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Elvis Cole and Joe Pike #2
Stalking the Angel
Elvis Cole is back. Hired by a ruthless hotel magnate to locate a priceless Japanese manuscript, he stumbles into a lethal scam involving the Japanese Yakuza, violent death and a young girl he will never forget.
256 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 1, 1989
1823 people are currently reading
3097 people want to read
About the author
Robert Crais
180 books4,581 followers Robert Crais is the author of the best-selling Elvis Cole novels. A native of Louisiana, he grew up on the banks of the Mississippi River in a blue collar family of oil refinery workers and police officers. He purchased a secondhand paperback of Raymond Chandler’s The Little Sister when he was fifteen, which inspired his lifelong love of writing, Los Angeles, and the literature of crime fiction. Other literary influences include Dashiell Hammett, Ernest Hemingway, Robert B. Parker, and John Steinbeck.
After years of amateur film-making and writing short fiction, he journeyed to Hollywood in 1976 where he quickly found work writing scripts for such major television series as Hill Street Blues, Cagney & Lacey, and Miami Vice, as well as numerous series pilots and Movies-of-the-Week for the major networks. He received an Emmy nomination for his work on Hill Street Blues, but is most proud of his 4-hour NBC miniseries, Cross of Fire, which the New York Times declared: "A searing and powerful documentation of the Ku Klux Klan’s rise to national prominence in the 20s."
In the mid-eighties, feeling constrained by the collaborative working requirements of Hollywood, Crais resigned from a lucrative position as a contract writer and television producer in order to pursue his lifelong dream of becoming a novelist. His first efforts proved unsuccessful, but upon the death of his father in 1985, Crais was inspired to create Elvis Cole, using elements of his own life as the basis of the story. The resulting novel, The Monkey’s Raincoat, won the Anthony and Macavity Awards and was nominated for the Edgar Award. It has since been selected as one of the 100 Favorite Mysteries of the Century by the Independent Mystery Booksellers Association.
Crais conceived of the novel as a stand-alone, but realized that—in Elvis Cole—he had created an ideal and powerful character through which to comment upon his life and times. (See the WORKS section for additional titles.) Elvis Cole’s readership and fan base grew with each new book, then skyrocketed in 1999 upon the publication of L. A. Requiem, which was a New York Times and Los Angeles Times bestseller and forever changed the way Crais conceived of and structured his novels. In this new way of telling his stories, Crais combined the classic ‘first person’ narrative of the American detective novel with flashbacks, multiple story lines, multiple points-of-view, and literary elements to better illuminate his themes. Larger and deeper in scope, Publishers Weekly wrote of L. A. Requiem, "Crais has stretched himself the way another Southern California writer—Ross Macdonald—always tried to do, to write a mystery novel with a solid literary base." Booklist added, "This is an extraordinary crime novel that should not be pigeonholed by genre. The best books always land outside preset boundaries. A wonderful experience."
Crais followed with his first non-series novel, Demolition Angel, which was published in 2000 and featured former Los Angeles Police Department Bomb Technician Carol Starkey. Starkey has since become a leading character in the Elvis Cole series. In 2001, Crais published his second non-series novel, Hostage, which was named a Notable Book of the Year by the New York Times and was a world-wide bestseller. Additionally, the editors of Amazon.com selected Hostage as the #1 thriller of the year. A film adaptation of Hostage was released in 2005, starring Bruce Willis as ex-LAPD SWAT negotiator Jeff Talley.
Elvis Cole returned in 2003 with the publication of The Last Detective, followed by the tenth Elvis Cole novel, The Forgotten Man, in 2005. Both novels explore with increasing depth the natures and characters of Elvis Cole and Joe Pike. RC’s third stand-alone novel, The Two Minute Rule, was published in 2006. The eleventh entry in the Elvis Cole series, The Watchman, will be published sometime in 2007.
After years of amateur film-making and writing short fiction, he journeyed to Hollywood in 1976 where he quickly found work writing scripts for such major television series as Hill Street Blues, Cagney & Lacey, and Miami Vice, as well as numerous series pilots and Movies-of-the-Week for the major networks. He received an Emmy nomination for his work on Hill Street Blues, but is most proud of his 4-hour NBC miniseries, Cross of Fire, which the New York Times declared: "A searing and powerful documentation of the Ku Klux Klan’s rise to national prominence in the 20s."
In the mid-eighties, feeling constrained by the collaborative working requirements of Hollywood, Crais resigned from a lucrative position as a contract writer and television producer in order to pursue his lifelong dream of becoming a novelist. His first efforts proved unsuccessful, but upon the death of his father in 1985, Crais was inspired to create Elvis Cole, using elements of his own life as the basis of the story. The resulting novel, The Monkey’s Raincoat, won the Anthony and Macavity Awards and was nominated for the Edgar Award. It has since been selected as one of the 100 Favorite Mysteries of the Century by the Independent Mystery Booksellers Association.
Crais conceived of the novel as a stand-alone, but realized that—in Elvis Cole—he had created an ideal and powerful character through which to comment upon his life and times. (See the WORKS section for additional titles.) Elvis Cole’s readership and fan base grew with each new book, then skyrocketed in 1999 upon the publication of L. A. Requiem, which was a New York Times and Los Angeles Times bestseller and forever changed the way Crais conceived of and structured his novels. In this new way of telling his stories, Crais combined the classic ‘first person’ narrative of the American detective novel with flashbacks, multiple story lines, multiple points-of-view, and literary elements to better illuminate his themes. Larger and deeper in scope, Publishers Weekly wrote of L. A. Requiem, "Crais has stretched himself the way another Southern California writer—Ross Macdonald—always tried to do, to write a mystery novel with a solid literary base." Booklist added, "This is an extraordinary crime novel that should not be pigeonholed by genre. The best books always land outside preset boundaries. A wonderful experience."
Crais followed with his first non-series novel, Demolition Angel, which was published in 2000 and featured former Los Angeles Police Department Bomb Technician Carol Starkey. Starkey has since become a leading character in the Elvis Cole series. In 2001, Crais published his second non-series novel, Hostage, which was named a Notable Book of the Year by the New York Times and was a world-wide bestseller. Additionally, the editors of Amazon.com selected Hostage as the #1 thriller of the year. A film adaptation of Hostage was released in 2005, starring Bruce Willis as ex-LAPD SWAT negotiator Jeff Talley.
Elvis Cole returned in 2003 with the publication of The Last Detective, followed by the tenth Elvis Cole novel, The Forgotten Man, in 2005. Both novels explore with increasing depth the natures and characters of Elvis Cole and Joe Pike. RC’s third stand-alone novel, The Two Minute Rule, was published in 2006. The eleventh entry in the Elvis Cole series, The Watchman, will be published sometime in 2007.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 753 reviews
December 3, 2020
This is my second time reading this novel and, to be honest, I didn't enjoy it as much as I remembered from the first time around. Part of the problem is the protagonist, Elvis Cole, who is a relentless, non-stop smartass. I almost always enjoy a good smartass private detective, but the problem is that Cole (or his creator) seems to have absolutely no sense of proportion. The guy never lets up and is constantly mouthing off at times that seem completely inappropriate. By the time I was a third of the way into the book again, it was really starting to annoy me.
I was also bothered by the fact that Cole's investigation of this case seemed to rely on a lot of blind luck and not on any particularly great investigative skills. As the book opens, a wealthy businessman comes to Cole's office with his female executive assistant. A very valuable Japanese artifact has been stolen from the guy's home and, even though the police are also on the job, the assistant has heard that Cole has a great reputation and convinces her boss that he should hire Cole as well.
Cole's response is to insult and belittle the guy right from the start, leaving any rational reader to wonder why the guy wouldn't just walk out the door. Also, why would an apparently successful businessman walk into Cole's office and see his Jiminy Cricket figurines, his Mickey Mouse phone, his Spider-Man mug, and his Pinocchio clock and ever assume that this is a detective that he should take seriously? In your wildest dreams can you imagine Sam Spade or Philip Marlowe with a Spider-Man mug on his desk?
Against all logic, the guy still hires Cole who recruits his partner, Joe Pike, and off they go, generally just barging around, hoping that this will somehow lead them to the missing artifact. Along the way, there will be a kidnapping and Cole and Pike will basically respond to that in the same way. At several points along the way, there will be moments when any logical person, including a P. I. would call the cops and get them involved. Of course Elvis is not going to do this and, rather than yanking his license, the cops won't seem to mind his negligence at all.
