Customer Reviews

Lullaby Town (Elvis Cole/Joe Pike Series)

5 star:		(38)
4 star:		(18)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

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, but moderated with wise cracks. 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 38, 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 .38 Special Dan Wesson.

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 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 bad guys hate the "humor" in both cases, and can't do much about it. 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 kids. 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. He gives you all the clues to picture what's going on . . . but draws back from giving so much detail that you can't use your own imagination to make things better.

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 Lullaby Town, the third book in the series. The title refers to the peddler who sells dreams in Lullaby Town. In our case, it's Hollywood.

The peddler in the story is Peter Alan Nelson, a motion picture director dubbed as the King of Adventure by Time magazine (think Steven Spielberg and George Lucas wrapped up into one hyper personality), which also called him "arrogant, brilliant, demanding." In real life, he has the maturity of a male 2 year old, and has worse habits. Elvis is hired to find Nelson's ex-wife and child so Nelson can form a relationship with his son, whom he's ignored virtually from birth. The studio doesn't want Nelson distracted by all this yearning for his son because he's due to start a new movie in three weeks.

Elvis has no trouble finding the ex and the son. They've left a trail a mile wide across the country to Connecticut where Nelson's mousy young wife has turned herself into a successful banker who doesn't want to hear anything from Nelson. At this point, Elvis's job would amount to bringing them all together gently . . . except that the ex, who now calls herself Karen Lloyd, has a little problem with the biggest crime family in the East. Elvis and Joe set out to eliminate the little problem and are tested to the limits of their talents.

The story develops rapidly in small segments from quite different perspectives, usually in chapters of 4-5 pages in length, like a scene in a drama. Each change adds to a mosaic portrait of the characters and the overall situation. So the story moves fast . . . but without leaving you behind. There is enough material in this book to make two novels.

Pay particular attention to the evolution of characters of Karen Lloyd and Peter Alan Nelson. Mr. Crais does a nice job of helping you realize many sides of their characters over a period of about 10 years. That's one quality that makes this book compelling reading.

After you finish the book, you might find it helpful to think about the potential downside of possessing all that you dream of having.

Can you select better dreams to turn into reality?

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

Robert Crais takes Elvis Cole on the road in Lullaby Town. After the first two books in the series took place in exclusively in the L.A. area, Mr. Crais sends Elvis across the country to the East Coast. The book starts out with Elvis being contacted by Peter Alan Nelsen, who is a big time action movie director, to locate his missing first wife and son. The meeting between Elvis and Nelsen at Nelsen's office is hilarious. In Peter Alan Nelsen, Mr. Crais perfectly captures the stereotypical, self-absorbed Hollywood type. After Elvis takes the case, his search leads him to a sleepy little Connecticut town where he locates Karen (the first wife) and Toby (the son). What Elvis discovers is that Karen isn't leading the simple country life, she's laundering money for the mob. Elvis took on the Japanese mafia in Stalking The Angel and this time he gets a crack at the fabled New York mafia in a way that only Elvis can. Taking the storyline out of L.A. is a nice change of pace as we get to see Elvis outside of his normal element. Lullaby Town further cements Mr. Crais as a great mystery writer and he keen eye and sharp wit are further honed in this third entry in the series.

Lullaby Town exemplifies the quality we have come to expect from Robert Crais. I have read previous Crais novels and this book is just as well written as the others. For people who like crime fiction, Lullaby Town is sure to please you. It is well written and keeps you involved the entire way.It was difficult to put the book down. All of Mr. Crais's Elvis Cole novels are well done; this is just another one of his typical works. Cole, the main character, is native to Hollywood. So when he is asked by a famous Hollywood director, Peter Alan Nelsen, to locate Nelson's ex-wife and son, Cole takes it in stride. His search takes him to a small Connecticut town. This makes the novel different than the others in the Elvis Cole series. Elvis is removed from his element, L.A and Hollywood and dumped into a small town. However, just because it is a small town does not mean there is any less wrong doing. By removing Cole from his usual surroundings it reveals more about him. Cole appears to have matured. For those who have been reading all of the Elvis Cole novels it is obvious that Cole has matured. We see things in him that are not as apparent in Los Angeles. Later, Cole is lead to the Big Apple to take on the Mob. For those people who are willing to look past the fact that this is just another typical crime fiction, or detective mystery, this novel is a total hit. You feel as though you are shadowing Elvis Cole as he hunts down the ex-wife of Peter Alan Nelsen. I found myself feeling as though I were part of the plot. The novel is truly riveting and keeps you reading. The duo of Elvis Cole and Joe Pike, Elvis's partner, is guaranteed to keep you interested and curious.

