K is for Killer

Kinsey Millhone #11

by Sue Grafton

When Kinsey Millhone answers her office door late one night, she lets in more darkness than she realizes. Janice Kepler is a grieving mother who can't leave the death of her beautiful daughter Lorna alone. The police agree that Lorna was murdered, but a suspect was never apprehended and the trail is now ten months cold.

Kinsey pieces together Lorna's young life: a dull day job a the local water treatment plant spiced by sidelines in prostitution and pornography. She tangles with Lorna's friends: a local late-night DJ, a sweet, funny teenaged hooker, Lorna's sloppy landlord and his exotic wife. But to find out which one, if any, turned killer, Kinsey will have to inhabit a netherworld from which she may never return.

Now it's your turn to join Kinsey Millhone as she looks for a killer.

Genres: Mystery, Fiction, Crime, Mystery Thriller, Audiobook, Detective, Thriller

Hardcover

First published May 15, 1994

About the author

Sue Grafton was a #1 New York Times bestselling author. She is best known for her “alphabet series” featuring private investigator Kinsey Millhone in the fictional city of Santa Teresa, California. Prior to success with this series, she wrote screenplays for television movies. Her earlier novels include Keziah Dane (1967) and The Lolly-Madonna War (1969), both out of print. In the book Kinsey and Me she gave us stories that revealed Kinsey's origins and Sue's past.

Grafton never wanted her novels to be turned into movies or TV shows. According to her family she would never allow a ghost writer to write in her name. Because of these things, and out of respect for Sue’s wishes, the family announced the alphabet now ends at “Y”

Grafton was named a Grand Master by the Mystery Writers of America and received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Private Eye Writers of America, the Ross Macdonald Literary Award, three Shamus Awards, and many other honors and awards.

Grafton had three children from previous marriages and several grandchildren, including a granddaughter named Kinsey. She and her husband lived in Montecito, California, and Louisville, Kentucky.

Reviews

[Robin Hobb · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've had a life long love of mystery and detective fiction. Start off with Sherlock Holmes. Mix in some Travis McGee. Years of Archie and Nero Wolfe. A bit of Agatha Christie.

So I love exploring the mystery shelves at my local library. This one looked good, a nice length for a quick fling. I'll honestly admit that some of the doorstopper sized fantasy novels have daunted me lately. So I chose this one off the Timberland Library shelves pretty much at random.

Sue Grafton really excels at setting. I was transported back to an earlier California, whisked away from Covid concerns and current politics. Sometimes its nice to escape in a really good book, to sidestep this reality and immerse in another one.. The details of the city were completely convincing. There is one description of a nightclub that made me want to climb inside the pages and see if for myself. Can it really exist? Well, in this book, it does.



And Kinsey Millhone is not only a private detective who goes about things in her own way, but someone I'd like to have coffee with, in an all-night diner. With most detective stories, the character is what carries the tale. Kinsey does that very well, even with me jumping in at the 11th chapter of her career.

Yelm Timberland library isn't very big. If A is for Alibi had been available, I would have started there with Kinsey, as there are a number of references to previous cases and people she knows well. I think having that background on her would have enriched my enjoyment of the tale. I always like to ride along with a writer and watch the characters change and grow. So although I enjoyed this book, if you have the opportunity, I suspect that A is for Alibi is the best place to start with Kinsey. I hope I have the chance to do that soon.

[James · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book Review
3.5 out of 5 stars to K is for Killer, the 11th book in the "Kinsey Millhone" mystery series, written in 1994 by Sue Grafton. In this one, Kinsey's life is relatively calm, which she is enjoying... until someone shows up begging for help in solving the death of her daughter. Kinsey doesn't think she can do much, given the police haven't found anything in the months-old trail. But the woman is convincing and Kinsey needs the money. Unfortunately, the case turns out to be brutal -- and the dead girl had a very tumultuous crop of friends and acquaintances, all who have a different take on the death. And some of them don't believe it was murder. Kinsey knows they're hiding something and takes off on her usual path to solve another crazy case. I enjoyed the book, however it wasn't one of the better ones. It's smack in the middle of the series, slightly above average in the mystery world for 1990s fiction. The series took a minor slump with this book, not because it was bad, but because it just wasn't as powerful as the rest. Still a definite read and no reason to abandon the entire series.

