Suspect

By: Robert Crais

Narrated by: MacLeod Andrews

Length: 8 hrs and 30 mins

Publisher's summary

Audie Award Finalist, Thriller/Suspense, 2014

For 25 years, Robert Crais has written extraordinary novels of crime and suspense. He is "a master of crime fiction" (Associated Press); "his novels get better with every new book" (Portland Oregonian); "Crais is hands-down the world’s greatest crime writer" (The Huffington Post).

But in Suspect, he may have written his most remarkable novel of all.

LAPD cop Scott James is not doing so well, not since a shocking nighttime assault by unidentified men killed his partner, Stephanie, nearly killed him, and left him enraged, ashamed, and ready to explode. He is unfit for duty - until he meets his new partner.

Maggie is not doing so well, either. The German shepherd survived three tours in Iraq and Afghanistan sniffing explosives before she lost her handler to an IED and sniper attack, and her PTSD is as bad as Scott’s.

They are each other’s last chance. He was a young cop on the rise; she was bred to guard and protect. Now they are shunned and shunted to the side. They are suspect. And together they will set out to investigate the one case that no one wants them to touch: the identity of the men who murdered Stephanie.

Nine months and sixteen days later, they remained free. They were still out there.

What they begin to find is nothing like what Scott has been told, and where it will lead them will take them both through the darkest moments of their own personal hells. Whether they will make it out again, no one can say.

Thrilling, emotional, intense, with some of the best characters and well-crafted writing in all of crime fiction, Suspect is further proof that "Crais just keeps getting better" (Publishers Weekly).

©2013 Robert Crais (P)2013 Brilliance Audio, Inc.

THEY WERE PACK

DOGS DO WHAT THEY DO TO SAVE US OR TO PLEASE US.
I am a dog person and that is what held my attention in this book. This is about a damaged human and a damaged dog. Having owned a couple of dogs who had been damaged by previous owners, I know the love it takes to help a dog and the love received in return is something special I can not put into words. In this case the human may be more damaged then the dog. I have been a dog owner for over 30 years, but I was still able to learn something in this book to help with my dogs. If you are a dog lover, then you want this book. YOU ARE A DOG MAN.

The mystery that needs solved in this story is good and should hold the attention of the non dog lovers. And as another reviewer has mentioned this is a feel good type story. As Paul McCartney would say, What's Wrong With That?

Great book that gets you hooked from the start!

I downloaded the preview chapter when audible was giving us the first 2 chapters, after I listened to them, I pre-ordered "Suspect." This is absolutly a great story!!! loved it! Different kind of story than the normal Elvis Cole/Joe Pike series, but great in it's own right!

Good Story

Robert Crais is considered a master crime writer. This book is different from his series with Elvis and Joe. Maggie a Marine bomb dog is wounded and handler was killed. She is being evaluated as an LAPD dog. Officer James was also wounded and partner killed and is fighting to stay on the police force and is assigned to Maggie. They heal together and try to solve the murder of his partner. Lots of suspense, action, and some humor. Crais also provide a great deal of information about military and police dogs. The story is told from both the view point of the police officer and the Maggie the dog. Hope this becomes a series. It was a who done it that leaves one feeling good. Well worth the credits. Macleod Andrews did a good job narrating the story.

A heartwarming story

This is more than just a dog story. It is a tale of two emotionally and physically wounded beings, a dog and a man, who find each other and heal together. As I have not read any of Crais' books before, I can't compare this to them. For me, this was a great listen, well-narrated and well-written. I will definitely look for more from this author.

I loved this book

I loved Maggie, I loved Scott, I loved this book. I expected it to be cheesy and looking for cheap tear-jerking moments like most books with dogs do. But Crais treated the dogs with so much respect, as a true main character. Worth saying one more time, I loved this book.

Crais's best book. By far.

Where does Suspect rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

It's right up there in the top ten or twenty. I have been reading Mr. Crais's books since the beginning of his career, which is about thirty years ago. At the beginning he was terrific: funny, quick, writing clever plots and smart dialogue. The team of Elvis Cole and Joe Pike was terrific. doing the buddy thing, solving crimes and having fun doing it. The first dozen or so books were just fantastic. Then in the early 2000s I felt that he had gone as far as he could go with the characters, and the books began to flag. Some became instant movie scripts. Cole's romance with Lucy Chenier and his attachment to her son Ben made for a welcome change of direction. In the last couple of books Crais has created a new protagonist, Scott James, who is, along with his K-9 partner Maggie, the new star of the show. In my humble opinion this is the best decision Mr. Crais has made in a long time. This book is nearly a masterpiece, as others have said. The action, and particularly the relationship between Scott and Maggie, is wonderful. I never have been much of a dog person, to be honest, but this book alone may have changed that.

Did the plot keep you on the edge of your seat? How?

