Amazon.com: "B" is for Burglar (The Kinsey Millhone Alphabet Mysteries): Sue Grafton: Books

Review
"'One of the best written crime novels by anybody in recent memory' New York Times; 'Kinsey Millhone [is] just about the gutsiest as well as the shrewdest of her kind' Observer; 'An unusually compelling series of novels with a notably convincing central character' Guardian" --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

“The best new private eye.”—The Detroit News

“Exceptionally entertaining…an offbeat sense of humor and a feisty sense of justice.”
—San Francisco Chronicle

“Millhone is an engaging detective-for-hire…P.I. Kinsey Millhone and her creator…are arguably the best of [the] distaff invaders of the hitherto sacrosanct turf of gumshoes.”
—The Buffalo News

“Once a fan reads one of Grafton’s alphabetically titled detective novels, he or she will not rest until all the others are found.”—Los Angeles Herald Examiner

“Millhone is a refreshingly strong and resourceful female private eye.”—Library Journal

“Tough but compassionate…There is no one better than Kinsey Millhone.”—Best Sellers

“A woman we feel we know, a tough cookie with a soft center, a gregarious loner.”—Newsweek

“Lord, how I like this Kinsey Millhone…The best detective fiction I have read in years.”—The New York Times Book Review

“Smart, tough, and thorough…Kinsey Millhone is a pleasure.”—The Bloomsbury Review

“Kinsey is one of the most persuasive of the new female operatives…She’s refreshingly free of gender clichés. Grafton, who is a very witty writer, has also given her sleuth a nice sense of humor—and a set of Wonder Woman sheets to prove it.”—Boston Herald

“What grandpa used to call a class act.”—Stanley Ellin

“Smart, sexual, likable and a very modern operator.”—Dorothy Salisbury Davis

“Kinsey’s got brains and a sense of humor.”—Kirkus Reviews

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Product Details

Mass Market Paperback: 320 pages
Publisher: St. Martin's Paperbacks (November 29, 2005)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0312939000
ISBN-13: 978-0312939007
Product Dimensions: 6.4 x 4.1 x 0.9 inches
Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)

Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (68 customer reviews)

Amazon.com Sales Rank: #8,944 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)
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This is item 2 in The Kinsey Millhone Alphabet Mystery Series.

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	86% buy the item featured on this page: "B" is for Burglar (The Kinsey Millhone Alphabet Mysteries) 4.2 out of 5 stars (68) $7.99
	6% buy "A" is for Alibi (The Kinsey Millhone Alphabet Mysteries) 3.7 out of 5 stars (131) $11.16
	3% buy "C" is for Corpse (The Kinsey Millhone Alphabet Mysteries) 4.1 out of 5 stars (53) $7.99
	3% buy Sue Grafton: Three Complete Novels; A, B & C: A is for Alibi; B is for Burglar; C is for Corpse 4.3 out of 5 stars (27) $9.78

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Customer Reviews

68 Reviews

5 star:		(28)
4 star:		(28)
3 star:		(10)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

Average Customer Review

4.2 out of 5 stars (68 customer reviews)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This is what a mystery is all about!, June 18, 2003

By	"intentaccess" (Boca Raton, Florida USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: B Is for Burglar (Mass Market Paperback)

This series is wonderful. I just started it, going from A up. I really enjoyed this one as I happen to live in Boca Raton and know right where the Jacobsons is :) .

Kinsey was hired to find wealthy Elaine Boldt, the flashy widow was last seen wearing a lynx coat, leaving her condo in Santa Teresa for her condo in Boca Raton. But somewhere in between, she simply vanished in thin air. Kinsey's case goes from puzzling to baleful when a house is torched, an apartment is burglarized of nothing but worthless papers, the lynx coat comes back in the picture without it's owner Elaine. Then Elaine's bridge partner is found dead.

What you have is murder and plenty of it in this novel. It was a very fast read and I am really growing fond of Kinsey. She is a very believable character and one you got to love.

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13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars B is for Brilliant, January 31, 2001

By	A. Woodley "Patroness, Janeites, the Austen list" (New Zealand) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER) (REAL NAME)

This review is from: B Is for Burglar (Mass Market Paperback)

For years my friends have been telling me I should read Sue Grafton's 'Kinsey Millhone' series of Alphabet mysteries. I am not a great fan of mysteries, and I have to admit that the 'alphabet' thing, with each book starting with a new letter of the alphabet just all seemed far too twee for me. And then finally I read B is for Burglar - and loved it - adored it is closer to the word really - and read every other book of hers I could get my hands on. The mystery was satisfyingly complex, and Kinsey Millhone is a gem. The series is now up to O, and I am waiting (eagerly, anxiously, expectantly) for the release of the new P mystery in 2001.

