Book Review: Found by Harlan Coben

Found
Author: Harlan Coben
Series: A Mickey Bolitar Novel (Book 3)
Publication: G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers (September 9, 2014)

Description: From internationally bestselling author Harlan Coben comes this third action-packed installment of his bestselling young adult series.

It’s been eight months since Mickey Bolitar witnessed the shocking, tragic death of his father. Eight months of lies, dark secrets, and unanswered questions. While he desperately wants answers, Mickey’s sophomore year of high school brings on a whole new set of troubles. Spoon is in the hospital, Rachel won’t tell him where he stands, his basketball teammates hate him . . . and then there’s Ema’s surprise announcement: She has an online boyfriend, and he’s vanished.

As he’s searching for Ema’s missing boyfriend (who may not even exist!), Mickey also gets roped into helping his nemesis, Troy Taylor, with a big problem. All the while, Mickey and his friends are pulled deeper into the mysteries surrounding the Abeona Shelter, risking their lives to find the answers—until the shocking climax, where Mickey finally comes face-to-face with the truth about his father.

My Thoughts: This is the third book in the Mickey Bolitar mystery series. Mickey is a high school sophomore who, along with three friends, has been drafted into an organization that rescues children. It is the same organization that his parents belonged to before his father died in a car accident and his mother developed alcohol problems. Mickey has been living with his uncle Myron since his mother entered rehab.

Mickey is working on a number of cases in this book. He isn't convinced that his father actually died in the car accident and is trying to find out what really happened to him. He is also trying to find Ema's online boyfriend who stopped communicating with her with no warning. Mickey is also trying to be accepted on the varsity basketball team. He is an excellent player and the only sophomore on the varsity. However, he is viewed as an outsider especially by Troy and Buck who resent how good he is at the game. Troy and Buck's fathers were rivals of his uncle Myron and are carrying on the family tradition of disliking Bolitars.

When Troy is kicked off the team for steroid use and Buck abruptly moves away to live with his mother, Mickey is pressured into trying to get Troy reinstated. Ema tries to convince him that Troy is not a good guy since he has been bullying her since elementary school. But Mickey really wants to be accepted by the other guys on the team.

These cases all seem to be interwoven and Mickey, Ema, and their friends Rachel and Spoon all have roles to play. I liked the way the characters interacted. I liked the Mickey was so determined to find out what happened to his father.

This was an engaging mystery series and could lead readers to the Myron Bolitar mysteries by the author too.

Favorite Quote:

You often hear that you only get one life and that life isn't a dress rehearsal. That was true, but it felt more direct to me. Simply put, this was it. What you're doing right now is life. This moment, every moment impacts and builds on the next. I could think about the days when my father was alive and my mother was sober. I could dream about going back in time to that moment and altering it, but that would never happen.

Time only goes forward.

I bought this one. You can buy your copy here.