Long Lost (Myron Bolitar)
Long Lost (Myron Bolitar) book cover

Long Lost (Myron Bolitar)

Hardcover – March 31, 2009

by
Price
$11.76
Format
Hardcover
Pages
384
Publisher
Dutton Adult
Publication Date
ISBN-13
978-0525951056
Dimensions
6.5 x 1.5 x 9.25 inches
Weight
1.4 pounds

Description

From Publishers Weekly Myron Bolitar takes on international terrorists in bestseller Coben's fast-paced ninth thriller to feature the sports and entertainment agent (after Promise Me ). With his romantic relationship with 9/11 widow Ali Wilder on the rocks, Myron is free at a moment's notice to accept the invitation of his former lover, Terese Collins, a TV newswoman who dropped out of his life years earlier, to join her in Paris. There Terese tells Myron her investigative reporter ex-husband, Rick, whom Myron never knew about, recently got back in touch with her and hinted at an earthshaking revelation. Rick's murder plunges Bolitar into a frenzied, often violent chase across Europe in an effort to learn Rick's secret. Aided by his upper-class sidekick and bodyguard, Win, Bolitar builds up an impressive body count as he attempts to prove he didn't kill Rick—and foil a terrorist plot that's as imaginative as it is preposterous. Bolitar fans will cheer their hero every step of the way. (Apr.) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. From Booklist Mutli-award-winning author Coben returns to the series that kick-started his red-hot career in his latest novel starringxa0Harvard-educated sports agent/private eye Myron Bolitar (after Promise Me, 2006). Myron hasn’t had contact with Teresa Collins in seven years, so he is taken aback by her early-morning phone call from Paris. Her ex-husband, who begged her to meet him there, isxa0missing, and she needs Myron’s help. Before they can launch a search, however, they are taken into custody by the French police; it seems Teresa’s husband has been murdered, and she is the prime suspect. One other unexpected complication: DNA found at the scene of the crime appears to belong to the couple’s daughter, except their daughter has been dead for years. Just when Myron starts making progress on putting the pieces together, he is kidnapped by a covert organization and subjected to intense torture. Myronxa0wakes up inxa0a hospital back in the U.S. in bad mental and physical shapexa0but isxa0immediately sheltered byxa0his loyal staff, including Win, hisxa0blueblooded business partner, and Esperanza,xa0a former wrestling star turned lawyer. Their easygoing, humorous camaraderie as well as Coben’s chilling incorporation of modern medical technology and modern interrogation techniquesxa0make thisxa0novel hard to put down.xa0Coben puts a wickedxa0topical spin on Children of the Corn inxa0an action-packed thriller with axa0horrific yet crediblexa0premise. --Joanne Wilkinson Harlan Coben is the bestselling author of fifteen previous novels, including the #1 New York Times bestseller Hold Tight, The Woods, Promise Me, and the Myron Bolitar series. He is a winner of the Edgar Award, the Shamus Award, and the Anthony Award. Read more

Features & Highlights

  • Contacted by a woman with whom he shared an affair years earlier, Myron Bolitar learns how she has been wrongfully accused of murdering her ex-husband, a situation that is further complicated by a long-hidden family secret. By the author of Hold Tight.

Customer Reviews

Rating Breakdown

★★★★★
30%
(2.3K)
★★★★
25%
(1.9K)
★★★
15%
(1.2K)
★★
7%
(545)
★
23%
(1.8K)

Most Helpful Reviews

✓ Verified Purchase

Exceptional return of Myron Bolitar

From Loren Keim, author of [[ASIN:1572486988 How to Sell Your Home in Any Market: 6 Reasons Why Your Home Isn't Selling... and What You Can Do to Fix Them]]:

For those of you who have not read the Myron Bolitar books, they are exceptionally well written, full of humor, intense action and surprise twists and turns.

The long awaited and eagerly anticipated "Long Lost" installment of the series is one of the best. It is simply Harlan Coben at his best! (As I side note, I was surprised and disturbed by the reviews of 1 star that complained about the price or the purchase method. Reviews are meant for the books! And this book was great!)

Ten years ago, Myron Bolitar, sports agent, retired FBI agent, mystery solver and attorney, had dated TV personality Terese Collins. It didn't work out. Now she's returned, calling Myron from Paris because her ex-husband has been murdered and, of course, she is the primary suspect.

Worse, there is DNA at the scene and it belongs to her dead daughter. The twists and turns in this international search for the truth brings up truths that may have been better left buried (so to speak).

