While Elvis Cole is on the mend, an associate of Joe Pike's calls in a favor. Joe is tasked with protecting a young heiress from the people trying to kill her. Things go south when there is a leak at the Department of Justice and Pike finds that the only people he can trust are Elvis Cole and himself...Joe Pike takes the lead in this Robert Crais offering and gets saddled protecting a Paris Hilton type heiress named Larkin Barkley. As with L.A. Requiem, Joe Pike's past is explored as the case un...

What I’m finding as I continue my random walk through this series is that some of the individual stories offer little in terms of mental stimulation and yet the in-fill on the character backgrounds enriches my enjoyment of the series as a whole. This episode is a case in point. The plot is a pretty basic tale of a rich girl who finds that she needs protection from a major criminal who is out to kill her. The exact reason as to why she’s a target is rather sketchy but nonetheless she ends up in t...

A wild-living young heiress slams into trouble in the L.A. night—the kind of trouble even her money can’t shut down. After her Aston Martin collides with a mysterious car, Larkin Conner Barkley attempts to help the accident victims—and becomes the sole witness in a federal investigation. Whisking her out of her Beverly Hills world is Joe Pike—ex-cop, ex-Marine, ex-mercenary—hired to shield Larkin from a relentless team of killers. But when a chain of lies and betrayals tightens around them, Pike...

The Watchman is the first book in the Elvis Cole series that switches focus to Elvis’ best friend and agency co-owner, Joe Pike. It’s a solid thriller, though for me, less impressive than other books in the series.The plot of is classic bodyguard subtypes Reluctant-Bodyguard, Financial-Mismatch, and Sexual-Tension. If you think you’ve seen this before, it’s because you probably have. It’s obvious from the first that there’s an insider leak jeopardizing the client, so Joe decides to play it solo...

I'm eternally grateful to Hugh for turning me onto this series. There was a Pike-shaped hole in my life that I didn't even know was there prior to listening to this book. Now, I can't go back to that Pike-free universe. In all seriousness, I really enjoyed this book. I totally loved Pike and Cole. They definitely have a great friendship that allows them the freedom and the support to be themselves. That's definitely a blessing. The Characters:First and foremost, as I said, I dug Pike. I love the...

Ok, a few rambling thoughts on Robert Crais. Who is this guy, where'd he come from, how'd he get so popular? Well the first thing to know is that Crais is not from California at all. He is a native of Louisiana, grew up in a blue collar family, and read his first crime novel The Little Sister when he was 15. And that's all it took. Chandler gave him his love for writing. Other authors that have inspired him were Hammett, Hemingway (seems like that's true of all the crime writers), Parker, and St...

Suspense, excitement, and thrilling is how I would describe Joe Pike. Joe Pike is an ex-Marine , ex-cop, and ex-mercenary who is hired on contract to protect Larkin Conner Barkley who has been targeted for death for being at the wrong place at the wrong time. So, it seems. Joe Pike is a man of very few words. But, his connections lead to protecting Larkin and revealing secrets many people are trying to hide. I enjoyed all the action packed scenes in this book. I felt like I was at the movies on

From time to time, a supporting character in a long-running series breaks out of the second-banana ghetto and gets to star in his/her very own novel. So it is here, when Robert Crais' stone-killer helpmate for Elvis Cole carries his own gun bags. Yes, Joe Pike is the star of The Watchman. If that means nothing to you, you may not be in the market for this book.The setup: spoiled-rotten-rich-girl Larkin Barkley T-bones her Aston Martin into a civilian car, tries in her usual ineffectual way to he...

This is book eleven of the series and the first one to be told from the perspective of Joe Pike. I really enjoyed the change in viewpoint; in fact it would have been enough to make this a five star rating if it weren't for one thing...Or, rather, one character: Larkin 'I'm-not-Paris-Hilton-honest-guv' Barkley.JAYZUS, WHAT AN ANNOYING CHARACTER! Pike and Cole's reactions to her were, if anything, even more annoying... I was actually rooting for her to die horribly, which was probably not the auth...

