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P Is for Peril by Sue Grafton
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P Is for Peril

by Sue Grafton (Author)

Other authors: See the other authors section.

Series: The Alphabet Mysteries (16)

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2,386232,347 (3.57)25

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English (22)  Spanish (1)  All languages (23)
Showing 1-5 of 22 (next | show all)
Love Kinsey. Can't remember enough to distinguish one book from another in the alphabet series. Some are better than others. All are enjoyable. ( )
  AnnB2013 | Mar 14, 2013 |
I've made a sort of hobby out of reading lousy mysteries that I can get for a few pennies at a local booksale. I get into the habit as I read them of writing a review of the book in my head - "Oh, that character's not convincing at all", or "The language is a bit stilted here", or "Why exactly are they discussing the clown paintings of John Wayne Gacy again?"

I mention this because after reading those, it becomes kind of a relief to pick up a Grafton. The alphabet series is as gimmicky as any, but the fact is, there isn't any stilted language, unconvincing characters, or discussions of serial killer art in the books. You read them, get lost in the story, and enjoy yourself for a few hours. The fact that she's managed to punch twenty or so of these books out with no real loss in quality is remarkable. The prose isn't deathless, by any means; the books aren't ever going to win a Pulitzer. They're just good, solid, quality escapist detective fiction, and that is no bad thing. ( )
  benfulton | Mar 3, 2012 |
Another good one from Sue Grafton. You may notice that I rate 'good' those that keep me guessing! This one was so 'wet' I ending up dreaming about unrelenting rain.

Interestingly, many reviewers felt there was no true ending. I suppose because she ended before the cops came and read anyone their Miranda rights. It is true it is not the neatest package...there were several side plots going on simultaneously....but I found the ending, with its "unexplained" motive clear as could be. To say more would be a spoiler.

This one featured her landlord, Henry, and past cop-'friend' Jonah, but none of her other particular friends. I must say she also seemed to wear fewer turtlenecks, took fewer showers, and exercised poor tooth hygiene.... ( )
  kaulsu | Jan 25, 2011 |
The middle of a (proposed) 26 book series isn't the place to look for innovative fiction, or anything other than more of the same. So I wasn't particularly disappointed to find Kinsey Millhone on much the same form as ever. Nothing fabulous but a reasonable mystery for the most part and pretty much what I expected. The thing that seemed odd: The only distinguishing factor between these books is their titles - why not have someone actually *in peril* in this one? If there was, it went over my head. Also the ending seemed a bit unplanned, rushed, as if the author suddenly realised 5 pages from the end that having given the most likely party a get out clause meant that someone else needed to be implicated. I'll probably go back for Q at some point anyway. (I know, not exactly a ringing endorsement!)
1 vote nocto | Dec 8, 2010 |
Number 16 in the Kinsey Milhone series.
  OSLCTopeka | Oct 14, 2010 |
Showing 1-5 of 22 (next | show all)
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» Add other authors (10 possible)

Author nameRoleType of authorWork?Status
Grafton, SueAuthorprimary authorall editionsconfirmed
Kaye, JudyReadersecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
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Dedication
THIS BOOK IS DEDICATED TO
The Santa Barbara Police Department and
the late Richard Breza, Santa Barbara Police Chief
The Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Department
The Santa Barbara County Coroner's Office
and
Harriet Miller, Mayor of Santa Barbara
With appreciation for your competence, integrity, dedication, and generosity of spirit.
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The house on Old Reservoir Road appeared to be in the final phases of construction.
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(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)
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Amazon.com Amazon.com Review (ISBN 0449003795, Mass Market Paperback)

When Dowan Purcell, a respected physician who operates a nursing home, disappears, his ex-wife hires Santa Teresa PI Kinsey Millhone to look into it. Fiona Purcell is still seething over Dow's affair and subsequent marriage to Crystal, a former stripper, yet they're still friends, and she seems worried. But when his body is discovered, she's among the suspects. Both of Dow's wives, at least one of his business partners, and perhaps even Crystal's teenage daughter had motives to kill.

While in her most recent adventures (N Is for Noose, O Is for Outlaw) Kinsey has acquired new digs, an extended family, and a few more gray hairs, in this one (which takes place some time in the mid-'80s), she's 36, still living in the remodeled garage that was blown up in an earlier novel. Easier than a facelift, and while Sue Grafton is a solid enough writer to pull it off, dedicated Kinsey fans will miss the more complex and multidimensional character who aged so ruefully and interestingly in the '90s. This isn't Grafton's strongest case; it's hard to care about any of Purcell's women or his associates. More exciting is the secondary plot, which involves a handsome landlord who offers Kinsey the new office space she's been seeking and turns out to be a lot more trouble than she bargained for. Despite its somewhat plodding pace and the echo of a more evolved heroine that rings through its pages, Grafton's many fans will probably shoot P Is for Peril right to the top of the bestseller list. --Jane Adams

(retrieved from Amazon Thu, 14 Feb 2013 13:37:58 -0500)

(see all 4 descriptions)

It's no surprise that Grafton has taken on new territory in her 16th book of the alphabet series, this time entering the world of noir. It's a world cast in shades of black amid shafts of steel and silver, a shadow land in which the disappearance of a prominent physician leads Kinsey Millhone into a danger-filled maze of duplicity as she taps into a cunning Medicare fraud.… (more)

» see all 7 descriptions

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