Robert Crais books in order are famous for readers who love to dwell in crime fiction novels. Robert Crais is an American author who held a ranking as a bestselling novelist in New York Times.
Robert Crais Biography
Robert Crais grew up near the Mississippi river in a family of police officers and oil refinery workers. At the age of fifteen, he read a secondhand copy of Raymond Chandler’s The Little Sister and found his love for writing, the world of crime, and a city like Los Angeles.
He started his writing journey with film short script writings. He started his Hollywood writing journey in 1976 as a scriptwriter for television serials like Hill Street Blues, Cagney & Lacey, and Miami Vice. His work in Hill Street Blues got him nominated for Emmy Awards.
After some years, he found himself constricted within the boundaries of scriptwriting. Thus, he resigned from being a contract writer in Hollywood and started writing solo. Though his first failed attempt, he found success in his famous crime series Elvis Cole. After that, both he and his success were unstoppable.
Currently, Robert lives in Santa Monica. His novels are being sold in 62 countries. Also, he is awarded Ross Macdonald Literary and Grand Master by the Mystery Writers of America, etc.
Robert Crais Books in Order of Publication
Robert began his solo writing journey as a novelist with the Monkey’s Raincoat, a novel as part of his famous Elvis Cole crime series. It has been said that Robert has used his real-life experiences in this novel series making its first book successful and one of the 100 favorite mysteries of the centuries. Today’s article will throw some glimpses about popular books from Elvis Cole’s crime series from Robert Crais books in order.
Publication Order of Elvis Cole & Joe Pike Books
| Book Title | Year | Buy at Amazon |
|---|---|---|
| The Monkey’s Raincoat | (1987) | Buy Now |
| Stalking the Angel | (1989) | Buy Now |
| Lullaby Town | (1992) | Buy Now |
| Free Fall | (1993) | Buy Now |
| Voodoo River | (1995) | Buy Now |
| Sunset Express | (1996) | Buy Now |
| Indigo Slam | (1997) | Buy Now |
| L. A. Requiem | (1999) | Buy Now |
| The Last Detective | (2003) | Buy Now |
| The Forgotten Man | (2005) | Buy Now |
| The Watchman | (2007) | Buy Now |
| Chasing Darkness | (2008) | Buy Now |
| The First Rule | (2010) | Buy Now |
| The Sentry | (2011) | Buy Now |
| Taken | (2012) | Buy Now |
| The Promise | (2015) | Buy Now |
| The Wanted | (2017) | Buy Now |
| A Dangerous Man | (2019) | Buy Now |
| Racing the Light | (2022) | Buy Now |
| The Big Empty | (2025) | Buy Now |
Publication Order of Scott James & Maggie Books
Publication Order of Standalone Novels
| Book Title | Year | Buy at Amazon |
|---|---|---|
| Demolition Angel | (2000) | Buy Now |
| Hostage | (2001) | Buy Now |
| The Two-Minute Rule | (2006) | Buy Now |
Publication Order of Short Stories/Novellas
| Book Title | Year | Buy at Amazon |
|---|---|---|
| The Man Who Knew Dick Bong | (2011) | Buy Now |
Publication Order of Mysterious Profiles Books
| Book Title | Year | Buy at Amazon |
|---|---|---|
| Rambo(By: David Morrell) | (2022) | Available at mysteriousbookshop.com |
| Elvis Cole and Joe Pike | (2022) | Buy Now |
| Jack Taylor(By: Ken Bruen) | (2022) | Buy Now |
| Jack Reacher(By: Lee Child) | (2022) | Buy Now |
| Charlie Parker(By: John Connolly) | (2022) | Buy Now |
| Hieronymus Bosch(By: Michael Connelly) | (2022) | Buy Now |
| Lincoln Rhyme(By: Jeffery Deaver) | (2022) | Buy Now |
| Alex Delaware(By: Jonathan Kellerman) | (2022) | Buy Now |
| Tess Monaghan(By: Laura Lippman) | (2022) | Buy Now |
| Charlie Resnick(By: John Harvey) | (2022) | Buy Now |
| Peter Decker and Rina Lazarus(By: Faye Kellerman) | (2022) | Buy Now |
| Inspector Morse(By: Colin Dexter) | (2022) | Buy Now |
| Dismas Hardy(By: John Lescroart) | (2022) | Buy Now |
| Bob Lee Swagger(By: Stephen Hunter) | (2022) | Buy Now |
