by Sue Grafton
Part of Kinsey Millhone, book 21
First published 2009
Private investigator Kinsey Millhone sits alone in her office one April morning in 1988, wrestling with paperwork. A young man named Michael Sutton walks in without an appointment. Despite his youthful appearance, he's twenty-seven and unemployed. Sutton tells Kinsey about a four-year-old girl who vanished over twenty years ago. A recent newspaper article about the kidnapping has awakened buried memories. He believes he witnessed the child's secret burial and can identify her killers if he sees them again. Sutton wants Kinsey to help locate the grave and track down the murderers. The case seems hopeless, but he offers cash payment upfront. Kinsey reluctantly agrees to spend one day investigating. She soon learns that Sutton has a troubled relationship with honesty. His credibility crumbles under scrutiny. Kinsey must determine whether his story holds truth or represents another lie from someone who habitually deceives. The investigation forces her to confront witnesses whose testimonies contradict each other, revealing how past and present intertwine in dangerous ways.
Genres: suspense, mystery, crime, thriller, detective
Vibes: intimate, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: investigation, unreliable-narrator
Period: 1988
403 pages · Hardcover · Putnam