How to read Robert Crais’ books in order
Robert Crais is an American of crime fiction. He was born in 1953 in Independence, Louisiana, and he began his writing career in the ’70s when he started writing television scripts for shows such as Hill Street Blues, Cagney & Lacey, Quincy, Miami Vice, and L.A. Law. His first novel, The Monkey’s Raincoat, came out in 1987, introducing his now iconic duo, Elvis Cole and Joe Pike, for the first time.
Crais has written more than twenty novels since 1987, some of which have won him prestigious awards, such as the Anthony Award, the Macavity Award, and the Shamus Award.
Elvis Cole and Joe Pike series order
Elvis Cole and Joe Pike books are a series of detective novels and the Crais’s most well-known work. The series features two titular characters, LAPD private investigators Elvis Cole and Joe Pike, and follows them as they work on solving various cases in Los Angeles.
If you’ve ever read a cop buddy story or seen a Hollywood movie in the same vein, you already know the two partners: one, Elvis Cole, is a sarcastic but charming fellow, a Vietnam veteran driving in his sports car and enjoying the sun in his Hawaiian shirt; the other, Joe Pike, is a brooding kind of guy with a no-nonsense way of handling things.
The series comprises nineteen novels, and you should definitely read them in the order of their publication.
The Monkey’s Raincoat (1987)
The first book in the Elvis Cole and Joe Pike novel series and one of Crais’ biggest bestsellers starts with a rather simple case: a woman’s husband and son have gone missing. Soon, though, the case grows into a whole mess of sex, drugs, and murder.
Stalking the Angel (1989)
The second novel in the series continues with the premise introduced in the first: a woman walks into Cole’s office, hoping he can help her out. This time, there are no missing family members but the manuscript of a rare medieval Japanese book.
Lullaby Town (1992)
Welcome to Hollywood: the home turf of Alan Nelson, a brilliant movie director with a lot of enemies. What makes it worse, though, is that he’s dumped a woman and her child, and now he’s worried and must find them as soon as possible. Who’s the best man for the job if not a private eye such as Cole?
Free Fall (1993)
The fourth novel introduced more familial trouble. Jennifer Sheridan’s boyfriend, a police officer, seems to be involved in a lot of shady business, and Cole and Pike are about to dive neck deep into the world of corruption themselves to see what exactly is going on.
Voodoo River (1995)
The fifth book is also about media, this time television. Jodie Taylor, a famous television star, contacts Cole with an urgent request: she wants him to dig into her past and identify the parents she never knew.
Sunset Express (1996)
The wife of a restaurant owner has been brutally killed, and the man is facing charges. Trying to clear his name, he hires Cole and his partner in this New York Times bestseller.
Indigo Slam (1997)
The dreamy Californian landscape is about to become nightmarish when a bunch of teenagers walk into Cole’s office and task him with finding their father they lost in a shootout.
L.A. Requiem (1999)
Even in the hottest L.A. sun, your blood can run cold. Unfortunately, Joe Pike is going to learn that the hard way when he hears his ex-lover is dead, shot in the head.
The Last Detective (2003)
In the ninth book, Elvis Cole takes on nothing short of a babysitting job. But, when the kid in his charge vanishes, figuring out what to make for dinner will be the last of his worries.
The Forgotten Man (2005)
A man is shot and about to die in a shady L.A. alleyway. He’s gasping for breath, trying to stay alive long enough to utter his last words before he fades into darkness. In the final moment, he claims he’s Cole’s long-lost father.
The Watchman (2007)
The eleventh book has Pike babysit for a change, although he’s in charge of a young heiress who likes the party — and who has a mysterious enemy stalking her from the shadows.
Chasing Darkness (2008)
L.A. hills are on fire, literally. During the evacuation, the police come across a weeks-old corpse of a suicide victim. The most gruesome detail, however, is not the body — it’s the photo album full of pictures of dead women found on it.
The First Rule (2010)
A whole family’s been executed in their home. Why? The man must’ve led a secret life — and a dark one at that.
The Sentry (2011)
Joe Pike protects Smith and his niece Dru in an eatery attack, but the victims seem more resentful than grateful. When Pike and Dru become romantically involved, Pike realizes there’s more to her and her uncle than it at first seems.
Taken (2012)
A woman’s daughter is missing, and it’s up to Cole to figure out where she is. However, the woman doesn’t seem particularly distressed, and she knows the kidnapping’s been faked. But is that really the case?
The Wanted (2017)
Devon Connor is a single mother, and she has no idea where her son is getting all his money from. Is he dealing drugs? The truth might be even worse.
A Dangerous Man (2019)
Book 18 has a fitting title: it really is one of the most dangerous cases Pike’s been assigned. It’s seemingly an ordinary day, but it soon turns to chaos when a woman he’s come to know gets abducted.
Racing the Light (2022)
Adele Schumacher’s son is missing, and she wants Cole to find him. But she is no ordinary woman — she has a lot of takes on government conspiracy theories, a lot of money, and a whole squad of private bodyguards protecting her.
Elvis Cole and Joe Pike: A Mysterious Profile (2022)
Elvis Cole and Joe Pike: A Mysterious Profile is more of a short story than a novel, and it’s a step outside the usual formula. This time, it’s all about the two detectives, their choices, their personality, and their fears.
Publication order of Scott James & Maggie series
The Scott James & Maggie series is a collection of spin’-off stories set in the same L.A. universe but focusing on Scott James, an LAPD K9 officer, and his German Shepherd, Maggie.
Suspect (2013)
Scott James is a broken man. His old partner, Stephanie, was killed, and he got left unfit for duty. Things are about to change, though, as Maggie, a beautiful German Shepherd, is about to enter his life.
The Promise (2015)
The sixteenth book presents another case of a woman gone missing. This time, though, it’s not an angsty daughter — it’s an explosives expert and Defense Department contractor, and it’s the perfect case for Scott James and Elvis Cole.
Standalone novels
In addition to his Scott James and Pike and Cole series, Crais has written several standalone novels.
Demolition Angel (2000)
Meet Carol Starkey: L.A.’s finest demolition expert and the woman with a troubled past from which the ghost of her dead partner and lover haunts her. But when a series of explosions rock the city, she’ll have to put it all behind her and get back to work.
Hostage (2001)
An ex-con and his brother team up for a heist, but it all goes wrong, and now they’ve got a whole family as hostages. What they don’t know is that there is more to the family than meets the eye.
The Two-Minute Rule (2006)
Not all criminals play by the rules. Max Holman certainly did not. He’s spent a decade behind bars, figuring out how to make amends and face his son., a cop. But his son is dead.
The Best American Mystery Stories (2012)
The Best American Mystery Stories is a short fiction anthology edited by Crais. The volume features snippets, journal sections, and selected works by notable authors working in the genre.
Audiobooks
If you don’t have enough time to get into the Cole and Pike series and read all the novels, you can listen to them in audiobook format instead.
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