W is for Wasted

November 25, 2013
Narrator Judy Kaye continues to bring to life one of crime fiction’s most enduring and endearing private eyes, Kinsey Millhone. It’s 1988 and the Santa Teresa, Calif., investigator finds herself involved in two seemingly unrelated deaths: that of a sleazy fellow private eye who was shot to death, and that of a homeless man found dead of a probable heart attack. The latter had Millhone’s name and phone number on a slip of paper in his pocket. The two cases form the foundation for a mystery that grows to involve blackmail, $600,000, and some long-buried family issues from Kinsey’s own past. This is Kaye’s 23rd outing as narrator of Grafton’s alphabetically titled novels, and she proves that she knows Millhone better than anyone. With a clear, confident reading, she easily navigates the book’s first-person narration, guiding the listener through all the intricate plot twists that one has come to expect from Grafton. Millhone perfectly captures Kinsey’s voice and attitude, whether she’s delivering a sharp quip or some wry observation on life. Her characterization is solid, straightforward, and never slips into the “mean streets” private eye clichés. This is a fine collaboration between two excellent storytellers. A Marian Wood/Putnam hardcover.

July 8, 2013
Kinsey Millhone goes through a dry spell workwise in bestseller Grafton’s absorbing 23rd mystery featuring the Santa Teresa, Calif., PI (after 2012’s V Is for Vengeance). The death of a homeless man, who was found with a slip of paper in his pocket with Kinsey’s name on it, provides some wanted distraction. The man may be Kinsey’s distant relative—who, it turns out, has left her his entire life savings, putting Kinsey in the middle of a case of a more personal nature than she’s used to. Along with the murder of a fellow PI, the disreputable Pete Wolinsky, Kinsey finds little time to deal with the reappearance of her onetime boyfriend, Robert Dietz. Grafton ties together these disparate threads with her usual skill. While some of Kinsey’s longer asides could have benefited from trimming, fans will rejoice that her observations on such topics as her previous failed relationships and the quirks of her hometown are as incisive and witty as ever. Agent: Molly Friedrich, Friedrich Literary Agency.