Customer Reviews

Free Fall (Elvis Cole/Joe Pike Series)

5 star:		(23)
4 star:		(18)
3 star:		(10)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I was turned onto Robert Crais by my Doctor who knew I was a big fan of mystery writer Michael Connelly. Like Connelly's character Harry Bosch, Crais has created a tough wise cracking LA detective named Elvis Cole. Woman want him. Men want to be him. My suggestion if you've never read him, is to start at the beginning with "The Monkey's Raincoat" and work your way through all of them. One of the greatest things about Crais' novels is Elvis' partner Joe Pike. An aviator glasses wearing silent but deadly killing machine. Think Dirty Harry with a drier sense of humor. In reference to "Free Fall", I always feel like knowing less is more when telling the plot of a mystery. The basic gist is an attractive woman shows up at Cole's office to ask him to investigate what's going on with her boyfriend who's an L.A.P.D. Officer who's been hiding something from her. He claims it's an affair. She thinks it's something deeper. Crap hits the fan, and you'll be off turning pages faster than you thought possible. Great characters, great plot twists, great writing. Long live Elvis & Robert Crais!

Just discovered Mr. Crais and I have read all his books up through Free Fall. They are all terrific but this is the best one so far. Tightly plotted, funny, and suspenseful. Love it!

After sending Elvis Cole to the East Coast in third installment of the series, Robert Crais keeps it in L.A. for the fourth installment, Free Fall. Elvis and his partner Joe Pike try to weed out corruption in the L.A. Police Department. They are approached by a young woman who thinks her police officer finance is involved is less than scrupulous activities. We know that Pike was a one-time L.A. cop and we learn a little bit more about his time on the force. What we discover is that he didn't leave on the best of terms and the mention of his name still rankles some of the men in blue. Free Fall loses some momentum in terms of the plot, but Mr. Crais is more interested in peeling back some of Joe Pike's layers and exposing more of his skin (an area that will be further explored in future releases). As usual, Mr. Crais spikes his plots with liberal doses of humor and comes up with yet another winner

Robert Crais has put forth another masterful novel. The wise-cracking private detective is back again in the fourth book of this excellent series.

In FREE FALL, a beautiful young woman hires Elvis Cole to find out what her L.A.P.D. boyfriend is hiding from her. He claims that it is an affair, but she thinks that there is more to it. Upon his investigation, Cole stumbles upon a group of crooked cops, a wrongful death in South Central, and a druglord that seems to be unstoppable. To make matters worse, Cole and his aviator-sunglasses-wearing partner Joe Pike are arrested for murder.

Regulars Cole, Pike, and Lou Poitras are back in this thriller, and Crais does an fine job of adding in other interesting, well-developed characters. The snappy dialogue and intricate, cohesive storyline make for truly entertaining reading. His short, fast-paced chapters make this a page-turning, suspense-filled thriller that culminates with an amazing ending. This book is a can't miss.

If you have yet to begin the marvelous Elvis Cole series by Robert Crais, you've got a great treat ahead of you! Few series get off to a stronger start than Mr. Crais did with The Monkey's Raincoat, which won both the Anthony and Macavity awards for best novel while being nominated for the Edgar and Shamus awards as well. Stalking the Angel followed powerfully with classic noir style of the 1930s hard-boiled detective up against evil moderated with wise cracks. Lullaby Town brought Hollywood-oriented detective fiction into the 1990s with style and grace. And the books just keep getting better from there in their characterizations, action, story-telling and excitement.

Elvis Cole is the star attraction, the co-owner of The Elvis Cole Detective Agency. He's now 39, ex-Army, served in Vietnam, ex-security guard, has two years of college, learned to be a detective by working under George Feider, a licensed P.I. for over 40 years, does martial arts as enthusiastically as most people do lunch, and is fearless but not foolish. He's out to right the wrongs of the world as much as he is to earn a living. Elvis has a thing for Disney characters (including a Pinocchio clock), kids, cats, scared clients and rapid fire repartee. He drives a Jamaica yellow 1966 Corvette Stingray convertible, and usually carries a Dan Wesson .38 Special.

His main foil is partner, Joe Pike, an ex-Marine, ex-cop who moves quietly and mysteriously wearing shades even in the dark . . . when he's not scaring the bad guys with the red arrows tattooed on his deltoids, which are usually bare in sleeveless shirts. Although he's got an office with Elvis, Pike spends all of his time at his gun shop when not routing the bad guys with martial arts while carrying and often using enough firepower to stop a tank. Pike rarely speaks . . . and never smiles. A standing gag is trying to catch Pike with a little twitch of his lips indicating he might possibly be amused. But he's there when you need him. He drives a spotless red Jeep.

Robert Parker's Spenser is the obvious character parallel for Elvis, but Spenser and Elvis are different in some ways. Cole is more solitary, usually being alone when he's not working. Cole is very much L.A. and Spenser is ultra blue collar Boston. Cole is martial arts while Spenser boxes and jogs. What they have in common is that they're both out to do the right thing, with money being unimportant. They both love to crack wise as they take on the bad guys. The dialogue written for each is intensely rich.

