‘A is for Alibi’ by Sue Grafton

My Review (4 stars out of 5)

The murder of ruthless divorce attorney Laurence Fife landed his beautiful young wife, Nikki, in jail. But now she’s out on parole and determined to track down the real killer. When PI Kinsey Millhone is hired to dig into the past, it looks like there may be nothing to find, but Kinsey soon discovers a host of people who wanted Fife dead…

This is the first book I’ve read by this author, and as one of my writer pals has always bigged her up (cheers, Rob), I knew it would be a great read. To start with, there’s an enjoyable Chandleresque quality to the writing, and while it doesn’t crack out the same kind of rapid-fire witty one-liners as old Ray, the author has a nice line in humour. I really liked the ‘voice’ of the central character, too – Kinsey Millhone is a feisty, strong-willed woman with enough human failings to keep her realistic without being cliched. The story is clever and packed with clues and red herrings, as well as a whole big bunch of possible suspects. Ms Grafton paints her heroine in bold colours, leaving her free of the usual cliched private investigator traits, and her working day is often spent doing routine stuff, rather than chasing villains down the Ventura freeway or getting caught up in a shootout. Having said that, there is some gun-toting action, and the final showdown is good fun.

An enjoyable romp that bodes well for the rest of the series.

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