Harlan Coben’s “Lazarus” is a must-watch for thrillseekers and mystery lovers. From the first episode, it hooks the audience into a labyrinth of secrets that keeps expanding every episode. The entire six-episode season was released on Oct. 22 and is available to watch on Prime Video. It’s not for everyone, but I highly recommend giving the first few episodes a chance.

The story follows forensic psychologist Joel “Laz” Lazarus, played by Sam Claflin, as he returns to his hometown after the death of his father. But after entering his father’s office, he begins to get visions that ultimately lead him to discover a long string of deaths all connected to his father’s patients.

This premise by itself is already engaging, but the way that the director Wayne Che Yip, Daniel O’Hara and Nicole Volavka bring the vision of creators Harlan Coben and Danny Brocklehurst. It is amazing, especially during the scenes where it’s hard to distinguish what is reality and what is going on in the head of Laz. 

My hopes were not very high for the acting of this show since there was very little advertising for the show and the rating was mediocre, but man, the acting was spectacular. Claflin was phenomenal in portraying a man slowly losing himself as he spirals deeper into investigating crimes he has no business involving himself with.

The rest of the cast is also enjoyable to watch, but for the most part, we are focused on Laz, so they don’t necessarily get to stand out as much, except for Bill Nighy, who plays Dr. Jonathan Lazarus, the late father of Joel and Jenna Lazarus. He’s a character many will love to hate as he plays this cold, distant father who treats his kids like they are his patients.

One issue that this mini-series suffers from is the lack of grounding in reality. Not the visions that Laz is suffering from, those make sense in the story that the creators are telling. But it is hard to believe that Laz would be able to go around town doing what he’s doing without any repercussions. Even if he has a friend in the police force, he should not be getting away with half the things he does. There are other areas where the lack of grounding takes away from the series, but going into more detail will take away from potential viewer enjoyment.

Overall, I truly believe that audiences who love a dark mystery with twists and turns that will make their head spin will love this series if they give it a chance.