Reviews

A de la Alibi by Sue Grafton

Only show reviews with written explanations

lauraborkpower's review against another edition

3.0

A great palate cleanser and not at all what I'd expected.

I don't know why I assumed that Grafton's books were cozy mysteries--or corny mysteries--but this one certainly is not.

It's an '80's noir starring the very likeable Kinsey Millhone. Grafton writes her heroine in the style of a hard-boiled private eye, but she doesn't try too hard and the result is a character who is recognizable though specific, and unexpectedly believable though rooted deeply in the decades of detective fiction that precede her.

It's really fun.

beckeal's review against another edition

Go to review page

4.0

I’ve been reading this series as released most of my life. I binged the first bunch as a teenager/young adult, and have kept it up. Hadn’t read “A is for...” in, well, probably decades, but it was a pleasure to do so again.

It’s funny now, reading casual 80s cultural and societal references (that would’ve been progressively feminist at the time) through the eyes of a 21st century gal, but in a way, it’s all the better for it’s authentic place in time.

They’re simple-to-read who-dunnits with straight-forward characters and very little polish, but again, that’s what makes me love them so. Or maybe it’s that they’ve come all this way with me, but either way ... Fan for life.

soph_or_sofa's review against another edition

Go to review page

lighthearted mysterious relaxing medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

eliza_janiel's review against another edition

Go to review page

mysterious slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? N/A
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

motherbird76's review against another edition

Go to review page

mysterious

3.75

Nice little mystery. Read for May mini challenge. A=alpha. I probably won’t make efforts to read the other 24 books but if one fits a prompt I’d be fine with more Kinsey Millhone.

jillybeans's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous funny hopeful lighthearted mysterious relaxing tense fast-paced

4.75

ingo_lembcke's review against another edition

Go to review page

3.0

Was mentioned somewhere on Goodreads and sounded interesting and was very cheap (unlike the others in the series), like a promo or maybe as it is the first book in the series.
The heroine is great, being single and stubborn.
Little romance, even less sex (and the sex scenes only hinted at, not very interesting), so that was ok.
The case meanders through the story-line and the book was very dated, with no cell-phones and computers only used by accountants for book-keeping and finance, and a side story based on the switch, putting data from paper into computers.
A few twists with a nice showdown, but no real hard to guess whodunit.
Still, a solid and well deserved 3stars and a recommendation for a female P.I. .

As there are a lot of books in the Alphabet-Series, I will probably skip the next 10 and look into those which are newer and may feature more up-to-date technology, but will also check reviews first before buying.