Mystery/Thriller Archives - BOOK RIOT

When Did the Butler Dunnit? The History of “the Butler Did It” Trope

Addison Rizer — Thu, 19 Jan 2023 11:32:00 +0000

If you’re a reader of mysteries or even fancy a whodunit murder mystery movie at the end of a long day, you’ve likely heard of the trope “the butler did it.” It conjures images of a butler, darting around an isolated mansion unnoticed, spinning up some revenge plot or plan to escape with his rich employer’s millions. This type of plot is often seen as cheap or predictable, an easy out for a closed-room murder or heist. But where did the trope come from, and how common is it, really?

When the Butler First Did It

According to numerous sources, “the butler did it” trope was coined by Mary Roberts Rinehart in The Door, a 1930s mystery by the prolific author in which, well, the butler does it. In the novel, an elderly family nurse was murdered, and the revealed suspect isn’t confirmed until the very last page. Interestingly enough, though Rinehart is credited with the expression “the butler did it,” the phrase doesn’t appear in The Door, nor was she the first to use that plot device.

In fact, in 1930 when it came out, it was already seen as a weak and predictable plot in the public eye. In a review in Life in 1926, according to an analysis of the trope by Gareth Rees, a reviewer of The Donovan Affair said “we automatically suspect the butler right at the start” and a character in “What, No Butler?” by Damon Runyon in 1933 says the “way these things are done in all the murder-mystery movies and plays” is to pin it on the butler.

A much-quoted rule for mysteries by S.S. Van Dine, an American art critic and detective novel writer, railed against choosing a servant as the culprit as a “too easy solution” in his list of “Twenty Rules for Writing Detective Stories” from 1928.

How Popular Was the Trope, Really?

The collection containing the story “The Man with Nine Lives”

As it turns out, the trope was not that popular, despite how much people poke at the possibility of the butler brandishing the butter knife. In 1893, “The Adventure of the Musgrave Ritual” by Arthur Conan Doyle features a criminal butler, though not the main suspect; in 1914, “The Man with Nine Lives” by Hugh C. Weir featured a criminal butler; and in 1915, E. Philips Oppenheim wrote The Black Box, in which a criminal masquerading as a British butler murders a girl for the family jewels. Agatha Christie, too, took on the butler finger-pointing in The Murder of Roger Ackroyd in 1926, though this is a red herring in the novel and no actual butler-doing-it was done.

But really, there weren’t that many novels or stories that used the trope, especially not enough to garner the public’s eye-rolling at the use of it in 1930. Mike Grost said The Door was “notable for being one of only a few real-life examples” of the trope.

So, how can Rinehart be the creator of the trope if people were already cracking jokes or offering criticisms about it by the time her novel even came out? And how can it be so popular if not many novels even used the trope?

Where’s the Popularity Coming From, if Not Books?

Rees proposes the source is actually silent films, listing 16 that had butlers that did it or were suspected of doing a crime between 1915 and 1922, which could explain the public being familiar with, and subsequently sighing over, the trope in later literature. If you’ve seen it over a dozen times over on screen, it’s no wonder reading it yet again in a supposedly mysterious murder mystery wouldn’t feel so shocking.

TV Tropes posits it may have to do with societal fears in reality, a playing up of the upper class’s suspicion of their domestic servants having sticky fingers in their own household. In volume four of London Labour and the London Poor published in 1851 by Henry Mayhew, the chapter on “housebreakers and burglars” says it “occasionally happens servants are in league with thieves,” detailing the ways in which criminals can manipulate or work with the servants of the household to gain access to its hidden riches. In Lady Audley’s Secret from 1862, too, the character Lady Audley “shares with her Victorian readers a mounting anxiety about the eyes and ears of servants in the home.” It makes a certain sense that the trope seemed more popular because it dug into the fears of the upper class at the time.

Whether you like the old butler-did-it trope or could do without it, hopefully, you found this glimpse into the trope’s history interesting. If you’re in the mood for a whodunit (don’t worry, no spoilers on the who), check out these locked room mysteries or this quiz that will match you with your next whodunit read!

Behind the Curtain: Writing Mysteries from Different Points of View

Elisa Shoenberger — Tue, 17 Jan 2023 11:35:00 +0000

The past few years, we’ve seen the success of books written from different points of view (POV), including George R. R. Martin’s Game of Throne series with chapters alternating from several characters. It’s quite a feat to pull off! Then there’s the added challenge of creating several voices so each perspective is different from the others.

While it’s a technique used in many different types of fiction, it’s particularly notable when used in murder mysteries. While most books have some secrets to reveal, mysteries in particular have the challenge of moving the story along, revealing evidence without it being obvious, and concealing the identity of the murderer (or criminal in general) until the right moment. Authors have to keep up the thrill and the chase jumping from person to person.

I wanted to dive into the why and how mystery writers manage to use different POV in their works. So I interviewed two authors who have mysteries that will be coming out in the next few months where their books shift perspectives.

The Authors and Their Books

I talked to Irish novelist Joseph O’Connor whose thriller My Father’s House (out January 31) tells the true story of Monsignor Hugh O’Flaherty, who creates a network, unofficially, through the Vatican to help smuggle Jewish people and prisoners of war out of Rome. It’s a harrowing story told from the perspectives of Monsignor Hugh, his group of allies, and even his arch-nemesis, Gestapo boss Obersturmbannführer Paul Hauptmann. It focuses on a single dangerous mission where the Gestapo is watching every move, but the Choir (the group behind the mission) has to complete it.

The second book is The Golden Spoon by Jessa Maxwell (out March 7), which Janet Evanovich aptly described as “delicious combination of Clue and The Great British Bakeoff.” Six amateur bakers across the United States are invited to Grafton, a sprawling Vermont estate, for Bake Week with the famous Betsy Martin. Told from the perspectives of the bakers and Betsy Martin, it’s clear that something is wrong with this year’s competition as little things go awry. But when a body is found, all bets are off.

Why Mystery Authors Use Multiple Perspectives

To Avoid the Dullard at a Party

Both O’Connor and Maxwell found that telling the story for multiple viewpoints made sense for the story. O’Connor said, in an email interview about the decision: “I love reading but I get bored easily. I’m also a very slow reader, if I like the book. With two or three exceptions (Proust’s Swann in Love being the main one) I don’t care for long books in the voice of only one person; it’s like being cornered by some dullard at a party.”

“I honestly don’t even know how you would tell it with one point of view,” Maxwell said. “You can move the story forward by having people interact with each other.”

To Be More Authentic

O’Connor noted that having multiple points of view seemed truer to life. He wrote, “I think having several narrators makes a novel more involving, interesting, surprising, funny. Then, I guess it’s important if you’re writing about historical events to always be aware that there are several ways of looking at them. So, the multiple narrative approach may be truer to life.”

To Fall in Love with the Characters

Part of the joy of having several narrators is the creation of the different voices themselves. Maxwell said, “I loved coming up with all the characters, and I love going to their points of view.”

O’Connor loves the musicality of people’s voices. He explained, “I love the music of how people speak – I find I’m always listening out for different accents and phraseologies – and any book that is in part driven by how people speak will always have pleasures to offer.”

To Walk Around a Story

Both writers described the multiple POV as a way of looking at the story in 3D. Maxwell said, “Being able to see other characters from multiple points of view, makes characters innately more or less reliable. Seeing how certain people trust someone and don’t trust someone or how they respond, you’re only going to get their specific way of responding to something. But if you’re having other people watch them, I think it’s really fun.”