About Me
For those new to me or my reviews... here's the scoop: I read A LOT. I write A LOT. And now I blog A LOT. First the book review goes on Goodreads, and then I send it on over to my WordPress blog at https://thisismytruthnow.com, where you'll also find TV & Film reviews, the revealing and introspective 365 Daily Challenge and lots of blogging about places I've visited all over the world. And you can find all my social media profiles to get the details on the who/what/when/where and my pictures. Leave a comment and let me know what you think. Vote in the poll and ratings. Thanks for stopping by.

[Jilly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gah, have I mentioned that I don't like Kinsey? She's such a bitch! And, a loser. She is one step up from a bag lady in the social hierarchy and yet she judges every woman she meets with the attitude of a mean girl from high school. Her impressions of a teenage girl:

"Trinny was barefoot, wearing an oversize white T-shirt and a pair of ragged blue jean cutoffs. Judging from the size of her butt, she'd conjured up quite a few homemade cakes in her day."

Nice. That is how she describes every female she meets. Basics on their appearance and then some sort of biting comment about that they look old, ugly, or fat. The males are all described based upon whether she finds them attractive or not.

Here's a clue to a mystery for you Kinsey: none of them care if you are attracted to them! Some bitchy spinster who hates dogs and children and cuts her own hair with nail scissors isn't exactly prime material herself. Ugh!

And yes, I said she hates dogs and children. Do you know who else hated dogs and children???

... you think I'm going to say "Hitler", don't you?...
But I'm not because even Hitler loved dogs!
That's right, I'm saying Kinsey is worse than Hitler. That's not an exaggeration at all.


I may need to get out more.

In this book, Kinsey is trying to solve a murder that happened about a year prior. She does her usual thing, which mainly involves annoying people at their homes like some creepy church people or creepy magazine sales people or creepy kids trying to sell you shit that their school is making them pimp themselves out for in hopes of some crappy prize that they could get at the Dollar store. And, yes, anyone who comes to my door is creepy in my eyes. Did I invite you to come over? Unless you have an Amazon box in your hand, go away.

This sums up how I feel when someone knocks on my door:



Not only that, but she flies to San Francisco just to have a conversation with someone that she was already talking to on the phone. She called him and asked if she could fly up there and ask him some questions. I was thinking, why don't you just ask him the questions now, on the phone....that you are speaking to him upon at this moment... you know, instead of making your customer pay for a plane flight and hotel.... It just goes to show just how pathetic her life is that there is absolutely nothing holding her back from doing something so pointless and time-wasting.

Speaking of pointless and time-wasting, I'm getting much better at skimming through all of the boring and endless descriptions that fill these books, so yay for that. At one point, Kinsey goes to speak to a guy at a water treatment plant and he offers to give her a tour and the speech about what they do there. I was muttering, "no, no, no, please no, just say no.....oh shit, of course she said yes..." at the book.

Alright, this is obscure reference time. If anyone gets it, there will be a prize.

"Yes, there are thousands and thousands of uses for corn,
all of which I'm going to tell you about right now!"


But, I skimmed over all of that like a champ. I will not be learning about water treatment methods today, Satan. Not today.
The story ended on a very strange note this time. I liked that, except there were loose ends that didn't make sense. Also, Kinsey was stupid and really deserved to get killed when the magic "reason" and timing stopped it.
Anyway, on to the next one. I can churn these mothers out if I skim the filler!

[Baba · Rating 2 out of 5]

Kinsey Millhone case No. 11: Kinsey investigates the 'cold case' murder of a high class hooker. A somewhat darker tale than usual, and as usual, the darker tale brings out a more interesting, enjoyable and engaging read in this series again. 5 out of 12

2010 read

[Phrynne · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was another good entry in this enjoyable alphabet series. It was a litle bit darker than usual and involved some really serious heavies. Fortunately Kinsey chose to be discreet and let the bad guys sort out the even worse guy!

Prior to this though she carried on in her usual manner, knocking on people's doors at all hours of the night and asking the most pointed questions. Her methods seem to work because she discovers all sorts of information and usually solves the case. I enjoy her attitude and admire her work ethic. She works endlessly long hours and eats the worst food, but it all makes for an entertaining read.

Ready now to move on to L.

