Live Wire (The Myron Bolitar series, Book 10) by Harlan Coben

What a poignant story.  It jerks my heart to read Live Wire because I can relate to some of the characters' grief, their loss, their hurt and at times their joys and their humour.  You think you see a happy family walking in the street who on outward appearance are happy and put-together but what do they hide?  Because everyone has secrets, everyone has  hurt and everyone has unresolved problems in their lives.  But, everyone tries their best to make the best of their lives too.


Live Wire is more about Myron Bolitar's family problems than a crime thriller.  As with any family, Bolitar's has secrets.  Secrets which begin when someone is hurt and wants to hurt back.  Does that sound familiar?  This action then causes a ripple which results in another ripple and another and another until one day it all ends in sadness and loss.  Why not happiness?  Because hurt is always a more powerful emotion than the need to forgive.  Sometimes, tragically, death happens and it is too late.  Sometimes, there is no resolution and it brings back all the hurt again.  Amongst the ripples, there may be a glimpse or two of happiness but more often that not, it is so much easier to carry the hurt than to let it go.


Live Wire is a very well-written story reminiscent of Coben - he wouldn't let you read on in silence and there are some laugh-out and ah-ha! moments - which can stir up a lot of emotions for any reader because we have all been through some of the problems that Bolitar faces in the book.  What makes it a satisfying read is that it reads more fact than fiction in some parts.  I am unsure whether this is the last book in the Myron Bolitar series but if it is, it is a good 'un and I do not mean it lightly.

In his acknowledgments, Coben writes that for those who enjoyed reading about one of the characters in Live Wire, he will be extending it in a new young adult novel called Shelter, out in the autumn of 2011.


Live Wire is a funny and witty book and carries a lot of soul searching for his main character.  Do visit www.harlancoben.com for more information.


Synopsis:  Over the years, Myron Bolitar has walked a tightrope between sports agent, friend, problem solver and private eye, his big heart quick to defend his clients' interests so fiercely that he can't help but jump in to save them, no matter the cost to his own happiness.

So when former tennis star Suzze T and her rock star husband, Lex, encounter an anonymous Facebook post questioning the paternity of their unborn child, Lex runs off, and Suzze - at eight months pregnant - asks Myron to save her marriage, and perhaps her husband's life.  But when he finds Lex, he also finds two people he wasn't looking for: his sister-in-law, Kitty, wife of Myron's estranged brother, and her teenage son, Mickey, who is achingly familiar.  But this boy that he has never met blames Myron for everything that has happened to his parents...

As Myron races to locate his missing brother while their father clings to life after a savage heart-attack, he must face the lies that led to the estrangement long ago - including the ones told by Myron himself.  He must also answer the questions that Mickey's arrival has thrown up.  Who is Myron Bolitar really?  And can he heal the damage of the past?

We thought we knew Myron, but Harlan Coben now shows us we never did.  An electric, stay-up-all-night thriller that unfolds at a breakneck pace, Live Wire proves that Coben still has the ability to shock us anew.

Harlan Coben and his views on marketing books and other things:



And here is the author chatting about his latest book on today.com on 8 April 2011:

http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/42230205/ns/today-books/t/harlan-cobens-thriller-reveals-private-eyes-personal-life/

Rating:  5/5