| Aloysius X. L. Pendergast(By: Douglas Preston) | (2022) | Buy Now |
| Lou Boldt(By: Ridley Pearson) | (2022) | Buy Now |
| Spenser(By: Robert B. Parker) | (2022) | Buy Now |
| Charlotte and Thomas Pitt(By: Anne Perry) | (2022) | Buy Now |
| John Rebus(By: Ian Rankin) | (2022) | Buy Now |
| Mallory(By: Carol O’Connell) | (2022) | Buy Now |
| Jane Whitefield(By: Thomas Perry) | (2022) | Buy Now |
| Ian Rutledge(By: Charles Todd) | (2022) | Buy Now |
| Amos Walker(By: Loren D. Estleman) | (2022) | Buy Now |
| Precious Ramotswe(By: Alexander McCall Smith) | (2022) | Buy Now |
| Maisie Dobbs(By: Jacqueline Winspear) | (2022) | Buy Now |
| The Lincoln Lawyer(By: Michael Connelly) | (2022) | Buy Now |
| Condor(By: James Grady) | (2023) | Buy Now |
| Ben Kincaid(By: William Bernhardt) | (2023) | Buy Now |
| Repairman Jack(By: F. Paul Wilson) | (2023) | Buy Now |
| Joe Pickett(By: C.J. Box) | (2024) | Buy Now |
| Peter Diamond(By: Peter Lovesey) | (2024) | Buy Now |
| Nathan Heller(By: Max Allan Collins) | (2024) | Buy Now |
Publication Order of Anthologies
| Book Title | Year | Buy at Amazon |
|---|---|---|
| Raymond Chandler’s Philip Marlowe | (2011) | Buy Now |
| The Best American Mystery Stories 2012 | (2012) | Buy Now |
| Crimespree Magazine #61 | (2015) | Buy Now |
Robert Crais Awards and Recognitions
MWA Grand Master Award – RC received the 2014 Grand Master Award from the Mystery Writers of America. The Grand Master Award is the highest honor bestowed by the MWA. It represented the pinnacle of achievement in mystery writing and was established to acknowledge important contributions to the genre as well as a body of work that is both significant and of consistently high quality. Previous Grand Masters include Agatha Christie, Ellery Queen, James M. Cain, Stephen King, James Lee Burke, Elmore Leonard, Joseph Wambaugh, Sue Grafton, and Ross Macdonald.
Ross Macdonald Literary Award – RC was the 2006 recipient of the Ross Macdonald Literary Award, presented to a California writer for raising the standards of literary excellence.
Robert Crais Books Summary
1. The Big Empty – 2025
At thirteen, Traci Beller lost her father when he vanished from the sleepy town of Rancha, not far from Los Angeles. Investigators claimed Tommy Beller abandoned his family, but Traci never accepted that. Ten years later, she has become a high-profile influencer with millions of followers and enough money to hire the best detective she can find—Elvis Cole.
Elvis heads to Rancha, where ex-con Sadie Givens and her daughter, Anya, may hold a lead on the missing man. But a gang of vicious criminals begins shadowing him, turning a cold case into something far more sinister.
Elvis calls on his ex-Marine friend, Joe Pike, and together they follow Tommy Beller’s trail into the depths of a monstrous hidden evil. The case flips on its head—victims turn into predators, predators into prey—and Elvis must confront the nightmare question: Can he save them all?
2. Nathan Heller – 2024
A ghostwriter sits down for a series of interviews with semi-retired Nathan Heller, the veteran cop and private detective who built his career handling famous cases and crossing paths with colorful figures like Al Capone, Amelia Earhart, Jack Ruby, and Jimmy Hoffa. Through these sessions, fans of New York Times–bestselling author Max Allan Collins—the ghostwriter himself—gain deeper insight into this classic character, the A-1 Detective Agency, and the man who created him.
The Monkey’s Raincoat
The first book of Elvis Cole’s crime series by Robert Crais, The Monkey’s Raincoat, was a successful novel as soon as it was launched. It introduces the main protagonist, Elvis Cole, a private detective in Los Angeles city.
Elvis is a veteran of the Vietnam war turned private detective, young at his heart. He has very unusual office settings and his enigmatic partner Joe Pike. They got the simple case of missing complaints by Ellen Lang of her husband and son.
