P Is for Peril (Kinsey Millhone Mysteries)
by Sue Grafton

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Book Reviews of P Is for Peril (Kinsey Millhone Mysteries)

Book Review: Grafton in Peril
Summary: 1 Stars

So it was with great anticipation that on June 4 of last year - on my way to the airport and vacation - I was at the bookstore when it opened for business. I was lucky enough to get a signed copy, my first Grafton hardback. The read I had so looked forward to while sitting on the beach was a huge disappointment.

This book is a dud. It lacks memorable plot, interesting people, or character development; it is poorly written and boring. I barely got through it and kept putting it aside for other reading matter.

Peril has two main stories, one with many branches, one more straightforward. The latter is more typical of Grafton/Milhone and is the more interesting but plays a much smaller part. The main plot is filled with serendipity, red herrings, and dead ends. Neither were as good as plots from past works such as Lawless and Killer.

I do not actually read Grafton's books for the plots: I enjoy them as I go along, I expect them to be interesting enough to maintain my curiosity, and five minutes later I have forgotten them. I read mostly for character development, for snappy dialog, for Kinsey's observations on life and everything else. I re-read them periodically just for the enjoyment of experiencing Kinsey's wit and snappy comebacks. I agree with a previous reviewer who stated that Peril is two rewrites and an edit short of being ready for publication. Where was the editor on this book?

The plots, such as they are, are worsened by the amount of filler in this book. It is just not like the Kinsey I know to spend so much time thinking about furnishings and what people are wearing. I lost count, too, of how many times Kinsey took off her slicker, hung her slicker on a peg, put her umbrella in a corner, put her slicker on, etc., etc. Trips in an out of Horton Ravine - countless numbers of them - are described over and over. All of the people in the book are outstandingly forgettable. Grafton's books always have filler - and it is usually some of the most interesting stuff. Not in Peril. Mostly I miss the humor.

The filler was made even more annoying by the writing. A good deal of the sentence structure in Peril just does not seem like Grafton, being simplistic, rhythmic, and irritating, lacking her usual wit, sarcasm, and pithy views presented through Kinsey.

There is a new Kinsey in Peril - whether purposefully or not only time will tell. The new Kinsey is wishy-washy and wimpy. The old Kinsey is adventurous, takes risks, and is generally unafraid. She often puts herself unnecessarily in danger, not calling for help, setting out in the middle of the night to track someone down, going alone when she could ask for help. She is a loner and, as Henry has noted, she usually "acts first, thinks later."

Kinsey takes the case in Peril against her own better judgement. She is manipulated into danger by others that she would normally be suspicious of on first meeting. She does ask for help but not in the way you might expect. For example, when Henry finds an ad for a new office and advises Kinsey to check it out, the dialog goes like this: Henry - "it won't hurt to call." Kinsey - "you really think so?" Henry - "Of course." Kinsey - What if it's rented?." For crying out loud; the Kinsey I know would not say these things. She might pooh pooh the idea, or just go do it, but she wold not normally ask twice for reassurance; she never asks for reassurance, she rushes headlong into action.

Kinsey is a character not yet fully explored, I feel, and Peril does not move the exploration forward one bit. Something needs to happen to snap her out of her comfort zone. As in real life, she sometimes surprises, sometimes disappoints. Outlaw seemed to open the door to some personal growth and Peril slammed it shut again, along with the other "doors" of Dietz and what is left of her family. After 19 years and 15 books, she is still telling the same old story. I still love her because she reminds me of me.

Peril gives me the feeling that Grafton has run out of ideas for the series and that she is unwilling to introduce changes in Kinsey that might liven it. There have been signs of staleness in past books, notably Malice. I had high hopes after Outlaw, one of the best in the series. In that book, Kinsey was forced to confront some mistakes in her past and she makes reparations for them. It was a hopeful sign that has apparently been dropped.

Change is needed, though, to keep this series interesting and fresh. It must be very difficult to write a continuing series, especially one in which the author has decided to keep the characters in an older time period. The author is trapped, Kinsey is trapped.

The other day I heard a former Vietnam POW say "Few people are called on to use what they really have." We do not know what Kinsey really has, nor Sue Grafton. Peril is a great disappointment and I have high hopes that 'Q' will shake things up. I have a secret hope that Grafton is up to something with Peril, leading us into to it, that Kinsey really is in peril and will work her way out of it.

Summary of P Is for Peril (Kinsey Millhone Mysteries)

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

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• Mystery, Thriller & Suspense > Mystery > Hard-Boiled
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