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Audible sample
X Is For (A Kinsey Millhone Mystery) Hardcover – Large Print, September 2, 2015
Purchase options and add-ons
- Print length649 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherThorndike Press
- Publication dateSeptember 2, 2015
- Dimensions6 x 1.5 x 9 inches
- ISBN-109781410480248
- ISBN-13978-1410480248
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Product details
- ASIN : 1410480240
- Publisher : Thorndike Press; Large Print edition (September 2, 2015)
- Language : English
- Hardcover : 649 pages
- ISBN-10 : 9781410480248
- ISBN-13 : 978-1410480248
- Item Weight : 1.62 pounds
- Dimensions : 6 x 1.5 x 9 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #1,798,292 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #41,000 in Women Sleuths (Books)
- #84,302 in American Literature (Books)
- Customer Reviews:
About the author
New York Times-bestselling author Sue Grafton is published in twenty-eight countries and twenty-six languages--including Estonian, Bulgarian, and Indonesian. Books in her alphabet series, begun in 1982, are international bestsellers with readership in the millions. And like Raymond Chandler and Ross Macdonald, Grafton has earned new respect for the mystery form. Readers appreciate her buoyant style, her eye for detail, her deft hand with character, her acute social observances, and her abundant storytelling prowess. She has been named a Grand Master by the Mystery Writers of America (2009) and is a recipient of the Ross Macdonald Literary Award (2004).
Sue Grafton has been married to Steve Humphrey for more than thirty years, and they divide their time between Montecito, California, and Louisville, Kentucky, where she was born and raised. Grafton, who has three children and four grandchildren, loves cats, gardens, and good cuisine.
Customer reviews
Customer Reviews, including Product Star Ratings help customers to learn more about the product and decide whether it is the right product for them.
To calculate the overall star rating and percentage breakdown by star, we don’t use a simple average. Instead, our system considers things like how recent a review is and if the reviewer bought the item on Amazon. It also analyzed reviews to verify trustworthiness.
Learn more how customers reviews work on AmazonCustomers say
Customers find the book an enjoyable read with a compelling storyline. They appreciate the interesting and well-developed characters, including likable Kinsey. The series is described as captivating and awesome by readers. The humor and witty writing style are appreciated. Readers praise the author as a great writer with wonderful wordsmithing.
AI-generated from the text of customer reviews
Customers enjoy the book's readability. They find it well-written with believable characters and descriptive prose. Readers praise the book as an excellent read and one of Sue Grafton's best works yet.
"...arts or whatever—just brains, common sense and doggedness, a super work ethic, and an appreciation of people which, if it doesn’t help in solving..." Read more
"...that the author, Sue Grafton, continues to produce novels that are good reads and continue to be compelling...." Read more
"...Writing is as good as always. Characters are clear, memorable, and understandable...." Read more
"She is a fantastic writer and each book moves quick. You think you know who done and at the end your completely wrong...." Read more
Customers find the storyline interesting and engaging. They appreciate the side plots and interweaving of several subplots. The book has three main storylines, which is not the usual focus for Grafton. Overall, readers consider it a good mystery and one of the better plots by the author.
"...Each story, in itself, was interesting enough but the book jumped around between them and they were never tied together in anyway...." Read more
"...Grafton, continues to produce novels that are good reads and continue to be compelling...." Read more
"...The ending seemed both rushed and abrupt, and one story line was not resolved...." Read more
"...There are three primary story lines in this novel, not the usual focus or style for Grafton: (1) Henry and Kinsey's personal problems with their new..." Read more
Customers find the characters interesting and likable. They appreciate the depth of character development, especially the main character's strong female character. The characters also retain their charm and add to the story.
"...common sense and doggedness, a super work ethic, and an appreciation of people which, if it doesn’t help in solving cases, makes her appealing to..." Read more
"...Her characters are many dimensional and feel real. I fell like I've known Kinsey for years...." Read more
"...There are a string of new characters--some nice and some not so--and the interactions (direct or indirect) among them fascinates the reader...." Read more
"...The villain was creepy and scary and, sadly, quite believable, and Kinsey's stubborn determination to bring him to justice was altogether true to..." Read more
Customers enjoy the series. They find it captivating and a good addition to the series. The regular characters are interesting and lovable. Readers say the book is another wonderful Kinsey Milhone novel by Sue Grafton.
"...to say that this is one of the best installments in an exceptional series of detective novels...." Read more
"We're running out of letters! This is another fine entry in the series featuring detective Kinsey Milhone...." Read more
"...Writing is as good as always. Characters are clear, memorable, and understandable...." Read more
"It's amazing that Sue Grafton has written 24 books about Kinsey Millhone ...." Read more
Customers enjoy the humor in the book. They find it witty and insightful, with humorous descriptions of people and places. The writing style is entertaining and relaxing after a hard day at work.
