18. The Two Minute Rule, Robert Crais, Thriller, 2-26Robert Crais fans may experience at twinge of disappointment upon first diving into his new book, The Two Minute Rule. Disappointment because Crais’ ace detective Elvis Cole is nowhere to be found. The Two Minute Rule is a one off, featuring a new cast of characters that include a reformed ex-con and a former FBI agent.
The two-minute rule dictates that bank robbers must be in and out of a bank in two minutes or risk arrest. Or worse. In the book’s prologue, two violent amateurs, Marchenko and Parsons, violate the two-minute rule and, as a result, are killed by cops in a wild shoot-out as they leave the bank.
Years before, Max Holman also violated the two-minute rule. Holman wasn’t an amateur like Marchenko and Parsons. Instead, he stays too long because in the course of the bank robbery an elderly man has a heart attack. Holman stops to administer CPR. Holman is sent to prison for 10 years, leaving behind a bitter young son.
On the day that he is to be discharged from federal custody, Holman, is informed that his son, now a cop, has been brutally murdered. Holman is determined to learn who killed his son and three other cops. As his investigation proceeds, Holman learns that his son, and the other dead cops, may have been after $16 million in loot that Marchenko and Parsons had hidden before their death.
Suddenly, finding his son’s killer is less important than answering a larger question: Was his son a dirty cop? Holman enlists the FBI agent who arrested him to find his son’s killer and the missing money. The agent, Katherine Pollard, has left the “FEEB” and is now a struggling single mom.
The Two Minute Rule is vintage Crais. It’s a fast-paced ride with a satisfying twist to keep the reader guessing.
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