Five children go on an adventure in the woods but only four return. Twenty years later the mystery of missing Jesse Wells resurfaces in the strangest place. The surviving now-adults are caught in a web of half-truths and guarded memories that launch them into the middle of a police investigation that threatens the tentative peace that they’ve clung to over the years.

From the mind of mystery/thriller writer, Harlan Coben comes this edge-of-your-seat series, The Five, that has more plot twists and hidden secrets than you can keep track of. Coben spins a delicious tale that keeps you guessing right til the last. And all of your guesses will be wrong!

The tale begins when the DNA of a boy who had been missing for twenty years shows up at a crime scene. His family is contacted by the lead detective who, as a young teen, was one of the last people to see young Jesse Wells before he disappeared.

Detective Danny Kenwood (O.T. Fagbenle) was friends with Jesse’s brother, Mark (Tom Cullen) and together with their two friends Pru (Sarah Solemani) and Slade (Lee Ingleby) they went out for an afternoon in the woods. Mark’s little brother followed them for a while but was eventually sent home by the group. He turned back but never made it home.

Twenty years later, with a convicted child-killer copping to Jesse’s disappearance, the group of friends are rocked at the idea that Jesse may be out there somewhere all these years. Each one struggles with their role and responsibility in the loss of Jesse and a distrust of one another creeps into the group as the web of lies and secrets becomes unraveled.

The cast does a brilliant job bringing their characters to life and Coben’s tale gives them a lot of great material to work with. The Five is a truly exceptional mystery series and the only downside is that it is only available on Netflix Canada until September 14, 2021. After this date you may be able to catch it on the UK version of Netflix by unlocking the promo below. Be sure to catch this series, one way or another, on Netflix now.