Reading order · 25 books · 1982 to 2017 · Set in the fictional Santa Teresa, California
Kinsey Millhone Books in Order
Kinsey Millhone is a private investigator in Santa Teresa, a fictional version of Santa Barbara, California. Twice divorced, independent and wry, she lives in a converted garage owned by her eighty-something landlord, Henry Pitts, eats at a Hungarian tavern and jogs every morning. The books are set in the 1980s and run through the alphabet.
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Series facts
- Books
- 25
- Published
- 1982 to 2017
- First book
- A Is for Alibi
- Latest
- Y Is for Yesterday (2017)
- Setting
- Set in the fictional Santa Teresa, California
The reading order
Every Kinsey Millhone book in publication order. Choose a title for its cast and summary.
25 books · Set in the fictional Santa Teresa, California
- 1A Is for Alibi1982With Kinsey MillhoneNikki Fife has served eight years in prison for poisoning her husband, a prominent divorce lawyer.Buy on Amazon
- 2B Is for Burglar1985With Kinsey MillhoneA woman hires Kinsey to find her missing sister, a wealthy widow who seems to have vanished on her way to Florida.Buy on Amazon
- 3C Is for Corpse1986With Kinsey MillhoneBobby Callahan, a young man badly injured in a car crash, is sure someone tried to kill him, and hires Kinsey to find out who.Buy on Amazon
- 4D Is for Deadbeat1987With Kinsey MillhoneA man hires Kinsey to deliver a cheque for twenty-five thousand dollars to a teenage boy.Buy on Amazon
- 5E Is for Evidence1988With Kinsey MillhoneKinsey finds five thousand dollars deposited in her bank account, and soon she is under suspicion of insurance fraud and must clear her name.Buy on Amazon
- 6F Is for Fugitive1989With Kinsey MillhoneKinsey goes to a small seaside town to help a dying man whose son, convicted years ago of murdering his girlfriend, has escaped from prison.Buy on Amazon
- 7G Is for Gumshoe1990With Kinsey MillhoneKinsey is hired to find an elderly woman living in the Mojave Desert, and then learns she is on a hit list.Buy on Amazon
- 8H Is for Homicide1991With Kinsey MillhoneWhen a colleague at the insurance company is murdered, Kinsey goes undercover in an insurance fraud ring in Los Angeles.Buy on Amazon
- 9I Is for Innocent1992With Kinsey MillhoneKinsey takes over the work of a private investigator who has died suddenly, helping with a civil case against a man who was acquitted of murdering his wife.Buy on Amazon
- 10J Is for Judgment1993With Kinsey MillhoneA man who was declared dead five years ago is spotted alive in Mexico, and Kinsey is sent to find him.Buy on Amazon
- 11K Is for Killer1994With Kinsey MillhoneA grieving mother asks Kinsey to find out who killed her daughter, whose body was found in her cottage ten months before, a case the police have given up on.Buy on Amazon
- 12L Is for Lawless1995With Kinsey MillhoneKinsey agrees to help a neighbour sort out a dead war veteran’s burial benefits, and finds herself on a cross-country chase after a stolen fortune.Buy on Amazon
- 13M Is for Malice1996With Kinsey MillhoneKinsey is hired to find the black sheep of a wealthy family, who disappeared eighteen years ago, so that he can claim his inheritance.Buy on Amazon
- 14N Is for Noose1998With Kinsey MillhoneThe widow of a detective in a small mountain town hires Kinsey to find out what was troubling her husband before he died.Buy on Amazon
- 15O Is for Outlaw1999With Kinsey MillhoneThe contents of a storage unit lead Kinsey back to her first husband, Mickey Magruder, a former cop, and to the reason she left him.Buy on Amazon
- 16P Is for Peril2001With Kinsey MillhoneKinsey is hired by the former wife of a doctor who has disappeared, leaving behind a nursing home business in trouble.Buy on Amazon
- 17Q Is for Quarry2002With Kinsey MillhoneTwo retired detectives ask Kinsey to help them identify a young woman whose body was found in a quarry in 1969.Buy on Amazon
- 18R Is for Ricochet2004With Kinsey MillhoneKinsey is hired to escort a young woman just released from prison, and to keep her out of trouble.Buy on Amazon
- 19S Is for Silence2005With Kinsey MillhoneIn 1953, Violet Sullivan disappeared from a small California town.Buy on Amazon
- 20T Is for Trespass2007With Kinsey MillhoneKinsey suspects that a new carer looking after her elderly neighbour is not who she says she is.Buy on Amazon
