• The Watchman

  • An Elvis Cole and Joe Pike Novel, Book 11
  • By: Robert Crais
  • Narrated by: James Daniels
  • Length: 7 hrs and 52 mins
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars (1,894 ratings)

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The Watchman  By  cover art

The Watchman

By: Robert Crais
Narrated by: James Daniels
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Publisher's summary

At last, the enigmatic partner of Elvis Cole (The Two Minute Rule) takes center stage in this pulse-racing thriller. When Joe Pike is charged with safeguarding a wealthy heiress, he discovers protecting the sole witness to a crime is nothing compared to protecting an LA party girl from her own self-destruction...

Larkin Conner Barkley lives like the City of Angels is hers for the taking. Young and staggeringly rich, she speeds through the city during its loneliest hours, blowing through red after red in her Aston Martin as if running for her life. Then suddenly she sees another car’s metal-on-metal explosion of a terrible accident and, dazed, finds herself the single witness in a secret federal investigation.

For maybe the first time in her life, Larkin wants to do the right thing. But in doing so she becomes the target for a relentless team of killers. And when the US Marshals and the finest security money can buy can’t protect her, Larkin’s wealthy family turns to the one man money can't buy - Joe Pike.

Pike lives a world away from the palaces of Beverly Hills. He’s an ex-cop, ex-Marine, ex-mercenary who owes a bad man a favor, and that favor is to keep the uncontrollable Larkin alive.

Pike commits to protecting the girl, but it becomes clear someone in their circle is selling them out. Taking matters into his own hands, Joe drops off the gird with Larkin and follows his own survival rules: strike fast, hit hard, hunt down the hunters. With the help of private investigator Elvis Cole, Pike uncovers a web of lies and betrayals, and the stunning revelation that even the cops are not who they seem. As the body count rises, Pike’s biggest threat might come from the girl herself, a lost soul in the City of Angels, determined to destroy herself unless Joe Pike can teach her the value of life...and love.

Investigate another case with Elvis Cole and Joe Pike.
©2007 Robert Crais (P)2007 Brilliance Audio

Critic reviews

"Elvis Cole's mostly silent partner, Joe Pike, now has a book of his own. His character, manner, and ethic resemble that of Harry Callahan (Dirty Harry), and thanks to James Daniels, so does his voice."--AudioFile

"Joe Pike, the intriguing, enigmatic partner of L.A. PI Elvis Cole, takes center stage in this intense thriller....The breathless pace and rich styling are sure to appeal to readers of hard-boiled fiction."--Publishers Weekly

What listeners say about The Watchman

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Joe Pike is a real person: no longer a cartoon.

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

It's up there in the top 15 to 20%. I have been reading Robert Crais for about 25 years now. He used to make me laugh out loud. As time has gone on, Crais has developed a real life for Elvis Cole, and in this book he develops a sort-of real life for Pike. Pike has been a silent, super-strong Superman who always came to Cole's rescue when the chips were down. In this book, which was published in 2007, Pike gets caught up in an extremely complicated web, with a seductive, rich, gorgeous young woman at the center of it. They fall in love, but...well, I won't spoil the end of the book. Extremely enjoyable, if somewhat convoluted and contrived at the last ninety minutes or so.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Pike is clearly the star here. Crais has put Elvis in the middle of so many adventures that it is high time for Pike to have his own. And he does, and it is a whopper.

What does James Daniels bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

He is extremely good at slipping from one character to another, and from one mood to another. There are a lot of characters, and Mr. Daniels has mastered them all. Pike's hoarse, throaty voice is the distinctive center of the action. Daniels does the females with respect and substance. Crais has written them as real women, as he did with the woman that Cole fell in love with years ago, Lucy Chenier. I heard not a false moment from Mr. Daniels.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?

Again, this is not what I do. As far as I know, at least one book has been made into a movie, and it was depressingly, vividly violent. I am fairly confident that Mr. Crais enjoyed the financial reward, but he probably had lots of problems with the final product. Hollywood. Ugh.

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11 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A very different Elvis Cole & Joe Pike novel

The Watchman includes Elvis Cole in a minor role, but the novel is about Joe Pike's current case protecting a young woman and his history as a military sniper, a policeman, and military mercenary. It answers questions about who Joe Pike is and how he managed to get that way. It is not a fun listen, but it is a superb suspense thriller. James Daniels does a nice job of narration.

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9 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

A Quick Read! Both Drama and Action!

Joe Pike, ex-Sniper, ex-Policeman, ex-Mercenary... a complex, screwed-up character.

The pace of this book is slowed down by the character development and relationships that develop between Pike and the rich 'hot' girl that he is protecting. I ended up liking both characters much more than a lot of action-hero characters like "Jack Reacher" books by Lee Child (I highly recommend Lee Child books for there extreme action). Pike and the 'babe' became more real and touching (you will actually feel for these characters).

The plot was definitely not predictable. Especially in regards to the gratuitous sex between leading characters in most books and movies. Furthermore, the ending of the book was a bit sad.

I purchased this book both on the reader reviews of both Amazon and Audible. "The Watchman" deserves it's favorable high ranking.

I rounded up and gave the book 5 stars.

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7 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Robert Crais is the BOMB! !

