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I enjoyed it very much. This was one of the first Harlan Coben books I have read.
The convoluted mystery is also downplayed: there is neglible suspense and it unravels for Myron with minimal difficulty.Ultimately I prefer Coben's tighter and more suspenseful standalone books to this more lightweight style, but it would make for ideal mindless holiday reading. The missing girl is his client's girlfriend, but he also has a personal connection in that he dated her sister for four years. The book has a large cast of one-dimensional characters and moves quickly, which I found somewhat confusing. I have read all of Harlan Coben's standalone novels but this is the first that I have read in the Myron Bolitar series. If I was rating the book on how much I enjoyed it, it would probably only score 2 stars, but I've tried to put my own prejudices aside and to rate it on its own merits. It's a disconcerting blend which obviously works for most, but which left me lukewarm.Myron Bolitar is a likeable protagonist: a former basketball player who worked briefly (in an undefined capacity) for the FBI before becoming a sports agent. Deal Breaker takes a familiar Harlan Coben plot (cue a long missing, presumed dead sister who appears to be sending messages from the grave) but employs a lighter, almost Elmore Leonard/Carl Hiassen style tone. His assistant Esperanza is an ex-pro wrestler and his best friend and sidekick Win (short for Windsor Horne Lockwood III) is a "full fledged whitebread".
The sarcasm and characters are hysterical. I have started reading his other books that are not Myron Bolitar and enjoy them immensely. I had never heard of Harlan Coben and picked up one of his Myron Bolitar books on mistake - read it, and fell in love with it. Reminds me a little bit of Janet Evanovich - the Stephanie Plum Series. You will NOT be sorry. I love this series, the first 3 books are the absolute best. I have turned many people on to Harlan and we all love him.
If I coule my rating would be three and a half stars I tried thit out, and I can't deny that he is a good writer, and I did enjoy the book, but he is really more of a guy's guy, and it reflects in his writing.
The book has completely non-credible characters (might work in a kid's comic book) that left me wondering what world the author circulates in. Having read virtually everything that James Lee Burke, James Elroy, Michael Connelly, Elmore Leonard and Robert Crais have written, Harlan Coben isn't even close to being in their league. Having read great reviews for Myron Bolitar series, I bought three (used of course to minimize loss lest they be unengaging). The hero's sidekick, Win (no Joe Pike, he) is an amoral, misogynistic, cold blooded killer. Total bummer. Read the first, Deal Breaker, and will not read the other two. Will donate all three to local library.
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