- 21U Is for Undertow2009With Kinsey MillhoneA young man comes to Kinsey with a buried childhood memory of what he now believes was a kidnapping, twenty-one years before.Buy on Amazon
- 22V Is for Vengeance2011With Kinsey MillhoneKinsey sees a woman shoplifting in a department store, and when the woman is found dead days later, Kinsey is drawn into the world of organised crime.Buy on Amazon
- 23W Is for Wasted2013With Kinsey MillhoneTwo dead men, a shady private investigator and a homeless man found on the beach with Kinsey’s name in his pocket, lead her into a tangled case.Buy on Amazon
- 24X2015With Kinsey MillhoneGoing through the files of a dead colleague, Kinsey finds clues that point to a killer who may still be at large.Buy on Amazon
- 25Y Is for Yesterday2017With Kinsey MillhoneIn 1979, a group of private school students were caught up in a scandal that ended in murder.Buy on Amazon
Do you need to read them in order?
Read in alphabetical order, starting with A Is for Alibi. Each case stands alone, but Kinsey’s life and family history unfold through the series. Sue Grafton died before writing Z.
Who appears in which book
The series’ main characters, book by book. Lead means the book is told around them; minor covers cameos.
| Book | Kinsey Millhone | Henry Pitts | Rosie | Lieutenant Dolan | Cheney Phillips | Jonah Robb | Robert Dietz |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 A Is for Alibi | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | |||
| 2 B Is for Burglar | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | |||
| 3 C Is for Corpse | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ||
| 4 D Is for Deadbeat | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | |
| 5 E Is for Evidence | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | |
| 6 F Is for Fugitive | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | |
| 7 G Is for Gumshoe | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | MMajor |
| 8 H Is for Homicide | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | |
| 9 I Is for Innocent | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | |
| 10 J Is for Judgment | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | |
| 11 K Is for Killer | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor |
| 12 L Is for Lawless | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | |
| 13 M Is for Malice | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ||
| 14 N Is for Noose | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ||
| 15 O Is for Outlaw | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ||
| 16 P Is for Peril | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ||
| 17 Q Is for Quarry | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | |
| 18 R Is for Ricochet | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ||
| 19 S Is for Silence | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ||
| 20 T Is for Trespass | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ||
| 21 U Is for Undertow | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ||
| 22 V Is for Vengeance | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ||
| 23 W Is for Wasted | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | |
| 24 X | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ||
| 25 Y Is for Yesterday | LLead | MMajor | ·Minor | ·Minor | ·Minor |
Characters in the Kinsey Millhone books
8 characters from Sue Grafton’s chart, with the number of Kinsey Millhone books each appears in.
| Character | Books | First in this series |
|---|---|---|
| Kinsey MillhonePrivate investigator in Santa Teresa | 25 | A Is for Alibi 1982 |
| Henry PittsKinsey’s landlord, a retired baker | 25 | A Is for Alibi 1982 |
| RosieHungarian owner of Kinsey’s local tavern | 25 | A Is for Alibi 1982 |
| Lieutenant DolanSanta Teresa homicide lieutenant | 25 | A Is for Alibi 1982 |
| Cheney PhillipsPolice detective and Kinsey’s boyfriend | 22 | D Is for Deadbeat 1987 |
| Jonah RobbPolice officer and Kinsey’s on-off lover | 10 | C Is for Corpse 1986 |
| Robert DietzPrivate investigator and Kinsey’s lover | 4 | G Is for Gumshoe 1990 |
| Pete WolinskyDisreputable private investigator | 1 | W Is for Wasted 2013 |