Rating: 
Summary: for Brother Fred
Review: A Is for Alibi is an easy as well as entertaining read. It was the first book I read in two days, not only because I had to. The plot structure is typical of most mystery novels, the one standardized by Poe. It begins with the introduction of Kinsley Milhone (since it is the first of the series), and the situation of the ex-convict that hired her. The book starts off slow with Kinsley doing backround and case file checks. Throughout the novel, one is completely thrown off by the cituations surrounding the murder itself, especially the fact that there were actually two related murders performed in the same fashion. A unique aspect of the novel is the interesting way Kinsley-who is also the narrator-describes her surroundings and her feelings toward cituations...
Rating: 
Summary: A New Type of Private Investigator
Review: In A is for Alibi, we are introduced to Kinsey Millhone, a private investigator in California. It is the first book in a alphabet series by Sue Grafton. I enjoyed the book, and believe that it was a great place to start. The idea shows true potential, and made me want to continue reading the rest of the series. In A is for Alibi, the story is intriguing, and the interaction between her characters keeps the story moving at a steady pace. I really liked the fact that her main character is a woman, because it provides the reader with a different kind of private investigator, a occupation that was typically thought of as a "man's Job". By breaking this barrier, Grafton invites the reader into a world were woman can compete with men, and leaves them wanting more from Kinsey. I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys mysteries, the plot never thins, and turns in ways that keeps the reader guessing, while leaving them wanting more
Rating:
Summary: Good beginning to series... but book isn't fantastic
Review: I liked Kinsey. She is a good character, and I think that I'll enjoy reading as her character changes and grows in the rest of the novels.
The story was OK, although the characters other than Kinsey were kind of one-dimensional. Also, I expected her to have some kind of social circle with friends, etc. and other characters that would weave through the following novels - but as of yet, we haven't been introduced to anyone.
As a mystery novel goes, I give it a 3 - not the best, but far from the worst. But, I am looking forward to reading more of this series - I see great potential here.
Rating:
Summary: What looks to a promsing series
Review: Kinsey Millhone is a young private investigator in the town of Santa Teresa. There she does day to day P.I work, untill the day that Nikki Fife walks into her office, from there things start to change for her.Nikki was convicted 8 years ago of killer her husband Laurence Fife, she is now out of jail and looking to find out who really killed her husband. Kinsey takes the job and starts out working on the case trying to figure out the details of it. From that point on Kinsey finds herself in Los Angeles tracking down who might have killed a young woman who had a minor connection to Mr. Fife. From there she goes to Las Vegas to figure out some loose ends. As Kinsey get further into the case she stumbles upon some details that are keeping her from figuring out the case. People have different storys on some of the people involved in Laurence's life and how they factor into his death. Kinsey works hard at putting the pieces together and as she starts to figure them out things keep changing. But in the end things turn out to be a diffrent ending then what Kinsey was hoping for. Overall this was a quick moving book, I can't wait to start the next book in this series. This series looks to be promising.
Rating:
Summary: Character Rich
Review: Sue Grafton introduces readers to smart, unpretentious and generally-feisty Private I, Kinsey Millhone in the first of her alphabet series "A" is for Alibi. Millhone's skill is tested in this page turner when she accepts a case involving an eight-year-old murder that according-to-police has already been solved. This convoluted plot will keep you reading and turn you into a Sue Grafton Fan...
Rating: 
Summary: A is for Amazing
Review: "A is for Alibi" is the first book in a thrilling series by Sue Grafton. She introduces the reader to the heroine of the series, Kinsey Millhone. Millhone is a single, 32 year-old private investigator. One day she arrives at her office to find that she is wanted for a new job. Nikki Fife, accused almost ten years ago of killing her husband, is out on parole and says she's innocent - and she wants Kinsey to find out who is really responsible for the death. Kinsey's gets on the trail, but experienced as she is, she's not ready for what's coming.
Sue Grafton is a wonderful writer that keeps the reader - and Kinsey - on her toes. The characters are real and Kinsey herself is straightforward, funny, and likable. I'm sure that the entire series will be as good as "A is for Alibi" was, but Grafton will have to work hard to meet the standards now set!
Rating:
Summary: Excellent debut
Review: This novel, even though the identity of the killer is glaringly obvious, is completely excellent. The method of murder is brilliant, and the plot is strong, the writing strangely assured for a first-time novelist. (Alright, this wasn't technically her first novel, but as good as.) The characters are great, well drawn and superbly realistic. (One of the series' strengths. the intense realism and humanity of the characters.) Kinsey is immediately likeable and quirky, and remains to this day one of my favourite female detectives. The way she has developed through the series is masterful. Any lesser writer would have run out of steam development-wise long ago. These books tang with authenticity, and their crimes are not too melodramatic (as you find with some crime novels). The way Kinsey solves the puzzles using only her brain is something which is often found lacking in some, more up-to-date, fiction.