Stretching credulity even further, Cole drives a vintage, bright yellow Corvette. And yet he's constantly following people around and staking out their houses, sometimes for hours on end, and nobody ever notices that he's been three cars behind them for the last hour!
This was an okay read, but certainly not as great as I remembered, and I'm hoping that as I move on deeper into the series again it will rise to the standards I thought I remembered.
I was also bothered by the fact that Cole's investigation of this case seemed to rely on a lot of blind luck and not on any particularly great investigative skills. As the book opens, a wealthy businessman comes to Cole's office with his female executive assistant. A very valuable Japanese artifact has been stolen from the guy's home and, even though the police are also on the job, the assistant has heard that Cole has a great reputation and convinces her boss that he should hire Cole as well.
Cole's response is to insult and belittle the guy right from the start, leaving any rational reader to wonder why the guy wouldn't just walk out the door. Also, why would an apparently successful businessman walk into Cole's office and see his Jiminy Cricket figurines, his Mickey Mouse phone, his Spider-Man mug, and his Pinocchio clock and ever assume that this is a detective that he should take seriously? In your wildest dreams can you imagine Sam Spade or Philip Marlowe with a Spider-Man mug on his desk?
Against all logic, the guy still hires Cole who recruits his partner, Joe Pike, and off they go, generally just barging around, hoping that this will somehow lead them to the missing artifact. Along the way, there will be a kidnapping and Cole and Pike will basically respond to that in the same way. At several points along the way, there will be moments when any logical person, including a P. I. would call the cops and get them involved. Of course Elvis is not going to do this and, rather than yanking his license, the cops won't seem to mind his negligence at all.
Stretching credulity even further, Cole drives a vintage, bright yellow Corvette. And yet he's constantly following people around and staking out their houses, sometimes for hours on end, and nobody ever notices that he's been three cars behind them for the last hour!
This was an okay read, but certainly not as great as I remembered, and I'm hoping that as I move on deeper into the series again it will rise to the standards I thought I remembered.
October 27, 2022
I’d read the first book in the long running Elvis Cole series some years ago. I can’t remember much about it but I haven’t been back for the second episode, so that tells me something. But I really enjoyed Suspect by the same author and I thought it was about time I gave Elvis a second chance.
In case you’ve never come across this series before – unlikely if you’re in any way a reader of crime fiction - Cole is a private investigator working out of Los Angeles with a hard-man sidekick called Joe Pike. There’s a lot of smart one-liners flowing from the mouth of our lead man. In fact, if you took these out the book would only be half it’s full length. For the most part the humour hit the mark and I smiled a lot as I drifted through this one. But drifted is the key word here: the whole thing is so light and frivolous I really couldn’t get too involved with the plot. It’s like an episode of the Rockford Files (I’m showing my age here) has been melded with a Jackie Chan script.
For the record, the case involves a missing Japanese manuscript and encounters the Yakuza (the Japanese mob) as Cole seeks to chase it down. Unsurprisingly, it also features a pretty woman who catches the eye of our dapper sleuth. It was fun, but it might be a while before I catch book three.
In case you’ve never come across this series before – unlikely if you’re in any way a reader of crime fiction - Cole is a private investigator working out of Los Angeles with a hard-man sidekick called Joe Pike. There’s a lot of smart one-liners flowing from the mouth of our lead man. In fact, if you took these out the book would only be half it’s full length. For the most part the humour hit the mark and I smiled a lot as I drifted through this one. But drifted is the key word here: the whole thing is so light and frivolous I really couldn’t get too involved with the plot. It’s like an episode of the Rockford Files (I’m showing my age here) has been melded with a Jackie Chan script.
For the record, the case involves a missing Japanese manuscript and encounters the Yakuza (the Japanese mob) as Cole seeks to chase it down. Unsurprisingly, it also features a pretty woman who catches the eye of our dapper sleuth. It was fun, but it might be a while before I catch book three.
September 19, 2015
Damn it, Robert Crais. I really want to like you, but two books in and this still feels like awkward blind dating rather than true love.
Elvis Cole is hired by wealthy Bradley Warren to recover a rare Japanese manuscript that has been stolen. Warren only cares about using the manuscript to impress his Japanese business partners. When Warren’s wife and daughter are threatened, too, Elvis ends up getting on the bad side of the yakuza.
I should be all over these Crais novels. A smart-mouthed gun-toting PI with a bad ass friend is something that I can’t get enough of in other books. But something just isn’t clicking here. When I read the first Elvis Cole novel, The Monkey’s Raincoat, I thought that Crais was doing a west coast version of Robert B. Parker’s Spenser novels and that impression continues here.
The Monkey’s Raincoat turned into a much better book about halfway through, and I was looking for this one to move up a gear, too. Unfortunately, while Crais tried, he didn’t succeed as well as the first one. I still had the same complaints. Elvis doesn’t seem so much like a character as a creation of character traits from the ‘80s school of wise ass detectives. I’m surprised he isn’t meeting Axel Foley for beers.
It isn’t Crais’ fault that I’m reading these over 20 years after he wrote them and that they seem dated in a lot of ways to me, but there are just too many clichés for me too overlook in this. Bradley Warren is a rich asshole right out of central casting. His wife is a neglected drunk with hot pants. His daughter is ignored. His secretary is all business and loyal to him, but eventually warms up to Elvis’s unorthodox methods. There’s an Asian factor to the plot so the yakuza has to be involved. The Bad Ass Criminal Friend is Joe Pike who always wears his sunglasses, even at night. When trying to stir things up, Elvis and Joe go to a club that the bad guys hang out in and cause a scene to get a reaction. *yawn* I think I saw all this in a movie starring Michael Pare in 1989.
Plus, Elvis is just such a relentless smart ass that he tends to get on my nerves. Characters like Marlowe, Spenser or Lehane’s Patrick Kenzie can be wise asses and tough guys, but it feels like Cole can’t let the mildest thing go by without trying to act like a comic at open mic night.
There’s also a lot that doesn’t make sense. At one point, Elvis and Joe are together trying to find someone. Then they split up and Elvis spends like two days flying solo when he tracks that person down and does a bunch of other stuff without once calling Joe, who one assumes spent all that time looking for this person himself because Elvis doesn’t bother to tell him that he figured it all out. That’s just some weak story telling.
Still, I find myself liking Crais’s writing and these books. I hope that as the books get in the ‘90s and beyond that Elvis will start maturing and be a detective who occasionally makes a smart ass comment rather than a smart ass playing detective.
Elvis Cole is hired by wealthy Bradley Warren to recover a rare Japanese manuscript that has been stolen. Warren only cares about using the manuscript to impress his Japanese business partners. When Warren’s wife and daughter are threatened, too, Elvis ends up getting on the bad side of the yakuza.
I should be all over these Crais novels. A smart-mouthed gun-toting PI with a bad ass friend is something that I can’t get enough of in other books. But something just isn’t clicking here. When I read the first Elvis Cole novel, The Monkey’s Raincoat, I thought that Crais was doing a west coast version of Robert B. Parker’s Spenser novels and that impression continues here.
The Monkey’s Raincoat turned into a much better book about halfway through, and I was looking for this one to move up a gear, too. Unfortunately, while Crais tried, he didn’t succeed as well as the first one. I still had the same complaints. Elvis doesn’t seem so much like a character as a creation of character traits from the ‘80s school of wise ass detectives. I’m surprised he isn’t meeting Axel Foley for beers.
It isn’t Crais’ fault that I’m reading these over 20 years after he wrote them and that they seem dated in a lot of ways to me, but there are just too many clichés for me too overlook in this. Bradley Warren is a rich asshole right out of central casting. His wife is a neglected drunk with hot pants. His daughter is ignored. His secretary is all business and loyal to him, but eventually warms up to Elvis’s unorthodox methods. There’s an Asian factor to the plot so the yakuza has to be involved. The Bad Ass Criminal Friend is Joe Pike who always wears his sunglasses, even at night. When trying to stir things up, Elvis and Joe go to a club that the bad guys hang out in and cause a scene to get a reaction. *yawn* I think I saw all this in a movie starring Michael Pare in 1989.