[Luffy Sempai · Rating 1 out of 5]

Characters in the book are forgettable. That's unforgivable in a utilitarian book. I didn't know who the murderer was in the book. I felt that I had paused reading this book for a couple of weeks before reprising it again around the whereabouts of the climax.

There isn't even pity for the murdered. The links between me as a reader and the main victim was tenuous at best. The culprit evaporates into thin air. "Respectfully submitted" my foot. Kinsey Millhone stops running in this book. She instead does a new kind of exercise. Didly-squat.

I thought Sue Grafton was on autopilot with the book. She was not inspired, there is no redeeming point for her story. This is a mediocre book. If you haven't read it and it's in your tbr pile, do yourself a favour and ditch this useless book.

[Jenn · Rating 2 out of 5]

Maybe it's pointless to jump into reviewing this series midway through, but K is the first book in Grafton's alphabet so far that's seemed much different than the others. I've thoroughly enjoyed the highly devourable mysteries A-I; J is for Judgment left a sour taste in my mouth only insomuch as it trespassed into non-mystery territory at the end, when (spoiler!) protagonist detective Kinsey Millhone discovers, basically out of nowhere, that she has family living not too far away. Her reaction to finding this out is pretty childish and initially in-character, but the open hostility and sustained unreasonableness of the character in the last 40 or 50 pages of the book made me hope for redemption -- or at least further development -- in K.

K seems promising in its plot, at first. A bright but stand-offish young woman, Lorna Kepler, is found dead in her tiny cottage. Ten months later, her distraught mother asks Kinsey to look into her death -- in part because someone has just mailed Mom a videotape in which the bright, favored daughter appears in a porn film.

The book slowly sinks, though, into tropes and bizarre complications. Lorna's lifestyle -- it turns out she worked part-time for the city's water treatment plant and part-time as a high-dollar sex worker -- is criticized soundly by nearly every character in the book, save one, her best friend (and fellow hooker), Danielle. Thus the book quickly divides into two groups: the fat, jealous women who speak about Lorna's life with disgust, and the thin pretty friend who's a hooker. Oh, and the men, all of whom seem to have wanted her. Kinsey's search for a possible killer leads her to San Francisco to check up on the porn film director and fellow actor. (The actor is one of the only friendly characters in the book, in part because he's one of the only surprising characters). There's really no point to this trip beyond, I can only guess, some kind of editorial advice that "maybe throw in some sex" was handed over.

The only fun in the book comes from some banter between Kinsey and a new-to-readers male cop, Cheney Phillips, who spends the first half of the book being strangely seductive and professional. At about the 3/4 mark on the book, he becomes a jerk (and magically gains a girlfriend), in order to slow the progression of the mystery and to force Kinsey into a moral dilemma.

By the end, three more people have died. All three die after Kinsey has received the clue that reveals who Lorna's real killer is; none of the three is confirmed to have been killed by the same person. In fact, the book varies completely from form at the end: not only are crimes left unsolved, but Kinsey doesn't even mention her final accounting with the family of the deceased (one of whom is implicated in an illegal act not long before the resolution). The epilogue deals with the (absent) consequences for the questionable moral decision Kinsey's made. I'd like to hope that might be dealt with in L, but this book leaves me no hope.

Why? Because J's issues didn't make the cut here. Though the family drama is mentioned, it's only mentioned once, in dialogue. Unfortunately, there does seem to be some form of bitter hangover happening for either the character or the author. The childish, bitter, unreasonable Kinsey of the J finale shows up from the beginning of K. Where the descriptions in earlier books have often found clever ways to categorize new acquaintances, this book seems rife with uncreative and insulting descriptions. An initial meeting with the sister of the deceased leads Kinsey to cunningly observe that, "From the size of her butt, she'd eaten many boxed cakes." That's neither creative nor funny. It's just mean. Her observations of nearly every other woman in the book are similarly critical and hateful. The men, on the other hand, come off nicely -- they're mostly broad-shouldered, sturdily dressed, friendly in their smiles, light in their eyes. (One exception: a stereotypical pimp, whose physical dimensions are basically repeated in a stereotypical john later on). Add to this the fact that the author, for some reason, spends time not only reminding the reader of how many calories Kinsey's daily run burns but also finding the only good quality in any of the women seen to be the bare, flat midriffs of Danielle and an actress named Cherie, and you end up with a book that feels like it's simmering with the repressed bitchy hunger of a character (or writer?) who really, really needs a piece of cake and a day out with some decent girlfriends.

