Book Review – Y is for Yesterday

Once again, Sue Grafton writes a stellar mystery novel with PI Kinsey Milhone investigating a blackmail case relating to an event from a decade earlier. The case becomes increasingly complex, especially since one of the participants is a missing person. Kinsey’s life is simultaneously complicated by her landlord allowing a homeless woman and her dog to camp out in his yard, the disappearance of her beloved cat, and being stalked by an old enemy. Ms. Grafton draws astute portraits of the characters and makes “Santa Teresa,” Kinsey’s hometown, come to life. While the event precipitating the blackmail isn’t recorded on an iPhone (an unimaginable device in the 1970s), it highlights the difficult nature of investigating rape cases when the perpetrator, victim and/or observers are under the influence of alcohol or drugs.
Haydee A. Dabritz, PhD
Epidemiologist