Home :: Books :: Mystery & Thrillers  

Arts & Photography
Audio CDs
Audiocassettes
Biographies & Memoirs
Business & Investing
Children's Books
Christianity
Comics & Graphic Novels
Computers & Internet
Cooking, Food & Wine
Entertainment
Gay & Lesbian
Health, Mind & Body
History
Home & Garden
Horror
Literature & Fiction
Mystery & Thrillers

Nonfiction
Outdoors & Nature
Parenting & Families
Professional & Technical
Reference
Religion & Spirituality
Romance
Science
Science Fiction & Fantasy
Sports
Teens
Travel
Women's Fiction
"N" Is For Noose

"N" Is For Noose

List Price: $25.00
Your Price: $17.00
Product Info Reviews

<< 1 2 3 4 5 6 .. 17 >>

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Loose Ends Choke Story
Review: Since Grafton is into the second half to the alphabet, one can't question her productivity. However, with this many books published in a short period of time something has to give. In "N" there are some problems including sloppy detective work and an unrealistic climax. Otherwise it is a standard murder mystery that Grafton delivers in workmanlike style. Grafton's protagonist heads for rural California to determine what was troubling a police Chief just before his death from a heart attack. Needless to say her initial inquiries are fruitless as local yokels clam up. Perhaps it is considered chic for urban Californians to portrait their more conservative rural fellow Californians as xenophobic boobs, although Grafton treats them more fairly than Pronzini did in The Sentinels. Our heroine is about to give up when she is assaulted and assumes that something is rotten in California. The subsequent investigation leads to a thrilling climax and somewhat satisfactory conclusion. Overall it's not a bad mystery although, for the plot to work, Grafton has to make her detective ignore a key lead. Furthermore, the climactic scene in which she overcomes the villain is totally unrealistic. I'll probably give Grafton another try, as some of this novel was quite good. Perhaps the problems were due to tight deadlines and Grafton not having the time to get the plot details to work. The place of Miss Marple as the premiere female detective is not threatened based on this entry.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: N is for not really than good
Review: Well at least I finished the book, as they say. It was ok...my first Sue Grafton.....we'll try another someday. It just lacked something....I'm not sure what!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Energizer Bunny
Review: Sue Grafton and Kinsey Millhone are both like the Energizer Bunny! They just keep on going! N is for Noose is another in a long line of suspenseful Kinsey mysteries.

In this book, a detective dies and his widow hires Kinsey to find out what had been bothering him lately. Kinsey investigates and unearths a big mess, not to mention nearly losing her life!

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: N is for noose
Review: the book is really slow, or should i say s-l-o-w. it really lack the intensity of a mystery book. i like books with a grip n is for the birds.it had a few moments, but very boring.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: big sam's review for N is for NOOSE
Review: I read N is for Noose by Sue Grafton. I thought it was an excellent book with a very good and exciting plot. I have read some of Sue Graftons other books and this one is the best so far. The book starts out with Kinsey coming to the town of Nota Lake. She gets there and gets hurt and injured and realizes that nobody in the town really likes her being there. She is atacked badly but she recovers quickly. I found it hard at the end when she was solving the mystery with all the complications and numbers and technical stuff but other than that it was great.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: KINSEY IS LOOSE WITH A NOOSE!!!!!
Review: Kinsey has turned loose on the town of Nota Lake. She is to find out that the town sticks together and does not like her being there. She is attacked and hurt, but she comes back strong and solves the mystery. I got confused with all the numbers toward the end of the book, also seems like the ending came and was, wham, over to quick. I did like the fact that she was not shacked up with Dietz in this one. Thanks, Sue Crafton. A pretty good read, some slow places and a lot of description of places. If you like female PI's I think you will like this one.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: One Woman Takes on the Whole Town!
Review: If you are like me, you will see N Is for Noose as the ultimate development of the theme, "I am woman . . . hear me roar."

One of my favorite detective story lines is the one where the whole community turns against the protagonist. Despite this, the detective solves the crime. N Is for Noose follows that plot, and is well done. In fact, the book borders on the genre of the Western in many ways. Read it that way, and you'll like it better.

The book has one uncharacteristic quality for this series, Kinsey is quite slow to solve the mystery. I found that intriguing. Most problem-solving in reality is slow and ineffective. To me, it made the story more realistic and interesting to follow. Others will call it slow plot development.

The resolution in the final 40 pages or so is extremely unusual. It combines elements that are found in many other stories, but never in combination. It literally took my breath away. I could not read it fast enough, even though it is over quickly. Such a powerful coda after so many lento sections is an astonishing surprise, and one that worked well for me. Think of this book as having three long, slow movements followed by one allegro one done fortissimo!

Although this is certainly not the best book in the series, it is a very fine one. I urge you to read it, and appreciate its strengths.

Also, think about whether you really want your novels (and especially mysteries) to be too predictable. What kind of unpredictability is good? What kind isn't?

Stand up for what you believe in, too!

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Grafton is a great storyteller
Review: After reading "F is for Fugitive," I purchased this book and was not disappointed. I admit that the book contains much description of scenery, but this helps to add realism to the novel. Throughout portions of the novel, Kinsey has second thoughts about the case she is currently working on, in which Ms. Newquist desperately wishes to know what was troubling her husband before he suffered a fatal heart attack. The entire town of Nota Lake views Kinsey as an intruder who needs to forget about the case. However, she keeps her promise to Ms. Newquist and goes on a terrifying quest for the truth. What she discovers at the end is surprising, and well worth the read.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: 50 pages too long, but still a winner.
Review: This is the slowest of the Grafton/Kinsey Millhone books, although the final 40 pages rocket to a satisfying finish. There's definitely too much space devoted to superfluous descriptions, but it's Kinsey so all is forgiven. Good start, mediocre middle and a great ending. If this is your first Grafton, either start at the beginning ("A is for Alibi") or go directly to "F is for Fugitive" or "K is for Killer." Those books will show you what the excitement is all about.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Disappointed!
Review: After reading other authors in the genre, I decided to give Grafton a try with N is for Noose. The first 50 pages were tiresome... but I kept going. The next 50 pages were boring... kept reading, waiting for something to happen. Around page 135 I gave up... the entire book is consumed with uninteresting details that seem to lead nowhere. Closed the book and watched a Columbo movie... which was actually enjoyable after this tedious book. I'm not even interested to see how it ended.


<< 1 2 3 4 5 6 .. 17 >>

© 2004, ReviewFocus or its affiliates