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This page lists novels and non-fiction by Sue Grafton and biographical and critical books about Sue Grafton.

Cover images are, where possible, of the first US edition and a recent paperback or digital edition.

By Sue Grafton:
- novels, story collections
- non-fiction

Edited by Sue Grafton:
- anthologies

About Sue Grafton:
- biographical / critical

Keziah Dane

Sue Grafton

1967

The Lolly-Madonna War

Sue Grafton

1969

"A story of two feuding families, and how their love of violence impacts the lives of those in their family and around them."

A Is for Alibi

Sue Grafton

1982

A Kinsey Millhone novel.

"When Laurence Fife was murdered, few cared. A slick divorce attorney with a reputation for ruthlessness, Fife was also rumoured to be a slippery ladies’ man. Plenty of people in the picturesque Southern California town of Santa Teresa had reason to want him dead. Including, thought the cops, his young and beautiful wife, Nikki. With motive, access and opportunity, Nikki was their number one suspect. The Jury thought so too. Eight years later and out on parole, Nikki Fife hires Kinsey Millhone to find out who really killed her husband. But the trail has gone cold and there is a chilling twist even Kinsey didn’t expect."

B Is for Burglar

Sue Grafton

1985

A Kinsey Millhone novel.

" There was nothing about Beverly Danziger to cause Kinsey concern. She was looking for her sister. There was a will to be settled. She paid up front. And if it seemed a lot of money for a routine job, Kinsey wasn’t going to argue. She kicked herself later for the things she didn’t see - Beverly Danziger did not look as if she needed a few thousand dollars and she didn’t seem like someone longing for a family reunion. But just as Kinsey begins to suspect foul play and start asking questions, Beverly Danziger pulls her off the case and fires her."

C Is for Corpse

Sue Grafton

1986

A Kinsey Millhone novel.

" Kinsey met Bobby Callahan in the gym on Monday morning. His story was hard to credit: a murderous assault by a tailgating car on a lonely rural road, a roadside smash into a canyon 400 feet below, his Porsche a ruin, his best friend dead, and his memory severely impaired. He was convinced someone was trying to kill him. By Thursday, he was dead. But Kinsey wasn’t going back on a deal. She had been hired to prevent a murder. Now she was looking for the murderer."

D Is for Deadbeat

Sue Grafton

1987

A Kinsey Millhone novel.

" It was late October, the day before Halloween. He introduced himself as Alvin Limardo. The job he hired Kinsey to do seemed easy enough . . . until his cheque bounced. His real name was Dagett. John Dagett. Ex-con. Inveterate liar. Chronic drunk. And dead. The cops called it an accident – death by drowning. Kinsey wasn’t so sure. The man, it seemed, had a lot of enemies."

E Is for Evidence

Sue Grafton

1988

A Kinsey Millhone novel.

" It was two days after Christmas when Kinsey Millhone received the bank slip showing a credit for five thousand dollars. The account number was correct but Kinsey hadn’t made the deposit. Then came the phone call and suddenly everything became clear. The frame-up was working and Kinsey was trapped."

F Is for Fugitive

Sue Grafton

1989

A Kinsey Millhone novel.

" Seventeen years had passed since Jean Timberlake’s body had been found at the foot of the sea wall. At the time, Bailey Fowler, an ex-boyfriend of hers, pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter. Now he’d changed his tune. Kinsey Millhone is called in to solve the case – then she stumbles on the dark secrets of a family’s buried past."

G Is for Gumshoe

Sue Grafton

1990

A Kinsey Millhone novel.

" Three things happened on May 5, the day everyone sang ‘Happy Birthday’ to Kinsey Millhone. The repairs were completed on her apartment, and she moved back in. She was hired by Mrs Clyde Gersh to bring her mother back from the Mojave Desert. And lastly, a real surprise. The news that she’d made one of the top slots on Tyrone Patty’s hit list."

H Is for Homicide

Sue Grafton

1991

A Kinsey Millhone novel.

" After a three-week-long investigation, Kinsey couldn’t wait to get home. What she needed most was a few quiet days by herself – but two things happened to change all her plans. First she ran into a murder case. Then Kinsey met Bibianna Diaz, and before the night was over they were sharing a prison cell."

I Is for Innocent

Sue Grafton

1992

A Kinsey Millhone novel.