"...Her characters are many dimensional and feel real. I fell like I've known Kinsey for years...." Read more
"...She writes fine dialogue and is good at setting scenes...." Read more
"...There's also a sweetness and a bit of humor in one that I found quite endearing. I hope to be around for her last two books, "Y" and "Z"...." Read more
"...And it's comforting to learn they're still well and happy...." Read more
Customers enjoy the author's writing style. They find her books engaging and hard to put down. The author is considered a great mystery writer and one of their favorite American fiction writers.
"...In fact, I've gone back and reread the series because I enjoy her writing and her character so much...." Read more
"She is a fantastic writer and each book moves quick. You think you know who done and at the end your completely wrong...." Read more
"...Its another must read. Great author." Read more
"...phone books and libraries to gather information and a typewriter to write her reports." Read more
Customers enjoy the story and characters. They find Kinsey believable and engaging. Readers love following Kinsey's daily routine, interspersed with drama and danger. They appreciate reading about her quirky ways and enjoy being reunited with Kinsey. The book is described as true to the mind of Kinsey Millhone and her persistence.
"...I agree. Kinsey is likeable, whip-smart, and plucky. You cheer for her as she sees justice through in each case...." Read more
"I do love following Kinsey's daily routine...interspersed with drama and danger...it's just that I felt like I was drowning in details about midway..." Read more
"...All that said, this is still a good thriller, and Kinsey and her pals are still engaging...." Read more
"...Kinsey's methods are tried and true and she always solves the case...." Read more
Customers have mixed opinions about the book. Some find the characters timeless and enjoy the time period. They describe it as reliable and a shallow escape when needed. However, others feel it's not Grafton's best work and lacks a big mystery.
"...–exotic martial arts or whatever—just brains, common sense and doggedness, a super work ethic, and an appreciation of people which, if it doesn’t..." Read more
"Not Ms. Graftons best...." Read more
"...Even when I go back and reread the series, it still feels fresh. I guess one miss in a series of 24 (so far) is still pretty darned good." Read more
"...it - writing so many books about the same character and yet each one seems fresh and is just as intriguing as the last. What talent!!!..." Read more
Reviews with images
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Top reviews from the United States
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- Reviewed in the United States on September 8, 2015Twenty-four novels in and Sue Grafton’s chronicle of the adventures of private investigator Kinsey Milhone is still as fresh and engrossing as ever! What makes these novels work without reader fatigue? For one thing, there’s Kinsey. She is a wonderful creation, one of the best fictional depictions of a P.I. in the business. Kinsey’s no Wonder Woman. She has no special talents –exotic martial arts or whatever—just brains, common sense and doggedness, a super work ethic, and an appreciation of people which, if it doesn’t help in solving cases, makes her appealing to the reader. She’s also very human: she’s loyal to her friends, she’s a bit stingy, definitely not fashion conscious, and her easting habits are atrocious (although who doesn’t secretly love fatty, unhealthy food?). In this installment, Kinsey juggles three investigations. First, the widow of a former colleague asks her to look through her dead husband’s extraordinarily messy files (he was a P.I. too but in Kinsey’s mind, a crooked one) to help her with an upcoming audit by the IRS. Kinsey discovers, hidden in a carton beneath a false bottom unexplained objects –among them a sheet of paper with a string of four digit numbers on it. One of her friends loves ciphers –he figures it out: it’s a cipher, a substitution code using the typewriter QWERTY keyboard as its base: 1 is for Q, 2 for W, 3 for E, and so on. Decoded, it’s a list of women‘s names, six of them. Kinsey investigates and the menace ratchets steadily up. Second, Kinsey takes a low budget job: find the address of a newly released con for his mother, who abandoned him at birth and now wants to make up for it. But matters soon go south in this case as well and soon Kinsey is pursuing a true puzzle: what’s going on here and why? Lastly, new neighbors move next door to Kinsey and her octogenarian and friend landlord Henry and they’re the neighbors from Hell. Something is seriously amiss about them. Henry’s too nice to do anything about it except be taken advantage of so it’s up to Kinsey to deal with this problem too. It would be sinful to tell you what happens from this point on. Suffice it to say that this is one of the best installments in an exceptional series of detective novels. I don’t know what I’m going to do when Grafton runs out of letters to use.
(I bought this novel for my wife, who loves the Kinsey Milhone stories. She had been going through a dry spell: no book she started kept her interest all the way through. I gave her this book and a day and a half later, she had finished it.)
- Reviewed in the United States on November 3, 2015I've been reading the Alphabet series since the letter A, and I'm a huge fan of Kinsey Millhone and of Sue Grafton. In fact, I've gone back and reread the series because I enjoy her writing and her character so much. This particular installment wasn't quite up to what I expect in a Kinsey novel. The previous books have all been written in the first person, with Kinsey relating her story and the series of events from her point of view. I feel like I've gotten to know her over the years and she's an old friend. This book started with a third person narrative of another event before turning the story over to Kinsey. Previous stories have felt like her narration was of events that had just happened, yet in this book she looks into the future to tell us the duration of the drought she's experiencing in 1989. That didn't feel right, but is inconsequential to the story. Just a weird anachronism.
