Myron Bolitar

Myron Bolitar is a fictional character in a series of thrillers written by Harlan Coben.

The series protagonist is a formerly renowned basketball player and is the owner of MB SportsReps (or simply MB Reps in later books), an agency representing sports stars and celebrities. Bolitar is 6 feet, 4 inches tall and considered handsome by many women.

As often referred to in the character's back-story, Myron's basketball talents were apparent as early as the 6th grade. He was highly recruited, chose Duke University at Durham, North Carolina, and his teams won two NCAA titles in four years. The Boston Celtics drafted him in the first round, the eighth pick overall. His Boston Celtics jersey number was #34. In a pre-season game against Washington Bullets, he suffered a shattered knee which resulted in the end of his basketball career. Myron then proceeded to return to college, studying at Harvard Law School and eventually becoming a sports agent.^[1]

Two regular supporting characters in the Myron Bolitar series are his best friend, Windsor Horne Lockwood III (better known as "Win"), and his assistant at MB Reps, Esperanza Diaz. Win is an eccentric, philandering billionaire who frequently gets involved in Myron's cases. Win and Myron have both studied taekwondo in a Korean dojo, though it is clear in the storylines that Win is more advanced. Esperanza began as an assistant, but Myron makes her his partner in the 7th Bolitar novel (Darkest Fear) after Esperanza gets her Law degree from New York University.^[2]

Bolitar is depicted as being a good agent for his clients, taking care of their needs and wants while being careful to not exploit them like bigger agencies. He also helps out his clients in times of personal need, which often puts him in the role of "accidental detective." His office space in the Locke-Horne Investments & Securities building is rented from Win and is located two floors below Win's. When Myron handles a client's career, he gives a choice to his clients to hire Win for their financial handling. Win and Myron are both fans of Batman, often calling their transport the "Batmobile."^[3]

Myron is from a Jewish background and seems to dislike his first name. He still lives with his parents in the basement of his childhood home, not out of necessity but because he is very close to both of them. He also has a younger brother who died in a car crash and a nephew, Mickey, son of his late brother. His mother is a former lawyer herself, and his dad is a factory owner.

His favorite drink is chocolate Yoo-Hoo. He is shown to have a self-deprecating humor and drives a Ford Taurus which is described as a chick trawler in the books.

Bolitar's longest known relationship is with Jessica Culver, before she dumped him and walked out of his life. The novel Deal Breaker brings the ex-lovers face-to-face after not seeing each other for four years. It is clear in the book's storyline that Myron still harbors feelings for Jessica, to the disgust of Esperanza who dislikes Jessica for the way she treats Myron. They start seeing each other again, but break up again in the novel One False Move when Myron almost cheats on her with Brenda Slaughter. It was also revealed in the novel that Culver had cheated on Myron with Doug. Jessica marries Stone Norman in Promise Me.

Other prominent girlfriends mentioned in the books are Emily Downing, Ali Wilder and Terese Collins. As mentioned in The Final Detail, he met Collins at a charity function and they ran away to a distant island to drown their sorrows. Collins plays a major role in Long Lost. In Live Wire, he gets engaged to Terese Collins.

The Bolitar series of novels have garnered three awards for Coben: an Edgar (for Fade Away), a Shamus (Drop Shot) and an Anthony (Deal Breaker).

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