Netflix has plenty of exciting new offerings this month including a must-watch thriller based on the work of a bestselling crime author
15:15, 02 Jan 2026
Netflix’s new thriller from crime mastermind Harlan Coben is a must-watch this January.
Releasing on New Year’s Day (Thursday, 1st January), the eight-part drama Run Away is the 15th series based on Coben’s bestselling novels and it could be the best yet.
Starring James Nesbitt and Minnie Driver as a couple whose daughter Paige (played by Ellie de Lange) has tragically gone missing, their desperate search takes a grim turn when she’s spotted busking in a park.
When Simon (played by Nesbitt) violently confronts his daughter’s suspicious boyfriend Aaron Corval (Thomas Flynn), he becomes the prime suspect in a murder investigation when he later turns up dead.
With Paige absent once again, Simon is determined to clear his name while Detectives Isaac Fagbenle (Alfred Enoch) and Ruby Todd (Amy Gledhill) are on the case.
Meanwhile, he enlists the help of private investigator Elena Ravenscroft (Ruth Jones) to get to the bottom of the mystery.
Known for other Netflix hits such as Fool Me Once and Missing You, fans of Coben’s novels and subsequent TV adaptations have come to expect twists galore, nail-biting tension and enough red herrings to keep you guessing several times an episode.
Variety’s review called the series “mind-bending” and wrote: “Shocking revelations, horrifying cruelty and complex lies engulf the narrative itself, even when it leans toward the preposterous.
“Still, the stellar cast, taut pacing and inventive storylines keep the show engaging, even when it could’ve very well fallen apart.”
The Independent also gave the series a positive review, though admitted Run Away is “junk food TV” that delivers satisfying thrills in easily-digestible portions.
“Netflix has really mastered a particular alchemy here: a surefire formula that relies on lurching from one twist to the next, before landing a final gut-punch so seismic that you’re left completely disoriented,” they wrote.
Praising Nesbitt’s central performance, they added: “Anchoring it all is Nesbitt. As the dogged, deceptively hard Simon, he adds a lacquer of gravitas to this slick operation.
“Despair haunts his face throughout, but, this being Coben, there are also traces of pitch-black humour as the bodies pile up. And they really do, in scenes that are often visceral and pretty grisly.”
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Fans who have caught the series already have also been praising the adaptation. One viewer took to Reddit and commented: “Generally, I have enjoyed it, it is his typical [mystery] story with a few plot twists, shocks and red herrings. Perfect for a lazy day.”
Someone else agreed: “Binged it today. It was all I ever want from these Netflix Coben adaptations.”
And one more fan called it an “incredible watch”, so it looks like Run Away definitely deserves the top spot on your Netflix watchlist this weekend.
Run Away is available to stream on Netflix.
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