Imagine a baseball player who hits a home run every time at bat or a quarterback who throws for a touchdown every time he handles the ball. Mystery writer Robert Crais would fit into the above category.

Born in Louisiana in 1954, his early career was spent writing TV scripts for such well know shows as Hill Street Blues, Cagney and Lacey and Miami Vice. In the mid 80s the constraints of collaborative writing led him to give up a successful and lucrative career to become a mystery writer.

Robert created Elvis Cole, a private detective. He is wisecracking, an ex-Ranger, macho, and charming. The first novel, The Monkey's Raincoat, has been selected as one of the one hundred favorite mysteries of the century by the Independent Mystery Booksellers Association.

His fan base grew, so that Crais ended up creating a series. His theme is that the books are about people who are trying to be better than they have been.

As of 2008, twelve novels have been written. "The Monkey Raincoat" won the Anthony and Macavity Award. "L.A. Requiem" was on the New York Times best seller list. It also changed the way detective novels were written, using flashbacks, multiple story lines and multiple points of view. "Hostage" was named Notable Book of the Year by the New York Times and was subsequently made into a movie.

In 2006, Robert Crais was the recipient of the Ross Macdonald Literary Award, establishing him as one of the best, contemporary mystery writers.