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At last, the enigmatic partner of Elvis Cole (The Two Minute Rule) takes center stage in this pulse-racing thriller. When Joe Pike is charged with safeguarding a wealthy heiress, he discovers protecting the sole witness to a crime is nothing compared to protecting an LA party girl from her own self-destruction... Larkin Conner Barkley lives like the City of Angels is hers for the taking. Young and staggeringly rich, she speeds through the city during its loneliest hours, blowing through red after red in her Aston Martin as if running for her life. Then suddenly she sees another car's metal-on-metal explosion of a terrible accident and, dazed, finds herself the single witness in a secret federal investigation.
For maybe the first time in her life, Larkin wants to do the right thing. But in doing so she becomes the _target for a relentless team of killers. And when the US Marshals and the finest security money can buy can't protect her, Larkin's wealthy family turns to the one man money can't buy?Joe Pike.
Pike lives a world away from the palaces of Beverly Hills. He's an ex-cop, ex-Marine, ex-mercenary who owes a bad man a favor, and that favor is to keep the uncontrollable Larkin alive.
Pike commits to protecting the girl, but it becomes clear someone in their circle is selling them out. Taking matters into his own hands, Joe drops off the gird with Larkin and follows his own survival rules: strike fast, hit hard, hunt down the hunters. With the help of private investigator Elvis Cole, Pike uncovers a web of lies and betrayals, and the stunning revelation that even the cops are not who they seem. As the body count rises, Pike's biggest threat might come from the girl herself, a lost soul in the City of Angels, determined to destroy herself unless Joe Pike can teach her the value of life...and love.
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. Except, of course, for a little help from his friends Elvis Cole and forensics analyst John Chen.
Though there are any number of reviews fangirling over Pike (male and female alike; using the word ‘fangirl’ in its non-literal sense), the Strong Silent Type to the exponential degree. I don’t necessarily mind this trope, but I feel Crais often overplays it. The biggest problem in this case is that Pike doesn’t do dialogue, which means the reader is often left with a) a lot of description, or b) witnessing ‘the girl’s’ fruitless attempts to engage him in dialogue. To compensate, Crais has to switch the narrative around, including John Chen, Elvis, and the client, a twenty-something year-old woman with the ridiculous name of Larkin Conner Barkley. Complicating this narrative are some time frame changes, in regards to the current protection gig as well as related to Joe’s past with LAPD.
Once you get past the first narrative hijinks and settle into the actual storyline, the plot grabs on and doesn’t let go. I’ll note that reading this kept me awake during my late afternoon sleepy-time, causing me to miss my old-person nap. I was wise enough to put it down last night after reading the first couple chapters, so I was ready for the thriller pacing today.
Although it was odd, I enjoyed seeing Elvis in the back-up role. Larkin proved to be a perfect foil for Elvis’ humor. It was also interesting seeing him actually detect, while Joe continued to do much of the muscle work.
Overall, an enjoyable way to spend a few hours. It was interesting to have the character focus change, the type of story change (even if it was rather a predictable one) and Crais is a solid writer. He has been one of the most reliable modern/long-series detective/thriller writers for me.
Oh, by the way, both Cole and Pike continuously refer to the person they are guarding as ‘the girl.’ I get that this is meant in an experienced-protective-old-man-way, and not a sexist-ancient-pig-kind-of-way, but it’s still annoying. Just how serious are those implications? Though she’s actively involved in the story, most reviews on GR don’t even mention her name. Half a star off for it. ( )
Excellent, excellent book. I've got to credit my local used bookseller for turning me on to Crais. Luckily I found the first of the Joe Pikes, but now I have to go back and see if I can find all the Elvis Coles. Anyway, back to this book, excellent story, great characters, and very well executed. I usually like more wit in my leading men, but the team up with Cole filled that role for Pike. Overall it was a fast paced thriller that I didn't want to put down, and luckily had a lazy Sunday, so I didn't have to. Like I've said numerous times before, you know a book is good when you don't want to put it down. I finished this one in one day, which is as much a combination of having the time to do it, and also wanting to do it. Now I just have to find all the rest... ( )
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 profound, in a way. At least it was to "the girl", as they refer to Larkin Conner Barkley. But don't come down too hard on them, she acted pretty immature for much of the story, although seemed to redeem herself a bit at the end with the help of Joe Pike's psychoanalysis, which she deemed better than years of professional analysis.
