"E" Is for Evidence
Cover of the book "E" Is for Evidence by Sue Grafton.
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| Author | Sue Grafton |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Series | Alphabet Mysteries |
| Genre | Mystery |
| Published | 1988 (Henry Holt and Company) |
| Media type | Print (Hardcover) |
| Pages | 227 pp (first edition) |
| ISBN | |
| OCLC | 16901295 |
| 813/.54 19 | |
| LC Class | PS3557.R13 E2 1988 |
| Preceded by | "D" Is for Deadbeat |
| Followed by | "F" Is for Fugitive |
"E" Is for Evidence is the fifth novel in Sue Grafton's "Alphabet" series of mystery novels and features Kinsey Millhone, a private eye based in Santa Teresa, California. It is the shortest book in the series to date. The novel's plot develops Kinsey's personal back-story, as it features her second ex-husband, jazz musician and drug-user, Daniel Wade, previously mentioned briefly in C is for Corpse.
In 2005, Grafton told an interviewer that she prefers to pick a title early in the writing process because that helps to direct her storytelling. "For one book I had thought of "E" Is for Ever. I loved the play on words but I had to figure a better title. So I picked "E" Is for Evidence. If I know the title I can make sure the story I'm telling is pertinent."
The fifth "Alphabet" mystery novel opens just after Christmas, with Kinsey discovering that five thousand dollars has mysteriously been credited to her bank account, and flashes back a few days when she was asked to investigate a fire claim at a factory in Colgate as part of her informal office space rental arrangement with California Fidelity Insurance. The business in question, Wood/Warren, is owned and operated by the Wood family, whom Kinsey has known on a personal level since high school. Company founder Linden Wood is dead, but his son Lance now runs the company, and his four other children, Ebony, Olive, Ash and Bass all have a stake. Ash is Kinsey's former schoolmate, and Bass was an acquaintance of her second ex-husband, Daniel Wade. Olive is married to Terry Kohler, Lance's second-in-command at the company. After a solitary Christmas, with Henry away visiting relatives, and Rosie's Tavern shut down till the new year, Kinsey writes off the fire as an industrial accident, but upon submitting her report to her boss, she finds that significant papers have been removed from the file and others substituted, giving an appearance that Lance Wood has bribed Kinsey not to label the fire as arson. In the middle of protesting her innocence, the five thousand dollar credit takes on a sinister significance.
Temporarily suspended from California Fidelity, Kinsey takes up her own investigation to prove her innocence, aided (unwillingly at first) by CFI administrator Darcy. Darcy's united with Kinsey in her dislike of claims manager Andy Motycka, who is Kinsey's chief suspect in the set-up, although she's at a loss who he could be working for. Kinsey reconnects with the Wood family, and learns some of their dark family secrets: that Ebony, the oldest sister, wants control of the business and that Lance was practically a criminal in high school. She also learns that a former Wood/Warren employee, Hugh Case, committed suicide two years before, but the suspicious disappearance of all the lab work on Hugh's body seems to support his widow Lyda's claim that it was murder rather than suicide. Kinsey remains unconvinced by Lyda's conviction that Lance was Hugh's killer but can't seem to find any other leads. Her spirits are at a low ebb and it's the worst possible moment for Daniel to show up, eight years after leaving without a word. Kinsey finds it hard it cope with but eventually agrees to store a guitar for him while he sorts himself out.
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