Forget the 1 star reviews here - this is an excellent book and Harlan Coben at his absolute best! You'll rediscover the rich psychopathic but ultimately loveable Windsor Lockwood the third, the ex-wrestling champ turned attorney and gorgeous Esperanza, and the writing style that has made Harlan a best selling author.
73 people found this helpful
✓ Verified Purchase

Welcome Back Myron!

It's been ten years since Myron Bolitar has heard from his old flame, Terese Collins. She has become a suspect in her ex-husband's murder in Paris and pleads for Myron's help. After arriving in Paris, Myron finds out troubling information about Terese's past and the death of her daughter. Myron begins digging around for answers and discovers evidence that might prove Terese's daughter is still alive. With the help of the ever faithful Win, Myron embarks on an international search for answers to the mystery behind Terese's past. What they discover is more frightening then anything they could have imagined.

In Long Lost Harlan Coben sets out to satisfy the masses with his first Myron Bolitar novel in three years. Not only does he satisfy, but he gives his faithful fans what may be his most enticing thriller to date. What makes the Bolitar novels so addicting is the strong and quirky characters and of course they are all back in wondrous fashion. Myron himself is as endearing as ever with his unyielding desire to help those he loves. Coben would be shunned by his rabid fans if he didn't give us a healthy dose of Windsor Lockwood III. Never fear. Win is back and just as psychotic and engaging as ever. Esperanza is as sassy as always bringing some welcome moments of humor and tenderness throughout.

Coben has long established himself as a master of the first person narrative and I don't think anyone writing in the genre today compares. I love how Coben takes these characters that are so familiar and raises the stakes by placing them in a horrific conflict with global implications. This is a far cry from Myron's mystery solving sports agent days, yet despite the raised stakes we still find the same old Myron and Win we fell in love with years ago.

In the end we are left with a truly terrifying conclusion that may surprise readers, but nevertheless fits the plot that Coben has so masterfully constructed. Harlan Coben consistently keeps me in awe with each new installment and Long Lost is certainly no exception. Even if you have never read a Myron Bolitar novel, Coben gives just enough background to keep you out of the dark. Pull up a chair and sit tight because you won't be going anywhere once you begin.
59 people found this helpful
✓ Verified Purchase

meh.

I'm only a recent Myron Bolitar fan, having discovered the series a few months ago and devoured them all since. This is, by far, the weakest of the books. The premise was ridiculous, the scope of the plot literally unbelievable, and the ending just pathetic.

Mr. Coben? Tangentially: why on Earth have you created an obviously only-child protagonist, only to slip in throwaway references to a brother and, now, sister? It's simply a stupid choice, especially since you provide no background, no mention of either sibling at all aside from two sentences in the fourth or fifith book and two more in this one.

If you write any more Bolitar books, please return to the actual character we fell in love with--the agent whose criminal entanglements follow believably from his work, his friendships, his life. Not this reasonably well-written but credibility-devoid schlock.
40 people found this helpful
✓ Verified Purchase

Disappointment!

Aside from being one of his most disappointing "Myron/Win" books in the series, I was very surprised and annoyed to see that Cobin has espoused the Robert Parker "How To Make Less Look Like More" philosophy -- i.e. using thick pages and large print to make a 150 page book into over 300 pages. I read it in less than a day - not because it was so riveting, but because, in actuality, it was so short! If you can get it at the library at no cost, then you might enjoy it - simply because of the characters. However, in my opinion, you should not waste your money buying it!
34 people found this helpful
✓ Verified Purchase

You can't be serious

Let me preface this by saying that I have read all of Harlan Coben books, not just his Myron Bolitar series. With that in mind let me say this book is horrible and one of my least favorite books that I have ever read. I mean ever read, harkening back to "Dick and Jane" books. Those were more enjoyable and more realistic than this book. I believe that Mr. Coben had an idea for a stand alone thriller and then thought well I'm due for a Bolitar book why don't I just throw him into this scenario. It's ridiculous, insulting and I feel like I was robbed by Harlan kindle, I mean Coben. Let me first state that the resolution as it were with Ali was just so dumb that it's obvious that he just needed to do it to move the plot in a certain direction. There was no logic or thought put into it. I think Mr. Coben just said well I sell millions and millions of books who's going to question my writing. Well I guess I will, I am angry that you gave us a character to care about for many years in Myron and then you turn him into James Bond, The Transporter and Jason Bourne in one novel. If you were just going to throw caution to the wind and just make crap up, I think I would have went with making Myron, maybe, Matt Helm, yea I think he's more Matt Helmish than the other guys. I pre-ordered this book and I can honestly say that reading it has annoyed me more than dealing with my bank and that's bad. I mean, I'm talking annoying. Mr. Coben has given me hours upon hours of reading pleasure and I tried to just let this book go and say "hey we all have bad days at the office". I'm guessing though it took him longer than just a day to write this so I'm thinking he had a bad, I don't know let's say, 324 days at the office. Thats just too long to be bad. I think that just shows a wanton disregard for trying to be good and not insulting those boneheads like my self who spent 15 bucks on the damn Kindle version. I hope I get over my disdain for this book because at this point in time I can't see myself reading another Harlan Coben novel ever. I cared about Myron Bolitar, I'm an idiot
26 people found this helpful
✓ Verified Purchase