Plus, Elvis is just such a relentless smart ass that he tends to get on my nerves. Characters like Marlowe, Spenser or Lehane’s Patrick Kenzie can be wise asses and tough guys, but it feels like Cole can’t let the mildest thing go by without trying to act like a comic at open mic night.
There’s also a lot that doesn’t make sense. At one point, Elvis and Joe are together trying to find someone. Then they split up and Elvis spends like two days flying solo when he tracks that person down and does a bunch of other stuff without once calling Joe, who one assumes spent all that time looking for this person himself because Elvis doesn’t bother to tell him that he figured it all out. That’s just some weak story telling.
Still, I find myself liking Crais’s writing and these books. I hope that as the books get in the ‘90s and beyond that Elvis will start maturing and be a detective who occasionally makes a smart ass comment rather than a smart ass playing detective.
September 30, 2021
Book 2 in the Elvis Cole series published 1989
4 star entertainment.
It all start with the theft of a rare Japanese book. A book the owner wants back at any cost.
Enter Elvis Cole, his task is to find the book.
When Elvis goes to interview his newly appointed employer what he finds is an alcoholic wife and mother, a self absorbed husband and father and an introverted mouse of a daughter.
Happy days, this is life in the fast lane.
This turned out not to be a very pretty story with some seriously wrong things going on.
There was a fare bit of humour injected to help lighten the mood but to my mind there was too much humour and given the subject matter it seemed a bit out of place at times to me.
But that would be my only criticism. The rest of the book kept me turning pages.
When the end came it left me feeling ‘ what the’ but it has to be said that the end left the door wide open for book three.
4 star entertainment.
It all start with the theft of a rare Japanese book. A book the owner wants back at any cost.
Enter Elvis Cole, his task is to find the book.
When Elvis goes to interview his newly appointed employer what he finds is an alcoholic wife and mother, a self absorbed husband and father and an introverted mouse of a daughter.
Happy days, this is life in the fast lane.
This turned out not to be a very pretty story with some seriously wrong things going on.
There was a fare bit of humour injected to help lighten the mood but to my mind there was too much humour and given the subject matter it seemed a bit out of place at times to me.
But that would be my only criticism. The rest of the book kept me turning pages.
When the end came it left me feeling ‘ what the’ but it has to be said that the end left the door wide open for book three.
May 16, 2020
This second Elvis Cole and Joe Pike mystery is as good as the first; together they make a strong beginning to this detective series.
Elvis is hired to locate a medieval Japanese manuscript stolen from the home-safe of a wealthy—and arrogant—Los Angeles entrepreneur. Early in his search, Elvis uncovers a murder, and things get pretty funky from there on out, involving reputable book-sellers, crooked book dealers, local yakuza (and Tokyo yakuza), as wells as a superannuated bushido cult and its melancholy guru. It’s just the kind of mystery I like: the good aren’t as virtuous as they appear, the villainous not as bad as they are pictured, and—after the smoke clears—it all comes down to family in the end.
I like Robert Crais. His books are dark enough for Lawrence Block fans, witty enough for Robert B. Parker fans, and well-written enough for anybody.
Elvis is hired to locate a medieval Japanese manuscript stolen from the home-safe of a wealthy—and arrogant—Los Angeles entrepreneur. Early in his search, Elvis uncovers a murder, and things get pretty funky from there on out, involving reputable book-sellers, crooked book dealers, local yakuza (and Tokyo yakuza), as wells as a superannuated bushido cult and its melancholy guru. It’s just the kind of mystery I like: the good aren’t as virtuous as they appear, the villainous not as bad as they are pictured, and—after the smoke clears—it all comes down to family in the end.
I like Robert Crais. His books are dark enough for Lawrence Block fans, witty enough for Robert B. Parker fans, and well-written enough for anybody.
March 21, 2011
An ancient copy of the Hagakure, a Japanese text, goes missing from a rich man's safe and it's up to Elvis Cole to track it down. The man's daughter Mimi goes missing with a warning to call off the search. All signs point to the yakuza. Can Cole and Pike bring back Mimi and find the Hagakure?
The central teaching of the Hagakure is "The Way of the Warrior is Death" and that would have been a good title for this book. Elvis Cole goes from one grisly murder to the next, uncovering more and more dark information about the relationship between Mimi Warren and her father. Due to Mimi's mental state, by the end I wasn't exactly sure what was the truth and what was the lie.
The plot had a lot of twists, many of them unexpected, but followed the same conventions as the previous Cole book, the Monkey's Raincoat; lots of sleuthing leading to a huge bloody shootout at the end. It was suspenseful but not revolutionary. I lost count of the 80's references.
As much as I wanted to keep thinking of Elvis Cole as a thinly veiled copy of Robert B. Parker's Spenser, I'm forced to abandon my curmudgeonly stance and admit that Cole's a helluva lot more than that. For one thing, I've never seen Spenser make such a dog's breakfast out of a case. Cole was fleshed out quite a bit more in this one. Joe Pike had a few lines but still feels like a walking collection of guns to me.
Stalking the Angel was one hell of a serpentine read. If you've got four or five hours to kill reading a thriller, you could do a lot worse.
The central teaching of the Hagakure is "The Way of the Warrior is Death" and that would have been a good title for this book. Elvis Cole goes from one grisly murder to the next, uncovering more and more dark information about the relationship between Mimi Warren and her father. Due to Mimi's mental state, by the end I wasn't exactly sure what was the truth and what was the lie.
The plot had a lot of twists, many of them unexpected, but followed the same conventions as the previous Cole book, the Monkey's Raincoat; lots of sleuthing leading to a huge bloody shootout at the end. It was suspenseful but not revolutionary. I lost count of the 80's references.
As much as I wanted to keep thinking of Elvis Cole as a thinly veiled copy of Robert B. Parker's Spenser, I'm forced to abandon my curmudgeonly stance and admit that Cole's a helluva lot more than that. For one thing, I've never seen Spenser make such a dog's breakfast out of a case. Cole was fleshed out quite a bit more in this one. Joe Pike had a few lines but still feels like a walking collection of guns to me.
Stalking the Angel was one hell of a serpentine read. If you've got four or five hours to kill reading a thriller, you could do a lot worse.
December 30, 2016
This is the second book in the Elvis Cole series, published in 1989. It does feel a little dated but on the whole is a good, entertaining holiday read. Elvis is the same smart arse PI we were introduced to in The Monkey's Raincoat, almost to the point where his continuous wise cracks started to get on my nerves. I love his side kick Joe Pike, the silent, enigmatic sociopath who Elvis calls in when he needs the big guns for back up. In this episode Elvis is hired to track down a stolen thirteenth century Japanese book, the Hagakure and finds himself up against the Japanese mafia, the Yakuza. I've been told this series improves after the first few books so I will read a few more, if only for more of the delightful mayhem that erupts when Joe Pike is let loose.
July 3, 2018
'Stalking the Angel' is the second book in the Cole mystery series, but I feel it is a standalone read. The first one in the series, The Monkey's Raincoat, goes into the backstories of Elvis Cole and his partner, Joe Pike, both of whom are Vietnam ex-military veterans, but I don't think it is necessary to read first before 'Stalking the Angel.'
Bradley Warren is an ass, but he is Cole's new client. He is the President of Warren Investments Corp. and he is desperate to find out who stole an eighteenth century Japanese book, the Hagakure, worth three million dollars ('Stalking the Angel' was published in 1989, so, wow) from his home safe. Warren does real estate deals, mostly with Japanese investors. One of the Japanese clients, the Tashiro family in Tokyo, loaned him the valuable book of samurai rules for display at a special ceremony in Los Angeles by the Pacific Men's Club, which plans to name Warren the Man of the Month. Warren does not want the police because he thinks they work too slow. Will Elvis take the assignment? A blank check from Warren eases Elvis' qualms. After all, it isn't always necessary that he likes his clients.
Cole drops by the Warren house to see where the safe was, and even he is impressed by the size of the mansion. However, Warren's wife, Sheila, is a drunken bimbo. After she makes a pass at him, Cole feels slimed. Then he meets young ignored Mimi, the Warren’s strange daughter, maybe 16 years old, and Cole knows there are definitely things going wrong in the house.
