""M"" is for money. Lots of it. ""M"" is for Malek Construction, the $40 million company that grew out of modest soil to become one of the big three in California construction, one of the few still in family hands.

""M"" is for the Malek family: four sons now nearing middle age who stand to inherit a fortune--four men with very different outlooks, temperaments, and needs, linked only by blood and money. Eighteen years ago, one of them--angry, troubled, and in trouble--went missing.

""M"" is for Millhone, hired to trace that missing black sheep brother.

""M"" is for memories, none of them happy. The bitter memories of an embattled family. This prodigal son will find no welcome at his family's table. ""M"" is for malice.

And in brutal consequence, ""M"" is for murder, the all-too-common outcome of familial hatreds.

""M"" is for malice . . . and malice kills.

""Grafton works with a cinematic eye, possessing a keen visual sense of detail, color, and style. The pace is fast, the crime difficult to solve.""--People

""Wit is the most versatile weapon in Sue Grafton's well-stocked arsenal, and she uses it with disarming precision.""--Newsweek

""Unlike many detective series, Grafton's seems only to get better each time out.""--Entertainment Weekly

""Grafton has moved the private-eye story closer to real life than did either Hammett or Chandler.""--Los Angeles Times Book Review

""Book for book, this may be the most satisfying mystery series going.""--the Wall Street Journal

""Grafton has taken over Ross Macdonald's shoes.""--the Boston Globe