O is for Outlaw

I know, I know. It's just a detective book and you read it and move on. You don't review them.

But I really want to say a few words here. Grafton is such a terrific writer, her formula is a complete winner. She gets away with being, if you ask me, thin on plot.

Kinsey is cynical in the most attractive of ways and about everybody: men, women, rich, poor. She couldn't give a damn about clothes, looks, what people think of her. Her observations about life make you nod and smile all the way through.

Robert Walser drove me to this one, but I totally forgive him.

I love Kinsey Millhone. But she's not everyone's cup of tea. I started reading the Alphabet series a few years ago - I think at the time it was up to O is for Outlaw. The idea of a mystery series each title beginning with a new letter amused me. I don't know why. I don't think it's particularly original. At least - I've seen a few others since. At the time though it was new to me and it just struck me as perfect. I flew through the series. Kinsey is riveting. She's brash and harsh and charming. She's fierce and flawed. She gets scared. She holds her own. She pushes herself to run often and tackles cases without judgement and with an open mind. Rosie and Henry are brilliant and I love the little family she builds around her.

But Kinsey show more Millhone isn't Jack Reacher - her speed is more Tracy Crosswhite. [book:My Sister's Grave|22341263] Her cases aren't full of action and high speed chases - they're slowly nitpicking away until something clicks into place. She writes down all her thoughts and places her facts and ideas on 3x5 index cards - which she often shuffles and rearranges to help her solve her case. And I love it. Kinsey Millhone is great - but she's not for everyone.

For some reason I've seen reviewers compare this to Stephanie Plum - I don't know why - this is absolutely NOTHING like that. Stephanie Plum is a very different character and an extremely different type of book. That's more fluff. Kinsey Millhone is more procedural mysteries. And this series isn't current - it was first published in the 80's - there's not really technology. Messages were relayed by calling the landlines. Paper files were still the main form of storage. Not everyone will enjoy reading this. But if you like your mysteries to be more like procedurals with a determined and fierce character - Kinsey Millhone is for you.



This one made me sad. The mystery was good and the characters were fascinating but I would've liked Mickey to get better, it seemed like he got screwed over and it would've been good for Kinsey to get a chance to make amends. Actual ones with words, rather than just solving the murder he was thought guilty of. I liked how many hiding places he had for shit.



5 stars. show less

***This is a project of re-reading Grafton's series -- I started reading these back in the 1980s and would read each release as they came out over the years. To prevent spoilers, I will not attempt to summarize in detail. ***

In each of Sue Grafton's novels, Kinsey Millhone often introduced herself to the reader as being twice divorced but never went in detail about the past relationships. She did have a run-in with ex husband number two in "E" is for Evidence but continued to be mostly mum about ex number one. Until this installment, O is for Outlaw.

We learn here (early on in the story) that fifteen or so years previously, Kinsey had walked out on ex husband number one, Mickey Magruder, when he was suspected of murder and asked show more Kinsey to provide an alibi for him. She never saw him again after the divorce. Under unusual events, she learns that Magruder recently was shot and is in the hospital in a comatose stage. Kinsey uncovers information where she realizes he may have been innocent after all, and so she takes it on herself to figure out what really happened.

Of course, as is usual, she risks her life and bumps into a lot of characters along the way of solving this mystery and also unearths other hidden secrets. I found this unputdownable. show less

Audiobook performed by Judy Keye.

Book # 15 in the popular Alphabet series starring private investigator (and former cop) Kinsey Millhone. It starts when a man who buys abandoned storage lockers calls to tell Kinsey he’s found a carton stuffed with personal memorabilia with her name on it. Turns out the storage locker belonged to her first ex-husband, Mickey.

Of course, it’s not so simple as that. Mickey’s been shot and Kinsey looks like a possible suspect. But who would go to the trouble to frame her? And what was Mickey up to that would get him shot?

I love that the series is set in a time before computers and cell phones, when investigators (whether police or private detectives) needed to be both inventive and persistent in show more tracking down all the leads and possibilities. The plot is suitably intricate but Grafton reveals little bits and pieces of the puzzle, letting the reader try to figure out the solution right along with Kinsey. I confess that I was unsuccessful until I was practically hit over the head with the information.

