"LULLABY TOWN" By Robert Crais (A-)

Elvis Cole is an invention of literary genius by author Robert Crais, who has my deepest gratitude for creating my favorite private eye. This 1992 novel is the third Cole private eye mystery after "The Monkey's Raincoat," published in 1987, and "Stalking the Angel," which debuted a year later. Crais waited another four years before coming out with this new version in the Cole mystery series.

It is amazing that Robert Crais is not more prominent. Born in Louisiana, he moved to Hollywood in 1976 and found considerable success writing the scripts for many hit television shows like "Hill Street Blues," "Cagney and Lacey," "Quincy," "Miami Vice," and "L.A. Law." He received an Emmy nomination for his efforts on "Hill Street Blues." Many of his novels have been nominated for various literary and mystery writing awards, and several of them have won. The quality of his writing is such that you will not find anything better anywhere else.

Somewhat surprisingly, this novel offers less of Elvis Cole and more of a mystery with a solid story about Cole's efforts to free a woman from the thralls of a NY crime family. Crais' characterizations are usually so strong that they tend to mask the stories. I have happily gone along for the ride because Crais is absolutely brilliant in his characterizations. I would love to find two private eyes more interesting than Elvis Cole and Joe Pike, but I have yet to run across them.

Another very nice feature is that Crais links his stories together so that there is a perspective and a historical foundation to his novels. They progress in time like in the real world. Previous clients come up and recommend new clients. Former clients served become friends and even girlfriends. And LA Cops like Lou Poitras appear from time to time. Poitras is another character straight out of literary heaven.

Cole is on the case once again. This time he is hired by Peter Alan Nelson, a top tier Hollywood producer, to find his son by a former wife. Nelson has spent the last decade plus establishing his credentials with a string of very successful movies, and now he is a Hollywood big shot who is compared to Lucas and Spielberg.

He is surrounded by sycophants who cater to his every whim, including Donnie Brewster, who serves as his agent and yes man, and Nick and T.J., two guys who hang around as part of his entourage. Nelson is used to everyone wanting a piece of him, so he doesn't trust anybody, including Elvis. Cole also meets Dani, a muscular female body builder who serves in his inner circle as a bodyguard. She may be the only person who is devoted to Nelson's best interests.

Before hitting the big time, Nelson never cared much about being a husband or a father. As a result, he has lost touch with his son and Karen Nelson, his former wife. Both of them seem to have disappeared off the face of the earth in the 12 years since the divorce. Karen and Peter were together for little more than a year, and Peter only has one picture of his wife and baby son. Worse still, his memory is faulty. Nelson believes that the whole world revolves around him, so recalling anything about someone else is an impossible chore. He doesn't even remember where Karen came from, her surviving family members, or any other information about her, like a favorite place that she might have loved to visit.

The former Karen Shipley was once a bit actress who never had the drive or the smarts to make it, and Cole quickly finds out that she is no longer in the business and has severed all connections with her acting career. She is nowhere to be found in the entire state of California, and all national identity and credit searches for her come up blank.

Of course, Cole isn't the "The World's Greatest Detective" for nothing, so an interview with an obscure talent agent turns up an old address and a feisty landlady who sends Cole out to Connecticut. What should then have been an easy and successful end to the case takes a nasty turn when Cole is beaten up by a trio of wise guys for his efforts. Further investigation turns up a very dangerous connection to a prominent NY mob boss. Cole will need to call in his partner, Joe Pike, to help him out so that he doesn't end up swimming with the fishes, thanks to a mobster with the forbidding name of "Charlie the Tuna." 1992, Bantam Books, 295 pages.