By Sue Grafton
Putnam Adult | 416pgs
ReleaseDate: December 1, 2009

Private Investigator Kinsey Millhone returns in U is for Undertow, the 21st installment of Sue Grafton’s beloved series. The book opens in April of 1988, when a man named Michael Sutton arrives at Kinsey’s office, claiming to have recovered memories related to an unsolved kidnapping of a young girl in 1972. Though Kinsey is skeptical about Sutton’s story, his offer to pay in cash induces her to take on the case, and an unmarked grave is soon discovered. As Kinsey begins to uncover decades-old secrets, new information comes to light about Sutton’s past and the validity of his memories is called into question. It is up to Kinsey to unravel the truth from a tangled web of falsehoods, and get justice for the young girl abducted decades ago.

The book’s narrative moves between April 1988 and the summer of 1967, and from the point of view of several different characters, to create a rich, textured story. Early critic’s reviews have been very positive, with the Library Journal stating: “Her [Grafton's] latest is fresh, complex, fast-paced, and immensely enjoyable.” Grafton started the series in 1982, and is committed to writing 26 books, to finish the alphabet. The final volume will be called Z Is for Zero, though the author has not revealed any clues to how the series will end.