O’Connor wrote: “The opportunity to walk around a piece of the story and look at it from different angles, rather than having to sit passively and listen to the novelist lecturing you. And of course, the great fun of the characters contradicting each other. In this way, the reader can know things that the characters don’t know. This creates a sort of three-dimensionality in the story, a space for the reader to walk into.”

To Drop Hints

Per the rules of fair mysteries/thrillers, clues have to be dropped. But with multiple viewpoints, there’s the challenge of doing it in such a way that communicates the information but not give too much away.

“I try to come up with all of the things that can be revealed upfront, and then I figure out who would be the best person to reveal each of these things,” Maxwell explained. “Who would notice that sort of thing? That’s another thing that’s really nice about having multiple points of view, because you have multiple people’s skill sets that you can add.”

O’Connor said, “By craft, which is learned by practice and by learning from your mistakes. As James Joyce wrote, ‘errors are…portals of discovery.’ And you find a way of stress-testing the story, by creating a version of yourself as the reader, not the writer. But it takes time to get to that ability, and even after you find it you must develop it continuously.”

More Multiple POV Books

Thanks to O’Connor and Maxwell for giving us a little glimpse into their work as writers working in this narrative style.

If you want more books with shifting POVs, check out this best thrillers with multiple viewpoints or a list of best books with different perspectives in many genres.

Unsolicited Advice for Murderers

Guest — Mon, 16 Jan 2023 11:37:00 +0000

by Jesse Q Sutanto

Vera Wong Zhuzhu, age sixty, is a pig, but she really should have been born a rooster. We are, of course, referring to Chinese horoscopes. Vera Wong is a human woman, thank you very much, but roosters have nothing on her. Every morning, at exactly four thirty, Vera’s eyelids snap open like roller shades shooting up. Then the upper half of her body levitates from the mattress — no lazy rolling out of bed for Vera, though admittedly sitting up in bed now comes with about half a dozen clicks and clacks of her joints. She swings her fuzzy-socked feet out with gusto and immediately finds the slippers she placed next to her bed with military precision the night before. She takes a quick moment to send a text to her son, reminding him that he’s sleeping his life away and should have been up and at it before her. He is, after all, a young man with a whole world to conquer. Late mornings, Vera believes, are only for toddlers and Europeans.

After a quick wash, Vera dons her morning gear — a polo shirt with a Ralph Lauren logo so big that it covers her entire left breast (well, okay, thanks to the ravages of time and gravity, it covers the top half of her breast) and sweatpants. Arm sleeves are yanked on and adjusted so that there isn’t an exposed sliver of skin between her shirt sleeves and the removable ones. Many years ago, when Vera was a brazen young woman, she never checked her arm sleeves and often walked around with a tanned strip of skin around her upper arms. Those were obviously the wild days, when she lived life on the edge and took unnecessary risks.

Sleeves on, Vera nods at her reflection and marches to the kitchen, where she gulps down a pint of room-temperature water — cold water, Vera believes, would freeze the fats in your arteries and give you heart disease. At the door, Vera dons her orthopedic sneakers and her tortoiseshell sunglasses, and finally, the last and perhaps most vital article of clothing — a visor so enormous that there is no way that a single ray of freckle-causing, wrinkle-making sunlight could snake its way onto her face. Then, without a backward glance, Vera strides out into the world.

And all of this happens without the aid of alarm clocks. Vera should really have been a rooster, but she isn’t; she is a pig, and perhaps that is where all the trouble began.

According to the Chinese horoscope, pigs are diligent and compassionate and are the ones to call upon when sincere advice is needed. Unfortunately, very few people call Vera for sincere advice, or even insincere advice. The one person who should be calling her at all times for advice — her son, Tilbert — never does. Vera doesn’t quite understand why. When her parents were alive, she often went to them for advice, even when she didn’t need to, because unlike her son, Vera was a filial child and knew that asking her parents for advice made them feel needed. Well, no matter. Vera is a diligent mother and goes out of her way to give Tilly all the advice he could ever need anyway. Her previous texts are as follows:

Sent today at 4:31 a.m.:
Tilly, are you awake? It is 4:31 AM, very late. When I was your age, I wake up at 4AM every morning to cook breakfast for Ah Gong and Ah Ma. Qi lai! Seize the day! Carpe diem! Kind regards, Mama.
Sent yesterday at 7:45 p.m.:
Tilly, I notice that this girl @NotChloeBennet has liked TWO of your videos on the TikTok! I think this means she likes you. I look at her profile and she pout a lot, but I think she will make good wife. She went with her mother for manicure last week, this means she is a filial daughter. Perhaps you should slip and slide into her DM. Kind regards, Mama.

Vera had been particularly pleased about using the phrase “slip and slide into her DM.” Vera insists on keeping up to date with every trend. She doesn’t believe in getting left behind by the younger generations. Every time she comes across a nonsensical-sounding phrase, she looks it up on the Google and jots down its meaning in her little notebook.

Sent yesterday at 5:01 p.m.:
Tilly, it is 5PM, I hope you have eaten your dinner. Your Uncle Lin eat dinner at 7PM every night and he didn’t even live past thirty. You better eat dinner now. Kind regards, Mama.

This one actually garnered a reply.

TILLY: Uncle Lin died because he was hit by a bus. And I’ve told you to stop calling me Tilly. I go by Bert.
VERA: Don’t talk back to your elders. I raise you better than that. And what is wrong with Tilly? It’s a good name, your Baba and I think long and hard about your name, you should treasure it.

This was followed by more silence from Tilly. But no matter. There is no time for her wayward son right now, because Vera is about to start her morning walk, and morning walks are a serious business. First, there is the stretching. Many people her age complain of stiff joints and unbending limbs, but Vera goes into a low squat without much difficulty and bends at the waist until the tips of her fingers touch her sneakers. When he was a teen, Tilly had been extremely embarrassed about Vera’s stretching routine. He’d begged her to do it in the privacy of their home instead of on the sidewalk, but one needs fresh air to properly stretch, and anyway, Tilly should be proud that his mother is setting such a good example for their neighbors.

With her muscles sufficiently warmed up, Vera gets into walking position — chin up, chest out, and elbows perpendicular to her body. Then she begins to walk, her fists swinging in front of her chest with the enthusiasm of a North Korean soldier at a national parade. Vera’s morning walk can only be described as vigorous. She is a general on the warpath, eating up the miles with ruthless efficiency. Anyone foolish enough to get in her way is met with a cutting glare (which is invisible behind the sunglasses and the visor), but Vera relishes having to swerve around passersby, as it is a chance for her to put her agility and quick reflexes to the test.

For her last birthday, Tilly gave her a Samsung watch that could measure her steps, but Vera sees no need for it, because she knows exactly how many steps her daily route takes: 3,112 steps, starting on Trenton and Pacific, where her house is, down along Washington, where all the mom-and-pop grocery stores and souvenir shops are preparing to open for the day. Some of the shop owners wave at Vera and call out greetings, but they all know she can’t stop for a chat, not when she’s on her morning walk. Still, Vera has impeccable manners, so she calls out niceties in Mandarin like, “Wah, the melons look good, Mr. Hong!” or “The weather is finally warming up, Sister Zhao!” as she zips past.