So, even though I received H-M for Valentine's Day, it may be a while before I can lift L is for Lawless.

[Louie the Mustache Matos · Rating 3 out of 5]

I know that this is not one of her best, but at the beginning of the year, I decided that I would focus my reading on some longer series that I would begin and end in the same year. The Sue Grafton Alphabet series was at the top of my list because I had recently completed my final acquisition. K is for Killer is the 11th book in the series. This is quite a bit darker than what readers usually get from Grafton. Kinsey is a quirky, but lovable character and I see Lauren Cohan playing the role in my mind movies, so to read about her noir dive into the seedy underbelly of high-priced hookers and the porn industry is difficult, but fascinating. However, one of the wonderful things about Grafton is that she takes what Agatha Christie perfected and skews it into something equally as beautiful despite its flaws. The ending here is exceedingly difficult to follow because the motivations are vague and do not make a lot of sense to me. They leave a little to be desired, but Kinsey’s trip down a dark path will shock most consistent readers. Although an interesting deviation from the norm, it ultimately does not work well. This was not one of my favorites.

[Brenda · Rating 4 out of 5]

When Janice Kepler arrived at Kinsey Millhone's office late at night, with a plea for Kinsey to look into Janice's daughter's murder ten months earlier, Kinsey was initially reluctant. The police still had the file open, but had reached a dead end, with Lorna's body having been lying undiscovered for almost two weeks. But Kinsey's curiosity was, as usual, her undoing; the investigation began. Interviewing everyone connected to Lorna, including her parents and siblings, Kinsey felt she was hitting a brick wall. Even speaking to one of the cops involved brought her no answers. And really, if the police couldn't solve Lorna's murder, why would Kinsey be able to? But she continued...

K is for Killer is #11 in the Kinsey Millhone series by Sue Grafton and another deep, complex and riveting tale. Kinsey is nothing if not consistent! I felt sorry for Beauty, a special dog who seemed to miss Lorna more than anyone else. He grieved; he was depressed. This is a great series, and K is for Killer added to it beautifully! Recommended.

[Jack Heath · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 Stars. My view? It took its time getting going but when it did, what a smash. Kinsey wasn't sure she would take the case. The police thought it was murder; a 25-year-old woman doesn't often die of natural causes or of an accident at home, but Lorna Kepler's body was so decomposed when found that it was hard to draw any conclusions. Her mother Janice visited Kinsey at the office late one night and pleaded for help. Lorna had died almost a year ago and the Santa Teresa police had no results. Zero. The trail had gone cold. Eventually but reluctantly, Kinsey said OK and pulled out her standard contract. Why? There were hints the case had more to it, for example, prostitution and pornography. A VHS tape featuring Lorna had been sent anonymously to Mrs. Kepler. I did have a feeling where this might end up when Lorna's day job was mentioned. A part-time receptionist and secretary. If you enjoy Kinsey Millhone as much as I do, there's one incident near the end you'll find glaringly new as a part of her character. Watch for the phone call. Our avenging angel. The title, "K is for Killer," could also have been "K is for Kinsey." (August 2022)

[Ed · Rating 4 out of 5]

Except for the a little puzzling ending, this was a corker of another read. The procedural parts to the homicide investigation were in-depth and added to the appeal. Kinsey a tough-minded private eye with a sardonic wit makes for a sturdy protagonist throughout the alphabet series.

[Dana · Rating 2 out of 5]

As soon as I read Sue Grafton's earlier Alphabet Series books, Grafton became one of my favorite writers of light chick-lit detective fiction. She can be a terrific storyteller. After being badly disappointed by the skimpy, disorganized "G" and "H" stories, and buoyed by the more substantial "I" and (to a lesser extent) "J" book, I was looking forward to "K." When picking up "K," you have to wonder where the story can go, as Millhone herself admits: how in the world after all of this time is she going to be able to get to the bottom of a 10-month-old death with no clues?

