by Sue Grafton
Hardcover, 403 pages
Published August 25th 2015 by Marian Wood Books/Putnam (first published January 1st 2015)
Goodreads synopsis: X: The number ten. An unknown quantity. A mistake. A cross. A kiss.
X: The shortest entry in Webster’s Unabridged. Derived from Greek and Latin and commonly found in science, medicine, and religion. The most graphically dramatic letter. Notoriously tricky to pronounce: think xylophone.
X: The twenty-fourth letter in the English alphabet.
Sue Grafton’s X: Perhaps her darkest and most chilling novel, it features a remorseless serial killer who leaves no trace of his crimes. Once again breaking the rules and establishing new paths, Grafton wastes little time identifying this sociopath. The test is whether Kinsey can prove her case against him before she becomes his next victim.
***
4 Stars
X marks the spot in this new suspense thriller from Sue Grafton.
Reading about Kinsey Millhone is like coming home and finding a long lost friend waiting at the door. I hadn't read a Sue Grafton book since about M or K. (I know, bad me.) So, it was nice to delve into this world again. Henry was there and helpful as always.
I think this book was set in the late 80's but I am not totally sure. Sometimes the flashbacks confuse me when it comes to time period. And like I said above, I haven't read a Grafton book since M or K which would make it since 1997 or so.
I read a few of the reviews before I dove into the book and many of them said that they thought this was a throwaway book. That nothing really happened. Maybe we weren't reading the same book because this novel was chock-full of action. So many things were going on I think I needed a score card. I had to search my memory for the names of some of the old favorites that are mentioned in this book so the little updates Grafton gave us about them was truly helpful.
I think the sections concerning Henry and the whole water/drought situation was what captured me most. Oh, that Edna! Just wanted to slap her for most of the book. I was truly rooting for Henry and Kinsey to get her in the end.
I had a feeling the other parts of the storylines would converge at some point because in the beginning I think Grafton had like five different storyline threads going. I had to read this book a bit slower so I could keep all the facts in my head. I didn't want to brush over anything.
This book was, to me, great! It made me want to go back to that M or K book and start reading again. I understand why readers and reviewers might say that novels in a series get a bit of the "same old, same old" in them. I know that I read a whole string of Stephanie Plum books within a few weeks and I wanted to stay away from them for a year because they seem so much the same from book to book. And that is why you should be reading other books between novels like this. That helps to keep the characters fresh.
If you love PI novels or shows like Magnum PI, then you should definitely check out any of the Sue Grafton novels. This book is definitely not a throw away novel. It is a keeper for me!
I received this as an ARC (Advanced Reader Copy) from Net Galley in return for an honest review. I thank Net Galley, the publisher and the author for allowing me to read this novel.
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