" It was a Monday early in December when Kinsey Millhone first got involved in the Isabelle Barney murder case. She was out of work. Attorney Lonnie Klingman’s usual private investigator had just dropped dead of a heart attack. Kinsey was more than happy to oblige. The trouble started on the very first day of the investigation. Either Kinsey’s predecessor was incompetent – or someone had been getting away with murder. And next time it might turn out to be hers."

J Is for Judgment

Sue Grafton

1993

A Kinsey Millhone novel.

" For Kinsey Millhone, the investigation started with a surprise visit from an ex-colleague at California Fidelity - the company that had fired her nine months previously. Fives hours later she was on a plane to Mexico, hot on the trial of a suicide who'd allegedly just come back to life. After a five year wait, Wendell Jaffe's widow had finally succeeded in having the real estate swindler declared dead, collecting half a million dollars for her pains. Now it looks like a 'pseudocide' - and Kinsey's ready to risk everything to get to the truth."

K Is for Killer

Sue Grafton

1994

A Kinsey Millhone novel.

"Lorna Kepler was beautiful and wilful, a loner who couldn't resist flirting with danger. She has also been found dead in mysterious circumstances and her death pulls Kinsey Millhone into a netherworld of deception, betrayal and unavenged murder."

L Is for Lawless

Sue Grafton

1995

A Kinsey Millhone novel.

"It was the week before Thanksgiving when Kinsey Millhone first heard the sad story of the late Johnny Lee, the World War II fighter pilot of whom, rather mysteriously, the military authorities have no record. His family are concerned – perhaps Kinsey could make a few calls, straighten things out? Then Johnny's apartment is ransacked. In the debris a hidden safe is uncovered – and in that safe is a mysterious key marked LAWLESS. That night Kinsey's on a plane to Dallas, at the start of a thrilling rollercoaster ride through Texas and Kentucky on the trail of long-buried treasure. Unfortunately there's a fire-raising psychopath on her tail . . . And she's going to be late for a very important wedding."

M Is for Malice

Sue Grafton

1996

A Kinsey Millhone novel.

"M is for Malek Construction, the $40 million company that grew out of modest soil to become one of the big three in California. M is for Malek family: four sons now nearing middle age who stand to inherit a fortune – four men with very different temperaments and needs, linked only by blood and money. Eighteen years ago, one of them – angry, troubled and in trouble – went missing. M is for Millhone, now hired to trace that missing black sheep brother. And, in brutal consequence, M is for murder."

N Is for Noose

Sue Grafton

1998

A Kinsey Millhone novel.

" Only six weeks have passed since sheriff’s detective Tom Newquist died of a heart attack. His widow is sure he was keeping secrets from her just before he died – and she hires Kinsey to find out exactly what. But all Kinsey can uncover is that Newquist led an exemplary life, so what could he possibly have to conceal? And why has the town, to the last threatening redneck, closed ranks on her? Kinsey’s on the point of giving up. Until she discovers a chilling new clue: a childish drawing of a thick length of rope – fashioned into a hangman’s noose."

O Is for Outlaw

Sue Grafton

1999

A Kinsey Millhone novel.

" The call comes on a Monday morning from a guy who scavenges defaulted storage units at auction. Last weekend he bought a stack. They had stuff in them – Kinsey stuff. For thirty bucks, he'll sell her the lot. Kinsey's never been one for personal possessions, but curiosity wins out and she hands over a twenty (she may be curious but she loves a bargain). What she finds amid childhood memorabilia is an old undelivered letter. It will force her to re-examine her beliefs about the break-up of her first marriage, about the honour of her first husband, about an old unsolved murder. And it will put her life in the gravest peril."

P Is for Peril

Sue Grafton

2001

A Kinsey Millhone novel.

"It is now nine weeks since Dr Dowan Purcell vanished without trace. The sixty-nine-year-old doctor had said goodnight to his colleagues at the Pacific Meadows nursing home, had climbed into his car and driven away – never to be seen again. His embittered first wife Fiona is convinced he is still alive. His second wife, Crystal – a former stripper forty years his junior – is just as sure he is dead. Enter private investigator Kinsey Malone, hired by Fiona to find out just what has happened to the man they loved. Enter also Tommy Hevener, an attractive flame-haired twenty-something who has set his romantic sights on Kinsey. And Tommy is a man with a very interesting past."

Q Is for Quarry

Sue Grafton

2002

A Kinsey Millhone novel.