It’s probably a good thing that Robert Crais has a strict policy against selling the film rights to his Elvis Cole and Joe Pike characters because I can see how this could go horribly off the rails in the wrong hands. The bad Hollywood pitch for this movie:“There’s this rich girl, like a Paris Hilton type, right? And she gets into a car accident, but the people in the car flee the scene even though they’re injured. She identifies one of them as this big time money launderer that the Feds want, b...

I enjoyed every second of this book. I love the entire Elvis Cole series and I thought it was great that he decided to swap the character focus in this one to Joe Pike. You can't help but wish that life was different for Joe but if it was he wouldn't be Joe Pike...and I'd miss Joe Pike.This is a good read as are all the Elvis Cole books.

I really enjoyed this 1st book in his "Joe Pike" series!

4.5 starsA very good book. Crais is improving a little with each outing.This first book with Pike in the lead is very good. Elvis helps, but is clearly a secondary character.60% WHOOPSSome stupid clichés and dumb behaviour. Simply not believable. Crais should mark on his calendar when he has bad days, and later go back and fix those sections of his books.Great book, great ending.Notes and quotes:The arrows. What they mean is, you control who you are by moving forward, never back; you move forwar...

You know that old saying? "Don't mess with the bull or you'll get the horns?" Try this, "The bull better not mess with Joe Pike, or Joe's gonna eat the bull!" Elvis Cole's BFF gets his own book. A tragically misunderstood celebrity has an accident on an empty street in Los Angeles. She tries to do the right thing and report it, then, the bad men start coming out of the wood work to kill her. "What gives? Give a Girl a Break will you?" Impotent to save her, the girls father calls in a Private Det...

3rd read - Even after multiple readings of this series (like Lucas Davenport and Charlie Parker stories) I still find myself entertained and engaged, hardly being able to hold off rushing to the finish.This is the first story centering on Joe Pike, and his current duties as a bodyguard to a 22 yr old rich girl (think Paris H.), who was involved in a traffic accident that involved a notorious money guy criminal.Joe is his goal-centered greatest, as he goes off the grid to dodge multiple attempts

Needed more Elvis, but the action and suspense made for an enjoyable quick read. It was quick because I had trouble putting it down, but part of that might be because I just had a cataract surgery, and this was an audiobook so it was easy on my eyes, and I also had more of free time.I like the Joe Pike character, but perhaps he's not great as a main character. He doesn't have much to say; kind of like the Clint Eastwood character in the early westerns. But some of what he does say is fairly prof...

I love tough smart loner guys like Joe Pike. I had plot problems, but it was still a fun and engaging read.STORY BRIEF:Larkin, a wealthy single woman (think Paris Hilton) witnesses something. Bad guys want her dead. She is in safe houses under federal protection. Three times someone leaks the location to the bad guys who come with guns. So Joe Pike a former marine and police officer is hired to protect her. He keeps her safe. The federal authorities, local police, and her father are angry at Joe...

When a favor is called in, Joe Pike finds himself as the bodyguard for Larkin Conner Barkley, a spoiled rich young woman who has become a witness in a Federal investigation thanks to a traffic accident. But when people come for them twice within just a few hours, Pike must go to extreme measures to protect them both. The bigger question becomes, what is really going on?From a mystery standpoint, this book is outstanding, which several wonderful twists and surprises. I had a hard time putting the...

NOTE: I originally posted this under The Sentry for some unknowable reason. Don’t do drugs, kids!Really, really great thriller action in this one. Joe Pike is a badass for the ages, an unstoppable heat-seeking missile with years of experience from the Marines and LAPD as well as unquestionably awesome red arrows tattooed on his deltoids (signifying his no-retreat, all-advance outlook on life.) I admit I kinda cheated with this one as I read the first Elvis Cole novel and then, seeing that Pike s...

A bit strange and boring in places. Lead character takes to long to take over. Nonetheless, 6 of 10 stars.