Robert Crais

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Elvis Cole Books
Other Books
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Elvis Cole: detective as rock star. If you can get past the hipper-than-thou pop culture trappings of his office (cartoon characters are featured prominently), his vintage Corvette, and his attitude, you'll find that this is one of the best series of the last decade. Crais has toned down Cole's more eccentric mannerisms and added new depth, especially with L. A. Requiem, which explains the past of Cole's buddy and heavy duty backup man, gun store owner and part time mercenary Joe Pike (a white West Coast version of Parker's Hawk). Crais manages to make Cole funny without coming across as a smartass.

More recently Crais has turned to writing thrillers, tightly plotted stories that rip along at breakneck pace (and, indeed, more than a few necks get broken). Part of this may be due ot his background: Crais, a native of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, was a writer for television for many years before turning to novels, working on shows such as Miami Vice and Hill Street Blues.