Myron Bolitar

Any of you know this name? Should you?

He grew up the older of two brothers in Livingston, NJ, starring for the high school hoops team and was heavily recruited by major programs. He chose Duke and carried the team to two national championships in the early 1980s. He was a top 10 overall choice of the Boston Celtics in the mid-1980s. He blew out his knee in the pre-season and never played an NBA game. He did a little investigative work for the Feds, got a law degree from Harvard and started representing athletes.

Well, he sort of did these things...

Myron Bolitar is the protagonist in nine novels by Harlan Coben. The novels are fast-paced mysteries characterized by twists and turns and, for the most part, you won't see the end coming.

Coben is in my top five for two reasons. First off, I'm a fan of the twist. I don't want a mystery to be too easy for the reader to figure out and I, as an author, really appreciate Coben's ability to bend and twist and throw the 12-6 curve ball.

Secondly, the characters are compelling. OK, I'll admit it. Myron and his cast of cohorts are a little satirical. Myron, the lead, is a consummate gentleman from a loving family. He's a former star athlete who made good after sports. He also is a trained pugilist with a knack for finding missing people. His best friend, Windsor Horne Lockwood, III (or simply Win), has sculptured good looks, says "Articulate" when he answers the phone, lives in expensive apartments, runs a family investment firm...oh, and he's deadly. Etc.

The thing about these characters - when you've been away from Myron Bolitar for three years and Long Lost comes out in April 2009, it's like putting on a really comfortable t-shirt. You laugh at the witty exchanges between Myron and Win and think, as an author, Do these conversations come naturally to Coben, or does he sit for hours, finding the perfect snappy comeback?

They fit together and, as a reader, you fit as well.

If you don't know Myron Bolitar - and like a mystery you won't see coming - pick up 1995's Deal Breaker. And let me know what you thought...