She slows down a little in front of the café that sprouted like a particularly pustulant pimple two years ago on Washington. The owner is a rude millennial who doesn’t even live in Chinatown. Vera’s mouth twists in a sneer as she walks past, and as she always does every morning, she places a silent curse on the café. Even its name irks her. The Café. She can just imagine the kind of confusion it has caused to its customers. Where would you like to go? The Café. Right, which one? The Café! WHICH ONE? You’d think that with a name like that, the Café would have folded long ago. But no, in defiance of all logic, not only did it not go under, it flourished, stealing customers from the older shops in the vicinity. Often, when Vera sits in her quiet tea shop, her mind wanders to the Café and it ruins her perfectly wonderful tea. Truly, the Café and its horribly unhealthy product — coffee, ugh — are a blight on San Franciscans, nay, on humanity.

When she gets down to the Dragon Gate of Chinatown on Bush Street, she turns the corner and walks along Stockton all the way to Woh Hei Yuen, where the Tai Chi Quan group is just starting their routine. Her husband, Jinlong, came here every day up until he had his stroke. He often tried to get Vera to join him, but Vera did not see the point in tai chi. Too slow to do much good, surely. It’s about as effective as yoga, which is to say, not very. Each time after Jinlong finished with tai chi, Vera would check his pulse and he never once broke eighty. What is even the point? Still, she walks through Woh Hei Yuen and waves at the tai chi group and ignores the way her heart cracks a little when she sees that Jinlong isn’t among the slow-moving people. Silly woman, of course Jinlong isn’t here, he is safe in a silver urn in her living room, and that’s that.

The Most Unique Jobs in Cozy Mysteries

P.N. Hinton — Fri, 13 Jan 2023 11:33:00 +0000

One of the pretty consistent staples of a cozy mystery is that the amateur sleuth also has a day job. By that, I mean their detective work is pretty much a hobby. It’s not even a side hustle, since they don’t get paid after they solve the mysteries. Which is a bit disheartening if you think about it. I mean, here they are, risking their lives and helping the lead detective out. They sometimes even do all the work for them and no one can cut them a check?

Sorry, I got sidetracked there.

Now for the most part, these jobs tend to be the same across a variety of series and authors. They’re either booksellers or librarians. They’re baristas or chefs. I would say the possibilities are endless but really, it’s a small job pool when one actually looks at cozies as a whole.

Not that there’s anything wrong with that. As the saying goes if it isn’t broken, then don’t fix it. But there is also something to be said whenever a book comes along where the amateur-and-not–getting-financially-compensated-for-it detective has a different 9 to 5 than what we’re used to. Hence the reason for this list!

Now, I will admit that some of these may seem like they’re splitting hairs, and that’s fair. However, there’s something specific about the job in each listed book that makes it still stand out.

Mayhem & Mass by Olivia Matthews

Job: Nun

Sister Lou is expecting some feathers to be ruffled when she invites her friend Maurice Jordan to speak, as he is known to be very controversial in his views. What she didn’t expect was to find him dead in his hotel room. While the Sheriff focuses on congregation members as possible suspects, Sister Lou teams up with a local reporter to find out more about her friend to find out who could have ended his life prematurely.

The Secret, Book & Scone Society by Ellery Adams

Job: Bibliotherapist

When one of Nora’s potential clients for bibliotherapy is found dead on train tracks, she is shocked since he seemed to really be looking forward to her help. Together with the other members of the bookish Society, they work together to find out what really happened to this stranger to stop the killer before they strike again.

While Nora does own a bookstore, people come to her due to her being known as a bibliotherapist. Hence the reason it’s on this list.

Murder in G Major by Alexia Gordon

Job: Classical Musician/Music Teacher

Stranded in Ireland, classical musician Gethsemane is left with little choice but to take the position of music teacher at a local school and caretaker of a local cottage. This cottage is also haunted by the ghost local composer Eamon, who was wrongly accused of murder and convinces Gethsemane to help clear his name posthumously.

Live, Local, and Dead by Nikki Knight

Job: Radio DJ

When local DJ Jaye fires a gun at a snowman, the corpse of recently fired radio talk show host Edwin Anger falls out. And his fans are sure that since Jaye is the one who fired him, she is also the one who killed him. Jaye knows it’s up to her to find out who really did the crime to avoid ending up being the DJ for prison radio or having her own corpse hidden in an icy prison.

A Scone to Die For by H.Y. Hanna

Job: Tea House Owner

Gemma has decided to return home to Oxford and open up a traditional tearoom. All goes relatively well until one day she opens shop and finds a dead American tourist, seemingly done in by one of her scones. It goes without saying that murder is not good publicity, so she sets out to find the real killer before she has to hang up a “going out of business” sign.

This is one of the ones that may be splitting hairs since there are tons of coffee cozies. However, there is a difference between coffee and tea. So, I felt it deserved its own place on the list.

This Pen For Hire by Laura Levine

Job: Freelance Writer

When one of Jaine’s most recent clients is accused of murder, she can’t believe it. After all she helped him to write the love letters to his would-be paramour so she doubts he did her in and sets out to find out who really wielded the deadly Thigh Master.

Other cozies that involve a writer are ones where they are already established in a craft and genre. Freelance writing is just that; you’ll write almost anything to pay the bills. And that is fair because we all have those. Hence the reason for this job having its place here on the list.

The Frangipani Tree Mystery by Ovidia Yu

Job: Governess

Eager to escape an arranged marriage, aspiring journalist Su Lin takes on the role of governess to the daughter of Singapore’s Acting Governor. When another murder takes place Su Lin teams up the Chief Inspector to find out who has it in for the Governor.

The role of governess is different from a teacher since they also give lessons in etiquette and the like. And while that position runs rampant in romances, it isn’t seen as much in this genre.

Blanche on the Lam by Barbara Neely

Job: Housekeeper

A bounced check, courtesy of a terrible ex-employer, causes Blanche to go on the run and take a new position with a wealthy family to hide out until things cool off. When she is wrongfully accused of murder, she has to utilize all of her wit, and her network connection of other domestic workers, to help clear her name.

And there you have it! Just a few of the cozy mysteries that I was able to find that featured unique jobs. There is nothing wrong with loving cozies about bakers, librarians, or booksellers. But if you ever want to read against the grain a bit, then these may be just the ticket for you. Until we meet again, happy reading and stay warm and hydrated.

And…Scene! 12 Books That Feature Murders Across Genres

Silvana Reyes Lopez — Wed, 11 Jan 2023 11:34:00 +0000

Murders across genres? What’s that? The main thing you’re going to instantly find in this list are books that have a murder in them. But…I didn’t want to only talk about mystery or thrillers, which are the usual genres where you will find a homicide. Across the multiple genres in the publishing world, you’ll find that murders happen quite a lot. Sometimes, they happen at the beginning of a book, creating a spark that starts the storyline. Be it a Young Adult novel or a holiday mystery book, it’s time to talk about murders across genres. Here is a list of 12 books that will have you on the edge of your seat!

A Murder Mystery…in A Fantasy World?

Agatha Christie made me love murder mysteries and since reading her work, I’ve always found them intriguing. They’re like an escape room surrounding a murder, you know? How will they be able to solve everything and find the killer? But murder mysteries tend to be, obviously, in the mystery genre with a slash of crime fiction. Sometimes they have a little bit of comedy. But I wanted to expand this world so much more. What if you wanted to read a murder mystery in a fantasy world? Or how about a dystopian world where survival is the only thing important? Not going to lie, that sounds incredible.

