R IS FOR RICOCHET
By Sue Grafton
G.P. Putnam's Sons/Penguin Group Inc.
375 Hudson Street
New York, NY 10014
www.penguin.com
ISBN 0-399-15228-8
352 pages, Hardback, $26.95
Genre: Mystery

R IS FOR RICOCHET, number eighteen in the Kinsey Milhone series, proves that author Sue Grafton hasn't lost her edge nor grown stagnant with this great series. In this installment, Kinsey is hired by ailing Nord Lafferty to pick up his daughter, Reba, from the California Institute for Women and return her home. Reba has served 22 months of a four-year sentence for embezzling money from her former employer, Alan Beckwith. Kinsey helps Reba settle in and tries to make sure she stays within the rules of her probation, but Reba has a gambling problem and it doesn't take her long to stray. Kinsey gets pulled into the action when approached by the FBI, soliciting her help in convincing Reba to turn on Alan Beckwith, who has been laundering money for the mob. When Reba steals money from Beckwith and takes off, Kinsey's not far behind.

Grafton delivers a fun read with this one, with some really likable characters, Reba in the forefront. I kept waiting for Kinsey to stand up to Nord's bossy girlfriend, but that didn't happen. Sometimes Kinsey's just too nice. But finally, she has a boyfriend who holds a whiff of a promise, and I enjoyed their growing relationship. All fans of Grafton and anyone who likes a good mystery will enjoy this book. As always, she delivers an entertaining, fun read.