I really loved this book! It's my second Elvis Cole and I'm really looking forward to reading the rest in the series. It starts out as a mundane assignment that turns ugly, early. Cole and his partner, Pike, are ever on the job and the twists and turns of the book are done with great skill and there are lots of them. Very plausible reasons for every death, none of those unbelievable deaths here (you know the kind, as a reader, you think, now who would kill someone for THAT reason?)! True, there was a lot of violence. I just felt as if I was there with them, scared with them (OK they don't GET scared, but you know...). I could NOT put it down (once I got to the middle), and I almost never say that, I just sat riveted to my seat. Outstanding, excellent! Wonderful.

This is not Crais' best, but another worthy entry into the Cole-Pike series. This one, interestingly, takes place in the mafia world and NY/CT/NJ tri-state area. It is a good jolt to have the story--a darkish one--take place out there. The characters remain fresh and we even have some visits from some old characters (I love this--always great to reward long time fans with visits from characters from other books). Cole is still a mystery at this point (unlike Bosch, we don't know much about him yet and I'm reading the books in order). My only criticism of this volume is that Peter Alan Nelsen is a little too cartoonish for my tastes, but otherwise, a great book.

This is a wonderful installment in the Elvis Cole series. The characterization of Cole's client in spot on while being ridiculous at the same time. Crais is really good at laying people wide open. The damsel in distress this time around is strong but also unforgiving and a little hard to like. But the plot and ensuing violence escalates at a fast pace making this an exhilaraing page turner. Highly recommended.

The comparisons to Spencer are obvious. Even the storyline here is familiar. But despite all that, the book is a fun, fast-paced, enjoyable crime novel. Cole is an easy-to-like wisecracking hero with a heart of gold. Pike is the cold, matter of fact, partner that you can always rely on. In this novel, Cole and Pike are hired by an egotistical and pompous movie director to locate his ex-wife and son. Finding her isn't much trouble, but then Cole decides to help her and learns that she is in a terrible predicament. Cole and Pike eventually run into the NY mob, and from there the story blisters towards a satisfying (and very violent) conclusion. I highly recommend this for fans of the hard-boiled PI genre.

Most detectives would give their eyeteeth to be hired by a director as famous as Peter Alan Nelson, the king of the adventure movie. Admittedly, the job was only one of finding Nelson's ex-wife and child who he hasn't seen in eleven years. Suddenly, after dumping them for a film career Nelson feels a gap in his life which he intends to plug with Toby, his son, like it or not. Nelson likes Elvis Cole because the detective is macho and has lots of attitude. You can imagine what Cole actually thought, but sometimes money is money.

Cole finds out that Nelson's wife is far from the loser that the director thought she was. He finds Karen Lloyd in Chelam, Connecticut. The failed actress has become a bank vice-president, raising her son on her own and doing well. Not as well as she should be, though. In the hard days, she did a favor for the mafia and now she's in Charlie DeLuca's back pocket. Since Charlie is the son of the Capo and a complete psychotic, this is not a good place to be. No problem, Elvis Cole and Joe Pike to the rescue.

By now, the reader should know that Pike/Cole solutions inevitably involve a surfeit of chaos and violence. This time is no exception. Cole has to worry about Toby, the mafia (several mafias), Peter Alan Nelson (who never behaves as if he is as old as Toby), and a steady flow of crazies. Something a lot worse than a little money laundering is going on and Cole is stuck right in the middle of it. Being Robert Crais' answer to the tired old archetype of the Los Angeles private investigator, you can trust Cole to smiles, cracks sarcastic jokes, play hero, and wait until you're not looking before he hits you up side of the head with a cast iron two-by-four.

This book, the third in the series, drags just a bit. Or perhaps, it is just a little too predictable. I like the interchanges between Pike and Cole, and the plot twists that it starts with, but the novel settles down into its plot too soon. The inevitable violence comes arrives early and is over played. Still, this is a pretty good read, not one a fan would ever want to miss.

Elvis Cole, private investigator, was tasked by a famous director, Peter, to find his ex-wife and son. A seemingly simple assignment soon turned out to be mission impossible. After locating Karen and Toby, Elvis soon uncovered that the former was owned by the mafia, who would not be at all happy with the interference of Elvis and his partner, Joe Pike. Being his usual righteous self, Elvis could not sit back and see Karen's life destroyed by the mob. However, could he and Joe take on the mafia, save Karen from its clutches, and escape unscathed?

Like all other Robert Crais' books, it had the compelling power which made it impossible for me to put the book down. I have always believed that for a book to be likeable, we must like the characters in the book and really feel for them. This is precisely the reason which I enjoy this book so much. I was rooting for Elvis and Joe all the way as I followed the story which simply took my breath away.

Private detective Elvis Cole is hired by Peter Alan Nelsen, a brilliant, erratic and arrogant movie producer to find his son whom he hasn't seen since deserting him and his mother 10 years before.Peter's ex-wife,Karen, has become unwillingly involved with the mafia in a money laundering scheme and desperately wishes to be "uninvolved". Elvis and his side-kick Pike, battle the baddies to help them escape the mafia's murderous clutches and, after many shoot-outs and thrilling adventures, they do just that.It's a good quick read, pacy and entertaining.