48 pages • 1 hour read
A Is For Alibi
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Summary and Study Guide
Overview
A is for Alibi (1982), written by Sue Grafton, is the first book in the Alphabet Mysteries series, featuring private investigator Kinsey Millhone. In the novel, Millhone, a former police officer, is hired by a woman who claims she was wrongfully convicted eight years ago of murdering her cheating husband.
The Alphabet Mysteries series redefined the role of women detectives in 20th-century literature. The novel is a police procedural that touches on themes such as the dynamics of marriage, the societal expectations placed on women, justice and wrongful imprisonment, and truth and deception. The novel served as a foundation for a series that found a dedicated reader base.
This guide is based on the 2005 St. Martin’s Paperbacks edition.
Content Warning: This guide includes discussions of suicide and violence present in the source text.
Plot Summary
In A is for Alibi, the protagonist, private detective Kinsey Millhone, takes on a seemingly unsolvable eight-year-old murder case at the request of recently paroled Nikki Fife. Although unsure of the impact she can have on such a cold case, Millhone is swayed by Nikki’s earnest plea to clear her name after being convicted of murdering her husband eight years ago.
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