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The Promise by Robert Crais is a thrilling mystery. Fans will enjoy
the pairing of the well-written characters he has brought
to the page including Elvis Cole, Joe Pike, Scott James, Maggie
the German Shepherd, and Jon Stone. The storyline is realistic
and action packed, making for an enjoyable novel.
The author stated, “I saw potential for all three to
come together as a group, although Elvis is the featured character.
I consider myself their daddy and its all a big playground
for me. I wanted to find a really good believable reason for
them to cross paths and did not want it to appear contrived.
Once the notion of explosives found in Echo Park came to me
I knew I could bring everything together. Remember Maggie
was an explosive detection dog in the Marines. After that
it was having fun with the scenes.”
The format of the book has each chapter told from the perspective
of a different character. This allows readers to get into
the minds and thoughts of the various personalities. For those
Americans frustrated with the current policies of political
correctness and at times having the terrorists appear as sympathetic
figures the plot is a welcome alternative. Its main focus
is a grieving mother, Amy Breslyn, who searches for retribution
after losing her son, a journalist, in a suicide bomber attack
in Nigeria. Being a chemical engineer allows her the capability
to get revenge on the terrorists. Elvis Cole is secretly hired
to find her, but his investigation leads to more questions
than answers. He stumbles into a police raid of a house where
someone is murdered and a huge amount of explosives have been
found. Being at the wrong place at the wrong time he becomes
a person of interest. Meanwhile the killer targets LAPD dog
handler Scott James and his dog Maggie because they are the
only ones who can identify him.
Crais told blackfive.net, “When I started writing in
the late 1980s the subject matter of The Promise was not even
on the drawing board. The impact of terrorism on all of us
from ISIS to Al Qaeda has us dealing with certified crazy
people. Through my character Amy Breslyn I can release my
anger. Here is this woman who loses her son, a non-combatant,
by a lunatic, a suicide bomber. We all carry Amy’s anger
and frustration about what is happening. I hope readers can
share and feel what Amy has gone through.”
But more than anything this is a story of commitment, loyalty,
and partner devotion. There are multiple teams at play. The
plot becomes increasingly interesting as the teams cross over
and intermingle appearing at times to be an army unit. But
the partners of Scott and Maggie will pull at reader’s
heartstrings since they are comrades in arms. Both have lost
their partners, had traumatic injuries, and have nightmares
about their experiences. They also have PTSD and are helping
each other heal. There is a strong bond between them.
Maggie, the German Shepherd K-9, stole the show by often showing
more sense and intuition than her human counterparts. What
any dog owner will enjoy is the fact that Robert Crais narrated
parts of this story through Maggie's eyes, presenting a humanistic
interpretation of her words and thoughts. Crais also writes
believable scenes between Maggie and her handler Scott. It
becomes obvious he has done his homework, allowing readers
to understand that handlers need to trust their partner’s
instincts and not to influence them through some subconscious
changes in body language, tone, and movement.
The Promise has compelling characters that enhance the plot.
Anyone wanting an action packed story that is embedded in
realism should read this book. But a word of warning, have
the time because readers will not want to put it down.
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