cover image The Wanted: An Elvis Cole and Joe Pike Novel

The Wanted: An Elvis Cole and Joe Pike Novel

Robert Crais. Putnam, $28 (336p) ISBN 978-0-399-16150-6

In bestseller Crais’s taut 17th thriller to feature L.A. PI Elvis Cole and his cryptic sidekick, Joe Pike (after 2015’s The Promise), frantic mom Devin Connor hires Elvis to find out why her teenage son, Tyson, has a mountain of expensive clothing, cash, and a $40,000 Rolex hidden in his bedroom. It turns out that Tyson is part of a trio that has robbed 18 homes. But before Tyson can agree to surrender himself, co-robber Alec turns up dead—a victim of Harvey and Stemms, two eccentric hit men. They know the kids have stolen a laptop coded with valuable information and will joyfully kill to recover it. Panicked, Tyson goes off the grid with his girlfriend and fellow thief, Amber. Now Elvis, aided by the implacable Pike, must find the teens before Harvey and Stemms do. The empathic Elvis takes center stage, with just enough hard-boiled Pike to season the mayhem. The plot isn’t Crais’s most inventive, but it’s still expertly crafted. [em]Agent: Aaron Priest, Aaron M. Priest Literary Agency. (Dec.) [/em]