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Unusual Suspects

The Best Unconventional Detective TV Shows and Movies, Ranked

Hi mystery fans! I finally got to watch Julia Roberts and George Clooney’s recent romcom (fun!) and I started Poker Face which really scratches the itch for mystery fans who like to see the crime upfront and then watch the sleuth have to piece together evidence to hopefully nail the culprit!

Bookish Goods

New Releases

cover image for Liliana's Invincible Summer

Liliana’s Invincible Summer: A Sister’s Search for Justice by Cristina Rivera Garza

It’s always strange to say this about true crime memoirs but this is a gorgeously written book that will live with me forever which I loved. It’s for fans of true crime looking for the focus to be on the victim(s) and our society, without excessive graphic violence descriptions. Cristina Rivera Garza uses her sister’s murder in 1990 to spotlight femicide in Mexico. Twenty-nine years after Liliana Rivera Garza — a 20-year-old architecture student — was murdered, Cristina decides to get the files and follow the investigation, while also adding entries from her sister’s diary to show how a teenage relationship led to her strangulation in her home years later. The book also brings to light many femicide cases in Mexico and protests, shining a light on women trying to fight back against gender-targeted crime and how society has played a role in its existence and protection. If you read true crime memoirs, I highly recommend picking this one up to get to know Liliana and Cristina. Liliana’s diary entries are also a perfect snapshot of a teen girl’s life.

Victoria Villarreal does a fantastic job narrating the audiobook, which I listened to in one day.

(TW mentions rape cases the way the news does/ talks of femicide cases/ mentions case believed to be suicide that was later determined murder/ mentions partner sexual assault, not graphic/ partner abuse/ mentions brief threat of suicide)

cover of Scorched Grace by Margot Douaihy; illustration of a stained glass window image of a nun smoking a cigarette, done in reds and purples

Scorched Grace by Margot Douaihy

This is the first book put out by Gillian Flynn‘s imprint! And if you’ve ever wanted a lesbian nun covered in tattoos who goes full amateur sleuth, here you go! Sister Holiday is not a nun with habits you’d expect from a nun: smoking, cursing, and throwing herself into an investigation. And she won’t have anyone messing with the home she’s finally found, so when an arsonists hits Saint Sebastian’s School, killing a janitor, even the New Orleans heat won’t stop her from finding who’s responsible in order to save the school from being shut down. Being an amateur sleuth mystery, and her not fitting in the perfect nun box, you know she’s going to become a suspect herself…

Looking for more new releases? Check out our New Books newsletter!

Riot Recommendations

I have two more recent paperback releases for two different reading moods!

Under Lock & Skeleton Key cover image

Under Lock & Skeleton Key (Secret Staircase Mystery #1) by Gigi Pandian

A great start to a new series for fans of locked-room mysteries, amateur sleuths, past family mystery, and watching all the clues come together! Tempest Raj left her Las Vegas gig as a magician and is now living in her father’s house with her grandparents. She’s working for her dad’s company — which builds secrete and elaborate things in homes — while she figures out what she wants to do with her life. And so of course she finds a body, one that looks exactly like her and that she knows, at a job site. She’ll have to solve the murder, and whether it was targeted at her!

Soneela Nankani narrates both audiobooks in the series delightfully — The Raven Thief releases soon!

(TW brief mention of past suicide assumption, detail/ past domestic violence mentions/ stalker)

cover image for Tripping Arcadia

Tripping Arcadia by Kit Mayquist

For fans of Gothic mystery, elite families, and secrets! Lena’s father lost his job after an injury. Now Lena has dropped out of medical school and is willing to take any job to help her parents out financially. It’s how she ends up working for an elite Boston family, no matter how many red flags there are… What could go wrong?

News and Roundups

More Politicians Need To Address Book Bans

Liberty and Tirzah chat new releases including I Have Some Questions for You by Rebecca Makkai, Scorched Grace: A Sister Holiday Mystery by Margot Douaihy, and The Writing Retreat by Julia Bartz on All The Books!

Mystery Writers of America Announces Barbara Neely Grant Recipients

Alison Brie, Jake Lacy Join Liane Moriarty Series ‘Apples Never Fall’ at Peacock

The Best Unconventional Detective TV Shows and Movies, Ranked

Jesse Q. Sutanto returns with cozy murder mystery

‘The Night Manager’ Renewed for Season 2 With Tom Hiddleston Returning

Browse all the books recommended in Unusual Suspects previous newsletters on this shelf. See upcoming 2023 releases. Check out this Unusual Suspects Pinterest board and get Tailored Book Recommendations!

Until next time, keep investigating! In the meantime, come talk books with me on Twitter, Instagram, Goodreads, and Litsy — you can find me under Jamie Canavés.

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