I've yet to be disappointed in a Elvis Cole/Joe Pike story and Racing the Light is no exception . Adele Schumacher hires Cole to find her son Josh, who along with his best friend run a podcast called In Your Face with Josh Shoe. A porn star comes to Josh with information that it become public would harm the image and career of a city councilman and a few of his cronies. Cole turns to Joe Pike for assistance. Cole & Pike are in a race to find Josh before it's to late. Another good addition to this series. ( )

Good but not. great. Elvis and JOE CONTENT W

Good but not great. Elvis and Joe content with multiple issues, none of which really concerned me. There are better Cole plots. ( )

Elvis Cole is hired by a concerned mother to find her missing son, Josh. Josh is an adult, and hasn’t been missing but a few days. His mother seems a little odd, shows up with thousands in cash to pay Elvis, and has a couple of bodyguards with her. Well, things just get stranger after that. It seems that Josh doesn’t have a paying job - he and his friend do podcasts. Josh lives off his mother’s money, which she doles out every couple of weeks. Elvis takes the case, and the deeper he delves, the stranger things get. It’s a good thing he has some powerful people backing him up, because he is going to need it when he starts to uncover the same corruption that Josh discovered. But it’s not all dangerous business for Elvis. There is a bit of romance with an old flame, if he survives this dangerous case. This thriller is part of a series, but works well enough as a stand-alone. The author gives enough background information without overstating the obvious. Regular readers will enjoy this installment, and new readers will find the characters intriguing and the action thrilling. ( )

Come sempre, un altro bel libro della serie ( )

After a three-year absence, Elvis Cole is back trying to locate the missing son for an anxious mother who arrived unannounced in his office accompanied by a woman and man who appear to be her security. Cole takes only a couple of days to learn that a porno star-escort/prostitute is involved, as are a gardener and his hulking partner who attempt to run Cole down in their pickup. The discovery of Chinese night-vision goggles, listening devices, and electronic surveillance equipment further deepen the mystery.

Fans of Cole and his partner, Joe Pike, will enjoy the first half of the book. Crais’s sparse writing style and Cole’s self-deprecating bon mots greet the reader like a long-absent friend. Joe Pike recruits Uber-mercenary Jon Stone, setting up the possibility of a multi-layer action/mystery featuring Cole’s investigative techniques and Pike’s and Stone’s physical exploits. Unfortunately, neither Pike nor St one makes a significant appearance in the story. In addition, Lucy Chenier, Cole’s lover from several books ago, and her son Ben reappear in Southern California for a brief visit. The rationale for their appearance is not convincing, and the few scenes in which they appear are unnecessary.

Consequently, the book’s second half was a blasé slog toward a resolution as Cole investigated without Pike. I was happy when the story finally limped to its uninspiring and somewhat unbelievable conclusions.

This book was a disappointment. ( )