I have listened to most of the Elvis Cole/Joe Pike series, and have never been disappointed. I so love those two battered, heart-rending heroes! Both their life stories are chaotic and challenging and many would fail to turn their lives around to such an admiral degree. True grit, determination to forgive their own pasts, and a strong unshakeable will to NEVER give up are only a few of the qualities that make these men so unique.
Though Cole and Pike are fictional, Mr. Crais is such a talented writer and has to have great insight into the human mind, yet much compassion and depth of heart in order to show grace, mercy and forgiveness in both of their lives. Great life lessons here! Amazing how he portrays them both as such deep and caring souls, yet they will deal our fiery justice with no reservations!
They are each the epitome of a real man, yet aren't afraid for all to see the depth of their love and loyalty to each other, and all those they love. They are each so beautifully portrayed as a man's man and a lady's man. They are steel hands in velvet gloves.
Each book I've listened to has had excellent narrators, and I can only sing all their praises. Thanks to each narrator, and thank you, truly, Mr. Crais, for your most excellent writing skills. I listen to many, many books on Audible, mainly due to some health issues, and these books have served as a wonderful diversion from pain and a preventative from depression. All I can say to sum it up is.....Keep 'em coming!

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6 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars

Fast & furious & not very deep

I've only read the first Elvis Cole book, in which Pike was a minor character, so I wasn't sure what the characters would be like in the reverse position. Overall, the story was fast and furious. It wasn't particularly deep, or even very violent (though there is a lot of "talk" about being violent, but mostly it was just people getting shot)...

I wanted a replacement for Lee Child's Reacher series - and Pike nearly fits the bill. He's quiet and doesn't waste time being nice or talking when he can just act and get stuff done. I think the "relationship" between him and the woman he was protecting was just too jarring. The story wasn't long enough or deep enough to justify them having a "developing" relationship of any type, and, on top of that, the reader was lead to believe that the girl was young-ish, and Pike is middle aged, so it was creepy on that note.

All in all, not a bad book, and I'd read more in this series if they were on sale. The narration is well done.

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5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Be Like Pike...

The Watchman was outstanding! Robert Crais is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors. I was initially concerned with how short his books are, but I have come to realize that he is not short-changing his readers at all. He simply produces fast-paced, intelligent, and fun to read thrillers. I'm glad he devoted a book solely to Joe Pike. Pike reads a little like Dirty Harry with a soul. To bad the world doesn't have many "real" guys just like him.

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5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

A Quick Read! Both Drama and Action!

Joe Pike, ex-Sniper, ex-Policeman, ex-Mercenary... a complex, screwed-up character.

The pace of this book is slowed down by the character development and relationships that develop between Pike and the rich 'hot' girl that he is protecting. I ended up liking both characters much more than a lot of action-hero characters like "Jack Reacher" books by Lee Child (I highly recommend Lee Child books for there extreme action). Pike and the 'babe' became more real and touching (you will actually feel for these characters).

The plot was definitely not predictable. Especially in regards to the gratuitous sex between leading characters in most books and movies. Furthermore, the ending of the book was a bit sad.

I purchased this book both on the reader reviews of both Amazon and Audible. "The Watchman" deserves it's favorable high ranking.

I rounded up and gave the book 5 stars.

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4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Can't say a bad word about it

This was my first read from the Elvis Cole-Joe Pike team, and I'll have to go back and start with the first book now. Found this one on sale, so thought I'd give it a try,and have to say that I really like the characters. Elvis Cole has all the humor, while Joe Pike is a bit mysterious. Both are devoted to their client, and have a real human side, that comes to light in different ways.
It was a very interesting story, that keeps you guessing, and the narrator does a great job with differentiating the characters, while capturing their individual personalities.
Yep, I'm going back to the Monkeys Raincoat, and start from there, to get to know these guys better.

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

I love tough smart loner guys like Joe Pike.

I had plot problems, but it was still a fun and engaging read.

STORY BRIEF:
Larkin, a wealthy single woman (think Paris Hilton) witnesses something. Bad guys want her dead. She is in safe houses under federal protection. Three times someone leaks the location to the bad guys who come with guns. So Joe Pike a former marine and police officer is hired to protect her. He keeps her safe. The federal authorities, local police, and her father are angry at Joe because they don’t know where Joe is keeping her.

PLOT PROBLEMS:
Three plot logic problems come to mind. 1: Why are they angry at Joe? He’s doing what he was asked to do. He’s keeping her safe when no one else could. 2. Larkin does two stupid things which put her life in danger and gives Joe a chance to show how smart and great he is. I loved what Joe did when those things happened. But I wish the author used something different to put her in danger - not her own stupid actions. One of them is in the SPOILER below. 3. Joe and two other competent military types are sneaking up on some bad guys, planning a surprise attack. Another guy (not a military type) insisted on going with them and walked up to the bad guy’s front door, ruining the surprise. Of course, again this showed how good Joe was when things went wrong.

I don’t mind stupidity if it’s the way a normal person does stupid things - like me - for example being tired, misinformed, or emotionally distraught. But here I felt the author was doing it to move the plot. I prefer the bad guys being smart to move the plot, not the good guys being stupid.

BUT STILL FUN:
I liked that this was 3rd person. The author wrote several Elvis Cole stories in 1st person. I did not enjoy those as much.

Some readers will like the relationship part. Larkin has problems because her daddy doesn’t give her the right kind of attention. Joe helps her see things differently. They become close - but no sex. He’s older than she. For some reason Joe having a soft heart wasn’t done well. He said he loved her (to himself), but I wasn’t seeing or feeling it.

The narrator James Daniels was good.

SPOILER:
Larkin is hiding from a bad guy who wants to kill her. She calls the bad guy for some unknown reason about helping her daddy. (Her phone call was not shown.) The bad guy then comes, picks her up, drives away, and holds her hostage to get what he wants.

GENRE: action mystery suspense

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

A great addition to an already great series

Read the Elvis Cole series before you rad this book. I enjoy the Elvis Cole mystery series and never really gave much thought to his silent partner.

Watchmen has changed that completely. We are now presented with the human side of Joe. Elvis Cole plays a supporting role in this novel giving the novel a little brevity.

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