Next, Cole visits the warehouse of the biggest dealer in LA of stolen Japanese art, Nobu Ishida in Little Tokyo. Ostensibly, Ishida runs an export business, not a black market business, but word gets around. Ishida has very very large tattooed men hanging about the warehouse who appear very much like the kind of toughs the Yakuza, the infamous Japanese criminal gang, employ. Cole has to prove he can fight one of them, which he does. After the unsatisfactory interview, Cole settles down into a nearby restaurant where he can watch the warehouse. However, he isn't sitting alone for long. Asian cops with LAPD badges are soon all over Cole, warning him off of Ishida!
The plot is thickening, gentle reader.
'Stalking the Angel' is a wonderfully fun beach read! For those of us looking for something traditional in a mystery genre, quick to digest, with a wisecracking private Los Angeles detective as narrator with a more hardcore partner backing him when the bullets fly, an Elvis Cole mystery is the right choice. Amusing and yet darkly entertaining, plus a pet kitty is hanging about who is tougher than Elvis! - what more can a mystery reader want?
Bradley Warren is an ass, but he is Cole's new client. He is the President of Warren Investments Corp. and he is desperate to find out who stole an eighteenth century Japanese book, the Hagakure, worth three million dollars ('Stalking the Angel' was published in 1989, so, wow) from his home safe. Warren does real estate deals, mostly with Japanese investors. One of the Japanese clients, the Tashiro family in Tokyo, loaned him the valuable book of samurai rules for display at a special ceremony in Los Angeles by the Pacific Men's Club, which plans to name Warren the Man of the Month. Warren does not want the police because he thinks they work too slow. Will Elvis take the assignment? A blank check from Warren eases Elvis' qualms. After all, it isn't always necessary that he likes his clients.
Cole drops by the Warren house to see where the safe was, and even he is impressed by the size of the mansion. However, Warren's wife, Sheila, is a drunken bimbo. After she makes a pass at him, Cole feels slimed. Then he meets young ignored Mimi, the Warren’s strange daughter, maybe 16 years old, and Cole knows there are definitely things going wrong in the house.
Next, Cole visits the warehouse of the biggest dealer in LA of stolen Japanese art, Nobu Ishida in Little Tokyo. Ostensibly, Ishida runs an export business, not a black market business, but word gets around. Ishida has very very large tattooed men hanging about the warehouse who appear very much like the kind of toughs the Yakuza, the infamous Japanese criminal gang, employ. Cole has to prove he can fight one of them, which he does. After the unsatisfactory interview, Cole settles down into a nearby restaurant where he can watch the warehouse. However, he isn't sitting alone for long. Asian cops with LAPD badges are soon all over Cole, warning him off of Ishida!
The plot is thickening, gentle reader.
'Stalking the Angel' is a wonderfully fun beach read! For those of us looking for something traditional in a mystery genre, quick to digest, with a wisecracking private Los Angeles detective as narrator with a more hardcore partner backing him when the bullets fly, an Elvis Cole mystery is the right choice. Amusing and yet darkly entertaining, plus a pet kitty is hanging about who is tougher than Elvis! - what more can a mystery reader want?
September 15, 2020
3.5 stars
Similar flaws to the first Elvis Cole book, but with a weaker and indeterminate ending.
I mostly enjoyed the book, especially the Man on a Mission heroic side of Cole, again much like the hero Harry Bosch.
Moving on now to book #3 in the series.
Notes:
62.0% ... one thing bugs me about Elvis Cole: how does a guy in a bright yellow 1966 Corvette follow anyone around L.A. without being seen EVERY TIME?"
53.0% ... a man on a Mission ...
Bradley Warren's blank check was still in my wallet. I took it out, tore it in quarters, and put it on the table by Jillian Becker's plate.
Jillian Becker looked at the check and then at me. She shook her head. "And you're still going to look for Mimi?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
"I told Mimi I would take care of her.""
51.0% .... at Musso & Frank's ... "This room," I said, "is where Dashiell Hammett first laid eyes on Lillian Hellman. It was a romance that lasted ages."
25.0% .... again, as in his first book, Crais is trying much too hard with the hard-bitten and snappy, and a bad habit of exaggeration up to now. I hope he settles down and grinds out some credible noir again, too"
4.0% ... dated and ... barfs ..."Maybe with the white jacket and the convertible and the blank check in my pocket, someone would think I was Donald Trump.""
Robert Crais
Full size image here
There are at least two of Robert's works that he wrote from the heart, with visible love and wonder and care, my very favourites:
1. The Man Who Knew Dick Bong
My review of the collection of short stories by authors honouring Marlowe: Raymond Chandler's Philip Marlowe
2. Suspect about the detective, Scott, and his dog, Maggie. Robert took the 2 month dog handling course at LAPD before writing this book, and he told me personally how much he loved it. I could see how special this experience was to him.
My review of Suspect
Similar flaws to the first Elvis Cole book, but with a weaker and indeterminate ending.
I mostly enjoyed the book, especially the Man on a Mission heroic side of Cole, again much like the hero Harry Bosch.
Moving on now to book #3 in the series.
Notes:
62.0% ... one thing bugs me about Elvis Cole: how does a guy in a bright yellow 1966 Corvette follow anyone around L.A. without being seen EVERY TIME?"
53.0% ... a man on a Mission ...
Bradley Warren's blank check was still in my wallet. I took it out, tore it in quarters, and put it on the table by Jillian Becker's plate.
Jillian Becker looked at the check and then at me. She shook her head. "And you're still going to look for Mimi?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
"I told Mimi I would take care of her.""
51.0% .... at Musso & Frank's ... "This room," I said, "is where Dashiell Hammett first laid eyes on Lillian Hellman. It was a romance that lasted ages."
25.0% .... again, as in his first book, Crais is trying much too hard with the hard-bitten and snappy, and a bad habit of exaggeration up to now. I hope he settles down and grinds out some credible noir again, too"
4.0% ... dated and ... barfs ..."Maybe with the white jacket and the convertible and the blank check in my pocket, someone would think I was Donald Trump.""
Robert Crais
Full size image here
There are at least two of Robert's works that he wrote from the heart, with visible love and wonder and care, my very favourites:
1. The Man Who Knew Dick Bong
My review of the collection of short stories by authors honouring Marlowe: Raymond Chandler's Philip Marlowe
2. Suspect about the detective, Scott, and his dog, Maggie. Robert took the 2 month dog handling course at LAPD before writing this book, and he told me personally how much he loved it. I could see how special this experience was to him.
My review of Suspect
March 18, 2025
Yeah, yeah, I'm reading this again. Synopsis: "In the eighteenth century, a man named Jocho Yamamoto outlined every aspect of proper behavior for the samurai in manuscript form. It was called 'Recorded Words of the Hagakure Master,' or simply, the Hagakure, and only a few of the original editions survive. Mr. Warren had arranged the loan of one of these from the Tashiro family in Kyoto, with whom his company has extensive business dealings. The manuscript was in his home safe when it was stolen."
Valued at 3 million, Elvis starts snooping, knowing in LA that only a few people would know what the book was and want it for their private collection.
Enter bad guys, the California Yakuza, along with the Asian Task Force cops, and Cole and Joe Pike find themselves in a situation that is nothing like it appears. Great action, dialogue, and "You ever notice," I said to the cat, "that sometimes the bad guys are better people than the good guys?"
3rd reading - Great read, with our P.I. looking for a stolen Samurai book, worth 3 million.
2nd reading - Another entry I'd read awhile back. Does anyone else re-read books? I enjoy the Elvis/Joe Pike dynamics. One is a wise-cracking extrovert, the other an enigma, with his shades and tats.
This time, a yuppie type is trying to track down a purloined Japanese tome. Elvis is pulled into a Twilight Zone universe, complete with the yuppie's girl Friday, his alcoholic wife, and bewildering teenage daughter. Throw in the yakuza, and you have a rip-roaring adrenaline ride.
Valued at 3 million, Elvis starts snooping, knowing in LA that only a few people would know what the book was and want it for their private collection.
Enter bad guys, the California Yakuza, along with the Asian Task Force cops, and Cole and Joe Pike find themselves in a situation that is nothing like it appears. Great action, dialogue, and "You ever notice," I said to the cat, "that sometimes the bad guys are better people than the good guys?"
