Poor Dead Cricket

Rafferty #3

by W. Glenn Duncan

An alternative cover edition for this ASIN can be found here.

Rafferty’s Rule 39: Smiting the wicked sounds biblical, but mostly it’s just good clean fun.

Cricket Dawes lies dead in a parking lot.

An explosive corporate dossier is in the wind.

The company will stop at nothing to get it back ...

The cops think it was a routine mugging gone bad; Winchester just wants the dossier to prove the local nuclear plant is dangerous; and Walter Hadley, Cricket's boss and lover, you'd think would be upset, but if his company and wife were to learn the truth ...

All the pieces are there, but Rafferty can't complete the puzzle. So ... continue with the case and the screwballs involved or tell Winchester to shove it?

Either way, she'll still be dead, and Rafferty might not stop the looming environmental catastrophe, but at least he might be able to find out who really killed Cricket Dawes.

And make them pay.

Genres: Fiction

246 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1988

About the author

W. Glenn Duncan was a former journalist and pilot who lived in Iowa, Ohio, Florida, Texas and California, before settling in Australia with his wife and three children.

See also Bill Duncan

Reviews

[Lloyd · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a private investigator story that is part of the P.I. Rafferty series. This mystery is a murder mystery. The “Cricket” in the title refers to the victim, a young woman with a nickname of Cricket. Was she killed in a mugging gone bad (as the police believe), or because she had proof of radiation leaks by her corporate employer, or because of her affair with her married lover? P.I. Rafferty is hired to at least disprove the police theory and reopen the case, if not out and out discover who killed poor Cricket. It is a very good mystery with lots of clues and lots of possible solutions. The Rafferty character is an interesting and entertaining character. Whenever real violent danger is possible, Rafferty brings along his friend “Cowboy” for extra protection. And there are several points in this mystery where Cowboy’s help is badly needed. All characters in this novel are well drawn and very believable. The dialogue fits the characters and moves the investigation forward. The clues provided support the conclusion, the reader will know all the clues as Rafferty uncovers them. So, no surprise last minute revelations out of left field are used to solve the case. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys private investigator “characters” that display their personalities as they solve their cases.

[Jo · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the 3rd book I've read and am really enjoying the journey. Hardboiled P.I. Rafferty is a throwback to your old time detectives. He uses his street smarts and sense of humour to get to the bottom of whatever case he's on. His humanity shines through when he discovers he seems to be the only one concerned about the death of Cricket, a young woman who unfortunately fell in love with the wrong man. With the help of his longtime girlfriend Hilda and his sidekicks Cowboy and Mimi they try to get to the bottom of a case that seemed simple at the beginning but has more twists and turns than a roller coaster. Loved the ending and just wanted to say to Linda - Ha. Ha. Serves you right!!!

[Julian White · Rating 4 out of 5]

9780648037040 on kobo, different cover, 226 pages

The death of a possible environmentalist whistleblower is put down to a mugging - but there are doubts and Rafferty is engaged to stablish that the death is in fact a murder, arranged by the nuclear waste processing plant for whom she worked. Much complication ensues...

An engaging read - Rafferty is competent, amusing, droll; his frequent associates, tiny Mimi and the laconic Cowboy, are a delight, as is Hilda, Rafferty's lover.

[Wpayne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Poor Dead Cricket

Well W Glen Duncan you did it again. Love old Rafferty and his gang of merry men. Hilda and Mimi are cool too. Great story fun and exciting read! Now downloading the next adventure.

[Robbie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rafferty books are hard to put down. This one was typical: fast-paced, Rafferty is an admirable protagonist - he's smart and has a sense of humor, which is important to me and never disappoints. Of course I rate this one 5 starsl.