D is for Deadbeat: A Kinsey Millhone Mystery

By Sue Grafton

D is for Deadbeat is the fourth in the Kinsey Millhone mystery series by Sue Grafton.

My name is Kinsey Millhone. I’m a private investigator . . . female, single and self-employed, with a constitutional inability to work for anyone else. I’m a purist when it comes to justice, but I’ll lie at the drop of a hat. Inconsistency has never troubled me . . .

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 . . .

• Language: English
• Publisher: Pan Macmillan
• Release date: Feb 23, 2011
• ISBN: 9780330524575

Sue Grafton

Sue Grafton was one of the most popular female writers, both in the UK and in the US. Born in Kentucky in 1940, she began her career as a TV scriptwriter before Kinsey Millhone and the 'alphabet' series took off. Two of the novels B is for Burglar and C is for Corpse won the first Anthony Awards for Best Novel. Sue lived and wrote in Montecito, California and Louisville, Kentucky.

Reviews for D is for Deadbeat

[cal7014 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This book is a continuation of Sue Grafton's letter books. In D is for Deadbeat, the main character Kinsey Milhorne becomes a more dynamic character and it is a page-turner in the end. This book is an excellent read.

[barb_h_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Another good, quick audiobook in this series by Sue Grafton. It's fun to listen to while I am crocheting or playing games or walking.

[tvnerd95 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I have to admit this one was hard to listen to. Most of the characters were reprehensible and the background on the case was a very sad story. Throughout the book you are not sure about the John Daggett character and wonder all the times at his motives for doing things.

Kinsey has to deal with a very diverse group of characters in this book. There are ex-cons, teenagers, siblings, multiple wives and a very anger daughter. Kinsey also finds herself just waiting for a break in the case to move to the next clue. This is probably the first book where I actually felt some sympathy for the killer. When this book was over, I think I felt as tired and emotionally drain as Kinsey did – it just wasn’t a story with any light to dark places.

Judy Kaye continues to deliver one of the most consistent narrations of a book series that I have ever listened to. You always know when Kinsey is speaking and you can easily discern the voices of the other characters without any confusion.

[whybehave2002 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This was okay....

[starknits_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

3.5 Stars really So this installment was good I didn’t expect the ending till the end.

[hopeevey · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Well written, as all of these books are. I'm not really thrilled with the ending. The final scene is very good; the road to get there felt a bit heavy on the plot fairy. None the less, I enjoyed it and will keep reading the series :)

[lhlady_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I thoroughly enjoy the Kinsey Millhone mystery novels. They are entertaining, well written, and easy to read in a few hours.

[lamotamant · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I felt like this book underlined my previous review/thoughts on C is for Corpse. I like Millhone's sarcasm but find her judgement of the emotional pain of Daggett's victims off. Her inability to comprehend or have compassion for others seems to make her really blunder through this case in particular. I just find myself really hoping that there's more warmness in her character looming in the books ahead. I couldn't come away from the final scenes having a lot of heart for Millhone.

[gayla.bassham · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

My favorite of the Kinsey Millhones so far.

[tjsjohanna_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The ending of the this book is probably a good example of why I haven't really enjoyed this series. It was a very realistic ending but it was also depressing and more realistic than I want my escapist reading to be. The book is well-written and the mystery had me guessing almost right to the end.

[terribooks · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

So it's not great literature. It's easy to follow and relaxing to read. I enjoyed it for what it is.

[docwalt10 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

As always, a great read. Never a dull moment. Her books could be read in one seating if one had the time. I never tire of Kinsey Millhone, the main character in Sue Grafton's books. She is an independent young woman, self-employed, doing what she loves to do and is good at it. As a private investigator, she is a minority in her field. If you enjoy suspense, this is book and series for you.

