Demolition angel by Robert Crais

Like many authors with ongoing characters, Robert Crais has taken a
break from his famous private eye. After eight novels featuring Elvis
Cole and his loyal sidekick Joe Pike, Crais has created Carol Starkey,
a bomb squad veteran now doing time as a Detective-2 with LAPD's
Criminal Conspiracy Section. Three years have passed since the
detonation that killed Carol's partner and lover, but she is still
severely scarred both mentally and physically. She can't bear to look
in the mirror, and she hasn't been with another man since David
Boudreaux left her bed that last morning he went to work. She gets
through the day with the help of Tagamet and alcohol.

very different from the Elvis Cole series, and very well written. A very enjoyable read.

Indigo slam by Robert Crais

Elvis resorts to warm-hearted patronizing when young Teresa "Teri"
Haines tows her snotty 12-year-old brother Charles and sweet
nine-year-old sister Winona into his West Los Angeles office. Teri
announces that her decision to hire Cole comes from her library
research of old newspaper articles that praised him. She located him
through his Yellow Pages ad and is ready to pay cash for his time.
Clark Haines, the kids' father, has been missing 11 days. Haines
travels often, and their mother died five years earlier in a traffic
accident, so the children are used to being on their own. But this
extended disappearance has them worried.
While Cole's immediate inclination is to report the Haines kids to
Children's Services, he is impressed by Teri and agrees to consider the
job.

I have tried to read these books in sequence and I must say, although you could read them in any order and still enjoy them, some of the jokes are more apparent when read in sequence for example I love the old man at the airport that crops up in a coupl eof the books. The feeling of deja vu that Elvis experiences is similar to a reader that has read the books over a longer period of time, and would be missed if read in the wrong order.

Sunset Express by Robert Crais

When a wealthy LA restaurateur is arrested for killing his wife, his dream defense team hires PI Elvis Cole to investigate. The defense claims that Police Officer Angela Rossi planted the murder weapon at the scene. The evidence Elvis finds seems to support that theory until his doubts begin to mount and he digs deeper to find the truth with the help of his sidekick Joe Pike and his visiting friend, Louisiana attorney Lucy Chenier. Mystery fans will appreciate the writing, action, and distinctive supporting characters which highlight the vivid California setting with just the right amount of LA cool.

Voodoo River by Robert Crais

Los Angeles private eye Elvis Cole is hired by a famous television star
to find her biological parents, and is drawn into a frightening web of
deceit and danger when he discovers that the long-ago adoption was kept
secret for a very good reason.
I am really going through his books at a fair pace at the moment, and I must say, they are getting better and better. As I write this I am reading Sunset Express, the next in the series, and I *need* to order some more for the Easter break or I will be climbing the wall.

Free fall by Robert Crais

Elvis is back. No, not that one . . . the good one, the one who's
fun to read about. Elvis Cole, Los Angeles private eye, returns in the
fourth installment of a series in which there is way too much time
between installments. Jennifer Sheridan wants Elvis to find out what's
bothering her fiance, Mark Thurman, an undercover cop with an elite
LAPD unit. Jennifer is certain it's not another woman, but Thurman
himself tells Elvis the opposite. Elvis breaks the news to Jennifer in
a hilarious restaurant scene, but she convinces him to stay on the
case. Inevitably, Jennifer's suspicions turn out to be more than
wishful thinking. Take the Rodney King case and put this spin on it:
the guy with the camera was more interested in blackmail than justice.
Pretty soon Elvis and his borderline sociopath partner, Joe Pike, are
up to their smoking guns in renegade cops and angry gangs. Crais, who
also writes for television ("L.A. Law," "Hill Street Blues"), has
created a series hero who is tough, witty, resourceful, and even
romantic. Let's face it: we all want to be Elvis Cole when we grow up.