This book jumps around a bit to three different concurring events, the California drought and water restrictions and Henry's method of dealing with them-and the appearance of a meddlesome neighbor; a woman who is not what she seems who tricks Kinsey into finding an ex-con and pays her with marked bills; and following the cryptic notes of a murdered PI on a case that took place many years earlier. Each story, in itself, was interesting enough but the book jumped around between them and they were never tied together in anyway. Just 3 unrelated incidents. It felt more like 3 short stories woven together to come up with a full book, plus a lot of information on droughts and water conservation.
Sue Grafton is a wonderful story teller with a great sense of description and detail. Her characters are many dimensional and feel real. I fell like I've known Kinsey for years. I'm a huge fan, but this book was just a little disappointing. It was still worth the read, and if you're a Kinsey Millhone fan you can't skip it. If you're new to the series, start with A is for Alibi and work your way up the alphabet. Even when I go back and reread the series, it still feels fresh. I guess one miss in a series of 24 (so far) is still pretty darned good.
- Reviewed in the United States on September 26, 2015We're running out of letters! This is another fine entry in the series featuring detective Kinsey Milhone. I was once an afficianado, too, of V. I. Warshawski, but she seemed never to learn or grow (although I am giving it one more try, ordering the latest volume). However, Milhone seems to learn and remains an amiable and likeable character.
I have read most of the novels in the "alphabet" series, and I am continually impressed that the author, Sue Grafton, continues to produce novels that are good reads and continue to be compelling. It's hard to maintain quality over a number of volumes (the Sookie Stackhouse series is an example of a series that lost its way).
This continues the novel that featured the death of fellow (and perhaps not always ethical) detective Pete Wolinsky. He had been murdered while pursuing a case on behalf of a client. Milhone ends up picking up the case in a very modest way. But she gets caught up in the case and comes to address who Pete really was. This leads to an interesting discussion she carried on with herself about perceptions of others.
The characters in her life, such as her neighbor and landlord, add an element of continuity. Her off and on boyfriend Dietz comes into play for just a few pages (will anything happen between them by series' end??). There are a string of new characters--some nice and some not so--and the interactions (direct or indirect) among them fascinates the reader. As the novel winds down, Kinsey faces a dire threat, but the end comes about soon enough and it satisfies. More so than is often the case. . . .
In short, an attractive addition to this alphabet series. . . .
- Reviewed in the United States on November 4, 2024Read one already, with one to go.
Top reviews from other countries
- Lynda KellyReviewed in the United Kingdom on July 23, 2020
5.0 out of 5 stars Still Superb
Well....after just finishing this, I am at a loss as to why so many reviewers have slated it !! I really enjoyed it. I have encountered the odd dud in this set of stories (namely U and V) but didn't find this fell into that category in the least. I have been holding off reading this one and the Y book as I know they're the last, and I've been acquainted with Kinsey and Henry and Dietz and Cheney a lot of years now and don't wish to part company anytime soon....it'll be a little like a bereavement, so I'm dreading it. Plus, Ms Grafton won't have let our Kinsey head off into the sunset with any satisfactory finality since she sadly didn't live to complete book Z......
I liked that she took it upon herself to finish up Pete's last case for him and Ruthie. They weren't the best of pals, of course, but she's always been a very decent human being and I'd have expected nothing less from her. I did wonder why so much of the case referred to this Ned being involved, yet she never got around to going after him in any direct fashion. I found that quite unlike her, and wasn't really sure why this was the case. I didn't like Edna or Joseph but really warmed to Taryn regarding characters in this story. Teddy was interesting as well.
Something I found fascinating, yet I'm unsure if they do it here, is that the traffic wardens there carry a piece of chalk and mark tyres !! I had no idea, and I've often wondered how they know if a car was in the same spot for longer than an hour....
There were a couple of properly laugh-out-loud instances and also a couple of times I was sniffy, one being her postscript in this ending.....so......now I just have Y to go and I'm going to hang onto that till next year, I think !!
- shrutiReviewed in India on December 1, 2017
5.0 out of 5 stars Kinsey <3
One of Kinsey millhone's best. The case, setting, side story all were great. Can't wait to read Y is for yesterday.
- EllaReviewed in Australia on October 4, 2020
5.0 out of 5 stars Page turner!
Excellent and intriguing. I loved all the trails that Kinsey followed to solve this one. Very enjoyable.
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Cliente AmazonReviewed in Spain on November 13, 2016
5.0 out of 5 stars Titulo : X, by Sue Grafton
Título: X
Autora: Sue Grafton
Tengo toda la serie de Kinsey Millhone. Esta detective es deliciosa y muy "down to earth".
No decepciona.
- JoyReviewed in Canada on November 11, 2015
5.0 out of 5 stars A Page Turner
An engaging storyline with equally engaging subplots. Kinsey is someone I would like to hang out with. She's quirky, funny, and flawed yet oddly endearing. I loved that the story didn't have a pat ending... or even an expected ending. I'm looking forward to the 'Y' book in the series while feeling a certain amount of sadness that the alphabet series is almost out of alphabet. Judging by this book, Grafton still has a lot of quality storytelling remaining. Well worth the read.