Y IS FOR YESTERDAY

4 stars out of 5

If you'd asked me around the 30% mark how much I was enjoying this book, my answer would have been that it would make a great last entry into the author's celebrated trip through the alphabet - titled Z is for Zzzzzzz. But somewhere around the halfway point, things started to pick up noticeably; by the end, it was considerably better than half bad - prompting me to bump up my rating to 4 stars from the 3 I'd expected.

So what accounted for my initial reaction? Right off the bat, I was put off by the flipping back and forth in time over a 10-year period as the backstory for the current action was developed. If the author ever used that technique in the past, I don't remember it, but it has become so over-used of late that at this point I almost cringe when I run into it even when it's done well, as it is here. And collectively between the then and now, so many characters made an appearance that it was hard for me to keep them all straight.

The action takes place in 1979 and 1989, and I noticed more than one anachronism. I was a fairly active follower of technology during that decade, and I'm pretty sure some of the equipment and processes mentioned in the 1979 accounts simply were not available at that time. I also noticed some errors that thorough copy-editing should have caught (never a good thing in my own professional copy-editor's eyes). Perhaps most distressing, though, is that the stars of the show, including private eye Kinsey Milhone and her elderly neighbor, Henry, exhibited almost none of the spunk and spirit I've come to know and love. 

To a certain extent, I should have seen it coming; the official description calls it the "darkest and most disturbing case report" from Kinsey's files. It takes place about a year after she narrowly misses death at the hands of killer Ned Lowe (a character from an earlier book). He's still on the loose, so Kinsey is always on the lookout, expecting him to show up and try again. To her credit, though, I'm sure that triple-checking locks, remembering to carry a gun and constantly looking over her shoulder would be enough to make anyone cranky.

As she's dealing with the not insignificant concern of personal ambush, Kinsey gets roped into a new case that's rooted in the 1979 murder of a teenage girl for which a juvenile was tried and convicted. He's now 25, just out of prison and once again living with his well-to-do parents. He's not happy to be back with an irritable father and all-forgiving wimpy mother, but neither are they: They've been sent a copy of a sex tape made 10 years earlier in which their son clearly has a leading role - and the sender is demanding $25,000 to not make it public. Both because of the personally damaging publicity and the real possibility that their precious son might be sent back to jail, the parents don't want anyone else to know about the tape - meaning the police - nor do they intend to fork over the cash. That puts Kinsey, who normally plays well with cops, in a bit of a bind - but she agrees to chase down the blackmailer.

Woven into the story are squirmishes, dalliances and other interactions between and among Kinsey's friends and co-workers, although much of that seems a bit lackluster compared to similar situations in previous books. As Kinsey investigates the case of the illicit tape, scenes shift back to 1979 and events leading up to, and including, the murder. Part of the ending is satisfying and another part isn't, perhaps paving the way for what is believed to be the final letter in the Kinsey Milhone series. And while I won't say this is anywhere near my favorite of the bunch - and yes, I've read 'em all - I really, really do hate to see them come to an end.

Y is for Yesterday by Sue Grafton (Marian Wood Books/Putnam, August 2017); 494 pp.

X (A KINSEY MILLHONE NOVEL)

4 stars out of 5

X marks the spot, I must confess, where I became a teeny bit happy that there are only two letters left in the alphabet. Don't get me wrong, though; this is nowhere near a bad book - nor is any of the others in this series (I've devoured every single one and by now, P.I. Kinsey Millhone feels like a good friend). But early on in this one, precious little action and endless descriptions of who had what for dinner, what clothes who wore but shouldn't have and how many complimentary envelopes were in a hotel desk drawer rendered me almost as bored as Kinsey was on one of her stakeouts (or so she said). 

The book begins as Kinsey takes on a client who's looking to be reunited with a son she gave up for adoption years ago. At the same time, Kinsey's been asked by the widow of a P.I. who was killed off in an earlier book (nope, won't tell), to help sort through her late husband's boxes of papers because an IRS guy is threatening an audit. When it turns out the client may not be totally on the up-an-up - and the late husband's papers turn into clues related to an old crime - Kinsey is off and running to find answers.

Lovable characters from past books get involved, of course - like octogenarian landlord Henry, his even older brother William and Henry's cantankerous cat Ed, who strayed into Henry's life in W is for Wasted. Adding to their woes is that their little part of California has been in the midst of a longstanding drought, and Henry is consumed with finding new ways to lower his water bill. Ever the consummate gentleman, he's also taken a shine to the elderly couple who moved in next door, readily offering assistance to the wife as she cares for her invalid husband.

The plot itself is both intricate and intriguing, and on the plus side, once I reached the 60% mark or so, the action started to heat up on all fronts and the ho-hum parts dwindled to a minimum. The primary whodunit was all but confirmed (the only thing remaining was the thrill of the chase, with Kinsey in the lead). The subplots began to take on new relevance, and from that point on I didn't put the book down till I reached the end. 

X (A Kinsey Millhone Novel) by Sue Grafton (Marian Wood Books/Putnam, August 2015); 416 pp.