[lamour_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A client comes to Kinsey with an easy job but so easy Kinsey felt she was not being told the truth. The job was to deliver a $25,000 cheque to a 15 year old kid. The client who had given her a fictitious name turned out to be a chronic drunk with a sleazy background and he had just been released from jail. Where did he get $25,000? Why was he giving it to the kid?Soon Kinsey has a list of questionable people who are very happy when the client turns up dead. For Kinsey at first it was how to get her money from the dead client as his retainer cheque had been a phony. However, soon she wanted to find out who had killed him even though the police had thought his death was an accident. Of course those people also want the money as well.Complicated plot together with an interesting heroine who has her own personal issues to sort out made this a book I could not put down. As I was reading, I would ask why dosen't she just use her phone to head off that problem or to contact the police, but then I realize there were no cell phones in the late 1980's. Otherwise much of the social life of the characters could be taking place today.

[valerieandbooks · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

***This is a project of e-reading Grafton's series -- I started reading these back in the 1980s and would read each release as they came out over the years. To prevent spoilers, I will not attempt to summarize in detail. ***A bit less memorable than A - C, which may be why “whodunnit” didn‘t come back to me until near the end in this re-read.

[cbloky · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

once again the author has you thinking and trying to figure out who done it. this time i didnt figure it out but loved the twist

[jim53_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

In her fourth adventure, Kinsey gets an intriguing visit from a man who wants her to track down a teenager and deliver a check. The man who visited her turns up dead and his bizarre and unattractive history is disclosed. His daughter engages Kinsey to investigate his death.The story is only mildly interesting, a typical lightweight mystery. None of the secondary characters are developed or attractive. The writing is adequate but certainly not a plus. Just another mildly enjoyable, light read, which will be familiar to those familiar with th eseries.

[mrsbaty · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Again, Sue Grafton has written a completely different type book from the 3 that precede it in the series. She always manages to come up with something new for Kinsey Millhone. The only flaw I find in the books is that Kinsey, at times, seems so patronizing about the normal things that regular people do in their day-to-day lives. I get that she's independent with no family ties and feels no need to do the socially acceptable things but she really seems to look down on those who do have family ties and like doing the socially acceptable things. That is the only thing that mars my enjoyment of an excellent set of mysteries. I'll keep reading them as long as Sue Grafton keeps writing them.

[yonitdm · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Fun read. Good mystery, crazy characters!

[bookconcierge · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Digital audio read by Mary Peiffer.3.5*** Book four in the series. PI Kinsey Millhone gets a new client whose story seems a bit fishy. He wants her to deliver a certified check to a teen-aged boy. Her suspicions are aroused, especially when he refuses to explain why he can’t (or won’t) deliver it himself. But it’s the end of the month, rent is due, and she accepts his retainer. Then his check bounces and she quickly discovers that he isn’t who he claimed to be. When he turns up dead the police call it accidental drowning, but Kinsey thinks he was murdered. They question is why and by whom?I really like this series. I had started it years ago and probably got to about book 8 or 9 before I stopped reading. Now I’ve started over from the beginning and am enjoying the retro feel. There are no cell phones or computers; Kinsey has to rely on her intellect, her network of connections and good old-fashioned leg work. She’s smart, determined, self-sufficient and never has to rely on a man to get her out of a tight spot. Mary Peiffer does a fine job reading the audio version. She sets a good pace and I really like how she interprets Kinsey’s personality.

[tkcs-3 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I've been doing audio books in the car lately. Although this one is on CD, I discovered that there are many books to download for free from my library system. Very cool. You download them and they expire in 21 days.

[polywogg · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

BOTTOM-LINE:An okay but very depressing case..PLOT OR PREMISE:Kinsey is hired to deliver a cashier's cheque to a 15-year-old, but the client stiffs her on the fee so she hunts for him before delivering it..WHAT I LIKED:There isn't a lot of mystery early on, just a few simple unanswered questions until a body drops. Now suddenly there's a murder to solve. The initial premise of the lying client sounded a bit familiar to one of her other novels, but not quite the same, which was good. And while Jonah features in the story, the rest of the ancillary characters are non-existent, leaving the story to run along at a decent pace..WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE:I never really felt much sympathy or empathy for the murder victim, so it's hard to get too excited about the case. Overall, most of the characters and the outcomes are all negative, so the whole storyline is rather a downer..DISCLOSURE:I received no compensation, not even a free copy, in exchange for this review. I am not personal friends with the author, nor do I follow her on social media.

