I’ll be honest. I didn’t pick this book because I was dying to know what Kinsey Millhone was up to. I picked it because I needed a “Q” for my A to Z reading challenge, and the pickings were slim. I had vague memories of reading A or B in this series years ago, and even vaguer memories of not loving it. After reading Q is for Quarry, I now remember why.
It’s not that the book is bad. It’s actually well-written and thoughtfully plotted. Sue Grafton knew her craft, and the cold case premise, trying to solve the decades-old murder of an unidentified Jane Doe, was a nice change of pace from the usual high-stakes thrillers I tend to gravitate toward. The problem is… well, the pace. Or lack thereof. I’m a crime thriller reader. I like my books like I like my coffee: Strong and keeping me up at night. This one meandered like a Sunday stroll, and about halfway through I seriously considered skipping a few pages just to make things happen.
That said, Kinsey Millhone is a solid main character. She’s intelligent, capable, and emotionally grounded without being overly sentimental. I like a strong female lead who can do her job without falling into every cliché, and Kinsey checks that box.
She teams up with two retired cops, Stacey Oliphant and Con Dolan, who add some flavor to the investigation. Stacey brought unexpected humor, especially when he discovered the joys of fast food (late in life but enthusiastically), while Con was basically a heart attack waiting to happen. Spoiler alert: the whiskey and chain-smoking finally catch up to him. A blind man could have seen that coming.
The fictional California town of Quorum was well-drawn, and I actually enjoyed the small-town setting. Everyone knew everyone else’s business, which made the investigation more tangled and character-driven. It added texture to the story, even if it didn’t add speed.
In the end, Q is for Quarry is solid crime fiction; it’s just not my speed. If you like a slow-burn detective mystery and don’t mind when the real action waits until the third act, you’ll probably enjoy this one more than I did. As for me, I’ll only be revisiting Kinsey Millhone if I get desperate for “X” or “Z.”
