Indigo Slam by Robert Crais

I read Indigo Slam immediately following Sunset Express.  I guess it's a testament to my enjoyment of the Elvis Cole novels, but I also wanted to assess the cohesion of the series, and the extent to which the novels were interlinked.


I was extremely pleasantly surprised, and gained significant admiration for the series.


The story itself was good, though it involved perhaps a few too many agencies with differing goals.  I had a tough time getting the actions and motivations of Clark, the absentee father to line up properly.  But it was a fun plot, a good resolution and retained the distinctive character of Elvis Cole, with Joe Pike beginning to develop more of his own character that would be more fully fleshed out in later novels.


Each of the Elvis Cole novels can stand on their own.  I haven't read them in order, and I don't think there's any requirement to do so.  I had thought there were only casual nods to continuity, such as the Jimminy Cricket décor of Elvis' office and the presence of the cat at his house.


I have to credit Mr. Crais.  The novels have an excellent continuity, and significantly more interconnection than I appreciated.  Not just the little things, like Peter Alan Nelson of Lullaby Town showing up to babysit for Ben, but long term planning in how the relationship between Elvis Cole and Lucy Chenier will play out.


One of my favourite Elvis Cole novels is The Last Detective (which, if you are following the numerical order of the series, follows L.A. Requiem, which follows Indigo Slam).   There is a subplot involving Lucy's opportunity to get a job with a television station in L.A.  I really liked how that subplot was handled, giving Lucy her own power and agency to resolve the situation without Elvis needing to come to her rescue.  However, in a complete surprise to me, done subtly and skillfully, plot elements dealing with Ben's father were sown into Indigo Slam as part of this side plot and presage events in The Last Detective. 


To my mind that level of foreshadowing and interconnection takes significant advance planning, and is a comforting assurance that Mr. Crais has a clear idea of how the story and his characters will develop.  I'm looking forward to reading more of the Elvis Cole novels to gain greater appreciation for this level of craftsmanship.