Netflix has unveiled its latest mystery series from the pen of acclaimed author Harlan Coben, with the fresh adaptation, Missing You, premiering on New Year’s Day.
Hot on the heels of the triumph of Fool Me Once featuring Michelle Keegan, which soared to ‘s most-watched show of 2024 with a staggering 100 million views globally, the new series has been highly anticipated.
The Coben- collaboration kicked off in 2018, aiming to transform 14 of his novels into gripping TV series.
Coben’s own production company, Final Twist Productions, ensures his hands-on involvement in each adaptation, much to the delight of his eager fanbase, reports .
With nine Coben adaptations currently available for streaming on UK, the question arises: which one is the best? We’ve delved into the Rotten Tomato scores of each series to crown the ultimate Coben show.
Missing You came out on New Year’s Day (Image: NETFLIX)
9. Gone For Good
Coming in last place is Coben’s Gone for Good, which audiences awarded just 34% on Rotten Tomatoes.
The synopsis reads: “Ten years after losing the two people he loved most, a man finds himself plunged into another dizzying mystery when his girlfriend suddenly vanishes.”
The French language show stars Finnegan Oldfield, Nicolas Duvauchelle and Guillaume Gouix.
8. Missing You
Despite earning a respectable 6.3/10 stars on IMDb, Missing You has only managed to score a measly 36% on Rotten Tomatoes, though it’s still early days for the series.
The synopsis reads: “Detective Kat Donovan’s world unravels when she finds her estranged fiancé on a dating app; this leads Kat to reopen the unsolved mystery surrounding her father’s murder.”
Slow Horses actress Rosalind Eleazar delivers a powerful lead performance alongside Richard Armitage and Lenny Henry.
Stay Close is on Netflix (Image: NETFLIX)
7. Hold Tight
Next, with a similarly low Rotten Tomatoes score of 37% is ’s Hold Tight, which is an original Polish language series.
The description reads: “When a young man goes missing soon after his friend dies, life in a tight-knit, affluent Warsaw suburb slowly unravels, laying bare secrets and lies.”
Polish actress Magdalena Boczarska leads the cast alongside Leszek Lichota and Grzegorz Damiecki.
6. Fool Me Once
Despite being a mega hit for , Fool Me Once is surprisingly low down on the list, though it has a much higher rotten tomatoes score of 71%.
The synopsis reads: “After her husband is brutally murdered, Maya spots someone on the nanny cam she has installed to keep an eye on her young daughter — someone who is supposed to be dead.”
Popular actress Michelle Keegan stars in the lead role of this British drama alongside Richard Armitage, who appears in many of Coben’s biggest hits.
Fool Me Once was a huge hit for Netflix (Image: NETFLIX)
5. Safe
While it has the same Rotten Tomatoes score as Fool Me Once – 71% – Safe has a higher audience score of 74%, which is why it is slightly higher up the list.
The synopsis reads: “After his teenage daughter goes missing, a widowed surgeon begins uncovering dark secrets of the people closest to him.”
Safe stars Michael C. Hall in the leading role alongside Amy James-Kelly and Sherlock star Amanda Abbington.
4. The Stranger
’s The Stranger has landed an impressive score of 87% on Rotten Tomatoes, marking another successful turn for Richard Armitage in a Coben series.
The synopsis says: “A web of secrets sends family man Adam Price on a desperate quest to discover the truth about the people closest to him.”
In this pacey thriller, Armitage stars alongside Jennifer Saunders, Siobhan Finneran and Hannah John-Kamen.
3. The Woods
2020 Polish miniseries The Woods has been awarded 89% on Rotten Tomatoes and the plot has been described as “captivating”.
The synopsis reads: “In Warsaw, a prosecutor’s hopes rise after a body is found and linked to his sister’s disappearance 25 years earlier.”
Polish actors Grzegorz Damiecki, Agnieszka Grochowska and Hubert Milkowski star in the gripping limited series.
2. Stay Close
’s second-highest rated Coben adaptation is Stay Close, which once again features Richard Armitage, and it scores 92%.
The description reads: “The lives of a photojournalist, a soccer mom and a homicide detective are impacted by a terrible event from the past.”
Joining Armitage in the cast are Bethany Antonia, Daniel Francis and Jo Joyner.
1. The Innocent
’s The Innocent has earned a rare 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, arguably making it Coben’s most critically successful series to date. The Spanish drama also has an audience score of 80%.
The synopsis says: “An accidental killing leads a man down a dark hole of intrigue and murder; just as he finds love and freedom, a phone call brings back the nightmare.”
The thrilling mystery series stars Mario Casas, José Coronado, Aura Garrido and Alexandra Jiménez.
All nine Harlan Coben series are available to stream now on .