Sue Grafton: D is for Deadbeat (USA 2012)

From the Publisher:
Sue Grafton's #1 New York Times bestselling series, reissued for a whole new generation of readers!

D IS FOR DEADBEAT
He called himself Alvin Limardo, and the job he had for Kinsey was cut-and-dried: locate a kid who'd done him a favor and pass on a check for $25,000. It was only later, after he'd stiffed her for her retainer, that Kinsey found out his name was Daggett. John Daggett. Ex-con. Inveterate liar. Chronic drunk. And dead. The cops called it an accident -- death by drowning. Kinsey wasn't so sure.

Pulled into the detritus of a dead man's life, Kinsey soon realizes that Daggett had an awful lot of enemies. There's the daughter who grew up with a cheating drunk for a father, and the wife who's become a religious nut in response to an intolerable marriage. There's the lady who thought she was Mrs. Daggett -- and has the bruises to prove it -- only to discover the legal Mrs. D. And there are the drug dealers out $25,000. But most of all, there are the families of the five people John Daggett killed, victims of his wild, drunken driving. The D.A. called it vehicular manslaughter and put him away for two years. The families called it murder and had very good reason to want John Daggett dead.

Deft, cunning, and clever, this latest Millhone mystery also confronts some messy truths, for, as Kinsey herself says, "Some debts of the human soul are so enormous only life itself is sufficient forfeit" -- but as she'd be the first to admit, murder is not a socially acceptable solution.

Sue Grafton: D is for Deadbeat. A Kinsey Millhone Novel. St. Martin's Griffin, ISBN: 9781250020260 (October, 2005), 305 p., $14.99.

Sue Grafton: D is for Deadbeat (UK 2012)

From the Publisher:
The fourth novel in the Kinsey Millhone mystery series, now with a stunning new look
"My name is Kinsey Millhone. I'm a private investigator... female, single and self-employed, with a constitutional inability to work for anyone else. I'm a purist when it comes to justice, but I'll lie at the drop of a hat. Inconsistency has never troubled me...'

It was late October, the day before Halloween. He introduced himself as Alvin Limardo. The job he hired Kinsey to do seemed easy enough... until his cheque bounced. His real name was Dagett. John Dagett. Ex-con. Inveterate liar. Chronic drunk. And dead.

The cops called it an accident -- death by drowning. Kinsey wasn't so sure. The man, it seemed, had a lot of enemies...

Sue Grafton: D is for Deadbeat. A Kinsey Millhone Mystery. Pan, ISBN: 9781447212249 (May, 2005), 352 p., £7.99.

Sue Grafton: D is for Deadbeat (UK 2007)

From the Publisher:
When Alvin Limardo walks into P.I. Kinsey Millhone's office, she smells bad news. He wants Kinsey to deliver $25,000. The recipient: A fifteen-year-old boy. It's a simple matter. So simple that Kinsey wonders why he doesn't deliver the money himself. She's almost certain something is off. But with rent due, Kinsey accepts Limardo's retainer against her better judgment...

When Limardo's check bounces, Kinsey discovers she's been had big time. Alvin Limardo is really John Daggett -- an ex-con with a drinking problem, two wives to boot, and a slew of people who would like to see him dead. Now Kinsey is out four hundred dollars and in hot pursuit of Daggett.

When Daggett's corpse shows up floating in the Santa Teresa surf, the cops rule the death an accident. Kinsey thinks it's murder. But seeking justice for a man who everyone seemed to despise is going to be a lot tougher than she bargained for -- and what awaits her at the end of the road is much more disturbing than she could've ever imagined...

Sue Grafton: D is for Deadbeat. A Kinsey Millhone Mystery. Pan, ISBN: 9780330455534 (August, 2007), 352 p., £6.99 (?).

Sue Grafton: D is for Deadbeat (USA 2005)

From the Publisher:
When Alvin Limardo walks into P.I. Kinsey Millhone's office, she smells bad news. He wants Kinsey to deliver $25,000. The recipient: A fifteen-year-old boy. It's a simple matter. So simple that Kinsey wonders why he doesn't deliver the money himself. She's almost certain something is off. But with rent due, Kinsey accepts Limardo's retainer against her better judgment...

