Rating: 
Summary: Pick it up and you won't put it down!
Review: Sue Grafton's Kinsey Millone could only get better with age. But we'd lose some of her friends in the transition to present time, and I for one would miss them. P is for Peril is a back to basic good mystery story with multiple plots and scenarios for Kinsey to get into the thick of things. I willing followed her down the path of curosity only to be surprised at the outcome of "who done it". A well written, engrossing story line with a few new twists and tangled threads to sort out that kept me reading til the wee hours of the night. A perfect plotting of pleasurable prose.
Rating: 
Summary: Grafton at her finest
Review: Kudos! Finding a new Graftion is like having an old friend drop by unexpectedly: I grab a cup of coffee, hit the couch and read until the book is finished!The plot is tight, the secondary plot is unexpected and the wise-cracks are delightful. The pacing of this novel is exemplary and the characters true to life. Read other reviews for the storyline but read P is for Peril for the savory stew Grafton creates.
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Summary: Where's the Epilogue?
Review: I've read every one of Sue Grafton's alphabet series. P is for Peril is up to her standards in every way but one - the ending. Each book in the series ends with an epilogue that wraps up the loose ends - each book but this one. When I finished, I looked for the epilogue to clarify the central question: Who did it and why? I then re-read parts of the story looking for additional clues. The problem is, I can come up with a number of different answers to the central question. Did Ms. Grafton want to keep us guessing? Am I missing something? What's up?
Rating: 
Summary: Not the best of Kinsey's adventures, but fun in parts
Review: I always look forward to opening my new Grafton novel when thye appear in my local bookstore. Over the years, I feel as if I have come to know Kinsey as a friend, and can always expect a good yarn from her. P is for Peril seems to be two novels in one. The side story about the Hevener brothers and Kinsey's involvement in a real estate action, turns out to be far more entertaining than the main story itself. This being the case of Dowan Purcell, a local doctor missing from his community with a shady disappearance being likely. I found myself, wanting the information about the Purcell case to resolve itself, so icould get back to the real story, in my mind (the subplot). I think Grafton missed a golden opportunity to build a great tale around this instead of focusing on the dealings of a reputed shady medical facility. I work in the medical profession and was lucky enough to understand the terminology used throughout. I do think, however that someone new to this, will find themselves drowning in a sea of terms like HCFA or CPT coding respectively. The ending is also a big mistep in my opinion. Too cloudy for my taste and I suspect many other readers as well. All in all, a fun book, but not a caliber Millhone novel.
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Summary: Thanks Sue!
Review: It is great to see Kinsey again and follow her adventures. I could not put this book down once I picked it up. Grafton is funnier than ever. The one thing that keeps me from giving this a 5-star rating is the ending. Both the main plot and the subplot end suddenly without much explanation. I almost thought I was missing a chapter. I am interested in seeing what other readers and Grafton fans have to say about it.
Rating:
Summary: Not At All Impressive
Review: Having waited quite a while for this book to be published, I sat down with much anticipation to read it. Unfortunately, like most things greatly anticipated, it didn't quite live up to expectations. While entertaining and somewhat familiar in tone, it was also not as well written as I have come to expect from Ms. Grafton. My biggest problem is with a ending that I saw coming a mile off. While not necessarily disturbing in and of itself, combined wtih the fact that the main characters seemed to be lacking depth and the secondary plot was MUCH more interestng than the primary, I finished the book without satisfaction and no hurry to get to the ending as is usual with Ms. Grafton's previous work. All in all, an uninspired outing for Kinsey Millhone.
Rating: 
Summary: P is for Petered-Out
Review: Sue Grafton is a good writer and Kinsey Milhone is still an interesting character, but the series seems to be losing its momentum. The title is somewhat misleading since there is very little peril or tension for the main characters. The insurance fraud subplot is a stretch: Kinsey is a PI, but she doesn't think to check the investigator's references or story? The ending seems rushed and doesn't really give a sense of why the killer acted as he/she did. It's a book that's a good summer diversion, but not fulfilling enough for Grafton/Kinsey fans.
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Summary: As good as it gets
Review: Fiona Purcell hires Kinsey Millhone of Millhone Investigations to learn more about the disappearance of he highly respected former spouse Dr. Dow Purcell. Dow has been missing for more than two months and his ex-wife thinks he is doing the same trick he did to her when they were married. Reluctantly, Kinsey accepts the case, but wonders why the ex and not the current wife Crystal engages her services. One of Kelsey's first moves is to interview Crystal, who believes foul play occurred because Dow loves his two-year-old son and would never deliberately spend time away from him. As Kinsey delves deeper into the whereabouts of Dow, she finds out that Medicaid is investigating him for fraud. As she struggles with her missing person's case, Kinsey also has another case that simply threatens her life. Like the previous fifteen novels in this private detective series, P IS FOR PERIL is an exciting tale that shows the heroine can handle herself as well as her male counterparts. The multifaceted plot is fun to follow as the many interesting characters could easily be involved with Dow's disappearance. Sue Grafton has written another complex bestseller that will take the author to her usual spot at the top of the charts. Harriet Klausner
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Summary: P IS FOR PERFECT
Review: A prominent member of the medical community, Dr. Dowan Purcell has been missing for nine weeks. At the time of his disappearance, Dowan was running a nursing care facility. Respected, and well-liked by all those he came into contact with, Dowan had no enemies to speak of, that's why it comes as a big surprise to Kinsey Milone when she is hired by Dowan's first wife to investigate foul play. As Kinsey questions Fiona (the good doctor's first wife), she hears a side of the doctor much darker than anyone expected. It seems Dowan threw over his first wife for a younger model (a stripper) to satisfy his perverted sexual appetite. Fiona believes Dowan is hiding from his new wife Crystal. Crystal fears he is dead. And one of his daughters has consulted a psychic who can see her father trapped in a dark place... Kinsey embarks on a long road with many dead-ends, but determination to find out exactly what happened to Dowan, will enter her into a dark underworld where the truth is hidden, and finding it could cost her her life. 'P Is For Peril' is a mystery in the grand tradition; complex plot, top notch writing, and page-turning plot twists. With her sense of humor and endless determination, Kinsey Milone proves to be one of the most enjoyable characters in detective fiction. 'P Is For Peril' shows that Sue Grafton has not tired of coming up with interesting plots, and with ten more letters left in the alphabet, she keeps readers anxiously awaiting each new book. Fans of the series will love this latest entry, and those who have not discovered the alphabet mysteries should do so now, because 'P Is For Peril' is about the best in the series. A MUST read! Nick Gonnella
Rating:
Summary: Perilously Close to Perfection
Review: One of my proudest days as a mystery writer came last summer when I participated on the same MWA/UCLA program as Sue Grafton. Several other writers were on that program, and P IS FOR PERIL perfectly demonstrates why we were all so thrilled to have Sue Grafton as our keynote speaker that day. In her latest Kinsey Millhone novel, Grafton has Kinsey hired by the ex-wife of an elderly doctor who has been missing for a number of weeks. The physician's current wife thinks he may be dead. While Kinsey is attempting to uncover the truth about that man's disappearance, peril cuts close to home. She becomes involved with a pair of twins who most likely murdered their parents. She discovers the truth about the twins, yet she also discovers she is more seriously entangled with them than she had first imagined. Grafton's P effort is one of her best. Her complex plot is swftly paced, and her characters continue ringing true. It is hard to imagine how Ms. Grafton will surpass this book's quality in her Q Kinsey Millhone mystery. P is perilously close to perfection.
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