He also has some insights into Elvis Cole, and brings up things we never knew about why he admires him even though Elvis is so different. ( )
At last, the enigmatic partner of Elvis Cole (The Two Minute Rule) takes center stage in this pulse-racing thriller. When Joe Pike is charged with safeguarding a wealthy heiress, he discovers protecting the sole witness to a crime is nothing compared to protecting an LA party girl from her own self-destruction... Larkin Conner Barkley lives like the City of Angels is hers for the taking. Young and staggeringly rich, she speeds through the city during its loneliest hours, blowing through red after red in her Aston Martin as if running for her life. Then suddenly she sees another car's metal-on-metal explosion of a terrible accident and, dazed, finds herself the single witness in a secret federal investigation.
For maybe the first time in her life, Larkin wants to do the right thing. But in doing so she becomes the _target for a relentless team of killers. And when the US Marshals and the finest security money can buy can't protect her, Larkin's wealthy family turns to the one man money can't buy?Joe Pike.
Pike lives a world away from the palaces of Beverly Hills. He's an ex-cop, ex-Marine, ex-mercenary who owes a bad man a favor, and that favor is to keep the uncontrollable Larkin alive.
Pike commits to protecting the girl, but it becomes clear someone in their circle is selling them out. Taking matters into his own hands, Joe drops off the gird with Larkin and follows his own survival rules: strike fast, hit hard, hunt down the hunters. With the help of private investigator Elvis Cole, Pike uncovers a web of lies and betrayals, and the stunning revelation that even the cops are not who they seem. As the body count rises, Pike's biggest threat might come from the girl herself, a lost soul in the City of Angels, determined to destroy herself unless Joe Pike can teach her the value of life...and love.
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4
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. Except, of course, for a little help from his friends Elvis Cole and forensics analyst John Chen.
Though there are any number of reviews fangirling over Pike (male and female alike; using the word ‘fangirl’ in its non-literal sense), the Strong Silent Type to the exponential degree. I don’t necessarily mind this trope, but I feel Crais often overplays it. The biggest problem in this case is that Pike doesn’t do dialogue, which means the reader is often left with a) a lot of description, or b) witnessing ‘the girl’s’ fruitless attempts to engage him in dialogue. To compensate, Crais has to switch the narrative around, including John Chen, Elvis, and the client, a twenty-something year-old woman with the ridiculous name of Larkin Conner Barkley. Complicating this narrative are some time frame changes, in regards to the current protection gig as well as related to Joe’s past with LAPD.
Once you get past the first narrative hijinks and settle into the actual storyline, the plot grabs on and doesn’t let go. I’ll note that reading this kept me awake during my late afternoon sleepy-time, causing me to miss my old-person nap. I was wise enough to put it down last night after reading the first couple chapters, so I was ready for the thriller pacing today.
Although it was odd, I enjoyed seeing Elvis in the back-up role. Larkin proved to be a perfect foil for Elvis’ humor. It was also interesting seeing him actually detect, while Joe continued to do much of the muscle work.
Overall, an enjoyable way to spend a few hours. It was interesting to have the character focus change, the type of story change (even if it was rather a predictable one) and Crais is a solid writer. He has been one of the most reliable modern/long-series detective/thriller writers for me.
Oh, by the way, both Cole and Pike continuously refer to the person they are guarding as ‘the girl.’ I get that this is meant in an experienced-protective-old-man-way, and not a sexist-ancient-pig-kind-of-way, but it’s still annoying. Just how serious are those implications? Though she’s actively involved in the story, most reviews on GR don’t even mention her name. Half a star off for it. (