Library Journal
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In Grafton's 18th Kinsey Milhone mystery, the crime is not murder (although a corpse does pays a brief visit) but "love gone right, love gone wrong, and matters somewhere in between." Hired by dying millionaire Nord Lafferty to baby-sit his recently paroled daughter, Reba, Kinsey finds herself entangled in a complex money-laundering scheme when Reba decides to take revenge on the two-timing lover for whom she had gone to prison. Meanwhile, Kinsey's octogenarian landlord resigns himself to a loveless life after his interfering brothers sabotage a budding relationship with a lively widow. And the twice-divorced Kinsey has to decide whether to risk opening her heart to sexy cop Cheney Phillips. As demonstrated here, Grafton's series remains fresh and exciting, with complex plots and well-developed characters. Kudos to Grafton for maintaining her high standards. Grafton lives in California and Kentucky. [A BOMC, Doubleday Book Club, Literary Guild, and Mystery Guild main selection.]-Wilda Williams, Library Journal (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Kirkus
Copyright © Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

R is really for romance, as Kinsey Millhone acknowledges on the first page of this tale of love gone right and wrong and every which way in between. After serving her time for embezzling $350,000 from real-estate entrepreneur Alan Beckwith, Reba Lafferty's emerging from the California Institution for Women, and her father, an ancient millionaire, wants somebody to meet her at the prison gate, drive her home, and make sure she gets settled. Mission accomplished, Kinsey and Reba agree after two days of salt-and-pepper rapport. But like the Commander in Chief, they turn out to be premature. Reba's relationship to the man she robbed is fraught with complications that multiply by the minute, and before long Lt. Cheney Phillips, Santa Teresa PD, is leaning on Kinsey to lean on Reba to gather evidence in a money-laundering case for the IRS, the FBI, and the DEA. Back home, Kinsey's landlord, spry geezer Henry Pitts, chafes as his even older brothers try to cut into his courtship of widowed painter Mattie Halstead, leaving Kinsey wondering why she's trying to foster some love affairs and nip others in the bud. No more mystery than Q Is for Quarry (2002). But Kinsey's frantic attempts to keep her balance on the tightrope between a pair of lovers scheming against each other, and her own latest stab at romance, will have fans purring contentedly. Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Publishers Weekly
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Bestseller Grafton offers more of the same-old same-old in her less-than-inspired 18th Kinsey Millhone novel (after 2002's P Is for Peril). In this sexy adventure, the spunky hard-boiled detective has to escort the newly paroled Reba Lafferty, privileged ne'er-do-well, to her stately home, keeping her on the straight and narrow. Reba challenges the PI with her barely concealed hankerings for the now off-limits booze, gambling and charming Alan Beckwith, married real estate developer and former employer for whom Reba took a two-year barbwire vacation courtesy of the California Institution for Women. Lust is in the air as studly, stylish cop Cheney Phillips enters in his red Mercedes, fanning the flames with Kinsey, when Beckwith's activities catch the eye of the feds. Kinsey lends a supportive ear to her beloved 87-year-old landlord, smitten by a 70-year-old neighbor. Kinsey and Reba team up to get the goods on Beckwith, but reckless Reba has vengeful ideas of her own and more than once lands their collective fat in the fire. If the chemistry between Cheney and Kinsey seems forced at times, Grafton as usual creates believable and enduring characters and a strong sense of place in her town of Santa Teresa circa 1987. And that should be more than enough for most fans. Agent, Molly Friedrich at the Aaron Priest Literary Agency. (July 13) Forecast: A decline in quality in this iconic series hardly matters. A national author tour will help fuel another bestseller. BOMC Main Selection, main selection of Doubleday Book Club, Literary Guild and Mystery Guild. (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved

School Library Journal
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Adult/High School-Kinsey has been hired by a wealthy father to befriend his daughter upon her release from prison after serving a sentence for embezzling funds from her boyfriend/employer. It sounds easy, but the detective learns quickly that Reba's boss is still involved in a complex money-laundering scheme and is wanted by many federal law-enforcement agencies who want Reba to help them get evidence against him. Eventually she does, but there are problems leading to the exciting climax when the sleuth herself is kidnapped. Kinsey is young enough to appeal to teens; her lighthearted personality and witty asides amuse and entertain. Fans of this series will be pleased that she has a new boyfriend, but may be frustrated because her elderly landlord's family interferes.-Claudia Moore, W. T. Woodson High School, Fairfax, VA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Book list
From Booklist, Copyright © American Library Association. Used with permission.

R could be for rocking chair in the latest Kinsey Millhone, which doesn't so much imitate the action of a bullet bouncing off bone as offer a leisurely treatise on thwarted love. This is not an especially fast-moving Grafton. That won't bother the series' many fans, however, as there is plenty devoted to exploring the character of Millhone herself, still living in a converted garage, still driving her VW, still (improbably) without any female friends, but here with a nicely charged return to an impossible affair. There is far too much ink spent on describing such matters as Kinsey making popcorn or jogging or chatting endlessly with her landlord. Even these unnecessary asides are somewhat compensated for by Kinsey's acerbic wit and wry self-reflections. The action itself revolves around Kinsey's assignment to escort and watch over a bad-girl heiress, just released from jail. The heiress is soon back in trouble, back in the arms of the guy she went to prison for, and back under investigation. The local cops want Kinsey to spy on the jailbird with whom she's developing a friendship; the feds get in on the act, too. Maybe the most interesting bits of this sleepy novel are the heiress' descriptions of prison life; they are far too detailed to be believable as normal conversation but intriguing nonetheless. An uneven, lackadaisical Grafton, but plenty of Millhone for the sleuth's devotees. --Connie Fletcher Copyright 2004 Booklist