Rating:
Summary: A human detective at last
Review: When life gets hectic and my problems don't have
the nice simple solutions I would like, it's great
to retreat into a good mystery. This week I found
an author I hadn't read before, and the good news
is that she has written many more books about the
same character! In "A" is for Alibi, Sue Grafton writes of Kinsey
Millhone, a private detective who lives in
California in a small, plain apartment with no
house plants or pet - she wants to leave her
house, like her life, uncluttered. When Nikki Fife
enters her office, though, complications walk in
as well. Eight years before the start of the novel, Nikki's
husband, Laurence, had been murdered; someone had
slipped poison into his allergy pills. He had
plenty of enemies, both domestic and business, but
only his wife seemed to have the opportunity.
Since she had kept a diary detailing her husband's
many extra-marital affairs, it seemed only logical
to convict her. Now she is out of jail, and she wants Kinsey to
find out who really killed Lawrence. As Kinsey
begins her investigations, she discovers that
Elizabeth Glass, who was apparently Lawrence's
last lover, had been killed only two or three
weeks after Lawrence - and by the same method!
Nikki had not been charged with the crime, but the
detective who had been in charge felt sure she was
guilty of both murders. Her instincts tell Kinsey
that Nikki is innocent, but can she prove it? Soon she is on the trail. She interviews
Lawrence's first wife, Gwen, and discovers that
his affairs had been going on for many years. In
fact, Nikki had been one of his lovers while he
was still married to Gwen. She meets Charlie
Scorsoni, Lawrence's former law partner and his
best friend, and soon becomes entangled in a
romantic relationship of her own - totally against
her own rules, but she can't seem to help herself. Over the next couple of weeks, she interviews
Lawrence's three children, two by Gwen and one by Nikki. She meets Elizabeth's mother and her ex-
boyfriend. She visits Charlotte Mercer, one of
Lawrene's lovers (and the wife of a promiment
judge). And she tries to interview Sharon Napier,
who had served as Lawrence's secretary, but
someone killed her first, apparently to keep
Sharon from telling what she knew. The list of suspects grows as Kinsey's life gets
more complicated. The more she learns, in fact,
the more twists she discovers in the story. Of
course, she does finally put all the clues
together (and a careful reader can, too; Grafton
plays fair with us). But then she has to fight for
her own life, for what she has learned is too
dangerous for Kinsey to live. If you like detective stories, you'll love this
series. The characters are well done, the plot has
enough twists and turns to keep you on your toes,
and the action scenes will get your blood rushing.
I look forward to the next book. (Reader's Advisory: There is some use of strong
language in the book, though it didn't get in my
way and was in character.)
Rating:
Summary: A is for Average
Review: I recently picked up a couple of the books from Sue Grafton's Alphabet series because of all of the publicity her work has gotten. I started reading with high expectations, but this book never reached the level I expected from such a famous author. Unlike some of the other reviewers, I enjoyed reading about the hard-nosed Kinsey. But it seemed as if the first two-thirds of the book consists of her traveling about talking to some pretty boring people. The pace of the book really picks up in the last 1/3 or so and it becomes a compelling page turner. But when it's all over and you stop to think about the characters and their motives you realize that all the pieces don't really fit together very neatly. Oh well, I'll still give the next book a try and hope for better.
Rating:
Summary: The Kinsey Report
Review: I recently started a mystery discussion group in the library where I work. I was a little apprehensive because I'm not a huge mystery buff myself AND because I had some fears that such light reading wouldn't generate that much discussion. Well, I have been proven wrong on the latter point--people do like to talk (and talk) about their favorite sleuths--and I was perhaps wrong to largely ignore mysteries throughout my adult life. "'A" Is for 'Alibi,'" the first installment of Sue Grafton's "alphabet series" is a very enjoyable read. The mystery itself is not obvious (although you'll likely make some intelligent guesses regarding the "perp"). Perhaps more important is the likeability of and the interest generated by the lead character. I've always assumed that half of what made up a good mystery was a compelling sleuth--and that seems to be bourne out by recent reading. Kinsey Millhone is a quirky enough character. I'm too much of a neophyte to say for sure that she is unique among contemporary detectives, but she is a woman of her times--sassy, independent and, yes, a little vulnerable too. We've come a long way from the Sam Spade era, where a private eye was always a particularly hardboiled white male. Nowadays your detective hero(ine) could pretty much anybody with good analytical skills and a semi-hardboiled exterior. It seems to have opened up the genre and gotten it away from the formulae that dominated mysteries through much of the 20th century. Sue Grafton's contribution to the genre is worth checking out. Her plotting, in this book, is imaginative, her descriptive abilities are solid, and her heroine is a mensch. Well worth a few evenings of your time. (I'm dying to see what she does for "x").
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