I found much of the book fast-paced and engaging, with diligent, believable legwork. Certain characters and descriptions were interesting. Grafton created two memorable and likable victims. She gives them characteristics and a lifestyle that make them intriguing and make the reader want to know more. The book avoids the pitfall of venturing into out-of-its-depth "social commentary"; aside from a few scattered acerbic or snide remarks about pornography, the book is remarkably matter-of-fact and clinical. There is thus a lot of interest in the interrogations of people who knew the victims. The interviews are matter-of-fact and believable, but they are not terribly informative, and show how much the suspense and interest of the book is driven by making the main victim a girl-next-door-high-class hooker and would-be porn queen.

The twists in the plot that Millhone's investigation brings to light are generally believable (for example, one character's tampering with a crime scene and a jealous wife planting an item in a home). The "new" evidence she turns up is generally well-finessed to avoid the obvious question why the detailed police investigation fell flat.

But the book grows increasingly frustrating when it becomes clear that the routine interviews are all the book had to offer and that they are not adding up to much. By contrast to the victims, the suspects are poorly explored characters with no motives. A land developer is not introduced until late in the book, as a result of a fortuitous tape recording. The "community meeting" about the development is one of the sketchiest, most exaggerated, least believable descriptions in the book (Millhone supposedly "falling asleep" is a lame excuse for skimping on details). The crucial link between suspects is an awful, improbable gift clue of a photo (why would a killer choose to attack a victim when it would be impossible to thoroughly search the apartment for such items, much less let it be shot in the first place? What good did it do to "kill all the witnesses," a throwaway line explanation, if possibly and glaringly incriminating evidence was left behind?).

The payoff is a superficially (if at all) described land development scam with a pool electrocution killing on the side. Because the crime lacks intricacy and cleverness, the detection merely had to be, and is, serviceable and routine, if diligent, to uncover it. And, of course, it is assisted by plot contrivances like a hidden tape recorder, Berlyn's intervention, the photo, and the killer's attempt on Millhone's life. The last two of these are the most disappointing, but the story has too little payoff to offset any of them. The story also includes a regrettable and pointless coincidence (a "kinky sex" relationship between two victims) and depends on unexplained, implausible behavior (the killer blabbing supposedly ingenious murder plans to one of the victims). The melodramatic end scene where Millhone confronts the killer and is blasted with a stun gun, before the intercession of a "man in an overcoat," undermines her professionalism and is an abrupt, anticlimactic conclusion. The last-minute theme-type allusion to "returning from the darkness" of vengeance, tied to the book's leitmotif of "living in the darkness, in the night," is mere atmospherics, not meaningful substance.

The bottom line is that the highly charged premise and interesting, entertaining elements along the way come to precious little in the end. This holds the book's rating down to two and a half stars.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoy the alphabet series Grafton created. This one was quite dark and Henry her octogenarian landlord did not feature. Kinsey is employed to investigate a suspicious death by a mother. Lorna lived in a shack and was found dead after a few weeks. She led a double life working at a water treatment centre and as a high class hooker.

Plenty of suspects with the odd owner of the shack, clients and her boss Roger at the water treatment centre. She meets a colleague of Lorna’s and delves into the night life of Santa Teresa. Later in the story the mafia become involved.

The plot is good with greed and money the motive with Lorna knowing too much.

[Tina Loves To Read · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is where Kinsey was hired to help prove who killed someone's daughter. This book took Kinsey so many places. I really enjoy this book, but it was not has good has the book 10 in the series for me.

[Fiona · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not a great read. The build up is very slow and the outcome isn’t particularly thrilling. A really quite pedestrian whodunnit. I’ve still got another two from this series on my bookshelves but I don’t think I’ll bother reading them.

Better than 2 stars but not quite 3.

[Emma · Rating 2 out of 5]

This would have been 3 stars but there was no proper ending. I felt short changed by it and as if I needn’t have bothered with the book.

[Gina · Rating 2 out of 5]

I would have given this book 3 stars based on the whole book but I gave it two for the ending. It was the worst ending for any of these Sue Grafton books I have read. It was very anti-climatic.

[Karl · Rating 4 out of 5]

This hardcover copy is signed by Sue Grafton.

[Darinda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kinsey Millhone is looking for who killed a young woman. The death occurred 10 months prior, but the grieving mother shows up at Kinsey's office because the police haven't found the killer. The young woman led a much seedier life than she led some to believe, and Kinsey gets a look into this life during the course of her investigation.

