Fade Away: A Myron Bolitar Novel (Myron Bolitar Mysteries) [Mass Market Paperback]

Friday, April 6, 2012

Fade Away: A Myron Bolitar Novel (Myron Bolitar Mysteries) [Mass Market Paperback]

Product Details

Mass Market Paperback: 368 pages
Publisher: Dell; Reissue edition (August 31, 2010)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0440246199
ISBN-13: 978-0440246190
Product Dimensions: 4.2 x 0.9 x 7.5 inches
Shipping Weight: 7 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)

By : Harlan Coben
Price : $9.99

Customer Reviews

I've read a few Harlan Coben books recently and I have thoroughly enjoyed his Myron Bolitar series. In Fade Away, he definitely raises the bar and moves from being not just an entertaining mystery writer, but also a well-written one.
Myron Bolitar is a 32 year old lawyer who runs his own sports agency. At one time, he was one of the top college players in the country. But after being drafted by the Celtics, he blows his knee out in a preseason scrimmage and his potential career is history. Now, the owner and general manager of the New Jersey Dragons want him to find one of their stars, Greg Downing, who has gone missing right before tournaments are to begin. In order not to raise suspicions, they place Bolitar on the team so that he can better investigate what has happened. Downing and Bolitar have been in competition since they were in high school, and it wasn't always about basketball. Bolitar finds many reasons for the possible disappearance of Downing that range from compulsive gambling to possible murder.
When I first started reading Coben, I thought the characters were a little too much like Robert Parker's Spenser and Hawk. But I've come to appreciate them on a new level. As a person who has played and coached basketball, Coben is right on in his observations about the game and the players. In describing Bolitar's complicated relationship with Downing, he says "there is a special bond between competitors. Kinda like Magic Johnson and Larry Bird. You become defined by one another. It was like that with Greg and me. It was unspoken, but we both knew the bond was there." TC, the other Dragon star tells Bolitar about the price of being a star. " The real price is you ain't a person anymore. You're just a thing, a shiny thing like one of these Benzes out there. The poor brothers think I'm a golden ladder with goodies at every step up. The rich white boys think I'm a fancy pet."
The plot in Fade Away is also much more intricate than usual, and the ending has a stunner of a surprise. I never saw it coming. The one thing that kept me from giving it five stars is that the plot line where Bolitar is recruited to play is a big stretch. Otherwise, this was a pretty awesome book.

Being an avid reader of mysteries, I am thrilled to find an author such as Coben to add to my list of must-reads. Thanks to Amazon.com's recommendation, I first read Fade Away, then scampered to the computer to order the rest of Coben's books. Even if you aren't a sports person, this book will be a joy to read and hard to put down. His characters are interesting and just neurotic enough to be believeable. The reader instantly likes both the hero, Myron, his best friend, the anti-hero, Win, as well as Myron's assistant and girl friend. The plot is intricate and you wonder if it will all be tied together at the end. This is one of the best mysteries I've read in a long time. Try it - you won't be disappointed!