`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 . . .

`D is for deft and diverting' Guardian

`Witty and clever' The Times

`Heart-pounding, totally mesmerizing suspense' New York Times