- Paperback: 307 pages
- Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin (30 Sep 2008)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0312353812
- ISBN-13: 978-0312353810
- Product Dimensions: 21.2 x 13.6 x 2.1 cm
- Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (40 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 4,960,405 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
A is for Alibi
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Product Description
Review
"'Skilful and ingenious' Irish Times; 'I love Sue Grafton's Kinsey Millhone novels... you are never disappointed' Guardian; 'Will keep you awake until the last page has been turned' Daily Mail"
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Product Description
Laurence Fife was a slick divorce lawyer and slippery ladies' man. Until someone killed him. The jury believed that it was his pretty young wife Nikki, so they sent her to prison for eight years. Now, Nikki's out on parole and Kinsey Miihone's in for trouble. Nikki hires Kinsey to discover who really killed her husband. But the trail is eight years cold, and at the end is a chilling twist even Kinsey doesn't suspect -- a second eight-year-old murder and a brand new corpse.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Sue Grafton's Alphabet series has been going for about 25 years now (I think 'T is for Trespass' has just been released) and I had been bought the A-J boxset for Christmas, so thought I'd start at the beginning with 'A is for Alibi'.
The story introduces the lead character, Kinsey Millhone. 32 years old, twice divorced and a private investigator. Kinsey is approached by a woman who has been wrongfully imprisoned for 8 years after being charged as guilty for the murder of her husband, a cheating, divorce lawyer who it seems everybody wanted dead. Kinsey is hired to find the truth behind his murder and also comes across another murder of a young woman who knew the victim and died in exactly the same way.
The plot is very tight, yet easy to follow.Not too many characters to confuse the reader and there's no un-neccessary plot fillers. It is just good, old fashioned crime solving that although can be dark and sinister in places, it still feels like a "comfort read" with enough humour and whitty dialogue to stop it from being very unsettling or disturbing - something that the crime fiction genre has reached it's boundries in recent years, so this is a refreshing change. As a massive fan of other female crime writers such as Patricia Cornwell, Karin Slaughter and PJ Tracy, it was nice to read a thriller that is still quite realistic and very exciting but without the gore. Kinsey's character is instantly likeable and believable . The killer stays a mystery until the last chapter, which in this case wasn't that surprising unfortunately, maybe due to the fact that there was only a handful of people that it could have been.
Overall this is a fantastic start to the long-running series, but could be better (and I bet it will be!) and I really look forward to reading on through the rest of Kinsey's investigations.
The story introduces the lead character, Kinsey Millhone. 32 years old, twice divorced and a private investigator. Kinsey is approached by a woman who has been wrongfully imprisoned for 8 years after being charged as guilty for the murder of her husband, a cheating, divorce lawyer who it seems everybody wanted dead. Kinsey is hired to find the truth behind his murder and also comes across another murder of a young woman who knew the victim and died in exactly the same way.
The plot is very tight, yet easy to follow.Not too many characters to confuse the reader and there's no un-neccessary plot fillers. It is just good, old fashioned crime solving that although can be dark and sinister in places, it still feels like a "comfort read" with enough humour and whitty dialogue to stop it from being very unsettling or disturbing - something that the crime fiction genre has reached it's boundries in recent years, so this is a refreshing change. As a massive fan of other female crime writers such as Patricia Cornwell, Karin Slaughter and PJ Tracy, it was nice to read a thriller that is still quite realistic and very exciting but without the gore. Kinsey's character is instantly likeable and believable . The killer stays a mystery until the last chapter, which in this case wasn't that surprising unfortunately, maybe due to the fact that there was only a handful of people that it could have been.
Overall this is a fantastic start to the long-running series, but could be better (and I bet it will be!) and I really look forward to reading on through the rest of Kinsey's investigations.
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Looking at a lot of the reviews here, it would seem that many people have done what I've done, i.e. read one of the later books in the alphabet series and then got back to this one, the first to really see how things started.
