U is for Undertow: A Kinsey Millhone Novel

Sue Grafton

Dec 2009 · Penguin

About this ebook

Sue Grafton takes the mystery genre to new heights with this twisting, complex #1 New York Times bestseller that draws private investigator Kinsey Millhone into a case shrouded in the sins of the past.

Looking solemn, Michael Sutton arrives in Kinsey Millhone's office with a story to tell. When he was six, he says, he wandered into the woods and saw two men digging a hole. They claimed they were pirates, looking for buried treasure. Now, all these years later, the long-forgotten events have come back to him—and he has pieced them together with news reports from the time, becoming convinced that he witnesses the burial of a kidnapped child.

Kinsey has nearly nothing to go on. Sutton doesn't even know where he was that day—and, she soon discovers, he has a history of what might generously be called an active imagination. Despite her doubts, Kinsey sets out to track down the so-called burial site. And what's found there pulls her into a hidden current of deceit stretching back more than twenty years...

Ratings and reviews

This is an outstanding addition to Sue Grafton’s alphabet series, as she proves once again the depth of her talent. For fans of this series, Kinsey remains true to form. For first time readers, it’s hard not to like this personable, spunky, believable and easy to relate to protagonist. Her uniqueness, complete with flaws, carries the story (and series) with ease; I just can’t get enough of her. The cast of supporting characters is also amazing. Grafton adds layers and diversity to the story by writing from their different perspectives. Although I am very familiar with this series, the book is well written and the characters so nicely developed, you don’t need to read the other books to fully appreciate this one. There is not a lot of action in this installment and the author reveals the who done it quite early on, but Sue Grafton’s gift for storytelling grabs you and keeps you turning pages with unexpected plot turns and complexities in the case and Kinsey’s personal life. For long time followers of the series, Kinsey just may be on the precipice of change, especially where her estranged family is concerned. Of course we won’t know for sure until the next installment. However, the quality I love most about her, that of imparting wonderful insight into her psyche by talking to herself, remains intact. Grafton also teases you with subtle tidbits of information to keep you guessing about the why and smoothly moves the story back and forth between the present day in 1988 and the past in 1967. This is a great read for mystery lovers or anyone who likes a good story. It’s not to be missed by Sue Grafton’s fans.

Very good. A bit different than the other Grafton A-T books, but just as good. I always get lost in Kinsey's world.

I've been reading JD Robb since the 1st "In Death" book was published. After all of these years, I still have not tired of these books! I find it frustrating when I have to wait for the next book to be published! I've never cared for Nora Roberts, simply because I don't care for romance, but as long as JD Robb is writing, I hope the Eve Duncan series never ends!

About the author

#1 New York Times bestselling author Sue Grafton first introduced Kinsey Millhone in the Alphabet Series in 1982. Soon after, both writer and heroine became icons and international bestsellers. Ms. Grafton was a writer who consistently broke the bonds of genre while never writing the same book twice. Named a Grand Master by the Mystery Writers of America, her awards and honors included the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Private Eye Writers of America, the Ross Macdonald Literary Award, the Cartier Diamond Dagger Award from Britain's Crime Writers' Association, the Lifetime Achievement Award from Malice Domestic, a Lifetime Achievement Award from Bouchercon, three Shamus Awards, and three Anthony Awards—including the first two ever awarded. She passed away in December 2017.