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A review by topdragon
O is for Outlaw by Sue Grafton
4.0
The 15th novel in the “Alphabet” series featuring Kinsey Millhone is once again, a classic Sue Grafton mystery novel. I’m reading these books in order and it is fun to watch the character of Kinsey Millhone progress through her adventures and especially when we get to learn more about her earlier life. This novel really goes into her past because this time the client for her PI skills is none other than her first husband whom she has not been in contact with since their brief marriage ended 14 years ago. Technically, Kinsey is her own client since her ex-husband, Mickey has been shot and is in a coma so can’t actually hire her.
Tracking down whodunit as well as who is trying to frame Kinsey for shooting her ex-husband is the stuff of a fine mystery story. The trail takes Kinsey back to the Vietnam war era as well as her own young adult years and rookie years on the Santa Teresa police force. We get to see a lot of what molded Kinsey into the person she is today. There are a lot of characters introduced in this novel as well as the handful of regulars and it is to Ms. Grafton’s credit that I was able to keep track of them as well as I did.
One thing I really like about this series is that they continue to take place in the 1980s (this one in 1986) with only a matter of a few months going by between books. This means there are no 21st century conveniences to aid in investigation like cell phones, modern CSI-type evidence gathering, or even what we all take for granted now, the modern internet and World Wide Web. Instead, Kinsey must rely on her blue-collar methodical, hard-work investigative techniques and she is not above engaging in activities that skirt or downright break the law. Her first person POV narration is often humorous, sometimes sarcastic, but always insightful, lending her a sort of everyman (everywoman?) approach and helps the reader to be empathetic towards her goals.
I continue to read these books at a pace of one per quarter year in order to be at the end of the series at about the time of the expected publication of “Z”. It’s certainly a good sign when I find myself growing impatient for the next quarter to hurry up and get here so I can get my Kinsey fix.
Tracking down whodunit as well as who is trying to frame Kinsey for shooting her ex-husband is the stuff of a fine mystery story. The trail takes Kinsey back to the Vietnam war era as well as her own young adult years and rookie years on the Santa Teresa police force. We get to see a lot of what molded Kinsey into the person she is today. There are a lot of characters introduced in this novel as well as the handful of regulars and it is to Ms. Grafton’s credit that I was able to keep track of them as well as I did.
One thing I really like about this series is that they continue to take place in the 1980s (this one in 1986) with only a matter of a few months going by between books. This means there are no 21st century conveniences to aid in investigation like cell phones, modern CSI-type evidence gathering, or even what we all take for granted now, the modern internet and World Wide Web. Instead, Kinsey must rely on her blue-collar methodical, hard-work investigative techniques and she is not above engaging in activities that skirt or downright break the law. Her first person POV narration is often humorous, sometimes sarcastic, but always insightful, lending her a sort of everyman (everywoman?) approach and helps the reader to be empathetic towards her goals.
I continue to read these books at a pace of one per quarter year in order to be at the end of the series at about the time of the expected publication of “Z”. It’s certainly a good sign when I find myself growing impatient for the next quarter to hurry up and get here so I can get my Kinsey fix.