L.A. private eye Elvis Cole is hired by popular television star Jodie Taylor to delve into her past and identify the biological parents who gave her up for adoption thirty-six years before. Cole's assignment is to find out their biological history and report back.
It seems all too clear cut. But when he gets to Louisiana and begins his search, he finds out there's something much darker going on. Other people are also looking for Taylor's parents; and some are ending up dead.
And when Cole realizes that his employer knew more than she was telling, Voodoo River becomes a twisting tale of identity, secrets, and murder.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Fifth installment in Crais's Elvis Cole series, in which the wisecracking private eye journeys from Los Angeles to Louisiana to trace a client's past. Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to the
Mass Market Paperback
edition.
From Library Journal
On a trip to Louisiana in order to locate the biological parents of a popular television actress, private eye Elvis Cole runs into more than he bargained for, including a cast of memorable characters. From the author of Lullaby Town (Bantam, 1992). Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Robert Crais is the author of the best-selling Elvis Cole novels. He was the 2006 recipient of the Ross Macdonald Literary Award.
A native of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, he grew up on the banks of the Mississippi River in a blue collar family of oil refinery workers and four generations of police officers. He purchased a second-hand 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.
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 scripting numerous series pilots and movies-of-the-week for the major networks.
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. Elvis Cole's readership 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. 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. 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. 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.
Robert Crais lives in the Santa Monica mountains with his wife, three cats, and many thousands of books. Additional information can be found at his website, www.robertcrais.com.
I freely confess that I judged this book, initially at least, by its cover. If it hadn't had such a snappy title I might never have picked it up. But Voodoo River caught my eye and once I opened it up, I was hooked. After all, how can you not love a detective named Elvis? I picked up this book shortly after reading one of Robert B. Parker's recent disappointing Spenser offerings, and Voodoo River made me understand exactly why Parker had been disappointing me. Voodoo River is the first book I've read in years with dialogue as snappy as Parker's early Spenser books had. It's the first mystery book I've read in ages that made me laugh out loud at some of the conversations. But Voodoo River had something else - a plot that kept me reading till the last page. I realized as I finished this book that not many recent mysteries have caught me the way Voodoo River did. Not many writers give me characters I care about anymore. Voodoo River added Robert Crais to my list of mystery writers to watch. I can't wait for the next Elvis Cole novel. And this time, I won't care what the title is. I'll pick it up in a heartbeat. PS. I used to think you couldn't have anyone better than Hawk watching your back. That was before I met Joe Pike. Sorry, Hawk.
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Robert Crais grew up in Louisiana and for the fifth installment of the series he sends Elvis Cole down to the Bayou State. Jodi Taylor is a popular actress who was given up for adoption at birth in the state of Louisiana. She hires Elvis to search out her biological parents for medical reasons. She has also retained the rights of a Louisiana lawyer who specializes in situations like hers. Elvis heads down to Baton Rouge to meet the lawyer and search for the parents. When Elvis walks into Lucy Chenier's office, he is immediately head over heels in love. The chapters where this initial meeting takes place and a dinner between the two are classics. The story takes us through the small town south and we met less than honorable police chiefs, parish officials, double dealers and a killer snapper turtle. Elvis eventual does find Jodi's biological parents and that turns out to be a major surprise. All throughout the story, the relationship between Elvis and Lucy begins to take shape and grow. This is the first time that a real love interest for Elvis is introduced and it gives the character another dimension. After the Monkey's Raincoat, the three subsequent books were entertaining but were threatening to get predictable. With Voodoo River, Mr. Crais ups the ante and comes back strong. Just as he did with his adopted home of Los Angeles, Mr. Crais takes us through the nooks and crannies of his birthplace. This is an immensely enjoyable read and is right up there with the Monkey's Raincoat.
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I didnt realise the book was several years old but its timeless in its compelling storyline. It mixes hollywood with the fascinating world of bayous and Louisiana culture. A search for a woman's past leads the detective into all sorts of trouble.
Absolutely one of the best mysteries I read in a long time.
Im a norterner who loves the south and this book is very southern fried. Realistic in its ambience. I simply loved it!!!
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