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Chasing Darkness: An Elvis Cole Novel (Elvis Cole) | 
 enlarge | Author: Robert Crais
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Category: Book
List Price: $25.95
Buy New: $11.40
You Save: $14.55 (56%)
New (47) Used (26) Collectible (4) from $11.25
Rating:  53 reviews
Sales Rank: 837
Media: Hardcover
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 288
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.1
Dimensions (in): 9.4 x 6.1 x 1.3
ISBN: 0743281640
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.54
EAN: 9780743281645
ASIN: 0743281640
Publication Date: July 1, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: Expedited shipping available
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: BRAND NEW. Will ship upon payment of order.
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Product Description
Elvis Cole is Back--In a Desperate Fight to Clear his Name... It's fire season, and the hills of Los Angeles are burning. When police and fire department personnel rush door to door in a frenzied evacuation effort, they discover the week-old corpse of an apparent suicide. But the gunshot victim is less gruesome than what they find in his lap: a photo album of seven brutally murdered young women -- one per year, for seven years. And when the suicide victim is identified as a former suspect in one of the murders, the news turns Elvis Cole's world upside down. Three years earlier Lionel Byrd was brought to trial for the murder of a female prostitute named Yvonne Bennett. A taped confession coerced by the police inspired a prominent defense attorney to take Byrd's case, and Elvis Cole was hired to investigate. It was Cole's eleventh-hour discovery of an exculpatory videotape that allowed Lionel Byrd to walk free. Elvis was hailed as a hero. But the discovery of the death album in Byrd's lap now brands Elvis as an unwitting accomplice to murder. Captured in photographs that could only have been taken by the murderer, Yvonne Bennett was the fifth of the seven victims -- two more young women were murdered after Lionel Byrd walked free. So Elvis can't help but wonder -- did he, Elvis Cole, cost two more young women their lives? Shut out of the investigation by a special LAPD task force determined to close the case, Elvis Cole and Joe Pike desperately fight to uncover the truth about Lionel Byrd and his nightmare album of death -- a truth hidden by lies, politics, and corruption in a world where nothing is what it seems to be. Chasing Darkness is a blistering thriller from the bestselling author who sets the standard for intense, powerful crime writing.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 48 more reviews...
Elvis Chases the Darkness August 19, 2008
Light? Yes. Quick Read? Yes. Enjoyable? Thoroughly. I found the latest Elvis Cole a satisfying entry in the series. Maybe not so many Elvis wisecracks, but you do have Carol Starkey getting off some dandies. Crais is so comfortable by now with Elvis & Joe & Carol and company that this is this year's adventure and while the earlier books might have been denser, I found this a very nice read. Of course, must I say it? The 4 stars are for fans of the genre and the series.
 Not up to the usual level August 18, 2008
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
I like most of the Cole novels, but this one has a fairly predictable plot (albeit with a bit of a twist) and very little action. Joe Pike gets some play, but not enough. The plot is more plodding than page-turner. I'd wait for the paperback and buy it at the grocery store.
And ... I hate to say it, but what's with Crais's photos these days? Is he serious? The sunglasses and stern expression remind me of Tom Clancy at his most pretentious. I mean, c'mon, these are fairly lightweight, albeit entertaining, detective novels. There's no cause for him to take himself so seriously.
Cole and Pike return in this average thriller by Robert Crais August 18, 2008
3 out of 4 found this review helpful
Three years ago, Elvis Cole aided defense attorney Alan Levy in clearing Lionel Bird's name. Bird had been arrested for the killing of Yvonne Bennett. Cole found proof that Bird had been having a drink across town at the time of the murder. Now, Bird has killed himself and police find in his lap a book of pictures. The pictures are of seven murder victims and these pictures along with evidence found in the house prove that Bird was a serial killer. Or was he? That is what Cole has to find out. Did his actions in freeing Bird allow Bird to continue to kill? The guilt weighs on Cole and he spends the rest of the novel trying to find the truth about Cole as well as why the police are continuing the investigation after naming Bird as the killer.
Robert Crais brings back all the regulars: Carole Starkey, John Chen, Joe Pike, and Cole all work together at various times trying to piece together Bird's life and if he really was the killer. This is a good book, but a definite let down after the Watchman featuring Joe Pike. This book doesn't have any flashbacks or new insight into Pike or Cole's life. Nor does anything happen in Pike or Cole's personal life. These personal touches into the personal lives of Cole and PIke, or the strong secondary characters (Larkin Barkely in the Watchman) are what have made Crais' novels so good. Chasing Darkness is full of twists and turns but lacks the characterization that made his previous novels so good. Another problem I had with Chasing Darkness was the formula. It stuck out like a sore thumb. Cole is a detective, yet in all of Crais' novels, usually ends up doing police work. So, each novel has a justification for why Cole has to be included. Then, each novel usually has a police chief angry with Cole for interferring, then it all works out in the end. This formula dragged the book down a bit as well.
I recommend this book to Crais fans, but those curious about the author should start with LA Requiem or the Last Detective.
The butler did it August 17, 2008
No, he didn't. But this bad guy is just as trite and poorly conceived. Not up to the usual high standards. Much has been written about publishers pushing their bankable authors to churn them out quickly. Is this such a product? Let's hope for better next time.
A Strong Opening Fades into the End August 15, 2008
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
Stephen King teaches novelists to think of an unusual situation to start the book and then let the book write itself from there. Chasing Darkness proves that formula isn't surefire advice. Despite a very interesting and unusual beginning, Chasing Darkness manages to end up feeling all too pedestrian at the end.
Elvis Cole and Joe Pike are inspired characters who have provided their fans hours of amusement, entertainment, and dark humor. When those two are at it, the rest of the story doesn't matter so much.
What do we make of this book which crowds out Joe almost entirely and gives us relatively little amusement, entertainment, and dark humor from Elvis? The plot had better be pretty good. And it starts off like that, until it twists into dry gulch you've been down far too many times before. As a result, the book ends with a whimper rather than a bang. It's definitely deflating for the reader.
But if you are a dyed-in-the-wool fan of this series, you'll want to read the book. It's good enough not to skip. Keep your expectations low and you'll enjoy the book more than I did.
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