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W Is for Wasted: A Kinsey Millhone Novel
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W Is for Wasted: A Kinsey Millhone Novel Hardcover - 2013

by Sue Grafton


Summary

Of the #1 New York Times–bestselling Kinsey Millhone series, NPR said, “Makes me wish there were more than 26 letters.”

Two dead men changed the course of my life that fall. One of them I knew and the other I’d never laid eyes on until I saw him in the morgue.

The first was a local PI of suspect reputation. He’d been gunned down near the beach at Santa Teresa. It looked like a robbery gone bad. The other was on the beach six weeks later. He’d been sleeping rough. Probably homeless. No identification. A slip of paper with Millhone’s name and number was in his pants pocket. The coroner asked her to come to the morgue to see if she could ID him.

Two seemingly unrelated deaths, one a murder, the other apparently of natural causes.

But as Kinsey digs deeper into the mystery of the John Doe, some very strange linkages begin to emerge. And before long at least one aspect is solved as Kinsey literally finds the key to his identity. “And just like that,” she says, “the lid to Pandora’s box flew open. It would take me another day before I understood how many imps had been freed, but for the moment, I was inordinately pleased with myself.”

In this multilayered tale, the surfaces seem clear, but the underpinnings are full of betrayals, misunderstandings, and outright murderous fraud. And Kinsey, through no fault of her own, is thoroughly compromised.

W is for . . . wanderer . . . worthless . . . wronged . . .

W is for wasted.

From the publisher

Private investigator Kinsey Millhone finds shocking connections between two seemingly unrelated deaths in this #1 New York Times bestselling mystery in the Alphabet series. The first victim is a local PI of suspect reputation, gunned down near the beach at Santa Teresa. The second is a John Doe found on the beach six weeks later with a slip of paper with private detective Kinsey Millhone's name and number in his pocket. Two seemingly unrelated deaths: one man murdered, the other apparently dead of natural causes. But as Kinsey digs deeper into the mystery of the John Doe, some very strange links begin to emerge. Not just between the two victims, but also to Kinsey's past. And before long Kinsey, through no fault of her own, is thoroughly compromised...

Details

  • Title W Is for Wasted: A Kinsey Millhone Novel
  • Author Sue Grafton
  • Binding Hardcover
  • Edition First Edition
  • Pages 486
  • Volumes 1
  • Language ENG
  • Publisher Marian Wood Books/Putnam, New York
  • Date 2013-09-10
  • ISBN 9780399158988 / 0399158987
  • Weight 1.55 lbs (0.70 kg)
  • Dimensions 9.3 x 6.6 x 1.7 in (23.62 x 16.76 x 4.32 cm)
  • Ages 18 to UP years
  • Grade levels 13 - UP
  • Library of Congress subjects Mystery fiction, California
  • Library of Congress Catalog Number 2013019292
  • Dewey Decimal Code FIC

Media reviews

Praise for W IS FOR WASTED
 
“Grafton is a writer of many strengths—crisp characterizations, deft plotting, and eloquent dialogue among them—and she has kept her long-running alphabet mystery series fresh and each new release more welcome than the last. Her greatest skill may be the way she melds disparate, unwieldy, often difficult subjects into a cohesive whole that satisfies as both entertainment and art. It's one thing to write a bestseller (or 23), but quite another to do so while addressing larger societal ills. Achieve both, and you reach the pinnacle of the profession—as Grafton has. Her work is layered, textural, sensate—ingenious and satisfying in any genre. . . Lesser authors churn books out; Grafton continues to knock them out of the park.”—Louisville Courier-Journal
 
“‘W is for Wasted’ is further proof – as if it were needed – of Grafton’s immense talent. And her ability to give equal weight to the story of the detective and the detective story sets her apart in the world of crime fiction.” ––Richmond Times-Dispatch
 
“Kinsey Millhone, the well-nigh immortal sleuth in this enduring series, still has time to play her rebel role simply by living a spartan existence in a world of greedy narcissists…How sweet it is to see the California private eye back in her garage apartment…It’s also fun to watch her at work, taking notes on index cards, typing reports on a Smith-Corona and here’s what really matters—communicating with people face-to-face.” ––New York Times Book Review
 
“Involving, amusing and fast-paced.”—The Wall Street Journal
 
“Nearing the conclusion of this celebrated series, Grafton continues to shape Millhone’s character, toughened by circumstance but still both understanding and forgiving.”—Booklist
 
“Grafton has lost none of her ability to bring her character vividly to life: Kinsey is as witty and engaging as ever, although somewhat more subdued and thoughtful owing to the emotionally charged tasks she has to perform. As Grafton nears the end of her long-running alphabet series, readers of mystery and suspense and Grafton’s many fans will delight in and savor this latest addition.”—Library Journal (starred review)
 
Praise for Sue Grafton

“After three decades Grafton’s iconic detective remains a quirky delight. With the help of McDonald’s pit stops and her single no-wrinkle black dress, Kinsey is sure to keep up the good fight through W, X, Y and Z—taking punches for the little guys and keeping the bad ones at bay.” —People

“Millhone’s complexity is mirrored by the novels that document her cases: books that nestle comfortably within the mystery genre even as they push and prod its contours.”—The Wall Street Journal
 
“I’ve come to believe that Grafton is not only the most talented woman writing crime fiction today but also that regardless of gender, her Millhone books are among the five or six best series any American has ever written.”—The Washington Post
 
“Grafton purposively begins with a standard situation . . . and then sets about breaking every cardinal rule of the mystery novel.”—The Los Angeles Times

About the author

#1 New York Times bestselling author Sue Grafton first introduced Kinsey Millhone in the Alphabet Series in 1982. Soon after, both writer and heroine became icons and international bestsellers. Ms. Grafton was a writer who consistently broke the bonds of genre while never writing the same book twice. Named a Grand Master by the Mystery Writers of America, her awards and honors included the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Private Eye Writers of America, the Ross Macdonald Literary Award, the Cartier Diamond Dagger Award from Britain's Crime Writers' Association, the Lifetime Achievement Award from Malice Domestic, a Lifetime Achievement Award from Bouchercon, three Shamus Awards, and three Anthony Awards--including the first two ever awarded. She passed away in December 2017.
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W is for Wasted: A Kinsey Millhone Novel

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