Rating: 
Summary: This one gives up the goods on Joe Pike!
Review: If you've read any of the Elvis Cole books, that header will have you clicking the "buy" button right away.If not, well, listen up. Over the course of the Elvis Cole series, there have been a number of constants. One: Quality. All of the books are excellent. Two: likeable protagonist. You'll love Elvis Cole. Three: the strong, silent, enigmatic Joe Pike. Not just a sidekick. Pike has been Cole's guardian angel throughout the series. And now in L.A. REQUIEM we get to find out how Joe Pike became Joe Pike! On top of that, you've got a locomotive of a suspense novel roaring down the tracks. The book is inventive in form and style, but always accessible. It's a crime novel, a mystery novel, a literary novel. It's about childhood and the love between man and woman and between friends. It's about everything that's important in life and if you only read one book this year, it should be this one. L.A. REQUIEM transcends genres and achieves greatness. Don't miss it.
Rating:
Summary: Pike's Past Tells A Story
Review: Another smashing hit in the Elvis Cole and Joe Pike series finds a revealing set of creative flashbacks about Pike and what makes him tick. He and Cole are hired to locate the missing daughter of a retired Hispanic crime boss who is currently a councilman with an abundance of clout. Pike finds himself charged with murder and Cole works to exonerate him. The story is cleverly tied together and reveals Cole's thoughts and feelings toward the important women in his life. Psychological forces effecting the main characters give them depth and substance not usually found in books of this type. I read The Monkey's Raincoat which was Crais' initial effort and because I was pleased with that introduction to Cole and Pike I eagerly anticipated and thoroughly enjoyed L.A. Requiem. I can now look forward to reading the novels in between with the added advantage of having insight into the dynamics of Cole's and Pike's personalities.These bookend novels are certainly "Edgar" worthy for this realistic and entertaining series.
Rating: 
Summary: Standard Fare
Review: The last few years have seen a resurgence in the hard-boiled genre, and Crais pulls out all of the cliches for LA Requiem. The title alone should be warning! There's the smokey-smoggy L.A. City-of-Angels thing, and the loner-guy choosing between his woman and and his duty. There's crooked cops, nasty FBI agents, and homeless people spouting poetry. It's not a bad book to bring to the beach, but there's certainly nothing to warrent critical acclaim here.
Rating:
Summary: Another 5 Star from Crais
Review: Crais has become one of those dependable authors who just can't seem to get it wrong. His characterizations are sharp and the plots are original. In "L.A. Requiem", as in all his books, the reader becomes deeply involved with the characters & cares about them. This book reveals much more about the enigmatic Joe Pike & makes him a character of more dimension and interest. Pike is the focus of the plot and its momentum makes the book difficult to lay down. Crais has the depth of James Lee Burke and Elizabeth George, the humor of Robert Parker, the originality of... well - Robert Crais.
Rating: 
Summary: Robert Crais Does It Again
Review: Finally the reader learns about what lurks behind Joe Pike's sunglasses - besides those icy baby blues. We find saddness, sacrifice, and a several great surprises that make this story move along at a fast clip. Although Elvis is the obvious star, the bond between partners Cole and Pike is the backbone of the entire series. In this read one sees that total committment for what it truly is: Everything.
Rating: 
Summary: Worst Book I've Read In Years!
Review: The characters are paper thin. The relationships, immature -- if not laughable. The plotting leaves the reader in the world of "oh wells," or even worse, "so whats." The tough detective has a habit of saying "Gee." Worse still, Robert Crais's command of the genre is so weak, he housed his detective in the same dwelling as the greatest detective in fiction right now: Michael Connelly's Harry Bosch. This is the kind of book that makes a reader angry. I noticed on the book's jacket that Crais wrote for TV. This book reads like TV.
Rating:
Summary: I don't think so....
Review: L.A. Requiem has about every formula of detecting and police procedure in the last 30 years--all in one book! I mean, I don't even want to name them, they are so familiar and boring: and this string of carbon copies don't have any redeeming features, either. These Pattern People are pasted into a predictable plot line and mounted in a collage of scenes from the Los Angeles we all know and love--windy roads, bad traffic, smog, slimy characters, and corrupt cops. Guess the only reason I gave the book three stars is that I like the flashbacks...that technique relieves the screaming boredom to a small extent. Read the earlier books of Robert Crais. Skip this one.
Rating:
Summary: A GOOD WHO DONE IT?
Review: This is a fast paced work that keeps everyone guessing until the very end. I enjoyed the writing, wish i could have gotten to know the characters better and there were many. Well written, sinister, sad, all the elements that make up a great story.
Rating:
Summary: Just say no.
Review: I guess the really dumb people won't be wasting their time by reading this book. For the rest of you though, beware, it may turn you off to reading. I was shocked at how good the reviews were for this stale, poorly written, adolescent, insipid waste of paper. It was the first time I've read Crais, and will certainly be the last. In the acknowledgements he thanks "George Lucas". Could it be the same mental giant that gave us "Star Wars, the Phantom Menace"? Well, the two are operating on about the same negative level of intellectual rigor. For crime buffs, there are so many great alternatives: try Ellroy, Michael Stone, Loren D. Estlemen... The only good thing to say about this piece was that it read fast, thank god.
Rating: 
Summary: Something's Missing, Alright. Originality.
Review: I haven't read Mr. Crais' earlier books, so I had no expectations about whether I would enjoy L.A. Requiem or not. I found myself toying with the idea of quitting almost from the start, but, based on the impressive reviews the book had received, I continued on, hoping it would find wings and fly. It didn't. This is a very ordinary police procedural. If that is something that you enjoy reading, then you will probably like this book. However, if you read crime and detective fiction because of the noir quality of the best of the characters that are sometimes found there, then you're going to be let down by Requiem. You've met all the characters that populate this book many times before. Most tiring of all is the Pike character, a formula that's so overworked in crime fiction today that's it's become a caricature. Let's see: sullen loner, never smiles, never speaks, former marine (sniper, of course), Viet Nam veteran (what are we gonna do for characters when all the VN vets are in their 70's?). And to round out the write-a-suspense-novel-by-the-numbers feel of Requiem, the killer is a serial killer. Structurally, this book is a disaster. I presume that the earlier books in the series are told in the first person of Elvis Cole. Since this book centers largely on Joe Pike with flashes to the mind of the serial killer, it's obvious that the earlier point of view is an impossible straightjacket for Crais. In addition to the first person, we have flashbacks, third person narrative from Pike's point of view, serial killer viewpoint, and just plain ol' third person omniscient. Switches in the point of view are common, naturally, but when the major point of view is first person, changes can be jarring and interrupt the flow of the story. That's what happens here over and over. It's obvious that fans of the series like this book a lot. Many mystery novel buffs will too. But if you read for the insights, atmosphere and dark quality found in the very best of Ellroy, Burke and other modern masters of the hard-boiled mystery/suspense novel, you're likely to become impatient with L.A. Requiem pretty quickly.
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