Seconds Away

I am not impartial when it comes to Harlan Coben books. He is my favorite adult author. He is from my home state of New Jersey, he writes about my two favorite characters, Myron and Win and he has a great sense of humor on Twitter. Oh, and he also answers emails. That being said, when he started writing for the YA audience, I was thrilled. His first novel, Shelter, was about Mickey Bolitar, Myron's nephew. It was filled with action, suspense and a surprise twist of history. This one picks up seconds away from the first, hence the title. Mickey and his friends are thrown into another mystery when one of their own is shot. Mickey is determined to figure out who her shooter is. Ema and Spoon help him on his quest and one is seemingly down for the count (don't be cruel, Harlan! ) As always, Myron is there to back up Mickey and Mickey is getting a feel that Myron isn't just a sports agent. Oh, and Win makes an appearance, albeit an invisible one in this book. Yay. Mixed in the intrigue is the pursuit of making the basketball team and what it means to be an elite athlete. While Mickey keeps getting himself and his friends into dangerous situations, he seems to be getting closer to the uncle he despises. Harlan has mixed some of his adult series into this book as a nod to his adult readers- I think. This sequel screams for another as nothing is really solved and there's a casket to unbury. So while I await another Myron Bolitar book, I will happily recommend the junior version to tide any fans over. As for the young readers looking for a book filled with action and intrigue, this one's for you. It is a nice change of pace from the zombie/vampire/supernatural fare that is so prevalent these days. So enjoy my friends and pick up this great series. Coben is the Boss when it comes to telling a good story. Happy reading my friends!