CarlAlves

I normally enjoy Myron Bolitar novels, but I was a bit reluctant with this one considering that this was tackling the completely uninteresting and mind-numbingly boring world of golf. Not exactly my ideal setting for a thriller. In Back Spin, Myron takes on a client whose son disappears from my native Philadelphia. As Myron dives into the case, he realizes that the family who has hired him holds some seriously dark secrets. The boy’s father, a golf pro who once upon a time had a shot at the big time before collapsing under pressure, is making a serious run at winning the US Open championship. This adds a good bit of tension and a ticking clock to the story.

The plot itself is solid, but not quite as good as some other Harlan Coben novels I have read. Perhaps it was that I really dislike golf and everything about it that I couldn’t quite get into this novel. Whatever the case, the novel never quite worked for me other than being mildly entertaining. A decent read, but Coben could do better.

Carl Alves – author of Blood Street