Now, with the release of Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery (2022), murder mysteries are present more than ever before. Rian Johnson has made me crave 23 movies in this franchise — Daniel Craig solving mysteries is what dreams are made of. So, it’s not a surprise people are asking for more murder mysteries!

Just like in romance novels, you know what to expect at the end of a murder mystery. I mean, someone is killed at the start of the book, and then, the main character finds out who did it by the end. And that formula always works! Time and time again, they have shown that people gravitate toward those kinds of stories. But evolving these murder mysteries into other genres, outside of thriller, is what we’re going to talk about today.

Holiday Murder Books

The Christmas Murder Game by Alexandra Benedict

Of course, I had to include holiday murder books. Who do you think I am? I’m all about the holiday season, so how about a little murder to spark up our lives?

The Armitages’ annual Christmas Game is the season’s most-awaited event, but Lily Armitage is definitely not returning to that house. Until her aunt sends her a letter, promising that she’ll not only get the deed of the house if she wins the game, but she’ll also find out the identity of her mother’s murderer. An opportunity like that is hard to say no to. So, Lily finds herself at Endgame House, competing against her estranged cousins for the 12 days of Christmas.

The Christmas Killer by Alex Pine

The Christmas Killer follows DI James Walker, who suddenly receives a mysterious gift that promises 12 murders in 12 days.

The Christmas Killer definitely hints at a darker story than others on this list. It’s a crime novel through and through, so be prepared for suspense, intrigue, and blood.

A Murder at Balmoral by Chris McGeorge

The royal family has a killer on the loose! A Murder at Balmoral is a fascinating locked-room mystery where one chef has to figure out who killed the king during the Christmas season. Every single member of the family has a reason to do it, but who is the one behind the murder?

Murder mysteries can happen in various scenarios, but my favorite ones are the ones that happen inside a closed property, e.g. a manor, a cruise, etc. No one can go in and no one can get out…so, the killer is obviously among them.

Fantasy Murder Books

Seven Faceless Saints by M.K. Lobb (February 7)

Seven Faceless Saints is a dark fantasy novel with a murder mystery twist where one city harbors a murderer who starts killing disciples of the saints who rule with tremendous power.

After her father’s death, Rossana is ready to do whatever it takes to dismantle the corrupt system, even if that means facing the boy who broke her heart. When a murderer starts killing in the city, she’ll have to team up with Damian to find them, but it also digs up unresolved emotions between the two. As they keep investigating the murders, they will eventually discover secrets long forgotten.

Opium and Absinthe by Lydia Kang

This book follows Tillie, a sheltered heiress, who finds her sister dead with two puncture wounds in her neck, making Tillie believe there might be vampires roaming around New York. But is this the case? Well, Tillie is going to find out with the help of a newsboy named Ian.

This book is set in New York at the end of the 19th century around the time Bram Stoker had just released Dracula, so vampire fever is very much present in the story. When more murders follow after her sister’s death, Tillie realizes she might be going after a vampire.

Thriller Books With Murder

I’m the Girl by Courtney Summers

Courtney Summers returns with a groundbreaking queer thriller that you won’t be able to stop thinking about even after turning the last page. In I’m the Girl, Georgia Avis discovers the dead body of 13-year-old Ashley James, kickstarting a game of cat and mouse with one vicious killer. She teams up with Ashley’s older sister, Nora, in order to find the killer before he murders again!

The Woman in the Library by Sulari Gentill

Another locked-room mystery, The Woman in the Library is set inside Boston Public Library where one murderer is hiding among others. This thrilling read starts with one woman’s terrifying scream. Security guards make everyone stay where they are until the threat is secured. While they wait, four strangers, who are sitting at the same table, keep their reasons for being in that room a secret. And one of them happens to be a murderer.

Cozy Mysteries With Murder

Dial A For Aunties by Jesse Q. Sutanto

Look, I know that cozy mysteries are still inside the mystery genre. But they also have a little bit of comedy and maybe some romance! They’re cozy, easy to read, and so much fun to enjoy. If you like the genre, but prefer not to read intense, dark suspense novels, cozy mysteries are definitely the way to go.

Dial A for Aunties follows Meddy who ends up accidentally killing her blind date! To get rid of the body, she calls her mom and her meddlesome aunties. But when the body is suddenly shipped to the over-the-top billionaire wedding her mom and aunties are working on, things complicate further.

Soul of a Killer by Abby Collette

Accidentally finding a body is not something I would ever want to happen to me. But it does happen to Mama Zola, Koby’s foster mom, when she brings a peach cobbler over to the local bible study group.

And that’s not the only thing that happens to Mama Zola! Because the body she finds belongs to someone she recently argued with. So, as you can probably imagine, she’s a prime suspect in the murder. But worry not, Koby and Keaton will use their detective skills to find the real murderer!

Historical Murder Books

Pride and Premeditation by Book Rioter Tirzah Price

If you didn’t know, I’m a huge romance fan. So, it’s a no-brainer that I would gravitate toward a Pride and Prejudice remake with a murder mystery twist.

Sixteen-year-old Lizzie Bennet wants to prove to everyone that she can be a good solicitor by solving a murder case. Unfortunately, the man accused of the crime already has a lawyer: Mr. Fitzwilliam Darcy. Lizzie is determined to solve the case before he does!

The Red Palace by June Hur

The Red Palace is an evocative historical mystery novel where one woman has to find a murderer in order to save her mentor. Hyeon, a palace nurse, suddenly finds herself getting involved in a murder investigation after her mentor is wrongly accused as the killer. Teaming up with a police inspector, who also wants to find the killer, is the best opportunity to discover all the dark secrets that live inside the palace walls.

Murder-y Romance Books

Murder Most Actual by Alexis Hall

This Kobo Original is what you’ve been looking for. If you’re familiar with Hall’s novels, you’ll notice Murder Most Actual is quite different. It’s a cozy mystery featuring a true-crime podcaster and her corporate financier wife. They’re going through a rough patch in their marriage, so they decide to rekindle their love in a luxurious hotel in the Scottish Highlands. But they never thought they would be participating in an Agatha Christie-esque murder mystery!

What I wanted to do is to showcase that you can have a murder mystery in different genres. Maybe you don’t like the vibe that thrilling suspense books have, but you adore murder mysteries. And what if you also love fantasy books and wish to read about a cozy murder mystery set in an epic high fantasy world? Well, I’m here to tell you that it definitely exists out there. This small list shows that mysteries can be written in every genre or sub-genre. And there’s always something special for everyone!

The Best Mystery Books: 2023 Upcoming Titles

Michelle Regalado — Mon, 09 Jan 2023 11:36:00 +0000

There are plenty of exciting new book releases to look forward to in 2023, particularly when it comes to mystery novels. While the upcoming year is set to bring plenty of highly anticipated new titles to shelves from across all genres, including sci-fi, fantasy, romance, and nonfiction, it will be a particularly rich year for some of the best mystery books. 2023 promises pulse-pounding murder mysteries and cozy whodunits. You’re sure to find a title that suits your interest on this list.

As you await these buzzy novels to hit shelves in the coming months, there are also several books from the last few weeks of 2022 that are worth adding to your nightstands and bookshelves. This list includes captivating reads from late 2022 that you can pick up in stories now, as well as several anticipated 2023 releases that are still on the way. From a thrilling debut novel set on a college campus to a captivating sci-fi mystery located on a remote colony in Jupiter, these engrossing page-turners will keep you hooked until the very end.