This book is set in June 1982 - and if you haven't read the first book in the series, you don't have to worry too much. The narration by Kinsey herself will quickly bring you up to date with the essentials of her life. Kinsey Millhone is a private detective, 32 years old, single. Gloriously, she doesn't smoke, or drink heavily, or do drugs. She isn't a goody-two-shoes either, she really is quite ordinary, with a few of the usual hang-ups we all have. I liked that, because the focus is more on her mysteries than Kinsey coming to angst-stricken grips with her own failings (as often seems to happen in mysteries).

Kinsey Millhone has been hired by Beverley Danziger to find her missing sister - Elaine Boldt. It seems like a pretty straightforward case. But as Kinsey delves deeper there seems to be something sinister below the surface. There have been sightings of her since she left her California apartment to head for Florida but nothing that seems to add up. - Elaine was last seen driving a car - but she had no licence - her beloved cat is missing without trace, and she has gone to stay with friends - un-named At the centre of the confusion is a woman, Pat Usher, living illegally in Elaine's Florida apartment.

As Kinsey digs deeper she discovers the discord between Beverley and her sister Elaine and then there is the brutal murder of her neighbour and friend, Marty Grice just before Elaine's own disappearance. Somehow Kinsey must sort through the facts, red-herrings and lies - and in the process discovers that beneath the disappearance of Elaine there lies a much darker crime.

I really enjoyed the book (it bustled along), enjoyed the mystery, loved the characters - both new and repeated, but most of all I love Kinsey. She is quite ordinary and she has a wonderful sense of humour - which I think develops more as the Alphabet series of books continue. You don't necessarily have to read this series in order, by the way - I didn't. Each book has enough background detail in it to be read on its own.

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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars simply the best, August 9, 2001

By	Karen Robinson (california) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: B Is for Burglar (Mass Market Paperback)

So far, I've read up to "D is for Deadbeat" in this series of mystery novels, and as far as the the early books go, I think this is the best one. Grafton's writing style is so matter of fact that the filler parts kind of get boring in her other books, but this one is filled with plot twists and enthralling characters that keep the pages moving fast. A lady turns up missing and Kinsey Millhone is hired to find her. But what starts off as a missing persons case ends up a lot more bloody and viscious. The characters that pop up and drop dead in this book are just great. There's the missing lady's alcoholic sister and her husband; a punk rock teenage boy and his uncle who's recovering from the death of his wife; a retired woman in her 80s who wants to be a PI; a neurotic subletter; a quirky landlady; and a cute old couple. The mystery is just great but in this one, the characters are better. If you haven't read any of Grafton's books yet, start with this one-- you won't be sorry.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

3.0 out of 5 stars B is for Better, But....
...the story is still weighed down by unnecessary details. Compared to Grafton's first "Kinsey Millhone" mystery, the plot line is far better. Read more

Published 17 days ago by Marie

4.0 out of 5 stars Good Escapism Reading
If you like mysteries, this is a good series. This book makes for a good read. Kinsey Milhone is a tough and likable private eye and an independent woman. Read more

Published 2 months ago by B. Brody

5.0 out of 5 stars I'm now a Grafton addict
She's been writing for years but I've only read the first three but Grafton is wonderful. This book is just another example. Read more

Published 2 months ago by Michael

1.0 out of 5 stars B is for...Blah?
This is the first Kinsey Millhone I've read, and given the success of the alphabet series it proved a great disappointment. Read more

Published 4 months ago by Mike Brecher

4.0 out of 5 stars Yay Kinsey!
Absolute page-turner, clever and observant. Kinsey Malone is one of the modern literature's greatest leading ladies, and the mysteries are always delightfully twisted.

Published 9 months ago by Emily Taylor

5.0 out of 5 stars Another Winner for Grafton
This book was hard to put down once I started reading it. The characters are well developed and the depth of description of locales is amazing. Read more

Published 14 months ago by Billie Vanderburg

5.0 out of 5 stars "B " is for Burglar
Another exciting book by Sue Grafton. This ending really surprised me. She gives you just enough information on each character that I'm constantly trying to guess who the bad... Read more

Published 14 months ago by P. Crook

4.0 out of 5 stars B is not for boring
Sue Grafton's second Kinsey Milhone book is a terrific mystery. Kinsey is hired by Beverly Danzinger to find her sister, a wealthy widow named Elaine Boldt. Read more

Published 16 months ago by Westley

4.0 out of 5 stars Good read!
Nice series for anyone that wants a decent mystery series to read at work or during down times.

Published 18 months ago by M. Khouri

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the best in the series
This is one of the earliest books in the Kinsey Milhone series, but I only acquired it recently. It's also one of the best in the series -- a genuinely interesting mystery, a... Read more

Published 20 months ago by Art Lover

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