Yes. the story is full of suspense, and the plot moves quickly. There is only one large slug of exposition near the end, which is impossible to follow, but by far the bulk of the book is exciting and draws you in to virtually every scene. Crais creates new characters, the most colorful being Sgt. Leland, the grizzled head of the K-9 handlers. By the end of the book your heart is pounding as you root for both Scott and Maggie to survive the almost fatal run-in with a small group of rotten cops. Even though your cerebral cortex knows that the good guys will win, nonetheless the adventure is so thrilling, and the background so brilliant, that you sit there almost biting your tongue. This is great writing, and I am thrilled to see Mr. Crais doing it yet again. This is some talented dude.

Which scene was your favorite?

I can't say that one of them rises above the others, as there are many scenes that are just terrific. The ending of the book is fierce and thrilling, in the way that great books often pull off, and lesser books can't. I liked the whole book, and picking one scene over all the others is a thing that I just can't do.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

No. I do want to say that the narrator was also fantastic. Voicing the thoughts of a dog is a challenge, above and beyond the other challenges that humans present. Mr. Andrews does a terrific job. I didn't either laugh or cry, but I got close. I did giggle quite a bit.

Any additional comments?

Not really. At this point Mr. Crais has attracted a large audience, and he richly deserves it. I see that the reviews are almost all extremely enthusiastic, and I just want to add my two cents here. You will enjoy Mr. Crais's wit, and everything else that an author needs to write a book this good. Have fun.

My heart belongs to Maggie

My first Robert Crais. I absolutely loved it. By giving Maggie a voice Crais taught us so much about how these wonderful dogs are trained and how they interpret the training.

I also loved seeing how Scot and Maggie's relationship developed and they bonded so closely. The story line was great. Terrific book.

Of Partners and Pack

I don't read a lot of detective stories, but I picked up this book on Audible's Deal of the Day strictly because the dog silhouette on the cover art caught my eye. My two greatest passions in life are dogs and books so I have known and loved a LOT of both and when the two are combined, I'm in. As a detective story, Suspect, strikes me as a bit thin on plotting, but as a dog story, this book delivers big time. I don't know if any author has ever before brought me to tears in 20 minutes, but the opening scene of Suspect is really powerful. If you have ever loved a soldier or a dog, listen to the beginning of this book with tissues handy! The plot of Suspect is not as intricate or suspenseful as some I've read, but it is believable and interesting The character development and the evolution of the relationship between Scott James and Maggie, the two central protagonists, is totally engaging and made the book a terrific pleasure for me. Robert Crais captured the essence of a working GSD and wove it into his story so well that I was amazed. We may not know exactly how dogs think and perceive the world, but if you have lived with or, better yet, worked with a shepherd, you will recognize this dog and how Crais portrays the workings of her mind. And, I particularly liked the way Crais noted the differences between military canine training and temperament requirements and police canine work. This book was the best fit for MacLeod Andrews that I've heard yet. His voice has a nice grim undertone for a detective narrative and he switches surprisingly well to the "baby dog voice" that virtually all trainers recommend when soothing or encouraging a dog in training. I highly recommend this book as an entertaining and poignant read for anyone who loves a good dog story. I would love it if Robert Crais made this partnership into a series. PS: Thanks to Audible for Deal of the Day! I love having the chance for a low cost sample outside of my normal genres and finding a little gem like Suspect made my day.

Mr. Crais, listen up. Please!

You have got to write more books, or longer books. It's too hard to wait in-between.

I loved this book. I loved your last book, and the one before that... but they are too short! It's like having to end dinner at the restaurant after they've given you your appetizer.

So, please, please write more. I'll come do your dishes if it means you could spend more time writing.

For all listeners...if you are undecided or have never heard of this author, get the book. It's excellent and you won't be disappointed. Crais' novels appeal to readers of many different genres - thrillers, murder/mystery, human interest, crime drama, spy novels, romance, etc.

Technically, the book is flawlessly written. And Crais has a rare talent for timing, dialog and internal narration that keeps the story moving and keeps the reader hooked. His characters are honorable and flawed and you end up caring about them greatly - this is hard to do, and just about no one does it as well as Crais.

Excellent book, excellent author -- he just needs to write MORE, please! :)

(And please write more with Joe Pike - he's my fav.)

Astonishingly good

The main plot of the book seems both simple and transparent from the beginning. A man and a dog, both plagued by the death of a comrade and friend and both in need of healing, find their comfort, solace and the end of their pain with each other. While the plot seems simple the story is engaging, the characters seem real and the writing is first class. Although I felt that I knew what was coming I could not put the book down and, when I could not read it due to other things I had to do, I kept thinking about when I would be able to get back to Scott and Maggie.

In fact there are two intertwined plots in this book. The first, which I mentioned above, tapers down from being the main story line at the beginning to being only a thread toward the end. The second, about the search for the killers of Scott's first partner, expands as the first plot diminishes and, toward the end of the book, becomes a very large presence. Both plots are engaging and while I felt that the plot involving the theft and killing was relatively uninteresting it became more and more gripping as the story progressed and, by the end, became the driving force for the entire story and fully engaged me as a reader. I was so taken by the characters in this book that if I could find another Crais book with these two characters I would buy it in an instant.

An astonishingly good read, well narrated and highly recommended.