So break out your TBR list, and read on for some of the best new mysteries that you won’t want to miss out on in 2023, below.

The Best Mystery Books: 2023

The Storyteller’s Death by Ann Dávila Cardinal

This stunning family saga follows an 18-year-old teenager in Puerto Rico who uncovers a strange and mysterious ability after the death of her grandmother. When her grandmother passes away, Isla inexplicably finds herself getting visions of the tales she’s heard from her family throughout her life. But one vision presents her with the case of an old murder mystery, Isla realizes the stories she once found fascinating could actually be dangerous.

Jackal by Erin E. Adams

Liz Rocher reluctantly returns to her predominately white home town of Johnstown, Pennsylvania, to attend her her best friend’s wedding. She braces herself for a weekend of awkward reunions. But on the day of the wedding, the couple’s daughter, Caroline, disappears, leaving behind nothing but a piece of white fabric covered in blood.

The Last Party by Clare Mackintosh

On New Year’s Day, Rhys Lloyd, a developer of exclusive lake vacation homes for wealthy outsiders, is found dead in a small village on the border between Wales and England. DC Leo Brady of Cheshire Major Crimes takes on the case, partnering with Ffion Morgan of the North Wales Police. Told through the perspectives of a large cast of characters, this page-turner moves between past and present to reveal the truth about Rhys and his murder.

The Resemblance by Lauren Nossett

This atmospheric mystery set in the world of academia follows the case a fraternity brother who is hit by a car at the University of Georgia. The twist: all the witnesses say the driver looked identical to the victim and was smiling. The detective on the case, Marlitt Kaplan, is the daughter of a professor and knows all the school’s shameful secrets. But as she investigates the hit-and-run, she must dig even deeper into the university’s Greek system, finding some long-buried secrets that have made their way off campus.

A World of Curiosities by Louise Penny

Your Inspector Gamache fix has arrived! In the latest installment from Louise Penny, the now adult children of a murdered woman have returned to Three Pines, alarming the local detective and the rest of the town. Their worry only deepens after the discovery of a letter written by a long dead stone mason, which reveals the location of an attic room filled with curiosities.

A Dangerous Business by Jane Smiley

Set in 1850s Gold Rush California, this historical mystery follows Eliza Ripple, who began working at the local brothel as a means of gaining financial security after her husband died. When the dead bodies of young women start appearing outside of town, Eliza, fueled by her love reading and Edgar Allan Poe’s detective Dupin, recruits her best friend, Jean, to try to catch the killer.

The Widowmaker by Hannah Morrissey

The Reynolds family name has become synonymous with murder and mystery ever since mogul Clive Reynolds went missing 20 yeas ago. After receiving a cryptic note, photographer Morgan Mori reluctantly returns home to Black Harbor and into the web of their family secrets. The night she photographs the latest Reynolds holiday get-together, Morgan becomes witness to a shocking crime that could crack open the cold case.

A Death in Tokyo by Keigo Higashino

This is the third entry in Higashino’s Detective Kyoichiro Kaga series that has been translated into English. After a man is found stabbed on a famous bridge in the center of Tokyo, Detective Kaga is assigned to the team investigating the murder. When a prime suspect is located, the Tokyo Police Department thinks this could be a simple open and shut case. But as Kaga looks into the suspect, his investigation takes him down unexpected roads and reveals the dark truth of what really happened and why.

Liar, Dreamer, Thief by Maria Dong (January 10)

Both a surreal mystery and an intimate exploration of mental health, Liar, Dreamer, Thief follows Katrina Kim, who forms an obsession with her co-worker Kurt as one of her many coping methods. While riffling through his things one day, Katrina finds evidence that someone is aware of what she’s been doing and she runs to her ritual spot at the bridge to soothe herself. But when she arrives, she finds Kurt, who slams her with a horrifying accusation before jumping to his death. Spiraling from his indictment, Katrina revisits everything she knows about him — only to discover that Kurt was watching her, too. As she dives further into Kurt’s life, she faces more shocking revelations about her own.

City Under One Roof by Iris Yamashita (January 10)

In this gripping debut, detective Cara Kennedy sets out to investigate a teen’s murder in Point Mettier, Alaska, where all 205 citizens live in a single high-rise building. After a blizzard causes the only tunnel into the building to close indefinitely, Cara is stuck among the odd and suspicious residents, each of which seems to have their own secrets to hide.

Decent People by De’Shawn Charles Winslow (January 17)

Winslow follows up his powerful debut, In West Mills, with another historical mystery set in segregated West Mills, North Carolina. In the compelling follow-up, former resident who has recently moved back to town is determined to help solve the triple homicide of three siblings. Though the crime is the first reported murder in the area in decades, the white authorities don’t seem to have any interest in solving the case. When Jo Wright realizes her childhood sweetheart, the half-sibling of the murder victims, could be named a prime suspect, she sets out to prove his innocence.

Exiles by Jane Harper (January 31)

Federal Investigator Aaron Falk travels to his small home town in Southern Australia with plan to enjoy his vacation and attend the christening of a friend’s baby. What he doesn’t realize is that the timing coincides with the one-year anniversary of the disappearance of Kim Gillespie, who went missing during a town festival with no leads. After Kim’s daughter makes a plea for information, Aaron finds himself drawn to the case and slowly begins to infiltrate his way into Kim’s circle of friends and family.

Last Seen in Lapaz by Kwei Quartey (February 7)

Last Seen in Lapaz marks the third installment in the Emma Djan Investigation series. After a whirlwind romance leads to the disappearance of a young Nigerian woman and the brutal murder of her boyfriend, Emma Djan embarks on a dangerous undercover mission to uncover what really happened and track down the missing woman.

I Have Some Questions for You by Rebecca Makkai (February 21)

Now a successful podcaster and film professor, Bodie Kane has worked hard to leave her difficult past behind, including a family tragedy and the murder of a classmate at the New Hampshire school she attended. When the boarding school offers Bodie the chance to teach a two-week course, her memories of that year begin to resurface, and she can’t help but start investigating the details of the murder, realizing she may be more connected to the case than she though.

Scorched Grace by Margot Douaihy (February 21)

The first novel from Gillian Flynn’s new imprint, Scorched Grace tells the story of Sister Holiday, a chain-smoking, heavily tattooed, queer nun, who joins a convent in New Orleans. After Sister’s convent becomes the target of an arson spree, she puts her sleuthing skills to work and launches her own investigation to pinpoint the culprit before it’s too late.

The Angel Maker by Alex North (February 28)

Growing up, Katie Shaw seemed to live a charmed life — until the day a violent stranger changed the fate of her family forever. Years later, Katie still struggles to live with the guilt surrounding what happened to her brother, Chris. Her life is upended once again when she gets a phone call that Chris has gone missing. At the same time, Detective Laurence Page uncovers a connection between the recent murder of a professor and the gruesome attack Chris suffered as a teenager.

The Maid’s Diary by Loreth Anne White (March 1)

Kit Darling is a maid with a habit of snooping. It’s always been a harmless hobby — until Kit sees something dark in the home of her brand-new clients: a secret that could destroy the privileged couple expecting their first child. When homicide cop Mallory Van Alst is called to the scene of a bloody attack at a luxury waterfront home, she knows there is little chance the victim is alive, even though there is no body. With the homeowners gone and their maid missing, Mal sets out to uncover the secret that altered everyone’s lives.

