By Pam Walatka

Sue Grafton’s books are consistently, deeply satisfying to read.

In “S is for Silence” (Miriam Wood/Putnam, Dec. 6, 2005), the 19th book in Grafton’s abecedarian series, Kinsey Millhone - beloved heroine of millions of readers - investigates the disappearance of a flamboyant, philandering young mother, Violet, who has been missing for decades.

Many authors with a best-selling series stick to their winning formula. Grafton stays true enough to her pattern to satisfy old fans, but, like her creation Kinsey, she’s got guts - enough guts to try new devices. This time, she alternates between Kinsey’s time (the 1980s) and the time of Violet’s disappearance, showing us the lead characters as they go through Fourth of July weekend in 1953.

Grafton is often compared favorably with Raymond Chandler (”The Big Sleep”) for writing about the sensibilities of a detective. She also stands up well to a comparison with Agatha Christie. Like Christie, Grafton observes people with economy and wit. Both authors give us cozy mysteries, wherein we are spared most of the gore. Ten or fewer main characters are observed until one turns out to be the killer. Both authors appeal to men and women alike. (I remember sharing Agatha Christie books with my dad.) Both authors are master storytellers.

Of course, Kinsey is a lot tougher than Miss Marple or Hercule Poirot. At the end of each book, she gets into a deadly fight with the killer. (Some critics don’t like the ending of “S” on grounds that it’s not logical.)

Some tidbits from “S is for Silence”: Kinsey says, “I put the question in a drawer at the back of my mind, hoping an answer would be sitting there the next time I looked.” Kinsey works methodically. She takes notes on 3-by-5 cards and goes over and over them. She visits the library. She studies old newspapers and documents.

Kinsey is moral, for the most part, but loves to indulge in snooping and lying. “Not to brag, but I myself am really quite skilled at lying and I can tell you how it’s done. Like a magic trick, you distract from the sleight-of-hand by focusing attention on the irrelevant.”

Kinsey loves solitude. “… I didn’t expect to marry again. Who needs the aggravation? All that togetherness can really get on your nerves.” Grafton, now in a long-running marriage, jokingly attributes her original idea for the series to her own thoughts of murdering her first husband.

Kinsey is much too modest to tell us about her love life. In “S” we don’t even see Cheney, her boyfriend. In previous books, when Kinsey is with a boyfriend, they might go upstairs, but we don’t see them again until breakfast. In this book, the device of following other characters gives Grafton the chance to cut loose a little. Violet gets around.

If you hate mysteries, you might as well skip this one. But if you like the genre, I recommend this one with all my heart. I’ve been devouring novels (classic and not) for 55 years; I’ve loved a lot of books. There isn’t one I would rather read than a new Grafton.

“S is for Silence” will be available at Main Street Cafe & Books, 134 Main St., after Dec. 6.