3rd reading - Great read, with our P.I. looking for a stolen Samurai book, worth 3 million.
2nd reading - Another entry I'd read awhile back. Does anyone else re-read books? I enjoy the Elvis/Joe Pike dynamics. One is a wise-cracking extrovert, the other an enigma, with his shades and tats.
This time, a yuppie type is trying to track down a purloined Japanese tome. Elvis is pulled into a Twilight Zone universe, complete with the yuppie's girl Friday, his alcoholic wife, and bewildering teenage daughter. Throw in the yakuza, and you have a rip-roaring adrenaline ride.
April 26, 2016
"Stalking The Angel" is the 2nd in the Elvis Cole & Joe Pike series created by Robert Crais. This book is ALL ABOUT the incorrigible attitude of Elvis Cole, Los Angeles' finest Private Investigator. Every line of this book reeks of Elvis' undaunting attitude and raw guts. He NEVER says anything stratight and that's where this book is an absolutely enjoyable read.
I can bet top dollars that every woman who reads this book will simply fall in love with Elvis Cole.
Mr. Crais has written this book in the first person narrative which enable the reader to see the world through the expansively wicked mind of Elvis Cole. With the most wicked charm and a solid set of high value system and principles, Elvis Cole stands out as one of the memorable action heroes of our times.
The plot is not that strong and is quite simple. But Elvis and his methods take it to a different plane altogether.
Mr. Crais introduced us to Elvis Cole and Joe Pike in "The Monkey's Raincoat" and this book maintains the momentum of the series.
P.S: This book took double the time for me to finish as I had to go back and read every dialogue of Elvis Cole once again because "Once Was Simply Not Enough".
I can bet top dollars that every woman who reads this book will simply fall in love with Elvis Cole.
Mr. Crais has written this book in the first person narrative which enable the reader to see the world through the expansively wicked mind of Elvis Cole. With the most wicked charm and a solid set of high value system and principles, Elvis Cole stands out as one of the memorable action heroes of our times.
The plot is not that strong and is quite simple. But Elvis and his methods take it to a different plane altogether.
Mr. Crais introduced us to Elvis Cole and Joe Pike in "The Monkey's Raincoat" and this book maintains the momentum of the series.
P.S: This book took double the time for me to finish as I had to go back and read every dialogue of Elvis Cole once again because "Once Was Simply Not Enough".
August 19, 2024
Yikes! This one was worse than the first!
The “humor” is just stupid and Cole ends up coming off as a complete jerk, who somehow still managed to get into the pants of the first hot chick we are introduced to by the end of the book.
I like Pike, but he just tags along with Cole, a silent, stoic sidekick who helps Cole not die when he does something stupid. Which is often.
I’ve heard the first few books are rough, so since I’m borrowing the series from a friend, I’ll give Cole one more try. If I’m still underwhelmed, I’ll call it a day.
Funny blast from the past, I didn’t really realize how much of a household name Trump was in the 80s. He and his wealth were mentioned twice in the first few chapters, which I wouldn’t have even noticed had I read this book pre-Trump as US President.
Despite the fact that I jumped around in this book to determine if I would finish it or not and eventually DNF’ing it, I will star it, as it was not one I enjoyed at all.
1, I really disliked the MC’s attitude, stars.
The “humor” is just stupid and Cole ends up coming off as a complete jerk, who somehow still managed to get into the pants of the first hot chick we are introduced to by the end of the book.
I like Pike, but he just tags along with Cole, a silent, stoic sidekick who helps Cole not die when he does something stupid. Which is often.
I’ve heard the first few books are rough, so since I’m borrowing the series from a friend, I’ll give Cole one more try. If I’m still underwhelmed, I’ll call it a day.
Funny blast from the past, I didn’t really realize how much of a household name Trump was in the 80s. He and his wealth were mentioned twice in the first few chapters, which I wouldn’t have even noticed had I read this book pre-Trump as US President.
Despite the fact that I jumped around in this book to determine if I would finish it or not and eventually DNF’ing it, I will star it, as it was not one I enjoyed at all.
1, I really disliked the MC’s attitude, stars.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 17, 2023
7/10 stars
This was, as expected, a good read but not as good as many of the later ones I've read. It somehow didn't seem as focused, but being only the 2nd book of the series, I will forgive this. I'm not really even sure how I missed this one in my journey through almost all the books.
The ending was kind of strange, with an uncertain conclusion. Uncertain for us and Elvis Cole both.
This was, as expected, a good read but not as good as many of the later ones I've read. It somehow didn't seem as focused, but being only the 2nd book of the series, I will forgive this. I'm not really even sure how I missed this one in my journey through almost all the books.
The ending was kind of strange, with an uncertain conclusion. Uncertain for us and Elvis Cole both.
May 8, 2015
I enjoyed this 2nd Elvis Cole book, and am looking forward to the rest of the series. I like the humor in the books, and Elvis' sarcastic statements and thoughts. It was good to see Joe Pike as well. The book had an engaging storyline, and it kept me guessing.
Elvis Cole is hired to find an important Japanese book that has been stolen. As he tries to find it, he comes up against organized Japanese crime, as well as some surprises.
I really like Elvis, and I felt badly for him in this book. He tried so terribly hard to do the right thing for Mimi, but his efforts didn't turn out like he had planned. It was tough to see him wondering if he'd done the right thing. Great characters and an interesting storyline made this an enjoyable addition to the series.
Elvis Cole is hired to find an important Japanese book that has been stolen. As he tries to find it, he comes up against organized Japanese crime, as well as some surprises.
I really like Elvis, and I felt badly for him in this book. He tried so terribly hard to do the right thing for Mimi, but his efforts didn't turn out like he had planned. It was tough to see him wondering if he'd done the right thing. Great characters and an interesting storyline made this an enjoyable addition to the series.
April 2, 2012
I enjoyed Elvis Cole's second go-around almost as much as the first, but I was left with a few nagging questions at the end (mild spoilers follow).
- Who killed and why exactly?
- Did Warren his daughter or not?
- Did the manuscript make it back to the Tashiro family at the end?
- Did Cole get paid at the end, and if so, was it by Warren's estate, his company, or the Tashiro family?
- Why exactly did Jillian Becker fall for Cole?
Okay, maybe that is more than a few questions, but the mystery was still interesting, if convoluted, and the characters were a blast to spend time with.
- Who killed and why exactly?
- Did Warren his daughter or not?
- Did the manuscript make it back to the Tashiro family at the end?
- Did Cole get paid at the end, and if so, was it by Warren's estate, his company, or the Tashiro family?
- Why exactly did Jillian Becker fall for Cole?
Okay, maybe that is more than a few questions, but the mystery was still interesting, if convoluted, and the characters were a blast to spend time with.
December 10, 2024
Loved it.
I read this many years ago but found it on an audiobook deal, so bought it on audio. Even though it was written 30+ years ago, it's still a great story and holds together. I don't think there's a Robert Crais book I haven't liked.
I read this many years ago but found it on an audiobook deal, so bought it on audio. Even though it was written 30+ years ago, it's still a great story and holds together. I don't think there's a Robert Crais book I haven't liked.
March 17, 2013
Ok, a few rambling thoughts on Robert Crais. Who is this guy, where'd he come from, how'd he get so popular? Well the first thing to know is that Crais is not from California at all. He is a native of Louisiana, grew up in a blue collar family, and read his first crime novel The Little Sister when he was 15. And that's all it took. Chandler gave him his love for writing. Other authors that have inspired him were Hammett, Hemingway (seems like that's true of all the crime writers), Parker, and Steinbeck (huh?).
How'd he get so popular? In short: television and L.A. Requim. Robert Crais has a very impressive resume as a screenwriter for such television series as Hill Street Blues, Miami Vice (damn, I loved that show too!), Cagney & Lacey. But what hits home the most with Crais himself is his work on the 4 hour mini series Cross of Fire which is about the Ku Klux Klan and is probably more relevant to his home state of Louisiana than it is to Hollywood. Following a growing dissatsifaction of a screen writer's constraints, Crais began writing novels. L.A. Requim, which is the 8th Elvis Cole novel, is what landed him as an author that defied all genres and in it outsurpassed even the legendary Ross Macdonald.