Mr. Crais has a special talent for making you care about his characters, especially the clients and their loved ones. You'll want to know what happens to them. With a lot of experience in script writing, Mr. Crais also knows how to set the scene physically and make you feel it. He may be out finest fiction writer about physical movement.

I grew up near Los Angeles, and get a special pleasure out of reading his descriptions of the differences in cities, neighborhoods, and buildings in the area. He gets in right . . . and in detail. It's a nice touch!

On to Free Fall, the fourth book in the series. The title refers to what happens when you slip over the side of the high cliff of ambition and probity. As much as I liked the first three books in the series, Free Fall exceeds them.

The person in free fall is Mark Thurman, the newest member of a REACT team, plainclothes police who "monitor career criminals and try to stop them before they hurt people." His team is assigned to one of the toughest areas, the seventy-seventh division in south central Los Angeles while drugs and drive-by shootings are common forms of "entertainment." Something has gone wrong with Thurman, and his fiancée, Jennifer Sheridan, wants Elvis to find out what. She offers $40 a month for the next 50 months to cover Elvis's fee, and he graciously accepts.

Jennifer is barely out of the office when Thurman and his clod of a partner, Floyd Riggens, show up. They try convincing Elvis that Thurman has a new girl friend and hasn't told Jennifer yet. They want Elvis to butt out. Why are they going to so much trouble? Surely, there are criminals for them to be tailing rather than Jennifer.

Despite evidence Elvis finds that Thurman is messing around with another woman, Jennifer believes that he still loves her. Having known Thurman for many years, she knows he must be desperate to pretend to be having an affair. She convinces Elvis to dig deeper. What he finds are out-of-control cops, nasty criminals, and extreme danger that touches all those who are connected to them.

As the story develops, Jennifer and Mark find themselves and their love tested beyond what they would have thought possible while Elvis and Joe struggle to help them keep their heads above water.

To me, this story is a monument to the fine Joseph Wambaugh novels about the police, updated to the current time. Any fan of his will love this book.

Although this is a crime and detection novel, it's also a story about love and commitment. I don't remember another book that develops all of those dimensions nearly as well. Unlike his earlier novels where the female characters grow while the male characters stagnate or make slower emotional progress, both Mark and Jennifer develop as people making the story a fuller and more rewarding one for the reader.

After you finish the book, you might find it helpful to think about the dangers you will encounter in order to live your dreams.

Can you physically and emotionally handle those dangers when they arise?

Donald Mitchell
Co-author of The 2,000 Percent Solution, The Irresistible Growth Enterprise and The Ultimate Competitive Advantage

Robert Crais blew me away with entry (my personal favorite) in his Elvis Cole series. Tons of action, suspense, and plot twists that will keep you reading well into the night.

Elvis Cole is a charming, sharp witted, wise-cracking private investigator who is teamed up with a Clint Eastwood type partner, Joe Pike.

His novels are fast paced, and entertaining enough to make me laugh out loud.

My favorite Elvis Cole novel is L. A. Requiem. It focuses on Joe Pike. Crais' writing is on a completely different level in this one. I highly recommend his books. I have read all but his newest: Demolition Angel. I can't wait to read it!

Robert Crais is one of my favorite authors;I always look forward to reading one of his books. If you have never read one then don't start with this one,it doesn't have the writing quality of his other novels. It almost seemed like it was written by a Crais "wanna-be". I checked the copyright to see if it was his first Elvis Cole book,thought that might explain the lack of pizazz. As Randy Jackson would say,"It just didn't do it for me."

Robert Crais has proven again and again that he can keep us on the edge of our seats, and yet at the same time laughing our butts off, to be polite. "Free Fall" is a perfect example of that. It is an installment in the "Elvis Cole Series", but you do not have to have read any of the previous novels to read this one: I didn't. I've read other Cole novels, but they've been written after this one.
Anyway, this novel takes place in Los Angeles. It finds Elvis Cole sitting in his office, just another normal day. In walks an innocent looking young woman named Jenifer Sheridan. She tells Cole that she has a problem: She thinks her fiancee, Mark Thurman, is involved in something illegal. Willingly, unwillingly? It is Cole's task to find out the answer, and just what exactly Thurman is up to. Could it be another woman? Or is it something much worse, something much deadlier?
Cole and his partner, Joe Pike, find themselves up against rogue cops, South-side gangsters, and a haunting mystery. Oh, yeah: They're also wanted by the cops for murder.
Only Crais could weave a novel this complicated and powerful. You'll be loving every minute of "Free Fall", I promise you. I would know: I've been there.

The fourth book of the Elvis Cole series is one of the better ones. A crime, mystery, detective, and police adventure all rolled into one. Elvis meets a pretty young girl (as always), and seems to have easily solved a case. The young girl isn't convinced of such an easy solution, and from that follows is a great mystery and action sequence.

Corrupt cops, inner city violence, gang warfare, the sarcastic Elvis Cole, and the mysterious Joe Pike all combine to make this a great who done it. The violence, action and intrigue grow as each page turns. This novel is one of the best mysteries I've read; it's quick, with great plot and description.

I would recommend this book, along with L.A Requiem, as the two Elvis Cole that are must reads for detective and mystery or police fans