Y is for Yesterday by Sue Grafton

Grafton died of cancer after this last book of hers was published. Her family said, "For us, the alphabet ends in Y." I was sorry to have the series end with such a sordid and violent story. I wonder if the darkness of this last entry into the series was a reflection of how she was feeling? The tone isn't depressing, and Kinsey retains her spunk, but the subject matter and criminals are cold and violent and sordid. 

I must have read it when it first came out, but I didn't write about it here. I think it was probably because I disliked it so much. Because I was on a quest to finish the series this time around, I wasn't about to skip it. AND, I wanted to see if I had the same reaction this time around.

I am not sure I would ever choose to read it again, but it wasn't as upsetting as it was the first time around. There is still the trademark snappy humor and interesting characters, but there were too many graphic details of the teenagers' rape scene that were referred to over and over again. I didn't need to be reminded, and I didn't appreciate it. And, in the parallel story, the crazy serial killer Ned also showed his slimey violent self in colorful detail. Overall, the violence and descriptions were not to my liking. 

I enjoyed Pearl's emergence as somewhat of a hero after her earlier in the series introduction as a homeless n'er do well. Henry didn't get much air time, and neither did Cheney or Jonah. However, Cousin Anna's pregnancy may have presaged some interesting plot twists in upcoming Z. Too bad we'll never know what Grafton had in mind. I would have enjoyed seeing some of Kinsey's loose ends tied up neatly. For example, when would Henry die and leave her the house, etc.? Would he leave it to Pearl and others? What about Rosie and William? And where would Cheney end up? And would Dietz return for a romantic yet noncommittal relationship? Or would he finally be ready, and would Kinsey be ready to commit? And what about all of those Millhone relatives? Would there ever be good relationships built with them? So many questions...

It's kind of a relief to have the series be done, and it's also kind of sad. I really enjoyed the whole thing, and I'm also ready to move on. I've begun reading my journals, and there are plenty of them. So before I set out on another ambitious series, I'm committed to at least take one trip through my many, many journals.  

X by Sue Grafton

 I'm nearing the end of my second time through this series, and it makes me sad that I'm almost done! I'm sure I read it when it came out in 2015, and I bought a copy for Melissa, who read it too. I saw her copy when we were in Rapid City last Christmas, and I was tempted to borrow it. But I didn't want to be tempted to read it out of order, so I ordered a cheap used copy from Amazon and thoroughly enjoyed it.

I finished this afternoon, a beautiful spring day in St. George, in the sunshine. I remember it as being kind of a dark story, but it didn't strike me that way this time through. And why didn't I write about it on this blog when I first read it? I was at least partially retired, but I must have just spaced it out. Now I'm more disciplined and careful--I don't allow myself to start my next book until I've recorded the one I just finished. I notice that with my aging brain, I have to be much more methodical about how I operate, or else things just fall through my sieve.

This story had three different threads, and lots of interesting characters. Happily, I was able to track them all. Maybe the warmer weather is helping me think and remember things better??? At any rate, all three stories were interesting. At one point, I thought they might intersect, but they did not. 

The first thread focuses on a rich couple's acrimonious separation and divorce, and centers on the theft of a Turner painting. Of course that intrigued me because he's one of my favorite artists. The second thread involved a psychopath killer whose wife left some mementos for their daughter, and Kinsey has to follow cryptic clues to trace his crimes. And the third one is Henry's new neighbors who turn out to be squatters and criminals. They are elderly and devious. This story comes unraveled when Henry discovers they have diverted his water source when he is desperately trying to conserve water because of the drought. The California weather and landscapes always figure in Grafton's stories, and being a native Californian, that always interests me. 

I'm ambivalent about beginning Y because it is Grafton's last book in the series. She died before she got to Z. I am so curious about how she might have tied up some of Kinsey's story's loose ends. Would her boyfriend Dietz come back to stay? Would she find peace with her family? Maybe some of these will be hinted at in Y is for Yesterday. I can't imagine writing so well when one is suffering from cancer and treatment. Wow.