Enough about Crais, the guy's good. So, what about Elvis Cole? Naming someone Elvis had to have been a fairly deliberate decision. To me the name seems iconic, Warholish, Disneylandish, a bit theatrical if not cynical. In fact his novels and trinkets therein are suffused with cultural icons: Spider Man mug, Jiminy Cricket (latent fantasy of wanting to be Peter Pan?), and his yellow Corvette. Even his slogan seems hamstrung with Hollywood's obsession with icons: Elvis Cole is The world's Greatest Detective! But in reality there's nothing ridiculous about Cole: he's tough, honest, ponders morality and ambiguity and hypocrasies while staring out the balcony window in his office.Yes, he's cynical, a smart ass, a comic relief in many ways...but behind the seeming humor lies a Dan Wesson .38, the Vietnam War, martial arts and his biggest gun of all: Joe Pike.
Joe Pike, the avenging angel, is a tool used sparingly by Crais. Use him too much and you wonder why he isn't the main character (we know Crais has struggled with this as he produced 4 separate novels featuring Pike as the hero); use him too little and you start wondering why the big guns aren't being pulled out by Elvis. What you want to do is increase the anxiety level of the reader towards the hero, not get the reader frustrated with him. Crais handles this expertly...and uses Pike to increase the anticipation in readers.
The Elvis Cole novels should be considered hard boiled detectives primarily in that Crais deviates from the traditional Romantic tradition found in detective stories and crime fiction by introducing Cole as a detective with a decidedly cynical attitude towards the emotions (i.e. apprehension, horror, terror, and awe such as are found in other crime and thriller stories). And yet, we find sprinkled throughout the books insightful observations of the world as seen through Elvis's eyes. In the following passage, Elvis observes the effects of dry brush fires raging through L.A.:
Picture the detective at work in his office, fourth floor, Hollywood, as the Devil's Wind freight-trains down from the desert. Though dry and brutally harsh, the desert wind is clean. It pushes the smog south to the sea and scrubs the sky to a crystalline blue. The air, jittery from the heat, rises in swaying tendrils like kelp from the seabed, making the city shimmer. We are never more beautiful than when we are burning.
Like I said, it really came together following the publication of his 8th Elvis Cole novel. Pike his side kick, Lou Poitras (Cole's detective friend) gruffy as ever, shifting view points, a relaxation of Cole's zany character...it all came together following L.A. Requim. So, believe me. All in all, you will not be disappointed with the Elvis Cole series. There are a lot of these novels so sit back and enjoy! I most certainly did.
As with all series reviews, this one covers all the Elvis Cole books. So if you've read this review of mine than you've read 'em all.
How'd he get so popular? In short: television and L.A. Requim. Robert Crais has a very impressive resume as a screenwriter for such television series as Hill Street Blues, Miami Vice (damn, I loved that show too!), Cagney & Lacey. But what hits home the most with Crais himself is his work on the 4 hour mini series Cross of Fire which is about the Ku Klux Klan and is probably more relevant to his home state of Louisiana than it is to Hollywood. Following a growing dissatsifaction of a screen writer's constraints, Crais began writing novels. L.A. Requim, which is the 8th Elvis Cole novel, is what landed him as an author that defied all genres and in it outsurpassed even the legendary Ross Macdonald.
Enough about Crais, the guy's good. So, what about Elvis Cole? Naming someone Elvis had to have been a fairly deliberate decision. To me the name seems iconic, Warholish, Disneylandish, a bit theatrical if not cynical. In fact his novels and trinkets therein are suffused with cultural icons: Spider Man mug, Jiminy Cricket (latent fantasy of wanting to be Peter Pan?), and his yellow Corvette. Even his slogan seems hamstrung with Hollywood's obsession with icons: Elvis Cole is The world's Greatest Detective! But in reality there's nothing ridiculous about Cole: he's tough, honest, ponders morality and ambiguity and hypocrasies while staring out the balcony window in his office.Yes, he's cynical, a smart ass, a comic relief in many ways...but behind the seeming humor lies a Dan Wesson .38, the Vietnam War, martial arts and his biggest gun of all: Joe Pike.
Joe Pike, the avenging angel, is a tool used sparingly by Crais. Use him too much and you wonder why he isn't the main character (we know Crais has struggled with this as he produced 4 separate novels featuring Pike as the hero); use him too little and you start wondering why the big guns aren't being pulled out by Elvis. What you want to do is increase the anxiety level of the reader towards the hero, not get the reader frustrated with him. Crais handles this expertly...and uses Pike to increase the anticipation in readers.
The Elvis Cole novels should be considered hard boiled detectives primarily in that Crais deviates from the traditional Romantic tradition found in detective stories and crime fiction by introducing Cole as a detective with a decidedly cynical attitude towards the emotions (i.e. apprehension, horror, terror, and awe such as are found in other crime and thriller stories). And yet, we find sprinkled throughout the books insightful observations of the world as seen through Elvis's eyes. In the following passage, Elvis observes the effects of dry brush fires raging through L.A.:
Picture the detective at work in his office, fourth floor, Hollywood, as the Devil's Wind freight-trains down from the desert. Though dry and brutally harsh, the desert wind is clean. It pushes the smog south to the sea and scrubs the sky to a crystalline blue. The air, jittery from the heat, rises in swaying tendrils like kelp from the seabed, making the city shimmer. We are never more beautiful than when we are burning.
Like I said, it really came together following the publication of his 8th Elvis Cole novel. Pike his side kick, Lou Poitras (Cole's detective friend) gruffy as ever, shifting view points, a relaxation of Cole's zany character...it all came together following L.A. Requim. So, believe me. All in all, you will not be disappointed with the Elvis Cole series. There are a lot of these novels so sit back and enjoy! I most certainly did.
As with all series reviews, this one covers all the Elvis Cole books. So if you've read this review of mine than you've read 'em all.
August 16, 2018
A fast paced read that feels very much like it wanted to impress the Chandler readers with how authentic its structure and attitude is. Fun and quick witted and full of well hit plot beats, superior to almost all of the other obvious Chandler clones i’ve come across. I think i’ll enjoy taking another trip with Elvis Cole.
June 4, 2016
This was a good book with a good who-dun-it and a lot of action. I am starting to get into this series and have heard great things about it too. I enjoy Elvis Cole's sense of humor and Joe Pike just being Joe Pike. Give this book/series a try if you are looking for a good mystery that is well written and had likeable characters and a lot of action. I'm looking forward to the third book in this series.
April 8, 2019
A rare 13th century Japanese manuscript, the Hagakure, has been stolen and Elvis Cole is hired to get it back. He and Joe Pike begin their search in L.A.’s Little Tokyo, the nest of the Japanese mafia. Very exciting book.
February 4, 2024
This one was a real head scratcher. Who was the true victim? I think it might have been Elvis Cole. He was sucked into a situation that he probably should have ran from. He is like a dog with a bone though and falls into peril of his own making. Eeek
I’m not sure why but so far out of 2 books in this series Cole’s client are NOT sympathetic figures. I’d go as far to say that they are complete assholes. AND when is he going to be paid for doing his job?!?!
All the atmosphere of LA makes me nostalgic. Drinking Falstaff and eating street food. Crais paints quite the picture of old LA.
When this book ends, I have very unresolved feelings about it. Was Mimi the villain or the victim? I guess we will never know.
Side note: 📝
I would like a crossover with Harry Bosch and Elvis Cole. Now that would be interesting! They are literary neighbors after all.
I’m not sure why but so far out of 2 books in this series Cole’s client are NOT sympathetic figures. I’d go as far to say that they are complete assholes. AND when is he going to be paid for doing his job?!?!
All the atmosphere of LA makes me nostalgic. Drinking Falstaff and eating street food. Crais paints quite the picture of old LA.
When this book ends, I have very unresolved feelings about it. Was Mimi the villain or the victim? I guess we will never know.
Side note: 📝
I would like a crossover with Harry Bosch and Elvis Cole. Now that would be interesting! They are literary neighbors after all.
June 9, 2021
Elvis the PI with a heart is back, and so his his sidekick Joe. This instalment is pretty much the same as the first, Elvis is hired for one case and ends up with a totally case then he thought. The thing I love most about Cole is his heart, he is the PI that cares. His constant mouthing off at really inopportune times can get a little trying.