Long Lost equals lost sleep- can't put down!

Harlan Coben doesn't disappoint again with his latest Myron Bolitar adventure! Even though it had been some time since I've read a Myron Bolitar book - I instantly remembered Win, Esperanza, and Big Cindy and immediately was drawn into his latest caper with an old flame Teresa Collins. As terrorist are brought into this plot, I kept waiting for Jack Bauer to come and rescue Myron - but alas - he has Win! Coben definitely makes you laugh out loud with Myron and Win's antics and dialogue - he also keeps you up late because you can't wait until morning to see how the twists and turns end!
14 people found this helpful
✓ Verified Purchase

Rate the book, not the Kindle

This book was given one star by four of the five people that reviewed it - even though the review had nothing to do with the book. They all either like the book or want to purchase it for themselves. Rate the book, not the price, Kindle, etc. Harlan Coben deserves better and so do the people looking for opinions about the BOOK.
14 people found this helpful
✓ Verified Purchase

Book Just did not work for me

So disappointing! I have read all the Myron books and loved them. This one was so disjointed. Right from the start when Coben turns Ali into a petty and secretive character in order to set up his story with the "new" love, things feel wrong in this book. The comic lines that Myron is so well known for do not work with the torture scenes and the high body count. I felt like Coben had read some of the other "grittier" series and decided he would up his torture quotient just to fit in. The terrorist ideas might have worked as a stand-alone book (although it would have needed a much better ending) but it does not work at all as a Myron novel. For me, I wish I had skipped this one altogether.
13 people found this helpful
✓ Verified Purchase

The charm has left the binding...

I have been a fan of Coben's work since the bloody ball days of the Myron Bolitar series and his work is part of the few authors whose work I consistently buy in Hardcover but I was beyond disappointed with this most recent entry to this long running series. Along the vein of Mr. Coben's recent stand-alone novels this novel features a fairly boring run-and-go-seek mystery that rewards the reader with a mediocre "surprise" ending. Myron, Win, Esperanza, and even Big Cyndi seem to have become caricatures of themselves and the suspension of disbelief in the 40+ year old Myron's abilities is too much to handle.

Mr. Coben has written some great genre fiction and really brought some fun into the amateur detective mold but this entry is weak and unfair to his long time fans. Further, most of the old comforts of the characters seem forced (not to mention the references to the excellent film version of Tell No One) and the new "genre" of death-defying middle class New Jerseyians feels played out.

I still have faith in Coben as a writer but another entry like this and a cross-country audio book purchase seems unlikely.
12 people found this helpful
✓ Verified Purchase

Myron, really? Comeback, please!

Myron Bolitar is a favorite of mine. I have read each of the eight prior novels, recently revisiting and enjoying them for a second time. But something felt off about this novel from the start. First, I only could find a little bit of my favorite witty banter of Myron and Win and the endearing troupe of characters Win, Esperanza, Big Cyndi, Al and Ellen only made spotty appearances.
Terese and her new dilemma did not captivate my sympathies, probably because she is not an empathetic character from the past. Just as I questioned why I could not really engage with the story but only float along page after page skipping words and sentences to get to more interesting parts, the answer struck me. Myron's latest adventure had transformed into a plot from a bad, really bizarre, "B" movie where you spend a lot of time asking the same question over and over. Really? Really? Seriously? What? Whatever form you choose, the intent of the question remains the same. Myron got himself involved with left overs from a science fiction movie? No, a zombie movie? Wait, a World War II master race movie? Myron comeback and bring all my favorites with you! PLEASE!
11 people found this helpful

Related Books