KING OF THRILLS

As his latest murder mystery hits our screens, best-selling author Harlan Coben reveals why he cried during filming and how he works with his eldest daughter

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He is one of the most successful authors in the business, and much like the twists in his novels, Harlan Coben is always one step ahead – already plotting the next mystery thriller that will tie readers in knots.

The American writer, 63, published his first novel in 1990 and has since sold more than 90 million copies of his books worldwide, becoming a No. 1 New York Times bestselling author of 35 novels and later bringing many of them to the small screen in hit series such as Fool Me Once, Stay Close and Missing You.

There aren’t many authors who can boast their own dedicated collection on Netflix – or say that they've had the “tremendous honour” of meeting the Queen, a fan of his work, at Clarence House during her Queen’s Reading Room Festival – but Harlan is one of them.

Despite decades of success, seeing his work brought to life on screen still gives him pinch-me moments. “I go through all the emotions when I’m watching,” the writer exclusively tells HELLO!.

His latest adaptation, Lazarus – a six-part series starring Sam Claflin and Bill Nighy – is a father-son story centred on Dr Joel Lazarus (played by Sam), whose father Jonathan dies in a suspicious suicide, prompting an investigation into a string of cold-case murders.

The story is partly inspired by the loss of Harlan’s own father, Carl, who died of a heart attack at the age of 59 in 1988.