The Mimicking of Known Successes by Malka Older (March 7)

In this science fiction murder mystery, a man goes missing on a remote outpost of a human colony on Jupiter. When Investigator Mossa follows his trail, it leads her to Valdegeld, the location of the colony’s erudite university, where her former girlfriend, Pleiti, works. Pleiti is an expert on Earth’s pre-collapse ecosystems. When Mossa shows and requests her assistance in her latest investigation, the two of them team up to uncover the mystery.

Vera Wong’s Unsolicited Advice for Murderers by Jesse Q. Sutanto (March 14)

Vera Wong is a lonely elderly lady who lives above her mostly forgotten tea shop in the middle of San Francisco’s Chinatown. One morning, she comes downstairs to find a curious thing — a dead man in the middle of her tea shop, holding a flash drive in his hand. After calling the cops, Vera decides to keep the flash drive to figure out which of the customers of her shop is the murderer. What she doesn’t expect is to begin form friendships with her customers.

What Remains by Wendy Walker (June 13)

Cold case detective Elise Sutton prefers to maintain a careful sense of order in both her work life and professional one. But that all changes one day in a department store when Elise is forced to make a decision in which to save one life, she has to take another. Though Elise is hailed as a hero by many, she feels steeped with guilt — until she connects with Wade Austin, the man whose life she saved. But Elise soon realizes Wade is far from who he appears to be.

Looking for more mysteries? Check out 15 of the best mystery thrillers ever and 19 of the best award-winning mysteries.

True Crime vs. Murder Mysteries: Two Sides of the Same Coin, or Mutually Exclusive?

Elisa Shoenberger — Thu, 05 Jan 2023 11:37:00 +0000

These past few years have been good for fans of crime fiction and nonfiction. Lots of new names and voices are being published in the murder mystery world and podcast world, with television and movies following suit. However, as a mystery reader, I’ve shied away from a lot of the true crime. Initially, it was because I associated the genre with serial killers, which I just don’t like in any format, fiction or nonfiction, but I acknowledge that the genre has really expanded in many directions these days.

Interestingly, I asked Book Rioters this question and got these responses back to back:

Ashley Holstrom: “I read true crime but am not a big mystery fan! Not that I don’t like mysteries, but they’re not what I gravitate toward. I might be your outlier here.”

CJ Connor: “I’m the other way around. Love mysteries but don’t like true crime. Again could be an outlier. (Incidentally, Connor’s cozy Board to Death comes out next year and I can’t wait!)”

I hadn’t thought much about true crime versus murder mysteries until I was having a similar conversation over and over again this year. I’d mention that I love mysteries but not so much crime. People responded typically agreeing with me or saying that they preferred true crime. I decided to ask readers and writers about what draws them to one genre over the other or both. I found some interesting overlaps in responses.

I conducted a survey and interviewed several authors that I know. The survey responses weren’t conclusive, but the reasons that people were drawn to one genre over another were fascinating.

True Crime

Dark Side of Human Nature

True crime aficionados liked the deep dive into the psychology of it all. Jack El-Hai, a true crime writer who recently published The Lost Brothers, wrote, “I’m only an occasional reader of murder mysteries. Many fictional works about murder are about finding out who did it, and the narrative concludes with that discovery or with catching the perpetrator. I’m more interested in why they did it and the aftermath for everyone affected by the crime.”

Kathleen Glasgow, co-author of The Agathas as well as YA fiction, said in an interview earlier this year that she was drawn to true crime. With those books, she wondered “why do people do bad things? And how do they do them? And why did they keep doing them?” However, she also reads mysteries, though tends towards thriller/crime fiction: mysteries with an edge.

Expanding One’s Own Education

Another theme that came up was people liked the expertise around it. Book Rioter Eileen Gonzalez responded to the survey saying she read both genres and said that she preferred nonfiction to fiction in general. “I think it can be just as exciting as fiction, plus I get to learn things about history, which is always fun! I guess it’s also because I feel less bad if I can’t solve the crime before the end in a nonfiction book: I am not attentive enough to put the clues together in fictional murder mysteries!”

Valerie Burns, a writer of several cozy mystery series including the new series Baker Street Mysteries, said while she tended not to read true crime, “sometimes I watch True Crime on the ID Channel. I get ideas about forensics, police procedures, etc. that can help in my fiction writing. However, I usually only watch a small amount of it.”

Another respondent said, “I don’t actually enjoy suspense but I find crime and criminal law interesting.”

Janis Thornton, writer of true crime books like Too Good a Girl and other murder mysteries, said: “I am a big fan of decades-old, little-known and long-forgotten historic true crime stories (primarily involving murder). I love history and mystery, and that fuels my passion for digging up these stories, researching them, and retelling them in my own voice.”

Ellen Byron, author of several cozy mysteries including the new Vintage Cookbook series, said, “I definitely read crime fiction these days, mostly because I’m trying to keep up with my friends who write it! But I am fascinated by older true crime mysteries.”

Murder Mysteries

Putting Together the Puzzle Pieces

One person who read murder mysteries exclusively said, “Murder mysteries are a chance to peek into other lives and try to be clever, whereas true crime is reading a real tragedy and that just upsets me.”

Thornton said about mysteries, “I love reading stories that draw me in, get me involved in a mysterious situation, and require me to pay attention so I can solve the mystery before the author tells me.”

One respondent who liked both genres also agreed: “It’s about the puzzle of human nature. In true crime you really can delve into the reality of it. With murder mysteries you see how much we understand it and can recreate it on paper.”

Justice, Justice, Justice

For many mystery writers, they appreciated the satisfaction that mysteries provide. At the end, you usually learned whodunnit. Burns said it best: “JUSTICE PREVAILS in the end. That’s not always true in real life.” With true crime, the perpetrator may not even be found, much less brought to justice for their crimes.

Olivia Blacke, author of the forthcoming Vinyl Resting Place, explains, “In a cozy, the person who’s killed is usually a pretty bad person. In the end, it’s going to be wrapped up neatly, the killer is gonna get caught. The killer might have even had the best intentions; the killer can sometimes be a better person than the victim.”

Real People, Real Pain

One theme that came up was people’s discomfort that real people were hurt in true crime. This came up repeatedly in conversations with folks on the topic. Burns summed it up best: “I think there’s a part of my brain that registers the fact that this is real. These bad things actually happened to real people, and that makes me sad. With fiction, I know it’s not real, and because I write cozy mysteries, there are no graphic depictions of crime.”

One respondent who prefers mysteries wrote, “I am concerned about the possibility of harming the people involved in the true events, just to create a story.”

Thornton also explained, “But in my view, the two genres aren’t really related. One is brutal, heartbreaking reality; the other is make-believe and allows readers to enjoy the story without feeling guilty about it.”

Blacke summed it up: “if you don’t want to be confronted with getting up in the middle of the night and checking your locks three times, then you probably don’t want to be reading true crime.”

The Parlor Room

Now that I have brought together all the suspects (opinions), I will let you know what I think I can infer from these queries. While by no means a scientific study, I think that murder mystery readers tend to prefer the genre only, but there’s a decent showing of folks who will read both. Interestingly, authors don’t limit themselves to one genre over another. I think there are several reasons, including that authors want to stay current in crime as well as reading their colleagues’ books. Or they just enjoy it!