[samantha71020 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Kinsey Millhone is back and better than ever in D is for Deadbeat. She comes across a suspiciously easy case: deliver a cashier's check to a young teenage boy. Against her better judgement, Kinsey agrees to take on the case. But she soon finds that her new case isn't as it seems as the man who hired her winds up dead. And everyone that knows him has reasons for wanting him dead. Kinsey can't seem to let the case go, even if it means that danger lurks around every corner.D is for Deadbeat is another amazing read in Grafton's alphabet mystery series! Easily one of the best mystery series that I've read in a long time. I have a hard time putting these books down! I love Kinsey as a main character, love how realistic she comes across, and how unapologetic she is when it comes to her personality. She is who she is and doesn't seem to care what anyone thinks. This book was another read that kept me on my seat as I read it...I just kept thinking one more chapter until I had over half of the book read :) I thought that the mystery was both original and unconventional. Especially the ending and who the killer was. I didn't see that one coming from a mile long! But what I enjoy most about these books is the entire process and watching Kinsey figure out who the killer/bad guy is. I usually never see the ending coming and of course this book didn't disappoint. It was just a great read for me!All in all, another exceptional read from this author! I love Kinsey and these books....I just can't get enough! They are fast-paced, easy reads that keep me coming back for more. Highly recommended to mystery lovers! And if you haven't begun this series yet, what are you waiting for????Bottom Line: Hand's down a must read series, and this book is another great addition to it!Disclosure: I bought my copy of this book from the used book store. (Finally, I read something off of my own shelves!)

[london_stj · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The Kinsey Millhone mysteries continue to improve as the series progresses. Grafton is dedicated to realism in her novels, and she focuses on the little details (grocery shopping, eating dinner, the barriers Kinsey faces) to create the proper perspective. In previous novels these details were a bit tedious, but Grafton finds a nice balance of day-to-day and suspense in 'D' is for Deadbeat.

[riverwillow · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

OK, but quite formulaic. Not that this is necessarily a bad thing.