"She was a 'Jane Doe', an unidentified white female whose decomposed body was discovered near a quarry off California's Highway 1. The case fell to the Santa Teresa County Sheriff's Department, but the detectives had little to go on, and after months of investigation, the murder remained unsolved. That was eighteen years ago. Now the two men who found the body, both nearing the end of long careers in law enforcement, want one last shot at the case . . . and they turn to Kinsey Millhone to help them find closure. But revisiting the past can be a dangerous business, and what begins with the pursuit of Jane Doe's real identity ends in a high-risk hunt for her killer."

R Is for Ricochet

Sue Grafton

2004

A Kinsey Millhone novel.

"Kinsey Millhone, employed by Nord Lafferty to drive his daughter home from her incarceration at the Californian Institute for Women, marvels at the simplicity of the task. But Reba Lafferty emerges feisty and rebellious, and Kinsey is soon fighting to prevent her charge from breaking the conditions of her parole. As she finds herself befriending the ex-gambler, ex-alcoholic and ex-con, Kinsey discovers that Reba had taken the fall for her boss, also her lover, when he conducted a highly-crafted money laundering scam. Alan Beckwith has so far escaped the clutches of the FBI. Now they believe he is laundering money for a Columbian drug cartel - they just need the proof. When Kinsey is asked by the police to persuade Reba to unveil crucial evidence guaranteed to put Beckwith behind bars, she doesn’t expect cooperation. But when she hears of shocking new information about her lover, Reba is suddenly all too eager to do everything she can to ruin him."

S Is for Silence

Sue Grafton

2005

A Kinsey Millhone novel.

" Just after Independence Day in July 1953 Violet Sullivan, a local good time girl living in Serena Station Southern California, drives off in her brand new Chevy and is never seen again. Left behind is her young daughter, Daisy, and Violet's impetuous husband, Foley, who had been persuaded to buy his errant wife the car only days before . . . Now, thirty-five years later, Daisy wants closure. Reluctant to open such an old cold case Kinsey Millhone agrees to spend five days investigating, believing at first that Violet simply moved on to pastures new. But very soon it becomes clear that a lot of people shared a past with Violet, a past that some are still desperate to keep hidden. And in a town as close-knit as Serena there aren't many places to hide when things turn vicious."

T Is for Trespass

Sue Grafton

2007

A Kinsey Millhone novel.

" When her elderly neighbour Gus has an accident, Kinsey Millhone is relieved when his niece organizes a nurse for him. Verifying a background check on Solana Rojas doesn’t turn up anything suspicious. But Kinsey’s not convinced – especially when Gus seems to be getting worse under his nurse’s tender care. Realizing that her neighbourly concern isn’t going to get her past the front door Kinsey turns to more unorthodox methods to step up her investigation. And gets far more than she bargained for . . . Not only is Solana not who she seems to be but she’s more than able to play Kinsey at her own game. Suddenly the tables have turned and it’s Kinsey who’s on the wrong side of the law."

U Is for Undertow

Sue Grafton

2009

A Kinsey Millhone novel.

"In 1960s Santa Teresa, California, a child is kidnapped and never returned . . . When the case is reopened after twenty years, a man - Michael Sutton - contacts private detective Kinsey Millhone for help. He claims to have recalled a strange and disturbing memory which just might provide the key to the mystery. He may have stumbled across the kidnappers burying Mary Claire Fitzhugh’s body . . . But Michael’s account is indistinct – he was only six years old at the time of the kidnapping; and even members of his family try to discredit his evidence. But Kinsey is certain there is something vital within Michael’s recollections. And even when what is eventually unearthed isn’t what anyone expected, she can’t quite let go of the case."

V Is for Vengeance

Sue Grafton

2011

A Kinsey Millhone novel.

"Las Vegas, 1986. A young college graduate is murdered when he is unable to pay back a loan funded by notorious criminal Lorenzo Dante. Two years later private investigator Kinsey Millhone finds herself assisting to apprehend a shoplifter - Audrey Vance - in a shopping centre. Events take a much darker turn when Audrey's body is discovered beneath the Cold Spring Bridge, a local suicide spot. Unable to believe she took her own life, Audrey's fiancé Marvin Striker hires Kinsey to investigate. It soon emerges that the shoplifter had become caught up in a much larger operation."

W Is for Wasted

Sue Grafton

2013

A Kinsey Millhone novel.

