"I" is for Innocent: A Kinsey Millhone Novel

"I Is for Innocent" is the ninth in a series of private detective novels authored by Sue Grafton. Allowing for the fact that this is a story about a homicide investigation, the story is clever, entertaining, and often fun. I have read the eight previous novels in this series in order. Each can be read as a standalone novel. However there are numerous references to previous stories and I am glad that I have read the stories in order. I liked the novel and I am a fan of Sue Grafton. I would put this particular story in the middle of the pack of the first nine novels. In case it is of interest, my personal favorite in the series thus far is "D is for Deadbeat".As I think about this novel, I think that it is important to stress that my enjoyment is in part based on my being a fan of Sue Grafton and having read the previous novels. I agree with another reviewer who stated that there are numerous characters and although I read the book in hard back, I used a Kindle to keep searching out previous references to characters and their statements. I had to pay attention, sometimes close attention. Also one has to keep in mind that this is fiction. I will be vague, but as a retired police officer, I am somewhat sorry to report that I have experienced sudden unexpected gunfire indoors; no ear plugs. There is an overpowering squealing in the ears that causes a form of temporary situational deafness that occurs that precludes any immediate conversation. If you choose to read this novel, you might want to keep that in mind.... (The same is true for American Western novels.). But I still liked the novel a good deal.As with every other of the first novels, I purchased an audiobook, each narrated by Mary Peiffer. I feel Mary Peiffer really captures the spirit of Sue Grafton's writing. This also enhances my enjoyment of this series. Obviously this adds to the expense of the reading experience. I am not one to suggest to others to spend extra money. I can only say it was worth it to me.In summary I very much enjoyed this installment of this series. This is my favorite contemporary private detective series. I put this particular novel in the middle of the pack of this series. Although written in modern conversational English, there are numerous characters that caused me to need to pay fairly close attention. I used the Kindle to keep searching previous references to these characters. I always take a break between books by the same author. In a few months I hope and intend to read the "J" novel of this series. Thank You...

What can you say about Sue Grafton other than she is a great mystery writer. Kinsey Milhone is an ex-cop and has her own detective agency and never much of a sex life if that what your looking for, go elsewhere. This is a traditional gumshoe story with action and danger for our heroine. After some spotty success writing books, Grafton changed to writing screenplays for TV and movies. With the success of her first Alphabet series book ' A is for Alibi' in 1982 it has continued to date. I first discovered her books when I came across 'G is for Gumshoe' (pub 1990) in a recycle center in 2000, I proceeded to local bookstores and Amazon to acquire all of this series up until the current at the time 'O is For Outlaw'. It's always great when you come across a great series in progress as it's a joy just reading book after book from a great writer. Much like 'binge watching TV series on Netflix nowadays. Only problem with an ongoing series is waiting for the next book. Grafton has done only a couple of yearly books and mostly every other year since 'P is for Peril' in 2001. It is now up to just plain 'X' in 2015 and will end with 'Z is for Zero'. I'm hoping she has Y & Z completed as she is 75 now and I'm 70 and don't want to miss the conclusion of this great series.

From the first sentence, I was eager to find out how Kinsey Millhone would survive. Plus, sometimes I figure out who the killer is. This time it was a surprise. Enjoy the book!

Well written book that keeps you guessing who the killer is until the final chapter. Looking forward to reading the next book in the series.

I is for Innocent was the first Sue Grsfton novel I ever read and I've been hooked ever since. Kinsey is the best!

Loving this series! Great twists and turns. Great characters. If I had one criticism... the descriptions of the rooms and houses go on too long. I find myself skimming those parts without realizing it at first. I love the descriptions because you can mentally put yourself in the room. They just give a bit too many details. But that's my only complaint, if you can even call it that. I absolutely love this series and plan to read every book! I'm actually dreading finishing the series because I like it so much!

I couldn’t decide how much I liked or didn’t like this book which left me a 3-star rating. I know I didn’t love this book and that is for several reasons. The suspect was obvious from the get go based on their actions that were so intent on keeping Kinsey engaged in the case. Also, this book had a very small population of characters with a lot of connections with some of those connections seeming like Grafton just threw them in. The book was saved though by the final confrontation between Kinsey and the suspect. Great action, tension and a very realistic scene Grafton truly brought to life with her writing.I did like seeing Kinsey moving on and working through a new organization, Lonnie Kingman’s law firm. Lonnie is a great new character with a large personality that doesn’t overwhelm the rest of the book. He has a great chemistry with Kinsey. It will be great to see how this dynamic adds to the series.I don’t know what else there is to say about Judy Kaye as a narrator for this series. She is amazing and her ability to create different voices for each character book after book is phenomenal.

Sue Grafton (who died in December 2017) is at her full powers by the time she got to "I" in the alphabet. I have read many of her novels starting around "M" and after. I went back and started with "A" which I had never read. All these early novels are enjoyable. I admire her descriptions of people and places: "Mac's brown suit was a wrinkled as an autumn leaf, while his teeth and the flip of puffy white hair in front were discolored by the staining properties of nicotine."No novel is ever the same and Sue Grafton populates them with interesting characters; she is a fine story teller. May she rest in peace ... she ended her career with "Y" ...she never got to "Z." Too bad.

Another hit for the Alphabet Series by Sue Grafton. This one is different from her other book's. Kinsy's cases are not usually quite so involved. I enjoyed every word of it. These books have a sense of humour and move along at a swift pace. The people around her are well described and "real" people.It is nice to have a lead character who has flaws and accepts them. I like the way we are led along the research she does to solve the case, without this becoming tedious. Well written and very enjoyable. You do not get bad language from Sue Grafton, and you can always rely on an enjoyable read. With so many in the series it would be easy for the books to become sammy but they don't. Just ordered J and K.

As with all the Sue Grafton alphabet books they are individual stories but reading A - W Kinsey Millhone, the female Private Detective grows and not only do you read about the case in question but it follows her love life or lack of at times and are really enjoyable reads. This is my third time going through the series as I first had them in books and are now transferring to my kindle and I know in future I shall read them again.

I love these series of books. Having stayed in Santa Barbara on many occasions it really takes me back - I can identify many of the places she writes about. Also her character is so down to earth - always look forward to reading the next one!

Love anything by Sue Grafton. A story that keeps your interest . The narrator is excellent.

Great read, love Sue Grafton. Started reading her books years ago, now on my second read through the alphabet, enjoying just as much if not more second time around.