The ending was satisfying and somewhat touching. That last poignant paragraph was a nice surprise.

Judy Keye does a marvelous job of performing the audiobook. I loved the various voices she used for some of the more colorful characters: neighbor and landlord, Henry; Cordia; Duffy; Porter Yount.

Note: I read about four or five of these books early on and then stopped. A couple of years ago I re-read the first in the series and really enjoyed it. Now, after reading this one, I’m making a promise to myself to go back and read them all. show less

I know, I know. It's just a detective book and you read it and move on. You don't review them.

But I really want to say a few words here. Grafton is such a terrific writer, her formula is a complete winner. She gets away with being, if you ask me, thin on plot.

Kinsey is cynical in the most attractive of ways and about everybody: men, women, rich, poor. She couldn't give a damn about clothes, looks, what people think of her. Her observations about life make you nod and smile all the way through.

Robert Walser drove me to this one, but I totally forgive him.

This book was a great look into Kinsey's past. We have heard offhand via the books that Kinsey was married twice. Her first marriage was to an ex-cop Mickey Macgruder and we know that Kinsey and he parted on bad terms. This book gives us even more information than what we were given before. Mickey was accused of murder and Kinsey bounced. She never talked to Mickey again after the divorce, but you start to see some glimmers in the man which probably is what led her to getting hooked up with her long-time lover Robert Dietz. This book does such a great job of developing Kinsey. She's like a pit-bull this entire book. Once she realizes that someone hurt Mickey and is setting her up to take the fall for it, she doesn't let go and her show more investigation leads her all the way back to the Vietnam War.

"O is for Outlaw" has Kinsey at a bit of loose ends. When a storage vultuer (no idea what else to call the guy) calls Kinsey and tells her that a storage locker he bought has her stuff in it, he offers her cash for some of the belongings. Through that Kinsey realizes that her ex-husband Mickey has kept a ton of her things in this locker, but has stopped paying on it. When Kinsey gets her belongings back (l loved how she does that) she finds a letter sent to her which implies that Mickey was having an affair and was with his mistress at the time when Mickey was accused of killing some man. With that Kinsey starts trying to track down Mickey and get to the truth, which has her in the police's cross-hairs since someone out there is trying to make it seem as if Kinsey is part of whomever gunned down her ex.

Kinsey was great in this one. I think Grafton did a great job of showing that Kinsey was wrong about Mickey, and that her jealous over realizing the guy was cheating on her while married was actually understandable. You see her still feeling territorial over him, but also realizing that a lot of tricks she now employs she learned from him. At one point I did wonder was this book going to lead to Kinsey getting arrested, cause she seems to be dancing on the local police's nerves through this whole thing.

Other characters are fascinating to read about as well. Though we don't get any one on ones between Mickey and Kinsey, you get very good insight into him and what made him tick. You realize though the guy wasn't the greatest husband, he was actually a very good cop.

Other people that Kinsey knew back in the day pop up in this one and that also helps you get a better sense of Kinsey too. She's kind of a prude is what someone says about her and I had to laugh at Kinsey's sense of outrage about that.

The writing actually moves at a fairly big clip. I wondered how Mickey's shooting could tie back to what happened years earlier and then when you find out what Mickey was up (investigation wise) I got even more hooked. It's a really fascinating story and there are a lot of moving parts in this one. The flow works from beginning to end and I really did feel a sense of sadness on how things ended in this one. Kinsey gets to the truth, but doesn't get to do a verbal amends. show less

Author Sue Grafton returns to Louisville in this 15th entry in the long-running Kinsey Millhone series. Readers learn about Kinsey's first husband, Mickey Macgruder, about whom she's revealed just small bits. Tthe discovery of an undelivered letter propel Kinsey to look into Mickey's past -- and her own -- and to try to track him down.

I'm thrilled to see my hometown depicted in a novel (a rare occurence, as we aren't L.A. or New York or even Martha's Vineyard), but Kinsey's even more curmudgeonly than usual here. You'd think a woman as flawed as Kinsey would be a bit more forgiving of others. Still, Grafton weaves a suspenseful plot, and Kinsey's as driven and clever as ever. The worst Grafton -- which this definitely is not -- beats show more most authors' best. show less