"Hold Tight" by Harlan Coben; Dutton ($26.95)

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The suburban mystery, which draws back the curtains on neighbors' often messy lives, has been around for decades. But Harlan Coben not only refined this type of mystery, he has turned it into his own genre - the family thriller.

Coben's family thrillers make it acutely aware that chaos, crime and the total upheaval of lives might be inflicted not on the couple on the next block or across town but on your own home.

His family thrillers are the epitome of "it could happen to me and how would I deal with it," adding to the novels' emotional investment. This, of course, makes Coben's novels, in a way, as scary if not more threatening than thrillers that thrive on the landscapes of politics, terrorism and espionage.

Coben's 15th novel "Hold Tight" is his most enthralling - as well as personal and timely. Parenting, privacy, trust and cyberspace are at the foreground of "Hold Tight's" plot. Do parents have the right - or the duty - to spy on a child who may be putting himself in danger? Does a child have the right to privacy? Can parents tell the difference between simple rebellion and a situation that's out of control? Should a child ever be privy to adults' secrets?

While Coben tackles these and other parenting issues with aplomb, the author never lets "Hold Tight" become an issues novel. Coben keeps the suspense tightly wound, the plot sharply focused and the excitement level high.

"Hold Tight" is filled with good parents who are trying to do the right thing for their children. Sometimes those good intentions don't work.

Reluctantly, Mike and Tia Baye have installed a sophisticated spy program on the computer belonging to Adam, their 16-year-old son. Once a happy teen close to both his parents, Adam has become withdrawn and secretive, especially since his best friend, Spencer, committed suicide. Mike and Tia are worried that Adam's personality change is more than about grief over his friend's death.

As the Bayes try to deal with Adam, other families in their New Jersey suburb contend with equally pressing problems. A couple tries to find a match for their son who desperately needs a kidney transplant. A single father worries about his daughter who's depressed over a teacher's rude remark. And Spencer's parents are tortured over what they did wrong and how can they not make the same mistakes with their surviving children. The seemingly unrelated disappearance of two women adds to the jeopardy that surrounds everyone.

Relying more on psychological terror than gratuitous violence, Coben makes the normal terrifying. A letter jacket, an e-mail, a stray comment, a child's car seat become lethal weapons that can ruin lives, as much as a gun or knife. Coben's theories on what makes seemingly ordinary people turn evil is superbly explored.

At first, "Hold Tight" seems too crowded with its myriad characters. But Coben makes each character an individual. It's like meeting all the neighbors at once at a big block party; you get to know each family quite quickly.

Coben's series about wise-cracking sports agent Myron Bolitar made his career and earned him multiple awards. But his superb thrillers put him on the best-sellers lists. In "Hold Tight," Coben surpasses even his best work.