V is for Vengeance Complete

Sue Grafton never fails to amaze me. Her writing is clear, her characters are lively and quirky but not in a forced way, her dialogue is witty, and her solutions are clever and come together perfectly.

Oh yes, people get shot, thrown off of bridges, and even Kinsey herself suffers a bloody nose or two, but nothing too gratuitous or too descriptive.

V is for Vengeance does not disappoint. How Grafton weaves her characters' stories and back stories with Kinsey's narrative keeps me turning the pages. I even liked the 'bad' guy in this adventure.

I won't go into the plot because I don't want to spoil the fun. Besides, anyone can read a synopsis in many places on the web.

I love Grafton's way with description. Here is one from the book that sticks in my memory:

The storm clouds were gathered on the horizon like black trash bags against a fence.

Or something close to that. There are more but I in my absorption with the story, I failed to mark them.

I am fascinated with Kinsey's penchant for index cards and the way she records clues and information on them and then mixes them up to get a fresh perspective. I wonder if that is how Grafton keeps her story lines straight.

I have mentioned that Grafton lives part time in my hometown and in Santa Barbara, or Montecito to be exact. I too have lived in that area of California and it is fun for me to read about familiar cities, streets, and beaches. So those are two connections I have with the author.

I also love seeing how Grafton's hair styles change on the book jackets over the course of the years.

There was one little hiccup in the book, however. Kinsey has a conversation with someone and she makes a point of spelling her last name with two Ls. Millhone.  She says, "Most people miss the second L."

I am one of those people and I have since corrected the spelling of Ms. Millhone's name in two blog posts. The funny thing is though, the last chapter of the book is the wrap-up report by Kinsey. She signs off as 'Kinsey Milhone'.

Oops.