Y is for Yesterday

Author Sue Grafton
Re-print Edition Published in December 2018
Publisher is G. P. Putnam’s Sons
Available in eBook, Audio, Hardcover, Paperback (560 pages) & Mass Market
Amateur Sleuths | Private Investigator Mysteries | Women Sleuths

Letter Y was a fun read. I really do like Kinsey’s character and Pearle was a nice addition to Kinsey’s friend pool. I also enjoyed how Ned Lowe who was featured in letter X returned to deal with unfinished business.

The following review was originally posted on Goodreads: March 2023.

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“Y is for Yesterday” by Sue Grafton is a suspenseful mystery involving blackmail, murder, and a stalker. It is book twenty-five in the Alphabet Series.

Kinsey is a gutsy private detective with a sense of humour. As a freelance detective, Kinsey’s life wouldn’t be complete without an enemy from an old case prowling in the shadows and threatening her sense of safety. When will Ned Lowe turn up next? With this threat lurking, Kinsey’s life must go on and she keeps taking cases. “Y is for Yesterday” is a classic “who is the bad guy” story with three murders. One murder is from a decade previous and has strings to Kinsey’s current blackmail case. Never arrested, one accused from the decade-old murder investigation, Austin, remains missing. Before his disappearance, Austin is a bully surrounded by people pretending to be his friends to avoid the worst of his wrath. The second accused, Fritz, was just released from prison. His release triggers the blackmail request using an incriminating VHS tape that captures a sexual assault – real or falsified. All these occurrences involve the same key players. Who is behind the blackmail? Who is behind the murders?

Kinsey is a smart, witty, and resourceful woman who doesn’t back down even when threatened. She is a likeable and realistic character, a twice-divorced, lone wolf with a small but quirky group of friends. In a fictional California city, the storyline unfolds on a split timeline, a decade apart. The double timeline assists with the flow by creating a fast pace and establishing the plot points. The 1979 setting is a school setting which is an appropriate fit for the ages, behaviours, and personalities of the characters. It is also when the first murder occurs. The other setting is 1989, in the homes and neighbourhoods of Kinsey and the 1979 kids, now in their twenties. Each character’s core traits are established early in the story, and then the why of those traits are slowly teased out as the story unfolds. Several suspects emerge at the outset, but the culprit is not easily identifiable.

Suspense builds to a satisfying climax before wrapping up the loose threads of the story. The appeal of “Y is for Yesterday” lies in the continuous action, mounting accusations, and unravelling motives. It provides danger, anticipation, and fear.

Engaging, suspenseful, and cunning, “Y is for Yesterday” is a mystery novel that provides an unexpected ending rolled up with justice.

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shari-marshall

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