The Monkey's Raincoat (original 1987; edition 1992)

My blog post about this book is href="http://blogmybooks.blogspot.com/2008/01/monkeys-raincoat-by-robert-crais.html">here ( )

I got this as a free Kindle book. At first I did not know if I wanted to keep reading because Elvis Cole seemed too much of a smart mouth without much maturity. I am glad I kept reading. I found more depth as his character developed and the plot became more complex. ( )

Not a deep and meaningful read, but nevertheless very enjoyable. Elvis Cole is a wisecracking, smart but not too mature detective who helps Ellen Lang find her missing husband and son. Joe Pike is Elvis Cole's partner, and a memorable character he is. A human shark, he's a Vietnam veteran who never really came home. He's more comfortable when he's sneaking through the woods killing people. Crais gives us the source of the title in an epigraph at the beginning of the novel, but I must admit I was disappointed that there were neither monkeys nor raincoats (much less monkey's raincoats) in the novel. ( )

Very good. This reminded me of Robert Parker's writing and the Spencer series. I enjoyed it quite a bit and will definately continue to explore this series. Elvis is quite good... ( )

The Monkey's Raincoat is as fast-paced as Michael Connelley and a witty as the best Janet Evanovitch. It's also a perfect little time capsule for the 1980s (he wears a white blazer and looks for pay phones constantly). I must now read all of the Elvis Cole PI books, which will probably take a few weeks. ( )