2012.2 REVIEW – Drop Shot by Harlan Coben

Drop Shot
by Harlan Coben

Copyright: 1996
Pages: 341
Rating: 4/5
Read: Jan. 8 – Jan. 15, 2012
Challenge: The Eclectic Reader 2012; Mystery & Suspense 2012; Off the Shelf 2012
Yearly Count: 2
Format: Print
Source: Personal Copy

Blurb: A young woman is shot in cold blood, her lifeless body dumped outside the stadium at the height of the US Open. Once her tennis career had skyrocketed. Now the headlines are being made by another young player form the wrong side of the tracks.

When Myron Bolitar investigates the killing he uncovers a connection between the two players and a six-year-old murder at an exclusive club. Suddenly Myron is in over his head. And with a dirty senator, a jealous mother, and the mob all drawn into the case, he finds himself playing the most dangerous game of all…

---

Review: So this is the second in the Myron Bolitar series. I read the first one (Deal Breaker) a long time ago. (And please excuse my terrible review, which was before I got very detailed in my reviews). I wasn’t too impressed, so naturally I wasn’t in very much of a hurry to get around to the second book. For whatever reason, I decided to give this series another shot. I’m glad I did. To be completely honest, having that big of a gap (3 years) in between reading the two books, I was a little lost. I didn’t remember the supporting characters. I didn’t remember some things that were mentioned. But that was okay for me; it didn’t hurt my opinion of the book at all.

What I continually kept asking myself while reading this book was this: was the first book this funny? I mean, I’m talking laugh out loud funny at times. Other times it was cheesy funny. But in all seriousness, I don’t recall Myron being humorous. I would assume that he was funny in the first book, that’s not something that is likely to change in a character; I just don’t remember that aspect of Myron’s character. Either way, I enjoyed the humor.

The big ah-ha moment came at a perfect time in my opinion. I hadn’t figured out what was really going on before the big reveal. That’s exactly how I like my books to be, I don’t want to figure it all out way too early and then have to finish the rest of the book. And to be completely honest, the person who ended up being the killer made perfect sense when I sat down and really thought about some of the clues left throughout the book.

Overall, I would recommend this book. I found it to be funny and enjoyable. And while I would recommend reading any series in order, this book stands relatively well on its own.