Blacke summed it up best: “I think it has to do with why somebody is reading. If they’re the kind of person who will just flip through Netflix and go, ‘Okay, this looks interesting.’ And just watch it. That’s how I am in bookstores, I just like, ‘Oh, that’s a pretty cover’ and start flipping through it. The next thing you know, I’m reading this book that I’ve never heard about. And there’s some people that want [to know specific things like whether] the dog makes it through to the end. They don’t have to think about blood.”

Whatever the reason you read true crime and/or mystery, it is legitimate. Enjoy your books and don’t let anyone yuck on your yum!

For folks who want cozy mysteries, here’s one Rioter’s list of cozies that take place in libraries! For fans of true crime, here’s some suggestions of true crime audiobooks to check out!

New Year Brings 13 New Mystery & Thrillers To Read In January

Jamie Canaves — Wed, 04 Jan 2023 11:33:00 +0000

Publishing is awake! The end of the year is a quieter time in book releases and then January makes up for it with an explosion of new book releases. Whether your resolution for the new year is to read more, read more thoughtfully, wrangle your TBR, DNF more, or you have zero resolutions, I have rounded up a slew of new mystery and thriller releases for you. There is certainly something — probably many — in these new releases that will entice you this month.

We have Jane Harper’s new Aaron Falk for Australian crime fans, a YA dark academia, an L.A. crime novel with “fixers,” a remote mystery set in Alaska, a remote mystery set in a ski resort, the start to a new procedural, a crime novel for fans of dark humor, a new cozy mystery series starter for foodies, the return of Finlay Donovan for fans of funny crime novels, a thriller with a missing husband at the core, a puzzle mystery told through recovered iPhone audio files, and a thriller that places a group of friends in the present still holding onto a past secret that one of them wants to finally tell…With a start this strong, 2023 is bound to be an excellent reading year for mystery and thriller fans.

Exiles (Aaron Falk #3) by Jane Harper

More Aaron Falk (!) for fans of procedurals and Australian crime novels. Aaron Falk deals with financial investigations as a federal investigator but takes a very rare leave from work to visit friends and his godchild. There, he’s plunged into a small community and the case of a mother who went missing one year ago from a busy festival, seemingly in front of everyone. Now Falk finds himself treading into people’s past and current relationships to untangle what may have happened, all while finally trying to find a personal life for himself.

Promise Boys by Nick Brooks

For dark academia fans! J.B., Ramón, and Trey must adhere to the Urban Promise Prep School’s strict rules, which relies on extreme discipline to turn boys into men. When Principal Moore is murdered, the three boys end up at the top of the suspect list and realize coming together to solve the murder is their only hope of not being arrested.

Everybody Knows by Jordan Harper

This one is for fans of crime novels, crisis PR firms, and readers who have been anticipating a new novel since Harper’s last, She Rides Shotgun. Mae works for a PR firm that basically helps crappy people get away with things — her boss prides herself on rebranding the MeToo movement into the MeToo moment. Chris is no longer a cop and is now working in private security. The two are reconnected after a murder, which they decide to investigate, and they both start questioning whether their current place in the world of helping to cover up the crimes of the rich is really where they want to be. But more importantly, can they get out alive?

City Under One Roof by Iris Yamashita

For fans of isolated mysteries, procedurals, and cold settings! Point Mettier, Alaska, has 205 residents living in a high-rise building, and a severed hand and foot have just washed ashore. A blizzard strands Anchorage detective Cara Kennedy in the small town, forcing her to team up with a local officer to solve the case. But with a nearby gang and a town full of secrets, it won’t be easy…

The Bandit Queens by Parini Shroff

For fans of dark humor and social commentary! Geeta didn’t kill her husband, but since his disappearance, everyone believes she did. So much so that no one messes with her, they buy her jewelry out of fear of her, and some have started coming to her for help. And by help, I mean someone wants Geeta to murder her husband…

Hide (Detective Harriet Foster #1) by Tracy Clark

Tracy Clark has a great PI series set in Chicago, Broken Places, and now is starting a new police detective series set in the same city. Detective Harriet Foster is navigating a new team and new partner, while still grieving the death of her past partner, when she’s assigned a murder case of a woman whose body was left with lipstick encircling her wrists and ankles. Not only is Foster already up against a lot, but soon it’s clear she’s looking for a serial killer she must stop…

The Black Queen by Jumata Emill

Nova Albright is found murdered the day after she was meant to be crowned homecoming queen at Lovett High. Not only was the crown meant as a win for Nova, but also for all the Black kids since it was the first time a Black girl would have won. Nova’s bestie, Duchess Simmons, is absolutely certain that Tinsley McArthur murdered Nova. Why? Because Tinsley comes from a long line of homecoming queen winners and would never let anything get in the way of her win. With no one willing to believe Duchess, she decides to prove it herself. But Tinsley isn’t above playing games, either…

What Lies in the Woods by Kate Alice Marshall

For fans of secrets from the past coming for you! Twenty-plus years ago, a group of kids put away a serial killer with their testimony when one of them was attacked and survived. But now one of them is ready to release a secret and another to actually look into what really happened. And that just never ends well…

Just the Nicest Couple by Mary Kubica

Let’s start with a nice change of pace: the husband, not the wife, is missing. Nina doesn’t think anything of her husband not coming home after their fight, assuming he’s just cooling off. But then days pass and clearly something is wrong. Her best friend Lily tells her husband that she thinks she was the last one to see Jake and his response is to never tell Nina or anyone about that. Except Nina is searching for answers…

Against the Currant (A Spice Isle Bakery Mystery) by Olivia Matthews

This one’s for fans of cozy foodie mysteries! Lyndsay Murray is opening a West Indian bakery with her family in Brooklyn. The problem is Claudio Fabrizi, a bakery owner who doesn’t want competition, turns up dead after Lyndsay tells him off in front of a lot of people. Naturally she’s the prime suspect, so she’ll just have to go full sleuth to prove her innocence and point the finger at someone else!

Finlay Donovan Jumps the Gun (Finlay Donovan #3) by Elle Cosimano

For fans of funny crime books. Finlay Donovan is a single mom and author who spends most of her time trying to get out of the criminal trouble she’s somehow found herself in. For example: after the mob helped her out of a jam recently — while she was trying to stop a hit on her ex-husband that she accidentally stumbled upon — she now owes them a favor. She’ll just have to identify and find a contract killer for the mob. Oh, and it has to be before the cops do. No pressure!

The Twyford Code by Janice Hallett

For fans of past unsolved mysteries and puzzles! Steven Smith has just been released from prison and decides to dig deeply into a childhood mystery of his. His teacher had gone missing on a field trip, after he’d found a book he’d shown her where she thought the margin notes were code and clues to a puzzle. And to make this a bit more interesting, the book is all the audio files recovered from Steven’s iPhone…

Everyone In My Family Has Killed Someone by Benjamin Stevenson

If that title alone hasn’t already sold you, I’m not sure anything will, but here goes! This is a remote mystery nodding at the tropes of Golden Age mysteries. Ernest Cunningham writes self-published guides on writing mystery books and is forced to attend a family reunion at a ski resort. Which is when, of course, everyone becomes snowed in and the first body is found. Ernest has to put his passion for Golden Age detective novels to the test by solving the very real case he’s in.

