This is #7 of 12 in the series of Coben books featuring Myron Bolitar, professional sports agent, former professional basketball star and occasional detective. In this one he is approached by Emily Downing, a former lover and estranged wife of Greg Downing, an all-star pro basketball player who was a long-time rival, both on and off the basketball court, and a guy who was instrumental in causing the injury that ended Myron’s short professional career. There is no love lost between the two men, but Myron still carries a torch for Emily. She wants Myron’s help in finding a bone marrow donor for her sick teenage son, Jeremy. A doner who is a match for her son was found in the national bone marrow registry, but he can’t be located. Can Myron find him?
Myron wants to refuse. But then Emily drops the bombshell: Jeremy is Myron’s son, the result of a “farewell” hookup the night before Emily and Greg’s wedding.
This relatively simple request and the simple but difficult job of extracting information about the matching donor from the super secret bone marrow registry soon becomes very complicated. The donor seems to be a member of a very rich and powerful family who hasn’t been seen in over 30 years. And things get further complicated when the FBI gets involved. They are looking for a serial kidnapper and presumed murderer who is linked to a disgraced reporter who seems to be linked to the missing scion. Complicated enough?
As with every Coben novel that I have read, the complexity is resolved in a plausible way. But I won’t reveal the details. Was the donor found? Was the kidnapper/murderer brought to justice? Was Jeremy saved? Is Myron really his father? All of these questions are answered in a very satisfactory way.
Coben never disappoints. It is a lively, engrossing read. 8 out of 10.