Satisfying. It feels like a long time since I read a decent thriller. There’s a couple narrative interruptions from other players, but on the whole, this is an Elvis-focused book. For those who wonder if they can start here, sure, why not? It does include the return of Lucy and Ben, who are from earlier in the series, but there’s enough backstory given that it won’t be confusing. For those looking for Joe, he’s a guest more than partner in this story, but it is nice to have his taciturn counterpoint to Elvis’ banter.
The last couple of books saw a steady increase in stakes and violence (hello, Hollywood!), so it was nice to feel like this backed off and returned to a more ‘normal’ sort of detective thriller (although the players could be called anything but normal). I do miss Crais’ evocative language–this was competent, but by no means stunning–so maybe next time I’m in the mood, I’ll restart the series.
Four stars on the mystery-thriller scale because it was a challenge putting it down.
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