The Forgotten Man (2005)

Pretty good thriller. I'll read the rest of this series when I run out of Randy Wayne White and Les Standiford novels. ( )

Private detective Elvis Cole investigates the claims of a dead man that he is Cole’s unknown father. The ghosts of Elvis' childhood rise from old hauntings and he pursues the spectres to rid himself of them. But, one of the dead man’s associates stalks Cole to take revenge. Cole’s friends, LAPD cop Carol Starkey and Cole’s partner, Joe Pike, help Cole through the dangers of the search for the truth about himself and his father. Tough language and violence. ( )

Just so good. I had forgotten how much I enjoy Crais. Great character development, tight plots that aren't trite or predictable, good pacing ... love it all. ( )

Don't get my rating wrong, I enjoyed this book. The but is that the earlier books spoke to me because of the humour and Elvis' take on being a detective. This book is later in the series and is more of a typical crime thriller and disappointed me with the darker tones and lack of humour. Essentially, I enjoyed the book, but it wasn't what I was expecting from an Elvis Cole novel. ( )

An elderly man is found murdered in a downtown Los Angeles alley and Elvis Cole is called to the scene to identify the victim. He doesn't recognize the man. However, the detective who found the man reports that he possessed a folder containing clippings of newspaper and magazine articles about Cole and the last thing he said before he died was that he was Cole's father. Given that he never knew his father, Cole attempts to learn the identity of the man and to determine whether he really is his father.

This isn't one of Crais' better efforts. I found it was hard to maintain interest and put the book down for a few days several times. Perhaps the next book in the series will rebound.

I also find it getting boringly predictable that all of the cases The World's Greatest Detective investigates always end in a shoot-out and that typically Joe Pike or Elvis Cole is shot, stabbed, or otherwise seriously injured. By now the two must be little more than scar tissue. Come on, Crais; try to come up with a surprising ending. ( )