Chasing Darkness

An Elvis Cole and Joe Pike Novel, Book 12

By: Robert Crais

Narrated by: James Daniels

Length: 7 hrs and 19 mins

Publisher's summary

Private Investigator Elvis Cole learns that LA fires bring more than heat, they bring his old friend Joe Pike and the past. Cole’s fight to clear his name brings murder and corruption terrifyingly close to home.

It’s fire season, and the hills of Los Angeles are burning. When police and fire department personnel rush door to door in a frenzied evacuation effort, they discover the week-old corpse of an apparent suicide. But the gunshot victim is less gruesome than what they find in his lap: a photo album of seven brutally murdered young women - one per year, for seven years. And when the suicide victim is identified as a former suspect in one of the murders, the news turns Elvis Cole’s world upside down.

Three years earlier Lionel Byrd was brought to trial for the murder of a female prostitute named Yvonne Bennett. A taped confession coerced by the police inspired a prominent defense attorney to take Byrd’s case, and Elvis Cole was hired to investigate. It was Cole’s eleventh-hour discovery of an exculpatory videotape that allowed Lionel Byrd to walk free. Elvis was hailed as a hero.

But the discovery of the death album in Byrd’s lap now brands Elvis as an unwitting accomplice to murder. Captured in photographs that could only have been taken by the murderer, Yvonne Bennett was the fifth of the seven victims - two more young women were murdered after Lionel Byrd walked free. So Elvis can’t help but wonder - did he, Elvis Cole, cost two more young women their lives?

Shut out of the investigation by a special LAPD task force determined to close the case, Elvis Cole and Joe Pike desperately fight to uncover the truth about Lionel Byrd and his nightmare album of death - a truth hidden by lies, politics, and corruption in a world where nothing is what it seems to be.

Chasing Darkness is a blistering thriller from the bestselling author who sets the standard for intense, powerful crime writing.

©2008 Robert Crais (P)2008 Brilliance Audio

Critic reviews

"Little in life is as satisfying as a new Elvis Cole novel. Each installment of Robert Crais' 20-year-old series is like meeting a good friend for lunch who you haven't seen in a long time."--Chicago Tribune

compelling thriller, but letdown at end

I've listened to a few of the Elvis Cole novels and I pretty much like them all. They get me hooked quickly and I can't stop listening to find out what's going to happen next.Plenty of twists and turns to keep the story interesting. I love the characters, although I'd have liked to see more of Joe Pike. My main beef with this one is that the end unraveled pretty suddenly and left me unsatisfied. Too many loose ends for my taste, too little build up. Some very spooky scenes went nowhere. The narrator was terrific. I didn't care too much for the "authentic" sound of the phone conversations.

All nighter

The book was a little slow at first but then picked up rapidly. So twist and turn but loved it. Narration was superb can't wait for the next book

Consistently good

Another very good book in the Elvis Cole series. Crais does a good job of keeping the listener/reader involved in the story.
The narration was also excellent. Steered away from dramatics that can get old fast.

Good story. Enjoyed the narration.

Well done. Easy to follow, even with the twists. I really liked this narrator.

Elvis & Pike Ride Again

Years ago I sat next to an actual private detective on an airplane and he recommended Robert Crais. I have devoured all of his books and enjoyed every one of them. Chasing Darkness is no exception. James Daniels does a respectable job with the narration and my only complaint is that the book is finished so quickly.

Hidden Darkness???

I liked this book, it had me going. Most of the time I can figure out the direction Robert Crais is pointing us to.....forward.


The only irritating character is “the demolition Angel” .....I don’t like her. There is something wrong with a person, man or woman, that thinks it’s okay to flick a lit cigarette butt at an animal or into dry brush on the hillsides of California. I wanted to take her badge just for that.

I’ve ordered Demolition Angel just to see if I should have more compassion for her, but if she is as thoughtless and selfish in the other books, then I might have to give up.

And WHAT is up with Crais’ compulsion with zits and pimples. Enough already. Every novel????

Loved It!

A purposefully slow stzrt turned into a fast paced and surprising ending - a masterpiece.

Great pacing

I really like this series. This crime is a good one though the interactions between the characters and between organizations is the real highlight.

Narrator can’t pronounce the word Police

It’s a detective novel. The word Police appears about 200 times. It’d be nice if he was able to properly say the word.

Excellent Elvis Cole private detective thriller!

My only issue with the Cole/Pike thrillers by Robert Crais is the use of James Daniels as narrator. It is not really his fault; Daniels' nasal voice is simply wrong for the content. Chasing Darkness, Book 12 in the 15 book series, is thankfully the last that James Daniels narrated. The narrator of the more recent Crais audiobooks is Luke Daniels who is far better suited for the task. I down rate audiobooks for narration only when the narrator detracts from the listening experience. Unfortunately that is true here.

This novel is about serial murders that a dead man is wrongly believed to have committed. Elvis Cole is the primary protagonist while Joe Pike plays a minor role.

RECOMMENDED!