The 11th book in the Kinsey Millhone mystery series. This one was a little different than some of the earlier books, mainly because Kinsey no longer worked as an investigator for California Fidelity. She wasn't working for them in the last book either, but the case was tied to CFI.

Overall, it was a typical book for the series. I enjoyed the fast-paced plot. The ending of this one was unusual because Kinsey made a decision that was somewhat uncharacteristic of her.

I listened to an audio version of this book.

[Tom · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 Stars rounded up to 4 Stars. Ending was a little too loose ended. I didn't feel as if Kinsey had tied things up to a more satisfactory ending. Too many questions left dangling.

[Mark Baker · Rating 5 out of 5]

PI Kinsey Millhone’s latest case is a cold one. Lorna Kepler has been dead for 10 months, and when she died she had been dead for two weeks before she was found, so the police couldn’t even determine the cause of death. As Kinsey begins to investigate, she realizes that Lorna had a completely secret life, and the investigation causes Kinsey to become a night owl like Lorna was. Will following her footsteps lead to her killer?

This is another great mystery. The cold case quality leads to some interesting complications to the investigation. Lorna’s life included some things that don’t normally pop up in my cozies, but we didn’t get gratuitous detail, which I appreciated. The ending was a bit rushed, but that’s a minor complaint. We don’t see much of the other series characters, but Kinsey is fantastic as always, and the book is populated with real people that draw us into the story.

Read my full review at Carstairs Considers.

[Lexy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was very interesting it was a detective novel

[Obsidian · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sigh. I needed a comfort read and even though I have read this book many many times, I was happy to re-read it again. I have this book in hardcover so it was perfect to read as I sat by the pool on Sunday afternoon. Grafton takes Kinsey through the nightlife in Santa Teresa. She feels adrift as she investigates who could have killed Lorna Kepler. With Henry being away visiting his siblings she feels even more adrift. I liked how Grafton chose to end this book and the introduction of the character of Cheney Phillips.

"K is for Killer" is the 11th Kinsey Millhone mystery. Kinsey is paying the bills and doesn't have much going on job wise at the beginning of this book. She gets pulled into looking into the murder of Lorna Kepler after her mother comes to Kinsey asking for her to investigate what happened to her daughter. Lorna's mother, Janice believes that her daughter may have been forced into a life she didn't want or the police were using her to go undercover. Instead Kinsey finds out that Lorna was living a double life where she mostly seemed to exist at night. There's a lot of twists and turns before Kinsey figures out what happens to Lorna.

Kinsey was great in this one. Determined to get to the bottom of what happened to Lorna she does what she does best. She interviews people, puts together notes, and starts linking things together. Without Henry around she's a bit adrift though and misses the way he made things homey. We already know that Kinsey was orphaned and raised by her aunt who seemed to bear no maternal instinct at all. However, we get to see that she does like her routines like going to Rosie and really loves her little house that was renovated.

Grafton has Lieutenant Dolan appear in this one. She also introduces the character of Cheney Phillips who is working vice in Santa Teresa. It's not to see Kinsey have someone to play off against as she investigates Lorna's death. We get to see his character get further developed in future books.

The book also introduces the character of Danielle who Kinsey becomes close to and who leads Kinsey to doing something that she didn't think was in her nature to do. I remember reading this for the first time and being shocked and then when the book leaps towards the end I was left open mouthed. Grafton I thought did a good job pushing Kinsey to a darker side in this one.

Looking forward to L.

[aPriL does feral sometimes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kinsey has always pushed the envelope, but this time in ‘K is for Killer’, #11 in the Kinsey Millhone mystery series by Sue Grafton, she fully departs being in the light for darkness. She changes from being a playful imp to angry nemesis as she meets people who all could have done it. Unusual for the author, this novel was curiously heavy handed and sparse in plotting, more like a first book. Still, it's a pretty good overall series, and this is a pivotal case for Kinsey, I think, in her self-development.

[Lisa · Rating 2 out of 5]

Plot was weak - the reason for killing Lorna wasn't fully developed and left a lot of holes. Who was Lorna's fiance? How did the sisters get the tape in the first place? How did Danielle eventually die - was it murder, or complications? And who attacked her - her pimp or the murderer? Just lots of holes.

I didn't like the way the reader read some of the characters. The sisters, especially, didn't jive. These women were supposed to be in their late 20s and they sounded like pre-teens. Danielle fluctuated from very mature to silly.

