Kinsey Millhone, P.I. is a 32-year-old, twice-divorced ex-cop with an irreverent, wise-cracking style reminiscent of Philip Marlowe - and a great pair of legs - who piles her trade in the small Southern Californian town of Santa Theresa.

Make no mistake about it, Kinsey Millhone is one tough cookie. When a routine insurance claim she's investigating turns into non-routine trouble - someone has put $5,000 in her usually not-too-flush checking account and made it look like she's on the take - Kinsey sets out to discover who has set her up and why.

The trail of evidence leads to the wealthy Wood family, which includes the three quirky sisters Olive, Ash, and Ebony. But she's not counting on the involvement of her long-departed ex-husband #2, who's gorgeous, seductive and also a junkie. And she's certainly not counting on murder . . .