Series: Sue Grafton
Audio CD
Publisher: Random House Audio; Abridged edition (June 5, 2001)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0375416846
ISBN-13: 978-0375416842
Product Dimensions: 5.7 x 1 x 4.9 inches
Shipping Weight: 8 ounces
Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (498 customer reviews)
Best Sellers Rank: #824,803 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #19 in Books > Books on CD > Authors, A-Z > ( G ) > Grafton, Sue #1363 in Books > Books on CD > Mystery & Thrillers #1581 in Books > Books on CD > General
When Dowan Purcell, a respected physician who operates a nursing home, disappears, his ex-wife hires Santa Teresa PI Kinsey Millhone to look into it. Fiona Purcell is still seething over Dow's affair and subsequent marriage to Crystal, a former stripper, yet they're still friends, and she seems worried. But when his body is discovered, she's among the suspects. Both of Dow's wives, at least one of his business partners, and perhaps even Crystal's teenage daughter had motives to kill. While in her most recent adventures (N Is for Noose, O Is for Outlaw) Kinsey has acquired new digs, an extended family, and a few more gray hairs, in this one (which takes place some time in the mid-'80s), she's 36, still living in the remodeled garage that was blown up in an earlier novel. Easier than a facelift, and while Sue Grafton is a solid enough writer to pull it off, dedicated Kinsey fans will miss the more complex and multidimensional character who aged so ruefully and interestingly in the '90s. This isn't Grafton's strongest case; it's hard to care about any of Purcell's women or his associates. More exciting is the secondary plot, which involves a handsome landlord who offers Kinsey the new office space she's been seeking and turns out to be a lot more trouble than she bargained for. Despite its somewhat plodding pace and the echo of a more evolved heroine that rings through its pages, Grafton's many fans will probably shoot P Is for Peril right to the top of the bestseller list. --Jane Adams --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
PI Kinsey Millhone's trademark dry sense of humor is largely absent in the first half of the 15th book in this justifiably popular series, though it resurfaces as the suspense finally begins to build in the second half. In the bleak November of 1986, Kinsey looks into the disappearance of Dr. Dowan Purcell, who's been missing for nine weeks. Dr. Purcell is an elderly physician who runs a nursing home that's being investigated for Medicare fraud. His ex-wife, Fiona, hires Kinsey when it seems as though the police have given up on the search. Fiona thinks that he could be simply hiding out somewhere, especially since he's pulled a disappearance stunt twice before. However, Purcell's current wife, Crystal, believes that he may be dead. Kinsey is dubious about finding any new leads after so much time has elapsed. She's also worried about having to move out of the office space she now occupies in the suite owned by her lawyer, and between her interviews with suspects she tries to rent a new office from a pair of brothers whose mysterious background begins to make her suspicious. Grafton's Santa Teresa seems more like Ross Macdonald's town of the same name than ever before, with dysfunctional families everywhere jostling for the private eye's attention. The novel has a hard-edged, wintry ambience, echoed in Fiona Purcell's obsession with angular art deco furniture and architecture. Unfortunately, Grafton's evocation of the noir crime novels and styles of the 1940s, although atmospheric, doesn't make up for a lack of suspense and lackluster characters. (June 4)Forecast: With a 600,000-copy first printing and a national author tour, this Literary Guild Main Selection is sure to shoot well up the bestseller lists.Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
P Is for Peril: A Kinsey Milhone Mystery (Sue Grafton) "D" Is for Deadbeat: A Kinsey Milhone Mystery (Sue Grafton) "F" is for Fugitive (A Kinsey Millhone Mystery) (Sue Grafton) Sue Grafton DEF Gift Collection: "D" Is for Deadbeat, "E" Is for Evidence, "F" Is for Fugitive (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) W is For Wasted: Kinsey Millhone Mystery (A Kinsey Millhone Novel) S Is For Silence: A Kinsey Millhone Mystery (A Kinsey Millhone Novel) M Is For Malice (Sue Grafton) N Is For Noose (Sue Grafton) "G" Is for Gumshoe (Sue Grafton) O Is For Outlaw (Sue Grafton) Q Is For Quarry (Sue Grafton) B Is for Burglar (Sue Grafton) J Is For Judgment (Sue Grafton) I Is For Innocent (Sue Grafton) L is for Lawless (Sue Grafton) A T. Rex Named Sue: Sue Hendrickson's Huge Discovery (Fossil Hunters) The Greetings from Somewhere Collection: Mysteries Around the World: The Mystery of the Gold Coin; The Mystery of the Mosaic; The Mystery of the Stolen Painting; The Mystery in the Forbidden City Peril at End House: A Hercule Poirot Mystery (Hercule Poirot Mysteries)