Skip to main content

Los Angeles, Dogs and Mr. Robert Crais

I moved to Los Angeles about two weeks ago. Long story mercifully short is that the whole enterprise is a happy, but sad event. It depends on the day, but so far more happy than sad.

One of the many happy parts is that my relocation brings me to a city with infinitely more opportunity to reinvigorate my love of Crime Fiction. To that end I went to Diesel Bookstore in tony Brentwood for a signing of one of the best and brightest that Crime Fiction has to offer, Mr. Robert Crais.

Mr. Crais has been one of my favorites dating all the way back to INDIGO SLAM or VOODOO RIVER. Elvis Cole and Joe Pike are two of the most dependable characters in Crime Fiction. Stand-up guys whose honesty and loyalty for each other and those they have sworn to protect are markers for the real world.

SUSPECT shifts away from Elvis and Joe to Scott and Maggie. Scott the PTSD Cop who recently lost his partner and Maggie his PTSD Police Dog recently returned from Iraq and Afghanistan. Scott and Maggie are damaged souls looking for safe harbor in a storm that continues to war inside their head. Mr Crais spoke about the genesis of the book at the signing. A life long dog owner he has not owned a dog in well over a decade because of overwhelmingly strong feelings of disloyalty to his Akita that died in his arms.

I am going cry. My wife leaned over at some point during Mr. Crais's reading and whispered "You are going to be a mess." I'm oddly attracted to cats for their strange aloofness, but I love dogs for their all in devotion and love. SUSPECT will undoubtedly leave me a mess, but I am without a doubt in the sure hands of a talented author. I know this because cliche and manipulation never have and never will be a part of a Robert Crais novel. That is why he is one of the best.

Comments

Jared said…
What? New post? Me no understand!
5:56 AM
Dan Wagner said…
I know, right.
10:42 PM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Very Best of Mr. Dennis Lehane

I thought this post would appear in October. Ya, know when SHUTTER ISLAND: THE MOVIE was supposed to be released. And then it wasn't. Something about Leo not being able to do 'press' for the movie. Doesn't really matter the reason, a February release date has one of those fancy Hollywood meanings: Not Good. Look I'll be honest, I didn't connect with SHUTTER ISLAND. I loved the fifties setting, the haunted house atmosphere, and impending doom of the Hurricane. Even the set-up of the story was intriguing but how it played out just didn't work for me. Some interesting characters, a bunch of great set pieces, but the ending announces itself with an expected, thud that went nowhere. Am I still going to the movie? Its Lehane, Scorsese, Leo, and Ruffalo of course I am. Anyway the list. 8. Prayers for Rain - 1999 The last Kenzie-Gennaro book follows our heroes as they investigate a guy who is terrorizing women into committing suicide. The book played like an episo...
4 comments
Read more

Small Mercies - The Return of Dennis Lehane

 A time honored tradition at The Hungry Detective HQ is to perform the twice annual, and largely ceremonial, 'Dennis Lehane New book 20XX" Google search. Nothing comes up on his long abandoned Website, except notification of the script work for his television and film projects.  Grousing aside, 2022 was a big year for Mr. Lehane. BLACK BIRD, a show he created, played on Apple+ to solid acclaim. The show's star, Paul Walter Hauser, won a Golden Globe. But despite that I have yet to watch it. Not for any other reason than I am a movie person more than a TV person. The TV I do watch is watched in an arcane order that is difficult to decipher and even more baffling to explain. Short story, I need to watch ANDOR [Editor's Note: Slow going on ANDOR despite everyone telling me it is amazing.] And then BLACK BIRD, or maybe SLOW HORSES. I'll get there...  Anyway at the dead end of 2022, I did the search. Found out he wrote a book. SMALL MERCIES . I was excited to hear it. I...
Post a Comment
Read more

A Fogotten Post: A Remembrance

[Editor's Note: Started this missive, never came back to it. Still relevant, I suppose.] I am reading MURDER IN OLD BOMBAY by Nev Marsh. This was... technically still is... on my to buy pile. In the before time... the overwhelming to be read pile time... I would have bought this and thrown it on the shelf to read in the near or more likely distant future. I hope I like it enough to buy the second in the series. Buying a book is fun, buying a book that is good is better. [Editor's Note: Abandoned this book, unfinished.] BLACKTOP WASTELAND - S.A. COSBY So glad I didn't buy this last summer. Good decision to put off buying and reading what would have certainly been one of the best books of the year. New goal for the remaining 2021 calendar. Don't be dumb. Buy Mr. Cosby's follow up and read day one! [Editor's Note: I did buy a signed copy of RAZORBLADE  TEARS, meanwhile B.W. won every award, except the Edgar where it wasn't even nominated!? Also Signed firsts of...
Post a Comment
Read more