I would agree with some of the other comments that this isn't the best in the series, but it is good to be introduced to Kinsey for the first time and also some of the other characters we know are going to be popping up throughout the series; Henry Pitts and Rosie being prime examples.
Kinsey Milhone is a 32-year-old Santa Teresa private investigator licensed by the State of California. She is twice divorced, sassy and doesn't mind getting her hands dirty to get the job done. Her latest client is Nikki Fife, a woman recently released from prison after an 8-year stretch for the murder of her husband, the lawyer Laurence Fife. Nikki wants to engage Kinsey to prove her innocence from the charge of her husband's murder, even though she has served her sentence now. Laurence, never one for the quiet life, seems to have picked up a many and varied list of people who potentially might have killed him and Kinsey wastes no time in tracking down his first wife, her children and ex-employees of Laurence, some of with whom he had affairs. She also comes across Laurence's ex-partner the handsome lawyer Charlie Scorsoni, with whom she is more than a little taken.
The quest for the truth takes Kinsey on some crazy back and forth drives to Los Angeles and onto Las Vegas, and ultimately ends with a frantic chase across the beach and some tragic happenings.
The plot is rather complex, or at least I found it so, and it's quite hard to keep track of the different characters. That said, it's never boring and any dedicated reader will whip through the rather short book in a couple of sittings.
It's the Kinsey character that is the most engaging factor in the books. She is crafty and cunning, but also honest and with pretence. She appeals to both men and women and her adventures are great fun to follow.
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I finally decided to start the alphabet series after having A is for Alibi sitting on my shelf since the beginning of this year. I did enjoy this book and I really liked the character of Kinsey Millhone. However I feel I was expecting too much from this and was therefore slightly dissapointed.
I gave this book 3 stars as I did enjoy it, but I was not blown away. I shall eventually get around to continue reading the alphabet series, but there are alot more books on my shelf that I plan to read first.
I gave this book 3 stars as I did enjoy it, but I was not blown away. I shall eventually get around to continue reading the alphabet series, but there are alot more books on my shelf that I plan to read first.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
A is for Alibi
Loved this book main character is so easy to relate to. Really good story - found it hard to put down. Read more
Published 1 month ago by JudeyAnne
No suspense and certainly no intrigue
I had high hopes for "A is for Alibi", having seen the author's name frequently on the Amazon bestseller's list. Read more
Published 2 months ago by LG
A is for Arresting
I had read Q is for Quarry some time ago and enjoyed the book enough to start at the beginning with A is for Alibi. Read more
Published 3 months ago by JJ Reader
A is for Excellent!
The alphabet series from Sue Grafton is excellent - very readable, very enjoyable, a very likable central character, and this is a great place to start.
Published 4 months ago by Scroff The Bad
Nice easy read, with a good plot
I got this for my Kindle and had never read this type of book before so wasn't sure what to expect. I started it while on holiday so was dipping in and out of it over a few days. Read more
Published 6 months ago by BecsS
Not bad but not quite 5 stars
I've seen Sue Graftons alphabet books for a while as a fan of mystery books and have hesitated before buying them. When this one was on offer on Kindle I thought I'd give it a try. Read more
Published 6 months ago by J. Buxton
Gratuitous....
There are lots of reviews here that tell exactly what happens in the book, so I won't repeat that stuff. Read more
Published on 3 May 2010 by Madeinwood
too much detail
I found the book difficult to get into, so much detail and it gets a little confusing, however this is the first book in the series and I am now reading the 2nd book-B is for... Read more
Published on 30 April 2010 by C. PHIPPS
Run of the mill
In a hark back to old school detective stories, Sue Grafton creates a paper thin detective to solve a murder. Read more
Published on 29 April 2010 by Mr. G. Battle
Not sure I'm going to make it to B.
Let me save you some time. Kinsey Millhone goes to location X and asks person Y some questions. Then she goes jogging. Read more
Published on 16 Mar 2010 by Rbrt
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