The mystery itself was really entertaining and it certainly took a turn that I did not see coming at all. I think going into these books you need to remind yourself that these books were written in the late 1980's so they are going to be somewhat dated. I have been told that as the series progresses the books get better and Crais manages to distinguish these books from the Spencer Books by Parker. I really enjoy these books and I love Elvis and Joe so I will be continuing with these books.
The mystery itself was really entertaining and it certainly took a turn that I did not see coming at all. I think going into these books you need to remind yourself that these books were written in the late 1980's so they are going to be somewhat dated. I have been told that as the series progresses the books get better and Crais manages to distinguish these books from the Spencer Books by Parker. I really enjoy these books and I love Elvis and Joe so I will be continuing with these books.
April 7, 2025
Good thing I saved this one until now. Just lukewarm action. Even Joe Pike was subdued. Finding a good thing to say about this one is hard. The lowest rated Elvis Cole story. 2 Stars If you jump to a recent entry in the Elvis Cole/Joe Pike saga, you will find out that Cole has a cat that is over 35 years old and still gets around just fine--a miracle! Elvis will transition from phone booths to cell phones without notice and Joe Pike is as intimidating as ever. Funny, Bob Lee Swagger aged normally over his story arc, he needed a better author.....
December 31, 2017
I'll start off by noting that Elvis Cole is quick with a joke. So quick, he had me laughing out loud by Chapter One. That's pretty quick.
He meets his client, a Mr. Bradley Warren, standing on his head (Elvis, that is -- Warren is on his feet). Warren is in a suit. He blusters and frowns. This seems to be his specialty. That and glancing at his Rolex. He has a female (of course) assistant who is attractive (of course) and who abides her employer's attitudes (of course) for reasons only she knows.
Here's the problem: Someone has stolen a priceless Japanese manuscript called the Hagakure. Well, not really priceless -- worth more than three million dollars (BIG money in the late 1980s when this was first written). It belongs to one of his clients. Boy, do they need it back. The cops are involved, but they aren't getting the job done nearly fast enough. (Glancing at Rolex. Frowning.) Oh, and by the way, Warren is supposed to receive the Man of the Year Award in some big deal ceremony. Now isn't that special?
At this point, Cole takes quick action. He tells the would-be client to go pound sand.
*sigh* If only things were that simple. But then there would be no story, so ...
Cole takes the case. What follows is the obligatory visit to Warren's mansion, where comparisons are made to things so gargantuan that even Raymond Chandler might find them to be a bit of a stretch. :) Warren's wife, Sheila is dressed for tennis (what else?) and drunk before noon. Their daughter is teenaged, detached and (maybe) stoned. Hard to tell. Okay, so what's new?
All right, so even if we have seen this particular scenario before, that is so not the point. It's not that it's been done before, it's the WAY it's done that counts. And no one does it quite like Robert Crais.
No one else can take you into the heart of Little Tokyo, where Elvis has to go to investigate the case, and not only make you feel you're there, but ratchet up the suspense as he discovers a body killed in a most gruesome way, probably at the hands of the yakuza (the Japanese version of the Mafia).
In addition, Crais has the amazing ability to build build tension and suspense in his story to the point where you simply can't read fast enough, then suddenly insert something incredibly funny. But then -- boom! -- the moment's over, and things go south. And they turn dangerous. Or sad. Or solemn.
And, of course, there's Elvis' partner, Joe Pike. How could I overlook him? Never! He's essential. Pike is amazing, awesome, kick-ass -- call him what you will. Where would Elvis be without him? Is this a question that comes up later in the series? I wonder ... please, commenters, no spoilers. :)
Okay, so to sum things up, the daughter disappears. And Warren -- well, he just keeps on acting like, "Hey whatever. I'm Man of the Year! How about that?" This leads to stuff happening that's better discovered by simply reading the book, believe me. But know that things eventually get resolved. In a bittersweet way. Okay, a bit heavier on the bitter than the sweet, perhaps.
Have you ever heard of a plot device known as a MacGuffin? Hitchcock used it in his films. It was a thing the characters pursued that didn't really mean anything, but drove the plot. I don't think it's a spoiler to say the Hagakure probably qualifies as such.
PS: Has anyone noticed an interesting resemblance between the Hagakure and the title to this book: The Godwulf Manuscript? :) Just sayin'.
He meets his client, a Mr. Bradley Warren, standing on his head (Elvis, that is -- Warren is on his feet). Warren is in a suit. He blusters and frowns. This seems to be his specialty. That and glancing at his Rolex. He has a female (of course) assistant who is attractive (of course) and who abides her employer's attitudes (of course) for reasons only she knows.
Here's the problem: Someone has stolen a priceless Japanese manuscript called the Hagakure. Well, not really priceless -- worth more than three million dollars (BIG money in the late 1980s when this was first written). It belongs to one of his clients. Boy, do they need it back. The cops are involved, but they aren't getting the job done nearly fast enough. (Glancing at Rolex. Frowning.) Oh, and by the way, Warren is supposed to receive the Man of the Year Award in some big deal ceremony. Now isn't that special?
At this point, Cole takes quick action. He tells the would-be client to go pound sand.
*sigh* If only things were that simple. But then there would be no story, so ...
Cole takes the case. What follows is the obligatory visit to Warren's mansion, where comparisons are made to things so gargantuan that even Raymond Chandler might find them to be a bit of a stretch. :) Warren's wife, Sheila is dressed for tennis (what else?) and drunk before noon. Their daughter is teenaged, detached and (maybe) stoned. Hard to tell. Okay, so what's new?
All right, so even if we have seen this particular scenario before, that is so not the point. It's not that it's been done before, it's the WAY it's done that counts. And no one does it quite like Robert Crais.
No one else can take you into the heart of Little Tokyo, where Elvis has to go to investigate the case, and not only make you feel you're there, but ratchet up the suspense as he discovers a body killed in a most gruesome way, probably at the hands of the yakuza (the Japanese version of the Mafia).
In addition, Crais has the amazing ability to build build tension and suspense in his story to the point where you simply can't read fast enough, then suddenly insert something incredibly funny. But then -- boom! -- the moment's over, and things go south. And they turn dangerous. Or sad. Or solemn.
And, of course, there's Elvis' partner, Joe Pike. How could I overlook him? Never! He's essential. Pike is amazing, awesome, kick-ass -- call him what you will. Where would Elvis be without him? Is this a question that comes up later in the series? I wonder ... please, commenters, no spoilers. :)
Okay, so to sum things up, the daughter disappears. And Warren -- well, he just keeps on acting like, "Hey whatever. I'm Man of the Year! How about that?" This leads to stuff happening that's better discovered by simply reading the book, believe me. But know that things eventually get resolved. In a bittersweet way. Okay, a bit heavier on the bitter than the sweet, perhaps.
Have you ever heard of a plot device known as a MacGuffin? Hitchcock used it in his films. It was a thing the characters pursued that didn't really mean anything, but drove the plot. I don't think it's a spoiler to say the Hagakure probably qualifies as such.
PS: Has anyone noticed an interesting resemblance between the Hagakure and the title to this book: The Godwulf Manuscript? :) Just sayin'.
May 20, 2015
Good Lord, I hated this thing!
After a promising start, the series completely falls to pits of mediocrity in this follow up.
The book actually starts out strong. A legendary book stolen, the Yakuza, guys with a missing finger, a bit of a “Black Rain” vibe, yeah bring it on! I mean, Joe Pike vs the yakuza, what could go wrong? A lot!
Around the second third of the book, Crais rehashes the plot of the previous entry. Cole is doing the right thing, risking his life to recover a kidnap victim, just because its the honorable thing to do! This time he's even fired, but hell, money doesn't matter to Cole, he's a goddamn hero dammit! And Pike goes along, with even less motivation, because I guess that's what Pike does, risk his life for people he hardly knows because... well its the right thing to do. No matter how much Crais tries to make him a “warrior” I cant stop feeling Pike doesn't give a damn about why, he just likes the murder and mayhem. Of course Crais couldn't risk making him the slightest bit interesting so he just goes along... and does the right thing!
The problem with the book is how the plot is both contrived and colossally stupid! Cole is just a moron the whole book, a white knight trying to rescue the damsel in distress, disregarding any proof that... well there's no distress. Every character is annoying and unlikable and the ending falls completely flat after again rehashing the ending of the first book where our heroes attack the bad guys' stronghold and of course survive.
