“Fool Me Once” is the first big Netflix show of 2024. The British mystery-drama is based on a best-selling Harlan Coben novel and centers on a recently widowed woman’s search for answers after she spots her deceased husband on a nanny camera. The show went straight to No.1 on Netflix in the U.S. and U.K. and amassed more than 61 million global viewing hours in its first two weeks on the streaming service.
Its success has led to Netflix quickly commissioning two more shows based on Coben's books, but these won’t arrive for a while yet. So, if you’re looking for shows like “Fool Me Once” that you can start binge-watching right now, then we’ve got you covered. Below you’ll find 7 shows on the best streaming services that are just as twisting as “Fool Me Once” and will have you similarly hooked from the very start.
‘The Stranger’
Like “Fool Me Once”, “The Stranger” is also a Netflix adaptation of a Coben novel, and the two shows even share a cast member: Richard Armitage. Like many of the author’s works, The Stranger begins with a lead character living a seemingly perfect life, in this case, Adam Price (Armitage). Adam seems to have it all, but in true Coben fashion, this blissful happiness doesn’t last very long.
One fateful day, while attending his son’s soccer practice, Adam is approached by a mysterious stranger (Hannah John-Kamen), who reveals a shocking secret about his wife, Corinne (Dervla Kirwan). Before Adam can get answers his wife disappears, and as he attempts to find out the truth, more hidden secrets are revealed. “The Stranger” offers plenty of shocking twists and turns and is a show that will have you rushing to press “play next episode” after each dramatic cliffhanger ending.
Watch on Netflix
‘Wilderness’
Starring Jenna Coleman and Oliver Jackson-Cohen, “Wilderness” is best described as a “twisted love story” as this six-episode series explores how the perfect relationship can splinter and crack in just a matter of seconds. If you want a thriller series that will keep you guessing until the closing moments, then “Wilderness” is the next show you need to watch.
“Wilderness” follows Liv (Coleman) and Will (Jackson-Cohen), a young British couple, living a glamorous life in New York City. But their problem-free relationship is thrown into turmoil when Liv discovers Will’s infidelity. Taking a road trip to America’s stunning National Parks, Will hopes to reconnect and make amends, but Liv doesn’t have reconciliation on her mind, she wants something else entirely: Revenge.
Watch on Prime Video
‘Stay Close’
As noted, Netflix has adapted several of Coben’s novels into TV shows (“Fool Me Once” is the streamer’s 8th Coben-based series), and 2021’s “Stay Close” is arguably the best effort to come from this partnership to date. It’s the best-reviewed collaboration between the streaming service and author scoring 92% on Rotten Tomatoes.
“Stay Close” is more ambitious than some of Coben’s more straightforward stories. It follows three main characters; Megan (Cush Jumbo), a hardworking mother of three, Ray (Richard Armitage), a jaded photographer and Broome (James Nesbitt), a police detective who’s haunted by an unsolved missing-persons case. When another unexplainable disappearance occurs, unwelcome truths come to light, and the lives of all three protagonists hang in the balance.
Watch on Netflix
‘One of Us is Lying’
If you’re looking for a show like “Fool Me Once” but with a little more pep (and that isn’t set in Britain) then “One of Us is Lying” is a great pick. Based on the best-selling novel of the same name by Karen M. McManus, it opens with five high school students getting detention. But this isn’t the Breakfast Club. Instead of becoming fast friends, these very different students become murder suspects when one of their classmates suffers a sudden allergic reaction.
The police determine that the death was no tragic accident, and when it’s revealed that each of the four students in detention at the time of the incident had a motive for murder the investigation begins. What follows is a pretty outlandish tale, expect some questionable logic on this journey, but “One of Us is Lying” is still great fun throughout, and it was successful enough to get a very solid second season as well.
Watch on Peacock
'Bodyguard'
Bodyguard is just as twisting as “Fool Me Once”, but it’s a little less schlocky. It's an acclaimed BBC political thriller that stars Richard Madden — who you may recognize from Marvel’s Eternals — as David Budd, a former solider suffering from PTSD, who is now working as a private security personnel for high-profile targets in London.
When David is tasked with running protection for an ambitious politician, Julia Montague (Keeley Hawes), he finds himself at a crossroads. Montague is an elected member of the British Parliament, with designs on becoming the Prime Minister. But her political beliefs stand against everything David believes, and as he grows closer to Julia, it becomes clear the person hired to protect her just might be her biggest threat. Bodyguard features two powerful performances at its core and builds to a suspenseful finale you won’t see coming.
Watch on Netflix
'Safe'
Released in 2018, "Safe" marked the first collaboration between Netflix and Harlan Coben, and covers plenty of the same ground as "Fool Me Once". In this exploration of the dark underbelly of everyday society, a family man’s life is thrown into turmoil when his daughter goes missing. Michael C. Hall plays Tom, a recently widowed father of two teenage girls, and his mission to find his missing daughter leads to the discovery of long-buried secrets.
Also featuring Amanda Abbington, Marc Warren, Audrey Fleurot and Hannah Arterton, "Safe" is classic Coben with each of the eight-episode slowly peeling back the layers of a very compelling mystery. Naturally, each chapter ends with a dramatic cliffhanger that will have you racing to find out what happens next. If you enjoyed "Fool Me Once" it’s a safe bet that you’ll find this thriller series just as engrossing.
Watch on Netflix
'Pieces of Her'
The always-excellent Toni Collette stars in "Pieces of Her", a dramatic thriller that made its debut on Netflix in March 2022. Like the other picks on this list, this eight-part limited series centers on a twisting mystery as our lead character, in this case, a young adolescent named Andy (Bella Heathcote), embarks on a search for answers, determined to find the truth no matter the personal cost.
"Pieces of Her" opens with Andy and her mother, Laura (Collette), bearing witness to a deadly shooting at a local restaurant. But when Laura steps in and expertly eliminates the threat, Andy is left wondering what secrets her mom has been hiding. But soon after this dramatic turn of events, Andy is forced to flee as sinister ghosts from Laura’s past return to cause chaos and a long-hidden truth comes to light.
Watch on Netflix
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