Win had stocked the yacht with videos. They watched episodes of the old Batman show (the one with Julie Newmar as Cat Woman and Lesley Gore as Pussycat--double meow!), the odd Couple (Oscar and Felix on Password), a Twilight Zone ("To Serve Man"), and for something more current, Seinfeld (Jerry and Elaine visit Jerry's parents in Flroida). Forget pot roast. The was comfort food. But on the off chance that it wasn't substantial enough, there were also Doritos and Cheez Doodles and more Yoo-Hoos and even rewarmed pizza from Calabria's Pizzeria on Livingston Avenue.
Win. He might be a sociopath, but what a guy.
He-who-caters-to-my-every-whim went with me to the Planned Parenthood Book Sale this spring and came home with quite a few books. He has gone through most of them, liking about half. His response to Harlan Coben's 6th Myron Bolitar mystery was positive, and he wants more books by this author. In an attempt to understand what kind of books appeal to him, I gave this one a try. Let's just say we have different tastes in books.
If you are looking for some mind candy with a curious twist on the detective novel, this is a good choice. Fresh and funny with a satisfying mystery.
The repartee between Myron and his long-time friend Win is snappy. I admit to laughing out loud a few times, and read passages to He-who in the car one day, even though he had already read the book. The situation is rather novel as well. Myron is a sports agent, a 6' 4" ex-Duke, ex-Celtics basketball player who got his law degree from Harvard Law. Win is a college buddy turned securities tycoon, who manages the money for all of Myron's clients. Myron's business partner is Esperanza Diaz, a former professional wrestler finishing her law degree at night. Their secretary is the colorful 300-pound ex-wrestling partner of the petite Esperanza. Other regular characters include an old girl friend of Myron's, his mother and a mobster sports agent rival. There is history between all of these characters that is not completely spelled out in this novel.
So, why is this a murder mystery? Of course, people that know Myron tend to be murdered at a higher rate than one might expect for the general population. Like Jessica Fletcher, Myron is a dangerous person to know. He and Win feel compelled to solve these mysteries even though everyone tells them to stay out of it. In this particular case, one of Myron's clients is killed and Esperanza, is arrested for the murder. The evidence all points to her, but he begins to realize that he was the one being set up for the crime instead of her. So, who wanted to kill his client and get Myron out of the way at the same time?
He-who said that the characters were interesting and the story was fun to read. I suspect that the connection to sports, particularly to basketball, did not hurt. For me the only value was the resolution of the mystery and the humor. But mostly I found myself reading just to find out who-dunnit and that was a little disappointing. As Harry Chapin said, "It's got to be the going, not the getting there, that's good." I used to read a lot of mystery stories like this, but I guess my tastes have changed and I want more depth to the writing. I want prose that sings to me. Or I need to learn something from the writing. Or maybe I need more grit or more surprises. "Final" did not do any of this for me.
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