It held my attention, but wasn't the best.

[hotsake (André Troesch) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another solid entry in the solid yet unremarkable series. The story was decent but by the numbers until the ending which was both cool on a story level and underwhelming on a character level.
3.25/5

[SuperWendy · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a reread but it's been so long that it was like the first time all over again. For 95% of this I was all set to declare it the best Kinsey book. Grafton does a lot less faffing about in this entry (Henry being dispatched to Michigan for a family visit helps, no William, only 2 small scenes with Rosie...) and the focus is ENTIRELY on the case/mystery.

Unfortunately it all goes to hell in a handbasket when the ending not only ends on a whimper but without suitable closure. There's no fallout with the victim's family (one of the sisters is a POS). The motive for the murder is glossed over. The timeline between the murder and then an eventual second murder makes no sense. It's just like - "here's the bad guy and golly who knows what happened to them after Kinsey unmasked them."

Weak sauce.

[Beverly · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was crazy good. Grafton gets a bit twisty and dark in this installment. Kinsey has to make some hard choices, and then live with the consequences.

4 1/2 out of 5 stars.

On to L!

[Jaksen · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent Kinsey Millhone story with...

a shocking, sudden finale.

Yes, if you're going to read this one, don't open that very brief, but telling spoiler!

In this one Kinsey's asked to find answers for a woman whose daughter was murdered, or was it an accident, as the police believe? The young woman, a call girl who also worked at a water company, is found two weeks after her death, face-down, in a rather small 'cabin-type' house she was renting. So many questions here...

And so many characters! Once again I neglected to keep track using my trusty index card system. However, most characters are distinct enough to keep them sorted - in the head, that is. Only once did I say 'hey who is this?' And have to shuffle back pages to recall...

Anyhow, Kinsey's in trouble this time, meeting with assorted friends, co-workers, family and so on, many of whom take an instant dislike to a somewhat nosy, pushy, but always fairly congenial Kinsey. (She has a way to get answers out of most people - but only most. The dead woman's father is a real misogynist-type creep.) No spoilers here, there are suspects galore and theories as well as to what happened to the victim.

One more thing, Ms. Grafton was a meticulous writer in that everything is described - especially clothing, meals, and the roads she travels on as she goes from one locale to another trying to sort things out. Sometimes it does get 'over much,' but then again, I like to feel in tune with the MC and I certainly do with Kinsey Millhone. She never gets enough sleep; she eats a lot of junk food; she doesn't trust most men, esp. the good-looking ones; and she's, in a word, indefatigable.

I read that Ms. Grafton sort of/kind of modeled Kinsey on herself, in that if she hadn't been a writer, she'd have been a PI or private investigator herself. Knowing that gives a lot of insight into the writer herself. Sue Grafton must have been a fun person to know, smart, witty, curious and cautious. I'd have liked her a lot, had I known her.

Five stars.

[Marisol · Rating 3 out of 5]

K de Kinsey, continuando con el alfabeto del crimen, Sue Grafton nos trae una historia donde tenemos a una madre que acude con la detective, porque está segura que su hija Lorna no murió de forma natural.

Esta investigación es compleja, encontraron el cuerpo muchas semanas después de su muerte, por lo que no se pudo determinar las causas, aunado a que la víctima era muy discreta, solitaria y con múltiples actividades.

Kinsey se vuelve un animal nocturno en esta historia, la mayoría de la investigación transcurre de noche- madrugada, sobre todo al descubrir que Lorna no era una mujer común, ni por su belleza, ni por los trabajos que desempeñaba.

He llegado a comprender que los libros de esta serie se nutren sobre todo del humor ácido de Kinsey, de sus comidas nada convencionales, pero sobre todo de la manera en que va tras la pista, irrumpiendo sin pudor en la vida de todos y descubriendo los secretos, vicios y mentiras que cada uno tiene.

Al llegar al descubrimiento del asesino, Kinsey afloja completamente el ritmo y poco le importa si nosotros los lectores queremos saber el cómo, el porqué de manera detallada, ella se da por bien servida con haber descifrado el misterio.

Aunque en este caso, ella logró penetrar a una zona oscura, donde sabes que no todo es legal, ni permitido, pero que de alguna manera se hizo justicia.

Bueno, en algún momento seguiré con la L de .....