What a great start to a new year of mystery reading! Looking to overfill your TBR with even more crime reads or want some backlist? We got you! You can also find a full list of new releases in the magical New Release Index, carefully curated by your favorite Book Riot editors, organized by genre and release date.

9 Mystery Series From Kindle Unlimited

Tika Viteri — Mon, 19 Dec 2022 11:37:00 +0000

Temperatures are getting lower, and that means I’m ready to settle into my living room, light a fire, sip some gin-and-ginger tea, and catch up on my 2022 Goodreads Challenge (only seven books behind schedule…this is fine…).

One of my favorite things about Kindle Unlimited is how much it has developed over the years. I’ve encountered so many authors I’d never have found at the library or in bookstores, and enjoyed a vast and diverse selection of books.

Mystery books have become my jam recently. I used to avoid them — being something of a weenie — but I now understand their pull and have been devouring them with delighted abandon. I usually have one going either on audio or in hand, and if it’s part of a series, all the better. I prefer my protagonists female whenever possible, and I appreciate an author who sidesteps the Dead Girl Trope. I also enjoy a good historical mystery set outside of Victorian England, which seems to be the default setting for such books. So while the weather outside turns frightful, there are a bunch of mystery series that I’m either in the middle of or are on my TBR that I think are worth sharing. To make it easier to start at the beginning, each series is introduced by its first book.

9 of the Best Kindle Unlimited Mystery Series to Read Right Now

The Heiress of Linn Hagh (The Detective Lavender Mysteries) by Karen Charlton

Detective Stephen Lavender was one of the early Bow Street Runners, the precursor to the detectives of today. Charlton takes Lavender’s story and adds fiction, to charming results. Currently there are six Detective Lavender Mysteries, two of which are based on Lavender’s real-life cases.

Blessop’s Wife (Historical Mysteries Collection) by Barbara Gaskell Denvil

Denvil’s readers enjoy her detailed descriptions of 15th century England, and are lucky enough to have eight volumes of the Historical Mysteries Collection. The cover claims you can read them in no particular order, although I’ll end up reading them in numerical order anyway.

The Dublin Trilogy Deluxe Part 1 (The Bunny McGarry Collection) by Caimh McDonnell

As you can see from the photo, the Dublin Trilogy runs more than three books. In fact, it runs to seven volumes and is “the funniest crime series” many readers have ever encountered.

Death by Dumpling: A Noodle Shop Mystery (A Noodle Shop Mystery, 1) by Vivien Chien

I will never stop recommending this cozy series by Vivien Chien. Her characters are delightful and everything about this (currently) nine book series is fun. I’ve taken to listening to them while cooking so they don’t leave me hungry for noodles.

A Brazen Curiosity: A Regency Cozy (Beatrice Hyde-Clare Mysteries) by Lynn Messina

Currently standing at 11 volumes, Messina’s cozy mystery series is sure to delight fans of historical fiction who like a little detecting and a scattering of delicious wit mixed in.

Itsy Bitsy Spider (Emma Frost Book 1) by Willow Rose

The Emma Frost series has earned Willow Rose the title “Queen of Plot Twists.” Stretching to 13 volumes, this series may find you oscillating between making popcorn and reading — or doing both at once during particularly exciting chapters.

Vanished (Dixon & Baudin) by Victor Methos

Victor Methos is a former defense attorney-turned-author who has written many two-to-three book series, many of which are available on Kindle Unlimited. Dixon & Baudin, in particular, is a dark series about the grey areas of detective work.

Merciless Legacy: An Asha Kade Private Detective Mystery Thriller (Merciless Murder Thrillers Book 1) by Tikiri Herath

Asha Kade was trafficked in her youth and is now a PI, burdened both with her past and the dying wish of an elderly acquaintance. In tracking down their family, she uncovers a deadly family secret — and that’s just in book one (of six, currently).

Malice: A Mystery (The Kyoichiro Kaga Series, 1) by Keigo Higashino

A best-selling novelist is found murdered in a locked room. Detective Kyochiro Kaga is tagged to investigate, and while doing so he recognizes a face from his own — and the victim’s — past. Higashino is an acclaimed author in Asia, and it’s delightful to see him getting recognition in English-speaking countries.

This list could honestly go on and on. All together we have 66 books over nine series, and several of the listed authors have multiple series to their credit — whew!

For more recommended mystery reads, check out our picks for the best mystery books of 2022 and our mystery, thriller, and true crime archives for even more.

Reading Pathways: Sulari Gentill

Elisa Shoenberger — Tue, 13 Dec 2022 11:30:00 +0000

Mystery writers come from many backgrounds, but Sri Lankan–born Australian writer Sulari Gentill has one of the best. She studied astrophysics in college, pivoted to law, and eventually realized her dream of writing books. She also hunts truffles with her dog. If that’s not enough, her writing is incredibly versatile. She started writing a fantasy series known as the Hero Trilogy, and then her husband recommended that she try her hand at murder mysteries. She found it a natural way to write; people had a reason to go into a room together…to solve (or obscure) the murder.

In a conversation earlier this year, Gentill told me about the opportunities for both the reader and the author. She said, “the reader is engaged in that whole process of discovering and uncovering who made the dead body. In the excitement of that, you can actually have a conversation with them about other things as well. I quite love that about my fiction because crime fiction isn’t just about the murder, it’s often about something else as well.” Her books explore a multitude of issues ranging from mental health to the rise of fascism.

When asked about the importance of crime fiction, Gentill said, “Crime writers are tackling bigger questions about society’s influence and society’s responsibility for crime and for murder in particular. I think that is a really important and useful discussion. I think it’s a way that the genre can really contribute to the understanding of the world.”

The Woman in the Library

This book is her most recently published one. It’s two stories in one. In one story, a visiting Australian writer meets three strangers at the Boston Public Library when the silence is interrupted by a woman screaming. The four become close friends quickly. But the scream that drew them together? The woman is found murdered. The writer fears that one of her new friends might be responsible. The second story is about the writing of the story. There’s a series of letters from a writing partner to the author of the library story commenting on it and giving suggestions how to improve. It’s a thrilling narrative that gave me goosebumps.

A Few Right Thinking Men

This is Gentill’s Golden Age Detective Series featuring Rowland Sinclair. Set in the 1930s, he’s the younger brother in a wealthy landed family in Australia but has chosen a Bohemian life. He’s an artist living with his fellow artist friends in the family’s mansion in Sydney. His older brother and head of the family strongly disapproves of Rowland’s choices and the company he keeps. But Rowland manages to live his life…that is, until his favorite uncle is brutally murdered. That sets Rowland into the world of politics as competing factions of fascism and communism clash. It’s the first in ten books (so far)! In addition to being delightful mysteries, these books give me a sense of the historical forces in Australia in the 1930s.

After She Wrote Him

This is Gentill’s other standalone book, a postmodern mystery novel. Madeleine d’Leon, the main character, is best known for her mystery novels featuring an amateur sleuth who works as a maid, but she’s got inspiration for a new character, Edward “Ned” McGinnity, a literary novelist. He’s thrilled to have written a new character for his book called Madeleine d’Leon. It feels like an Escher print in word form. The stories are interwoven and brilliantly combined. It’s a novel unlike any other I have found!

Want more postmodern mysteries? Check out this list I wrote in 2020. For folks who want to read more about Australia, check this Rioter’s list of books set there!