When Limardo's check bounces, Kinsey discovers she's been had big time. Alvin Limardo is really John Daggett -- an ex-con with a drinking problem, two wives to boot, and a slew of people who would like to see him dead. Now Kinsey is out four hundred dollars and in hot pursuit of Daggett.

When Daggett's corpse shows up floating in the Santa Teresa surf, the cops rule the death an accident. Kinsey thinks it's murder. But seeking justice for a man who everyone seemed to despise is going to be a lot tougher than she bargained for -- and what awaits her at the end of the road is much more disturbing than she could've ever imagined...

Sue Grafton: D is for Deadbeat. A Kinsey Millhone Novel. St. Martin's Paperbacks, ISBN: 9780312939021 (November, 2005), 305 p., $7.99.

Sue Grafton: D is for Deadbeat (USA 1991)

From the Publisher:
The client came to Kinsey Millhone with an easy job - just deliver $25,000 to a fifteen-year-old kid. A little odd, and a little too easy, but Kinsey took Alvin Limardo's retainer check anyway. It turned out to be as phony as he was. In real life, his name was John Daggett, a chronic drunk with a record as long as your arm and a reputation for sleazy deals. But he wasn't just a deadbeat. By the time Kinsey caught up with him, he was a dead body - with a whole host of people who were delighted to hear the news. But how do you make a stiff pay up what he owes you?

Sue Grafton: D is for Deadbeat. A Kinsey Millhone Mystery. Bantam, ISBN: 0553271636 (August, 1991), 240 p., $6.99.

Sue Grafton: D is for Deadbeat (USA 1988)

From the Publisher:
The client came to Kinsey Millhone with an easy job - just deliver $25,000 to a fifteen-year-old kid. A little odd, and a little too easy, but Kinsey took Alvin Limardo's retainer check anyway. It turned out to be as phony as he was. In real life, his name was John Daggett, a chronic drunk with a record as long as your arm and a reputation for sleazy deals. But he wasn't just a deadbeat. By the time Kinsey caught up with him, he was a dead body - with a whole host of people who were delighted to hear the news. But how do you make a stiff pay up what he owes you?

Sue Grafton: D is for Deadbeat. A Kinsey Millhone Mystery. Bantam, ISBN: 0553271636 (May, 1988), 240 p., $5.99.

Sue Grafton: D is for Deadbeat (USA 1987)

From the Publisher:
He called himself Alvin Limardo, and the job he had for Kinsey was cut-and-dried: locate a kid who'd done him a favor and pass on a check for $25,000. It was only later, after he'd stiffed her for her retainer, that Kinsey found out his name was Daggett. John Daggett. Ex-con. Inveterate liar. Chronic drunk. And dead. The cops called it an accident--death by drowning. Kinsey wasn't so sure.

Pulled into the detritus of a dead man's life, Kinsey soon realizes that Daggett had an awful lot of enemies. There's the daughter who grew up with a cheating drunk for a father, and the wife who's become a religious nut in response to an intolerable marriage. There's the lady who thought she was Mrs. Daggett--and has the bruises to prove it--only to discover the legal Mrs. D. And there are the drug dealers out $25,000. But most of all, there are the families of the five people John Daggett killed, victims of his wild, drunken driving. The D.A. called it vehicular manslaughter and put him away for two years. The families called it murder and had very good reason to want John Daggett dead.

Deft, cunning, and clever, this latest Millhone mystery also confronts some messy truths, for, as Kinsey herself says, "Some debts of the human soul are so enormous only life itself is sufficient forfeit"--but as she'd be the first to admit, murder is not a socially acceptable solution.

Sue Grafton: D is for Deadbeat. A Kinsey Millhone Mystery. Henry Holt, ISBN: 0805002480 (May, 1987), 229 p., $16.95 (?).