Series: A Kinsey Millhone Novel
Audio CD
Publisher: Random House Audio; Abridged edition (January 8, 2013)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0385366272
ISBN-13: 978-0385366274
Product Dimensions: 5 x 1.1 x 5.9 inches
Shipping Weight: 3.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1,374 customer reviews)
Best Sellers Rank: #757,877 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #14 in Books > Books on CD > Authors, A-Z > ( G ) > Grafton, Sue #1216 in Books > Books on CD > Mystery & Thrillers #2529 in Books > Books on CD > Literature & Fiction > General
Following U is for Undertow, Kinsey Millhone is back with a vengeance! She gets a 38th birthday "punch in the face and busted nose" in May 1988. A cake would have been nice. Kinsey is a pragmatist, "a big fan of forgiveness as long as I'm given the opportunity to get even first."Reluctantly shopping at an upscale retailer, Kinsey spies Audrey Vance stealing expensive silk PJs. The civic-minded P.I. discovers the woman is in cahoots with another and reports them both. Vance is arrested, while the other scofflaw nearly runs Kinsey down in the parking garage with a Mercedes. Vance is later found dead, an apparent suicide, but homicide is soon suspected.In a parallel plot, Lorenzo Dante, Jr., known simply as Dante, is a loan shark with alleged Mafia ties. Dante has quite an inferno of illicit businesses burning --- and a red-hot romance with a powerful attorney's wife. One of those enterprises is a highly organized ring of shoplifters, whose kingpin was Audrey Vance. Vance's unsuspecting fiancé hires Kinsey to investigate what he thinks are bogus shoplifting charges, and the improbable suicide. Thrown into the mix are a corrupt cop, and a gambling addict who sells his soul to Dante.Predictably, characters face death during the investigation, and Kinsey is pulled into the vortex. Ghosts from novels past haunt Kinsey, even likeable petty criminal Pinky Ford is instrumental in the dénouement. Vixen reporter Diana Alvarez from "Undertow" is a thorn in Kinsey's side but eventually proves beneficial. Heartthrob and former flame Cheney Phillips keeps readers guessing if the fire will rekindle.
V is for Vengeance starts off with the story of a young man who meets a bad end at the hands of a loan shark and his brother. The book then moves to the present day of the book (1988) and starts off with Kinsey Milhone witnessing a shoplifting incident with two women. One gets caught and the other literally drives over Kinsey in the parking lot making her escape. Two days later, the woman who was arrested ends up dead in the same spot as the young man in the beginning of the book. Kinsey is hired by the man who was engaged to the dead woman to find out what really happened because he does not believe she committed suicide. Kinsey is soon involved in uncovering a ring of professional thieves, a police conspiracy, blackmail, and a man with interesting family connections known as "Dante". All the while she has an obnoxious reporter dogging her investigation and causing trouble.Also weaving through the book is the story of an unhappy wife named Nora, who realizes her husband is cheating and takes steps to protect herself. In the course of covering her bases financially, she meets Dante and begins an unlikely relationship with him. There is an interesting twist in the book that involves both of these people and ties into the modern day activities.One of the things I enjoy about this series is the fact that it is set in the 80's. Kinsey has to rely on research, hard work, and legwork to get her job done. She has no internet or cell phone to do work for her. I love it when she needs to get to a pay phone to call someone when she is out working on a case or making a carbon copy of something. I find myself thinking "If she only had a ........."Kinsey is a solitary person who has very few real relationships in her life. She can only rely on herself this book reinforces that fact.
W is For Wasted: Kinsey Millhone Mystery (A Kinsey Millhone Novel) S Is For Silence: A Kinsey Millhone Mystery (A Kinsey Millhone Novel) V is for Vengeance (A Kinsey Millhone Novel) X (A Kinsey Millhone Novel) U is For Undertow: A Kinsey Millhone Novel K Is For Killer (A Kinsey Millhone Novel) Sue Grafton DEF Gift Collection: "D" Is for Deadbeat, "E" Is for Evidence, "F" Is for Fugitive (A Kinsey Millhone Novel) B Is For Burglar (A Kinsey Millhone Novel) T Is for Trespass (A Kinsey Millhone Novel) Sue Grafton GHI Gift Collection: "G" Is for Gumshoe, "H" Is for Homicide, "I" Is for Innocent (A Kinsey Millhone Novel) Sue Grafton ABC Gift Collection: "A" Is for Alibi, "B" Is for Burglar, "C" Is for Corpse (A Kinsey Millhone Novel) X (Kinsey Millhone) T Is For Trespass (Kinsey Millhone Mysteries) S Is for Silence (Kinsey Millhone Mysteries) "F" is for Fugitive (A Kinsey Millhone Mystery) (Sue Grafton) H is for Homicide (A Kinsey Millhone Mystery) "E" is for Evidence (A Kinsey Millhone Mystery) Black Widow Red Vengeance (A Black Widow Novel) (A Marvel YA Novel) Vegan with a Vengeance, 10th Anniversary Edition: Over 150 Delicious, Cheap, Animal-Free Recipes That Rock The Tiger: A True Story of Vengeance and Survival (Vintage Departures)