" The first was a local private investigator of suspect reputation. He'd been gunned down near the beach at Santa Teresa. It looked like a robbery gone bad. The other was on the beach six weeks later. He'd been sleeping rough. Probably homeless. No identification. A slip of paper with private investigator Kinsey Millhone's name and number was in his pants pocket. The coroner asked her to come to the morgue to see if she could ID him. Two seemingly unrelated deaths, one a murder, the other apparently of natural causes. But as Kinsey digs deeper into the mystery of the John Doe, some very strange links begin to emerge. And before long at least one aspect is solved as Kinsey finds the key to his identity."

Kinsey and Me: Stories

Sue Grafton

2013

A collection of stories including some featuring Kinsey Millhone.

"A collection of stories that reveal Kinsey's origins - and Grafton's past. The nine stories that open the book show how fully formed Kinsey was from the beginning. The thirteen stories in the second part, written in the decade following her mother's death, feature Kit Blue, a younger version of Grafton herself, and reflect her troubled family life and the author's journey from anger to understanding and forgiveness."

X

Sue Grafton

2015

A Kinsey Millhone novel.

"When a glamorous red head wishes to locate the son she put up for adoption thirty-two years ago, it seems like an easy two hundred bucks for private investigator Kinsey Millhone. But when a cop tells her she was paid with marked bills, and Kinsey's client is nowhere to be found, it becomes apparent this mystery woman has something to hide. Riled, Kinsey won't stop until she's found out who fooled her and why. Meanwhile, the widow of the recently murdered P. I. - and Kinsey's old friend - Pete Wolinsky, needs help with her IRS audit. This seemingly innocuous task takes a treacherous turn when Kinsey finds a coded list amongst her friend's files. It soon leads her to an unhinged man with a catalogue of ruined lives left in his wake. And despite the devastation, there isn't a single conviction to his name. It seems this sociopath knows exactly how to cause chaos without leaving a trace."

Y Is for Yesterday

Sue Grafton

2017

A Kinsey Millhone novel.

"The darkest and most disturbing case report from the files of Kinsey Millhone, Y begins in 1979, when four teenage boys from an elite private school sexually assault a fourteen-year-old classmate — and film the attack. Not long after, the tape goes missing and the suspected thief, a fellow classmate, is murdered. In the investigation that follows, one boy turns in evidence for the state and two of his peers are convicted. But the ringleader escapes without a trace. Now, it’s 1989 and one of the perpetrators, Fritz McCabe, has been released from prison. Moody, unrepentant, and angry, he is a virtual prisoner of his ever-watchful parents — until a copy of the missing tape arrives with a ransom demand. That’s when the McCabes call Kinsey Millhone for help. As she is drawn into their family drama, she keeps a watchful eye on Fritz. But he’s not the only one being haunted by the past. A vicious sociopath with a grudge against Millhone may be leaving traces of himself for her to find."

Telling Lies for Fun Profit: A Manual For Fiction Writers

Lawrence Block

William Morrow

1994

This book was first published in 1981. The introduction by Sue Grafton was added for the 1994 new edition.

"Characters refusing to talk? Plot plodding along? Where do good ideas come from anyway? In this wonderfully practical volume, two-time Edgar Award-winning novelist Lawrence Block takes an inside look at writing as a craft and as a career. From studying the market, to mastering self-discipline and 'creative procrastination,' through coping with rejections, Telling Lies for Fun & Profit is an invaluable sourcebook of information. It is a must read for anyone serious about writing or understanding how the process works."

Ross Macdonald: A Biography

Tom Nolan

Scribner

1999

"Now, in the first full-length biography of this extraordinary and influential writer, a much fuller picture emerges of a man to whom hiding things came as second nature. While it was no secret that Ross Macdonald was the pseudonym of Kenneth Millar -- a Santa Barbara man married to another good mystery writer, Margaret Millar - his official biography was spare. Drawing on unrestricted access to the Kenneth and Margaret Millar Archives, on more than forty years of correspondence, and on hundreds of interviews with those who knew Millar well, author Tom Nolan has done a masterful job of filling in the blanks between the psychologically complex novels and the author's life - both secret and overt."

Snoopy's Guide to the Writing Life

Editor: Barnaby Conrad and Monte Schulz

2002

Includes a 4 page chapter by Sue Grafton.

