You Should Be Reading – Robert Crais

I discovered Mr. Crais, quite by accident, about two weeks ago. It was one of those moments of intense boredom and I was browsing the books at the grocery store. Chasing The Darkness, his newest paperback release, was at the front of the rack. It seemed just the right moment to try something new. It was the latest book in a long running series about private eye Elvis Cole and his partner Joe Pike, a genre I always enjoyed.

It took me two nights to get through that book (and it was two because I couldn’t stay up all night, I had to work the next day) and when I put it down, I couldn’t wait to get my hands on more. I read through Crais’ wikipedia entry, then a few interviews where I could find them.

It’s worth noting that he recommends reading his later books before his early ones, as they are very different in tone and much more sophisticated in style. I picked up L.A. Requiem and The Last Detective. The thrill I found in Chasing The Darkness was amplified. I literally couldn’t put these books down. I’m now moving on to The Forgotten Man and by the end of the month, I’ll probably have devoured the whole series.

I won’t say too much about plot, these books deserve a cold read, but I’ll go this far: Cole and Pike very much follow the modern, tough guy, P.I. archetype so perfectly created by Robert. B. Parker. They are Spenser and Hawk, all over again. But where Parker’s creations live in a fast paced, formulaic, world of adventure where the good guys always win in the end, Cole and Pike live in a world with the moral complexity of a James Ellroy novel. You’re never on solid ground in Crais’ Los Angeles, you’re never sure just where the darkness will take you.

I recommend beginning your journey with L.A. Requiem…..

Decisions by K. Patrick Glover

The old man sat in the dimly lit bar, thinking about his past. He had a lit cigarette in front of him, but it sat untouched in the ashtray and he watched the curls of smoke drift away from it. The bartender eyed him, but did not ask if he wanted a drink. The old man had been coming into the bar every day for a month now, and it was always the same. He’d light a cigarette, but not smoke it. He’d stare at the bottles behind the wall and his eyes would drift into the past. He never ordered a drink.

Until today. “Scotch, please. Neat.”

The bartender nodded and poured his drink.

“What’s your name, son?” The old man asked.

“Eddie.” He said it hesitantly, unsure how much he wanted to reveal to the old man.

“It’s all about choices, wouldn’t you say, Eddie?”

“I’m not sure I follow you.”

The old man chuckled. It was a dry, rasping, hideous noise. “Every step of the way, Eddie. Every choice we make, it defines who we are. Like that girl in Austin, back in ‘62. That could have worked out differently. It was my choice, you know. I choose the bottle. Son, I always choose the bottle.

“I had a son, once, long time ago. Wasn’t worth much, but that was probably my fault. Killed himself over a woman. Probably for the best. Like I said, he wasn’t worth much. Saved me the trouble.”

“The Trouble?” Eddie was getting more and more uneasy.

“Then there was that hooker in Reno. Such a shame, really. Pretty girl.”

“I’m not sure I understand this, sir.”

“They’re dead, Eddie. They’re all dead. Decisions, Decisions.”

“How do you make such an awful decision,” Eddie gasped.

“Well, son,” the old man smiled, “the scotch usually helps.”

And Eddie noticed the long handled knife that now lay atop the bar…..