Wright & Wrong (Rafferty) by W. Glenn Duncan Jr.

In the second book W. Glenn Duncan Jr. writes, following in the footsteps of his father we read how Rafferty gets involved with a high school shooting. When one of the shooters he himself witnessed ends up on life-support Rafferty doesn't really feel like proving that shooter was innocent. When he at last gets involved he will have to take on some very angry parents.
While Duncan Jr's feel of Rafferty and sidekicks Mimi and Cowboy is just excellent I did think the story is a bit thin and could have done with 40 less pages. Aside from that, most people who enjoyed the earlier tales or are into Spenser might be able to enjoy this as a charming and quick read. The prose is very readable and the dialogue quite snappy.

Fatal Sisters (Rafferty) by W. Glenn Duncan

Patty Akister's husband goes missing. According to her he's a secret agent. Rafferty, who is hired to find him finds that pretty hard to swallow. When her husband turns up dead in a whorehouse Rafferty tries to find his killer while he goes out of his way to prevent shattering Patty's positive view of her husband.

This one has all the hallmarks of a good Rafferty tale. That is, nice banter between him and his girlfriend, macho and witty exchanges between him and his cool sidekick Cowboy for one. Aside from that there's some nice moral choices to deal with and some good action scenes.
As ever the writing is fast-paced and loose, making this a quick and easy read.

Cannon's Mouth (Rafferty) by W, Glenn Duncan

When Rafferty gets mistaken for a hitman. He tries to warn the intended victim but is too late. Then the chase for the real killer starts.
I'm a fan of this series, and the mood is always nice and breezy but this time the plot seemed a bit too thin. Also, while not a long book I had a feeling the story could be told in half the pages.
Still, if you like Spenser you will absolutely enjoy this fun and action-packed series. If you dislike this particular one, don't be discouraged, the other books are better.

Wrong Place, Wrong Time (Rafferty) by W. Glenn Duncan

Boy, these Rafferty books are fun! As much as they seem to owe to Spenser I enjoy the hell out of them. In this one Rafferty is asked by the girl he frequently ogles in an adjacent office (hmm that sounds a bit creepy) to help her great-uncle who is being harassed by some vandals. Meanwhile he is tracking down a guy who pretended to be a bounty hunter in an effort to have Rafferty along killing a pool cleaner.
The stakes aren't all that high and the mystery might not be that strong but the dialogue is just awesome. There's some very touching bits between Rafferty and the great-uncle and Cowboy is just one of the coolest sidekicks ever.
If you're in for an awesome, light classic PI read you need to pick this one up.

Rafferty's Rules (Rafferty) by W. Glenn Duncan

This book was first published in the late eighties. Rafferty can be seen as a Texas version of Spenser. He's got a slightly psycho sidekick, a significant other who can be both cute and annoying, knows his wisecracks and has his own rules and sense of honor. As a huge fan of Spenser I don't see those things as bad. In fact, I cannot deny my own Noah Milano series owes a lot to Spenser.
With the news that the author's son will be writing a new Rafferty story it makes sense this series is reissued.
In this first book in the series Rafferty tracks down the biker gang that raped the daughter of a wealthy family.  What follows is not a challenging mystery nor a dark character study. What does follow is one heck of an action-packed and fun ride! I loved Rafferty's rules, his wisecracks, the great pacing and action scenes.
I will be reading the rest of the series for sure and very eagerly await Duncan Jr's first Rafferty novel