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Gone Before Goodbye

The gripping new mystery thriller from the bestselling crime author and award-winning actress

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Gone Before Goodbye

By: Reese Witherspoon, Harlan Coben
Narrated by: Chris Pine, James Fouhey, Kiff VandenHeuvel, Peter Ganim, Reese Witherspoon, Saskia Maarleveld, Suehyla El-Attar Young
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Brought to you by Penguin.

An unforgettable collaboration between an award-winning actress Reese Witherspoon and the and #1 international bestselling writer Harlan Coben.

Maggie McCabe is on the brink. A highly skilled and renowned army combat surgeon, she has always lived life on the edge.

But now, after a devastating series of personal tragedies, Maggie is thrown a lifeline by a former colleague, an elite surgeon whose anonymous clientele demand the best care money can buy - as well as absolute discretion.

Halfway across the globe, one of the world’s most mysterious men requires unconventional medical assistance. Desperate, and one of the few surgeons in the world skilled enough to take this job, Maggie enters his realm of unspeakable opulence and fulfils her end of the agreement.

But when the patient suddenly disappears while still under her care, Maggie must become a fugitive herself – or she will be the next one who is…

Gone Before Goodbye

'Full of jaw-dropping twists and turns' Lisa Jewell

'Breathlessly accomplished with a plot that surprises and moves in equal measure' Gillian McAllister

'Witherspoon and Coben are a match made in literary heaven’ USA Today

© Reese Witherspoon, Harlan Coben 2025 (P) Penguin Audio 2025

 Crime Thrillers Editors Select Genre Fiction International Mystery & Crime Medical Mystery Suspense Thriller & Suspense Women Sleuths Exciting Surgery
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Editorial Review

Discretion is strongly advised
When I first learned that Reese Witherspoon and Harlan Coben were collaborating on a novel, I practically jumped out of my chair. As someone who’s devoured Coben's thrillers—as well as being a part of Reese's book club—this partnership was immediately one of my most-anticipated listens of the year. The medical thriller introduces listeners to Maggie McCabe, a former surgeon with extraordinary skills. Maggie is exclusively chosen to perform a discreet, unconventional medical procedure, and then finds herself thrust into a treacherous world in which her principles and survival instincts are put to the test. As if the author duo wasn’t enough, Reese also narrates along with an all-star cast featuring Chris Pine, Saskia Maarleveld, and James —Dawn G., Audible Editor

Critic reviews

Intricate, with twists galore, it is glamorous yet packed with suspense.
This book had me up all night. It’s truly gripping and a real page-turner
A notch above most celebrity collaborations . . . a taut, twisty yarn
I devoured it
This fast-paced, emotionally charged and suspenseful read explores how far a woman will go to uncover the truth
A pulse-pounding, female-led thriller filled with opulence, danger and plenty of twists
This starry collaboration goes full throttle into paranoia and power
The book’s plot mechanics hum along with great pace and verve . . . With Gone Before Goodbye, the two authors deliver a fun ride into a shadow land where the rich are convinced that money can insulate them from everything, including their own mortality — even if they have to murder a few people to get there.
This dream-team collab has smash hit written all over it!
Savvy, smart and suspenseful -- a thriller combo to relish (Val McDermid)
All stars
Most relevant
First off I like Harlan & Reese so I really wanted to like this book, however, it was so far fetched & silly, more like a ridiculous Hollywood movie 😳 I have no idea who thought ‘Porkchop’ was a good name for a tough biker just irritating, I do not like any of the characters and really didn’t care who lived or died, so much hypocrisy from Maggie it was laughable! Reese narrated well.

Mmm not sure

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Am I the only one who doesn’t understand the ending?? I’m so confused by the epilogue, I’ve listened to it a few times but I’m still stumped.
Up until then it was a good listen, entertaining and enjoyable performance.

I’m still lost and confused

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I selected this book because Reece Witherspoon and Harlem Coben were on a tv programme talking about it. They definitely overrated it though in my view.
Overall I wasn’t impressed by this. The narration was mediocre, even robotic in places. I frequently lost track or misunderstood the storyline and kept going back over sections. I’m still not terribly clear about who did what and to whom. I persevered with it against my better judgement- simply to find out what the ending was - but still didn’t accomplish that. Very unsatisfactory in general. I think if it had been a paper copy I would have abandoned it after a couple of chapters

Confusing and long winded

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Plot was unusual with a surgeon as the main protagonist. Reece Witherspoon was a good narrator but I personally find some American accents quite jarring and hers was one of those. The other narrators were less convincing, sounding more like they were reading scripts for a radio drama. However the twist at the end was unexpected and very satisfying!

Satisfying ending

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I guess this is a blockbuster and it was certainly full of cliches, bad Russians, hot women, slick doctors, evil rich people, world travel in sentences. Pretty ridiculous, the only redeeming feature was Reese Witherspoon and I can’t help but feel she gritted her teeth to do the job. Guess I’ve learned Coben is not my cup of tea.

Improbable story line, unlikeable characters

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