Friday, March 11, 2011

Voodoo River - Robert Crais

Drugs? Check.  Corrupt cops?  Check.  Human Trafficking?  Check.

I finished Voodoo River last night, which was a great Elvis Cole novel.  Robert Crais seems to be stepping through the standard themes of crime novels with the Elvis Cole series.  Of course, the only other long series that I have read is the Reacher series by Lee Child, which was technically started after the Elvis Cole series.  Maybe Lee Child is going through the standard series, and Robert Crais invented it!

Either way, there are a few firsts in this novel.  Elvis meets his client out to lunch instead of at his office!  This was a refreshing beginning to the novel, because things were getting a bit formulaic.  Also, Elvis starts on what I think is is first long-term (a few weeks) relationship detailed in a novel.

This novel takes place in Louisiana, in and around Baton Rouge.  Great details include descriptions of the food including the rice and sausage they serve down there.  Another great detail is the extensive descriptions of the pavement, which apparently is largely made of crushed oyster shells down there.  If you have read my reviews before, you know I appreciate details in the story, as long as they are not too overbearing.

I don't like ruining the story, so I'll just say the plot revolves around Elvis Cole going to Baton Rouge, LA to track down the birth parents of an actress on a wildly popular Christian themed show on a major network.  Once he gets there, he quickly finds the birth parents, but gets involved in a crime ring that illegally brings foreign people over the border.  Elvis has a moral dilemma between protecting his clients identity and reporting a murder that he witnesses.

Also, Joe "best slack man in the world" Pike makes a great appearance in this book.  Elvis would have been TOAST without him!

I currently have the next two Cole novels on hold at the local library, but someone has them checked out!  I'm switching genres and reading the Justice graphic novel trio.

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