Reviews

"j" Is for Judgment: A Kinsey Millhone Novel by Sue Grafton

pearl35's review against another edition

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3.0

Having recently been fired from working cases for California Fidelity, PI Kinsey Millhone is surprised to be brought back in to investigate the possible resurfacing of Wendell Jaffe, who, it seems, faked his death and made off with the proceeds of a real estate Ponzi scheme with his partner and angry investors hot on his trail.  Now, because his son is arrested for murder, he might be back in town with the woman he ran off with, and in search of money hidden during his disappearance.  Kinsey steps into the middle of untrustworthy people in crisis--Wendell's new girlfriend/co-conspirator, Wendell's abandoned wife, Wendell's two sons (one of whom is in jail for a brutal murder), Wendell's ex-partner (who went to jail for the scheme while Wendell escaped) to attempt to get the insurance company out of paying their 500k policy on "dead" Wendell.  In the middle of this, Grafton chose to have Kinsey discover her maternal family--the Grandmother and cousins who knew where she was being raised by Black Sheep Aunt Gin, but did nothing.  It's a surprisingly accurate portrayal of reaction, not a saccharine reunion.

seacrab1's review

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2.0

I've been reading these in order, so now I have 15 more to go. With so many novels, it stands to reason that there would be one (at least) that's a clunker, one that just falls flat. "J" is that one, and hopefully, the only.

I'm still a big fan of Ms. Grafton and Kinsey but this one was a slog to finish. Insurance fraud just isn't very exciting, and I never connected with any of the characters. Even Kinsey annoyed me at times. The side story about her having lost relatives was somewhat interesting, especially in contrast to the snooze of the main story, but was hard to believe. I hope "K" gets it back on track.

boneist's review against another edition

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4.0

Enjoyable enough.

katie_jones_reads0386's review against another edition

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5.0

An interesting story in the Kinsey Millhone series.

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ladybatherine's review against another edition

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3.0

This book could have been a lot more interesting than it actually was. I wish there had been more of Kinsey searching for Wendall rather than him landing on her doorstep in Santa Teresa almost immediately.

sarahdouble's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional funny mysterious sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

superwendy's review against another edition

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3.0

I've fallen down a comfort read rabbit hole and have been randomly hopscotching through the alphabet relistening to various Grafton's on audio. I didn't remember anything about this one, including the fact that it's the book where Kinsey finds out more about her family (I was thinking that happened in M....). Anyway, this one kept me guessing for a long while but then it just sort of fizzled at the end without a lot of closure. While I enjoyed Kinsey's speculation at the end ("I thought this was Wendell Jaffe's story...") the story peters out with a sigh.

savellyse_88's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious fast-paced

4.75

kellycorn's review against another edition

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2.0

Something kept this novel from being a great read. It really started out with a bang -- Kinsey Millhone travels to Mexico to verify that a man thought dead for 5 years is in fact alive. With usual Kinsey fashion, she eventually discovers the truth behind the sighting of the man and uncovers a lot of intrigue along the way.

I read these kind of mysteries because they are fun and quick. They keep me wanting to read more, they are hard to put down, but what separates them is their exposition, how they end. Do I feel satisfied? In the case of this particular Kinsey novel, I did not. The end of the book did not hold up to the trip there. Still, I enjoy this series and will read more!

chatreuse's review against another edition

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I've read the previous books in this series, and this is the first one that I could not finish. It just seemed to drag on sooooo much more than her other books.
I really experienced what others had complained of before, that the author describes every little inconsequential thing that Kinsey does...I don't care to read about her jogging routes anymore!
Abandoned 16% in.