Demolition Angel

Rating:
Summary: A great summer read
Review: While I haven't read his other novels, "Demolition Angel" will have me looking for other Crais novels.

I enjoyed the pace of the book, and the technical aspects of the police work were excellent. If you enjoy a faulty hero (or heroine as is the case here), this is the book for you.

Rating:
Summary: An Ugly, Gritty, Humorless Read
Review: Elvis Cole fans beware. Demolition Angel is a gritty, ugly, depressing, humorless read. An alcoholic heroine and a deranged serial killer? Sorry. Been there, done that - ad nauseum.

Crais' protagonist, Carol Starkey, is a practicing alcoholic with emotional damage so severe that one wonders why anyone would care to read/see the world through her eyes. An example of Starkey's perspective: "Anything else was just jerking off. She stood at the foot of her bed ... drinking gin. (Looking at herself) she saw the craters and rills and valleys, the discolorations and the pinhole stitiching."

Apparently Crais wanted an L.A. movie deal with this one, and he got it - the kind of subject matter Hollywood regularly propagates and glamorizes to us and our kids. Since I was a big R.C. fan, this book was my long awaited birthday gift. Guess I'll start using the public library to screen the first few chapters of all future Crais releases.

I can only hope Harlan Coben's new release will sweeten the sour after-taste in my mouth from reading and gagging on "Demolition Angel."

Rating:
Summary: Crais Finally Disappoints
Review: I have loved Robert Crais's novels from the beginning and was glad to see that he had developed a new character to go along with Elvis and Pike. And for the first 320 pages of "Demolition Angel" I was elated. Great lead character, his usual colorful supporting characters, a truly suspenseful story. But then it all fell apart (or should I say blew apart?) in the last 60 pages and left me feeling empty, pining for the quick return of Elvis and Joe. I certainly won't spoil the ending for anyone, but will say only that the climax felt rushed and trite, like the book had gotten too long and things needed to be wrapped up quickly, plot be damned.

I nonetheless urge any fan of Crais (or Burke, or Connelly, or Jackson, or Hiassen, etc.) to buy and read this book, 'cause God knows Crais is still a vastly underappreciated writer in the hard-boiled genre (all those big newspaper ads for this new book notwithstanding) and can use all the support we can give him. But don't buy it if you thought, like I did, that the pure brilliance of "LA Requiem" (his best Cole novel, in my opinion) would mean continued and expanded great things for this new character and new novel. Because then, like me, you will be disappointed.

Rating:
Summary: This Angel Has No Problem Standing Alone
Review: Robert Crais has written a "stand alone" novel that stands above other crime fiction entries.At first I was hesitant to start reading a Crais novel that did not include Cole and Pike as the main characters. No problem! By the early morning hours I had told myself that I'd call in sick for work if I had to but I couldn't break away from this tightly woven puzzle of interlocking events with an explosive finish. This is the type of story that required putting my hand over the unread parts of the next page so I couldn't peek ahead at the forthcoming action and surprises. Crais developed his characters into men and women that had realistic and understandable behavior and feelings. The characters' interactions with each other were believable and their dialogue and communication was authentic and the primary vehicle that drove the story forward. I became concerned for the mental and physical health of Carol Starkey who used alcohol to deal with the stresses and trauma in her life. She was close to losing control of her judgement and behavior. I believe the ingredients are there for a sequel. I would like to read about Starkey and the other men and women so brilliantly introduced in this "stand above" novel.

Rating:
Summary: Chick A-Boom!
Review: She's tough. She's scarred. She's in-charge. She's a basket-case. She's fueled by gin and Tagamet. And she's one fine detective.

Carol Starkey is on her second life when she gets to lead the investigation into an explosion that takes out one of her team members. This one is as close-to-home as they get, since she lost her lover and -- for over two minutes -- her own life in a bizarre explosion three years back. Is this the work of the gifted sicko Mr. Red? Everyone is sure it is... everyone but Carol. Her superb detective work uncovers an anomaly that sets her investigation in motion, an investigation she drives forward in spite of all the forces working against her, not the least of which is her own past...

Crais brings Carol Starkey's narrow world vividly to life. We care about her, we understand her, we want her to prevail. The dialogue rings true. The culture of the bomb techies is richly developed. The story is focused, gritty, and vivid... a narrative that keeps us guessing and lets us in on the action. The denouement brought to mind the conclusion of "Alien," and Sigourney Weaver's heart-thumping final confrontation with that creature. Will Carol triumph?