[brokenangelkisses · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Sue Grafton is a crime fiction writer with one series to her name: the alphabet murders, starring female PI Kinsey Milhone. After reaching ‘G is for gumshoe’ she was able to give up her day job writing screenplays. So far she has written 22 books in the series (up to ‘V is for vengeance’) and she has stated that the final book will be called ‘Z is for zero’. Although this is a writer one of my friends had previously recommended, I always felt the titles were actually rather off-putting and it took the author becoming a book group read for me to finally open this book, which had sat on my shelf for many years. Could it be better than the rather dull title suggested?The premiseAlvin Limardo hires Kinsey Milhone to deliver a cheque to a young boy. The job seems like easy money, but when Kinsey’s pay check bounces she sets out to find Limardo and discovers that he’s really a drunk called John Daggett who was fresh out of prison – and he’s now dead. Although the police think his death was accidental, Kinsey’s not so sure: it seems unlikely that a man with so many enemies would die by accident…My thoughtsI didn’t find the premise of this crime story particularly interesting and the reading experience lived up to that lack of expectation. It doesn’t help that Daggett is such an unpleasant character: even Kinsey wonders what she’s doing bothering to investigate his fate. It isn’t clear that a crime has been committed until over half way through the story (and even then it could still be an accident), which meant that I struggled to care about the investigation – which is meant to be the focus of any decent crime novel in my opinion.So what is the focus here? Kinsey Milhone. Writing in the first person, Grafton quickly introduces readers to Kinsey on the first page of the first chapter. We learn that she’s a PI, that she’s writing after the events of the story she’s about to tell, and a bit about her character. Obviously, when a series has already run to 22 books and you’re about to read the fourth, it’s obvious that nothing too terrible can befall your protagonist. When they tell you that this case started because they didn’t want to gain a reputation for letting clients have freebies, and this is the major element of the case they prioritise, it appears that nothing even a little bit bad can happen to them. While Kinsey is a perfectly likeable and sympathetic protagonist – she just wants to make her money and get on with her life – I wanted a protagonist I could fear for to make the narrative more gripping. No matter how unsavoury the characters this PI spoke to were, I never had any sense that she might find herself in danger and, for me, this meant that the book was very easy to put down and not pick up for a while – it wasn’t gripping.However, it was a quite pleasant, gentle read. I thought the choice of first person narration worked well as Kinsey is quite personable and her voice often lends events a faintly comic perspective. In some ways, this book reminded me of Janet Evanovich’s number crime series starring comically inept Stephanie Plum – except that Kinsey knows what she’s doing. Her contacts at the police station are helpful and she gradually puts the pieces of the case together using research and the conviction that her interviewees know more than they’re letting on. Although there are no stunning twists or startling discoveries, there are sufficient plot developments to keep the plotline developing; whether there’s enough to keep readers really engaged is another question. The evidence is rather thin and takes a lot of chasing. Ultimately, it is hard to see how Kinsey can really make a case of what she’s found.The ending is in keeping with the characters and settings established in the rest of the book. In this world, life is generally rather harsh and unfair. Some readers may find the ending a little sad as it really reinforces this idea. There is a full explanation of events offered which should please readers who like everything to be wrapped up neatly. There is a very short epilogue so the ending could feel a little abrupt, but in fact it felt like a natural finishing point to the story; there was nothing further a reader needed to know or see.I read this as a standalone book rather than reading it as part of a series and felt that it worked well. There is a very brief introduction to Kinsey on the first page and there are a couple of other characters who are clearly series regulars, but I did not feel that I needed more back-story. The story keeps within its boundaries and there are no big inducements to read the next in the series. I like this approach because I feel it means the author is trusting that their story telling abilities will bring the reader back, rather than relying on a big hook. Regular readers will probably find the developments in Kinsey’s love life interesting. Personally, I was not really interested in these developments but found that this was not a problem as they did not get a lot of ‘screen time’ in the story. Interestingly, Grafton originally tried her hand at novel writing but had limited success. After that she spent 15 years writing screenplays for television films. I definitely think this experience has influenced her writing style: she describes scenes in just the right amount of detail so that they are conveyed vividly to the reader but ensuring that the reader does not become bogged down in irrelevant descriptive detail. This was a feature of her writing I really enjoyed and I could imagine this book being adapted successfully for TV. However, don’t expect it on your screens anytime soon: after 15 years involved in the industry, Grafton is not interested in turning her books into films and has apparently barred her children from doing so after she has died.ConclusionsI found this an easy, pleasant read despite the darkness of the characters’ lives. Kinsey’s narration is mildly enjoyable, as is Grafton’s descriptive style. While the plot is a little thin and the crime could not be described as gripping there is sufficient interest to reach the end of the storyline which fits well with what has gone before. There are several suitable twists and turns as the plot develops and the reader is able to solve the crime with Kinsey: there are no extra revelations at the end that mean the reader could never have solved the mystery. Personally, I found this an unmemorable read and I won’t be seeking out another book in the series anytime soon. However, it was a mildly satisfying read and if I came across one, in a holiday cottage for instance, I would be happy to curl up with it.The story was first published in 1986 but it didn’t feel particularly dated. My copy is quite old so it has an RRP of £4.99, which feels like quite good value for 229 pages written in small font. Newer copies have an RRP of between £7-9 which feels a little too pricey for something so simple. This isn’t a book I would reread for the pleasure of the writing or to look at how it all fit together; if I reread it at all it would be in years to come when I’ve forgotten the plot completely. For that reason, unless you’re a keen fan of this series, I would recommend purchasing or borrowing a second hand copy, which is available cheaply from the usual places.

[reading_fox · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Find a person. Kinsey gets asked to track a child, but her client doen't pay his bills and by the time she's found him, he's died. Kinsey continues to investigate anyway, amoung the poorer areas of town.Continues the development of Kinsey's character and life. An average read for Kinsey, no obvious plot holes and a decent twist at the end. The series body count is already unbelievably high though.