Crais tries to create drama and touch on serious subjects but its embarrassing. He's just not good enough, the plot is too silly and the characters too empty to create some sort of impact. The first book was too light and this one has a seriousness that is out of place among such fluff.
Good Lord, even the ending is both depressing and depressingly bad.
Elvis Cole, what an imbecile!
At least this time Pike didn't take a bullet in the chest right at the start of the action!
After a promising start, the series completely falls to pits of mediocrity in this follow up.
The book actually starts out strong. A legendary book stolen, the Yakuza, guys with a missing finger, a bit of a “Black Rain” vibe, yeah bring it on! I mean, Joe Pike vs the yakuza, what could go wrong? A lot!
Around the second third of the book, Crais rehashes the plot of the previous entry. Cole is doing the right thing, risking his life to recover a kidnap victim, just because its the honorable thing to do! This time he's even fired, but hell, money doesn't matter to Cole, he's a goddamn hero dammit! And Pike goes along, with even less motivation, because I guess that's what Pike does, risk his life for people he hardly knows because... well its the right thing to do. No matter how much Crais tries to make him a “warrior” I cant stop feeling Pike doesn't give a damn about why, he just likes the murder and mayhem. Of course Crais couldn't risk making him the slightest bit interesting so he just goes along... and does the right thing!
The problem with the book is how the plot is both contrived and colossally stupid! Cole is just a moron the whole book, a white knight trying to rescue the damsel in distress, disregarding any proof that... well there's no distress. Every character is annoying and unlikable and the ending falls completely flat after again rehashing the ending of the first book where our heroes attack the bad guys' stronghold and of course survive.
Crais tries to create drama and touch on serious subjects but its embarrassing. He's just not good enough, the plot is too silly and the characters too empty to create some sort of impact. The first book was too light and this one has a seriousness that is out of place among such fluff.
Good Lord, even the ending is both depressing and depressingly bad.
Elvis Cole, what an imbecile!
At least this time Pike didn't take a bullet in the chest right at the start of the action!
October 31, 2011
You usually know what you're getting with Robert Crais - quirky Elvis Cole with his barely bearable "sense of humour" (Iuse the term guardedly) and dark Joe Pike get into a scrape, there's usually a pretty woman involved, a bit of gore, some physical discomfort and the crime usually gets solved with about 90% total satisfaction - and it's the uneasy, unanswered 10% which makes the novel a teeny bit interesting.
This isn't all that different - an old book goes missing, there's a kidnapping, the Chinese Mafia appear to be involved and.... well, I won't spoil the rest of it too much, but just refer back to the first paragraph...
Trouble with this book is that half way through it tries to become some sort of social worker's manual, where Cole forgets the fact that he's meant to be a private detective and turns into a bleeding heart instead. Just didn't hang together for me, I'm afraid. I read these novels for a little bit of light escapism - this tries to get too heavy, without the necessary research and empathy for the topic to make it convincing.
Won't stop me reading another Crais novel in 6 months or so though - but this was a long way off being one of his best.
This isn't all that different - an old book goes missing, there's a kidnapping, the Chinese Mafia appear to be involved and.... well, I won't spoil the rest of it too much, but just refer back to the first paragraph...
Trouble with this book is that half way through it tries to become some sort of social worker's manual, where Cole forgets the fact that he's meant to be a private detective and turns into a bleeding heart instead. Just didn't hang together for me, I'm afraid. I read these novels for a little bit of light escapism - this tries to get too heavy, without the necessary research and empathy for the topic to make it convincing.
Won't stop me reading another Crais novel in 6 months or so though - but this was a long way off being one of his best.
October 27, 2015
Adding one star to this book because I feel like the last half of the book is where Crais really starts to flesh out who he wants Elvis to be.
The story drags some at the beginning and you start to feel that everything is super predictable but how everything works out through me for a loop.
Like coming back to this series now, revisiting my old friends and remembering why Joe Pike is my favorite "detective friend."
The story drags some at the beginning and you start to feel that everything is super predictable but how everything works out through me for a loop.
Like coming back to this series now, revisiting my old friends and remembering why Joe Pike is my favorite "detective friend."
April 25, 2018
I really enjoy ‘early’ Robert Crais. Elvis Cole, ace private detective, is still sort of being defined as a character, as is his trusty nearly nonverbal sidekick Joe Pike, and in this episode Cole is hired to find a stolen rare Japanese manuscript. Before he knows it, he finds much more than he bargained for, and brings Pike in to get things moving. He’s fired from the job by the dickish guy who hired him but keeps working at it because there’s more to the story. Seems the guy’s young daughter is having some emotional issues that tie into the investigation.
Crais’ ‘schtick’ from the beginning with the great Cole character has been his sense of humor and his sharp tongue. That’s certainly the case here. His writing style is breezy, but the plot is a serious one and there’s some violence involved. The procedural stuff, although Cole is a PI and not a cop, seems solid and the story moves along at a fast clip. This is an early book in the fine ‘Elvis Cole’ series but well worth a look.
Crais’ ‘schtick’ from the beginning with the great Cole character has been his sense of humor and his sharp tongue. That’s certainly the case here. His writing style is breezy, but the plot is a serious one and there’s some violence involved. The procedural stuff, although Cole is a PI and not a cop, seems solid and the story moves along at a fast clip. This is an early book in the fine ‘Elvis Cole’ series but well worth a look.
March 4, 2019
Bradley Warren had lost something very valuable, something that belonged to someone else: a rare thirteenth-century Japanese manuscript called the Hagakure.
Everything PI Elvis Cole knew about Japanese culture he'd learned from reading SHOGUN, but he knew a lot of crooks - and what he didn't know, his sidekick Joe Pike did.
Together, Cole and Pike begin their search in L.A.'s Little Tokyo, the nest of the notorious Japanese mafia, the Yakuza - and find themselves caught up in a white-knuckled adventure filled with madness, murder and sexual obsession. Just another day's work for Elvis Cole...
*3.5 stars*
This is the second Elvis Cole / Joe Pike novel I have read on my re-read of this series.
Not as good as the first novel due to the confusing plot lines, I still did enjoy this novel for the things I enjoy his books for - humor, dialogue, action scenes and Joe Pike.
Where it did lose me was a combination of the Japanese culture (which seemed a bit contrived) and the bleeding heart "We have to save this girl, Joe" plot line. They both felt odd and out of place so early in a series.
Overall, still a good addition to the series but I am hoping for a little more next time around.
Paul
ARH
Everything PI Elvis Cole knew about Japanese culture he'd learned from reading SHOGUN, but he knew a lot of crooks - and what he didn't know, his sidekick Joe Pike did.
Together, Cole and Pike begin their search in L.A.'s Little Tokyo, the nest of the notorious Japanese mafia, the Yakuza - and find themselves caught up in a white-knuckled adventure filled with madness, murder and sexual obsession. Just another day's work for Elvis Cole...
*3.5 stars*
This is the second Elvis Cole / Joe Pike novel I have read on my re-read of this series.
Not as good as the first novel due to the confusing plot lines, I still did enjoy this novel for the things I enjoy his books for - humor, dialogue, action scenes and Joe Pike.
Where it did lose me was a combination of the Japanese culture (which seemed a bit contrived) and the bleeding heart "We have to save this girl, Joe" plot line. They both felt odd and out of place so early in a series.
Overall, still a good addition to the series but I am hoping for a little more next time around.
Paul
ARH
December 11, 2016
Almost tempted to give this one an extra star because the cover is MICKEY MOUSE WITH A BIG FUCKING GUN!!! Seriously though, this was a fun read but like the first Cole novel didn’t bowl me over. I think the biggest reason I enjoy these is because I like Cole a lot. Even when his jokes and goofy shit seem a little forced he’s just cool and likable. The case wasn’t fantastic...wow, a missing book. How captivating. It’s just hard to care as much about that kind of mystery when there’s so many books about serial killers ’n shit out there. Of course it did kind of broaden out quite a bit so the book wasn’t really the biggest issue in the novel but it was certainly the starting point. The climax was pretty bloodily satisfying, however, and the usual participation by Pike certainly helped things. Plus these books are less than 300 pages each so it’s not like dedicating several weeks to a fucking brick and being underwhelmed.
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