Elvis Cole is the invention of mystery writer Robert Crais. Elvis is a private detective who, with his partner Joe Pike, owns a detective agency in Los Angeles, California on Santa Monica Boulevard. Elvis Cole is named after Elvis Presley and collects Disney memorabilia, which he displays in his office. He drives a 1966 yellow convertible corvette and mostly dresses in Hawaiian shirts. He has a Mickey Mouse phone on his desk. But, he also carries a .38 caliber Dan Wesson gun in a shoulder holster. He knows the Tae Kwan Do and Wing Chung forms of martial arts. He served in Vietnam, where he was a U.S. Army Ranger.

Elvis lives in the Hollywood Hills on Woodrow Wilson Boulevard. His house has a large back deck which looks out over a canyon. Elvis uses the back deck of his house to contemplate the universe, drink beer, think about his cases, and practice his daily Tai Chi and Hatha Yoga exercises. He lives near another famous fictional detective, Harry Bosch, who even appeared in one of the Elvis Cole stories. Elvis lives alone, except for a black cat with a bad disposition who positively dotes on his partner, Joe Pike. The cat has raggedy ears and many scars from the fights he has been in.

Elvis Cole bills himself as “The World's Greatest Detective.” He is a perpetual smart-alec, who quotes Jiminy Cricket. He drinks his coffee from a Spider-Man mug. But he is also a conscientious investigator with a soft spot for women and children in distress. Elvis Cole has taken his place among the great fictional detectives of our times.