Both Elvis and Joe thought it to be a simple case that did not excite them. Still, they go ahead with investigations. The investigations made them reach close to Hollywood and reveal the hidden world of drugs, sex, and murders. As things are getting revealed further, everyone, including cops, crooks, and stars, is against Elvis and his client. They both have to finish this investigation to get their personal gain.
Chasing Darkness
This is the 12th book of the famous crime novel series Elvis Cole. The plot of Chasing Darkness shows Elvis Cole, a private detective who tries to gain back his clear image. To be able to do so, he took the fire case in the jungle with the fire department. They both together start to evacuation procedure of the nearby town.
During the evacuation process, they found a week-old corpse, probably a suicide victim, with an album of his seven-murdered victim. These victims were all women and were brutally murdered once per year for seven years.
On investigation, Elvis found out that the same suicide victim was one of the suspects in a murder case that shocked him. It is related to something he had found in the past.
The First Rule
It is the 13th novel of the famous crime novel series Elvis Cole from Robert Crais books in order. The books bring Joe Pike, an intelligent partner on the front foot.
Frank Meyer was a part of a criminal gang from the Soviet Union where rules are taken seriously. There is no mercy for those who wish to go against these rules. Frank paid the price by losing himself, and everyone else lives of his family members.
There was one guy who worked with young Frank Meyer, Joe Pike. Joe, along with Elvis Cole, starts his own investigations towards exposing the world full of ancient grudges, blood ties, and many more.
The Sentry
This is the 14th novel of the Elvis Cole crime series by Robert Crais. The plot of this book continues to show the enigmatic Joe Pike, assistant of Elvis Cole, the main character of the novel series.
Two individuals, Dru Rayne and her uncle shifted to L.A. after facing danger from natural calamities. After five years of migration, they faced a different dangerous situation. Dru’s uncle was getting beaten by a group of men. Joe, an assistant to private investigator Elvis Cole, offered help, but they were not bothered, nor did federal agents.
Later, Joe found out that Dru and her uncle were not simply ordinary people. Whatever they told about them was a lie. But they were facing life threats that only Joe and Elvis could stop.
The Wanted Man
It is the 17th novel of the Elvis Cole crime series written by the famous Robert Crais. It is said to be a masterpiece and one of the New York Times bestsellers.
Devon is a single mother who hires a private detective, namely Elvis Cole, for her troubled teenage son Tyson. She suspects that her son is dealing with drugs, but the truth revealed a different story about his involvement in burglaries.
Tyson, his girlfriend, and one more person get into an ugly crime spree where one of them gets killed. They took the wrong thing from the wrong man, who will do anything to get it back. He hired two dangerous and brutal men to hunt Tyson and his girlfriend.
As the case progresses, Elvis, along with Joe, gets into this mysterious case against local police wishes. With teenagers who don’t want to be found, both Elvis and the huntsmen who are killing each person coming their way are keen to find them. But, Elvis and Pike may not be able to save them before the huntsmen get the teenagers.
Conclusion – Robert Crais
Robert Crais books in order are great crime novels if you want to read classic crime fiction. Robert has used his real-life experiences. His writing is greatly influenced by some of the famous crime fiction writers Raymond Chandler, Dashiell Hammett, etc. He won many awards for his novels. We will highly recommend reading novels by Robert Crais.
Top Faq on Robert Crais
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Who is Robert Crais?
Robert Crais is an American author of detective fiction. Crais began his career writing scripts for television shows such as Hill Street Blues, Cagney & Lacey, Quincy, Miami Vice, and L.A. Law. His writing is influenced by Raymond Chandler, Dashiell Hammett, Ernest Hemingway, Robert B. Parker, and John Steinbeck.
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What is Robert Crais most famous for?
He is most famous for creating private investigator Elvis Cole and his partner, ex-Marine Joe Pike, featured in multiple bestselling novels.
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Did Robert Crais work in television?
Yes, before becoming a novelist, Crais wrote for popular TV shows including Hill Street Blues, Cagney & Lacey, and Miami Vice.
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Which Robert Crais book should I start with?
Many readers start with The Monkey’s Raincoat (1987), the first Elvis Cole novel. However, his stand-alone novels are also accessible entry points.
Read more from the books in order
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