “This six-part series … is a tense, nail-biting ride from start to finish” Old Ain’t Dead’s Virginia DeBolt wrote. “The story grew more complex as the episodes rolled by. It wasn’t a single kidnapping and murder. There [were] all sorts of intrigue involved — a wider scope, a bigger message.” Average IMDb rating: 7.1

Coben created two stories specifically for TV, and one is this series, starring Michael C. Hall (and his fake British accent) as a widowed father looking for his missing teen, with Amanda Abbington and Hannah Arterton playing detectives on the case. And everyone seems to have something to hide. “Finding out why they are so guarded, and where all the bodies (figuratively and literally) are buried, is what makes this series a potential binge candidate,” said the Los Angeles Times’ Lorraine Ali. Average IMDb rating: 7.2

In this series — the first title produced under Coben’s 2018 multi-million-dollar deal with Netflix — the seemingly-idyllic life of Adam Price (Armitage, again) unravels when a stranger approaches him with a shocking secret about his wife. “With revelations dealt out like treats, actors of the quality of Stephen Rea and Jennifer Saunders in the cast, and pacing that is guaranteed to elevate your pulse rate, just try to watch one episode without being sucked in,” raved The Sydney Morning Herald’s Barry Divola. Average IMDb rating: 7.3

Another Harlan Coben story not based on one of his books, this series focuses on four childhood friends still haunted by the vanishing of a 5-year-old decades earlier — especially after the boy’s DNA turns up at a new crime scene. “What ensues — a riveting storyline rife with shocking twists and brilliant turns — cements The Five as one of the most uniquely compelling crime dramas in years,” Decider’s Jade Budowski decided. Average IMDb rating: 7.5

Spain got into the Harlan Coben game with this series, titled El inocente, starring Mario Casas as a man whose past catches up with him long after he serves prison time for the accidental killing of a man. “It’s an ideal binge proposition for how reliably the story keeps turning on its head,” said Ready Steady Cut’s Jonathon Wilson. “Excellent performances lend the soapy material some real gravitas, and capable direction makes for great suspense.” Average IMDb rating: 7.8