"Demolition Angel" is a hard-charging, engaging, well-crafted work. I'll look for Crais's next story. If it's about Carol Starkey, so much the better!

Rating:
Summary: A Shattering Thriller
Review: If you haven't read Robert Crais you are in for a hair raising ride in the fast lane. Demolition Angel is a pedal-to-the-metal thriller that jolts you from the get-go and dosen't letup until its ahead-on finale. Carol Starkey, an ex-bomb tech, gets reassigned to LAPD's Criminal Conspiracy Section. While battling her inner fears, she embarks on an investigation involving the bomb death of a fellow officer. Caught on an emotional roller coaster, Carol must not only overcome adverse hostillities, but do battle with a demonic mind not seen since Franis Dolarhyde slithered off the pages of Thomas Harris' Red Dragon. Mr. Crais has woven a tale so shocking it will keep you turning pages well into the wee hours of the morning. An unforgettable read.

Rating:
Summary: Don't judge Crais by this effort
Review: Robert Crais has written several Elvis Cole novels, which I have read and immensely enjoyed. He has always mixed a good measure of humor with the serious elements of his plots and his characters and made it work. Elvis Cole and Joe Pike are the best detective duo since Spenser and Hawk were created. Maybe better. This book is something else altogether. It has a dark plot and even darker characters. The bombers, bombing victims and bomb squad detectives that people this novel are collectively a sad bunch of misfits, cretins, liars and losers. They are all basically unlikable and the distinction between the good guys and the bad guys is blurred. I managed to struggle through Demolition Angel, but if this were the first novel by Robert Crais I doubt that I would ever read another. Fortunately, I know for a fact that Crais is one of the very top fiction writers out there, and I will no-less-eagerly await his next effort.

Rating:
Summary: Good, but not the stuff from which sequels are made.
Review: This is a very good thriller, but not special enough to really stand out in the crowd of new books. The plot development was absolutely terrific - complex and twisty enough to keep any reader turning pages. However, I didn't find the character developement to be quite as terrific. Carol is interesting, with all her demons and her perfectly justified self-destructive behavior. But there is something missing in her make-up that doesn't allow the reader to care deeply about her and really root for her. Pell and the other characters just never seem to come to life. I know it must be difficult, as a writer, to begin fresh with a whole new set of people after introducing someone like Elvis Cole, but this author DID give us Elvis, and I think his readers wanted someone to connect with in the same way. It didn't happen with Carol and Pell. I still think Demolition Angel is a fun summer read, definitely satisfying enough to keep your interest, just not powerful enough to make you want to remember or revisit the central characters.

Rating:
Summary: What A Great Title For A Book!
Review: Wish I could say the book was equally great - I want Elvis! But this book is a one-shot deal. Robert Crais has obviously done a LOT of research in this story, we learn probably more than we want to know about bombs and explosives. That Mad Bomber we've seen, on television and in endless cartoons, is real and not in the slightest cute or funny. The poor heroine is a tough cookie on the outside, living a life here on Earth one step removed from hell, and I could not for the life of me understand how she functioned on the cigarette/gin/Altoid/Tagamet diet. There was absolutely no backstory on her, no friends or family or anything. I pitied her but could not really like or understand her. So, I guess I was disappointed in this book. But Robert Crais is such an excellent writer that I will give it four stars, though that's stretching it. Hope we get an Elvis Cole novel this year, every single one of the Elvis Cole novels get five stars from me! And now, please excuse me, I feel an overpowering need to step out of the room and smoke a pack of cigarettes and have a few gin and tonics.

Rating:
Summary: I know Elvis Cole and this is no Elvis Cole
Review: Robert Crais has a knack for the light-hearted and the deep, all at once. The easy-going Cole is no lightweight, but enjoys a smile that he shares with others(whether they engage or not) and most likely at his own expense. There is nothing light-hearted about this character and Crais darkens every step with more unpleasantness. I managed to plow my way through this book but not because I liked any of the characters or was at all engaged or sympathetic; I kept hoping for some touch that would make me nod my head and say, "ah, that's why, and it will be okay." I didn't root for anyone. At the end, I closed the book and meandered over to find another one without a look back or a moment to digest. I don't need another Elvis Cole; he just is so terrifically defined that this seems a shame.