THE FORGOTTEN MAN

The plots of some novels almost defy logic. Such is the case with Crais’s latest Elvis Cole mystery, in which the investigator receives a call telling him that a man found in an alley, who claimed to be Cole’s long lost (and heretofore unknown) father, has just died. Cole then begins his search for the truth about the man--and finds himself enmeshed with a crazed killer. James Daniels takes the story and runs, using a style that is low-key yet that also retains Cole’s urgent desire to learn if the man really is his father. Daniels avoids the trap of injecting too much emotion into his performance, allowing the story to unfold at a good pace--and without adding the cynicism the plot warrants. D.J.S. © AudioFile 2005, Portland, Maine [Published: AUG/SEP 05]