'Promise Me' by Harlan Coben

I have loved reading the Myron Bolitar series by Harlan Coben. These books are not terribly deep but they are a quick read and I enjoy the fluff between books of more substance. 'Promise Me' delivered as well as any other of the series. I skipped a few books in the process as this one was available to me but, as with many series, it always kind of picks up where the last ones left off. This installment finds Myron a few years out of action. He, unwillingly, is pulled back into the life of private investigation and the dark underbelly of New York. When his neighborhood girl, and daughter of a old, dear friend, disappears Myron is drawn into the search both by his need to help a seemingly innocent girl and his need to clear his name. The plot of this disappearance seems to hint at a previous runaway teenage girl and as Myron, Win, Big Cyndi and the crew grow closer to solving the first case, they gather information that will help them solve this, more recent and apparently linked case. As is typical in the Bolitar books, the end is never as simple as the preceding chapters would lead one to believe. And, as Bolitar's personal life takes steps, we grow ever closer to the unexpected and, somewhat, tricky conclusion. The guilty party is, as usual, introduced early on but the reasons for their actions are only explained after the dust has settled. This was the first book I have seen that strayed from the world of sports and celebrity representation. The crime and the subsequent drama are not tied very closely to Bolitar's clientele but this variance from the norm does not diminish the entertainment value of the story. I recommend this book as highly as the other Cobens I have read and I will continue to pick up his novels as often as the opportunity presents itself.