"Snoopy sits atop his doghouse, banging out stories on a manual typewriter: Usually they begin 'It was a dark and stormy night.' Always they're rejected. In Snoopy's Guide to the Writing Life, a roundup of thirty famous writers and entertainers respond in short, 500-word essays to a favourite strip. Each essay focuses on how the strip presents an aspect of writing life - getting started, getting rejected, searching for new ideas - that they have experienced. The essays are light and humorous, but also offer insight and inspiration to writers working at any level. Contributors include Elmore Leonard, Sue Grafton, Jackie Collins, John Cleese, William Buckley, Danielle Steele, and Jonathan Winters. An introduction by Monte Schulz addresses the writing life and how Snoopy's experience - his tenacity and resilience - can inspire us all."

In the Shadow of the Master

Classic Tales by Edgar Allan Poe

Editor: Michael Connelly

2009

Includes a chapter by Sue Grafton called How I Became An Edgar Allen Poe Convert.

"In the Shadow of the Master is an exceptional collection of classic stories from the lord of literary darkness himself—the inimitable Edgar Allan Poe—accompanied by enthralling essays from twenty of his bestselling acolytes and admirers. With appreciations by Michael Connelly, Stephen King, Lisa Scottoline, Tess Gerritsen, Laura Lippman, Nelson DeMille, Lawrence Block, and thirteen others, In the Shadow of the Master is a must-have for thriller and mystery fans of all ages."

The Best American Mystery Stories 1998

Editor: Sue Grafton

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

1998

"This year's guest editor, Sue Grafton, has put together a wonderfully diverse collection of stories to surprise and satisfy all fans of the genre."

• Child Support (David Ballard)
• Swear not by the Moon (Scott Bartels)
• Keller on the Spot (Lawrence Block)
• The Man Next Door (Mary Higgins Clark)
• This Is a Voice From Your Past (Merrill Joan Gerber)
• The Old Spies Club (Edward D. Hoch)
• Beyond Dog (Pat Jordan)
• Find Miriam (Stuart M. Kaminsky)
• Secrets (Janice Law)
• The Adventure of the Giant Rat of Sumatra (John T. Lescroart)
• Night Crawlers (John Lutz)
• Prayer for Judgment (Margaret Maron)
• Con Doctor (Jay McInerny)
• Black Dog (Walter Mosley)
• Faithless (Joyce Carol Oates)
• The Two Ladies of Rose Cottage (Peter Robinson)
• Twelve Days out of Traction (Dave Shaw)
• The Power of Suggestion (Helen Tucker)
• Take It Away (Donald E. Westlake)
• The Rest of Her Life (Steve Yarbrough)

Writing Mysteries: A Handbook by the Mystery Writers of America

Editor: Sue Grafton with Jan Burke and Barry Zeman

Second edition

2002

" In this extraordinary compilation, more than three dozen members of the Mystery Writers of America share insights and advice that can help make your writing dreams a reality. You'll learn how to:develop unique ideas; construct an airtight plot packed with intrigue and suspense; create compelling characters and atmospheric settings; develop a writing style all your own; write convincing dialogue; choose the appropriate point of view; work with an agent; conduct accurate research; and much, much more!"

"G" is for Grafton: The World of Kinsey Millhone

Natalie Hevener Kaufman and Carol McGinnis Kay

2000

"With the full cooperation of Sue Grafton, who provided unprecedented access to her working journals, "G" Is for Grafton is a must for those many fans who regularly write, e-mail, and Internet each other with such nagging queries as: "Just how old is Kinsey?" and such knotty conundrums as: "Why did Kinsey change guns—and when?" Along the way, readers will discover where Kinsey went to school, what she considers her finest moments, and how she trained for her job. Perhaps just as interesting are the insights the book offers into Grafton's own work habits (including how she's dealt with runaway plot lines and unruly characters) and her views on everything from justice and the moral order to the relationship of her own life to Kinsey's. Written with wit and vitality, this is a fan's delight. But it is also a tribute to the contribution Grafton has made to the detective novel and to mainstream American fiction."

New Hard-Boiled Writers: 1970s-1990s

Leroy Lad Panek

2000

"Beginning in the 1970s, a new generation of writers took over the hard-boiled story and transformed it to fit the realities of their world - a universe infected by violence, greed, racism, sexism, war, and commercialism. The author comments both on the way the hard-boiled story has changed over the past three decades and examines the work of ten significant contemporary hard-boiled writers. Chapters on Robert B. Parker, James Crumley, Loren Estleman, Sara Paretsky, Sue Grafton, Carl Hiaasen, Earl Emerson, Robert Crais, James Lee Burke, and Walter Mosley demonstrate how these writers have used the hard-boiled hero to make powerful statements about life in the last quarter of the twentieth century."