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Unusual Suspects

100 years of Agatha Christie 🔪

Hello mystery fans! I’ve got some distractions for you in the form of a bunch of interesting clickable things, Kindle deals, and something excellent to watch. I also added some things that made me happy this week in case they too bring you a little bit of joy.

From Book Riot And Around The Internet

The Onlly Child cover imageRincey and Katie are back to squeal about a new Tana French coming, small press mystery books, and lots of other mystery related things on Read or Dead.

5 Crime Novels Where the Crime Is Beside the Point

The Complex Trauma Bond at the Heart of MY DARK VANESSA

A Disability Rights Perspective on Lisbeth Salander

We’re celebrating 100 years of Agatha Christie stories with a host of activities and events for readers, viewers, listeners and fans.

Wicked Things: Every Easter Egg Hidden in the Murder Mystery Debut

14 spy movies on Netflix that will keep you happy until ‘No Time to Die’ comes out

In this mystery-thriller, the protagonist dodges smugglers to return a precious relic to the historical Indian monument where it belongs

Our Obsession with Beautiful Dead Girls Is Keeping Us from Addressing Domestic Violence

Listening Pathways: Ramon de Ocampo

7 Thrillers About Female Ambition

Barnes & Noble with some excellent mystery & crime book picks for their April book of the month picks!

News And Adaptations

Your House Will Pay cover imageThe L.A. Times Book Club goes virtual with L.A. noir authors

‘Killing Eve’ Season 3 Premiere Moved Up By Two Weeks

(It stars Christian Slater and Amanda Peet so I’m automatically in.) The dark new trailer for Season 2 of ‘Dirty John’ has arrived

‘Grim Sleeper’ serial killer Lonnie Franklin Jr. found dead in prison cell (Recommend reading The Grim Sleeper: The Lost Women of South Central by Christine Pelisek)

Updated scroll on COVID-19 news and posts–including Dolly Parton reading to us.

Not book related but 100% for mystery fans and there are no rules right now!

Elliot Stabler (from SVU!) is getting his own upcoming series!

Take a Virtual Tour of the Winchester Mystery House, Sans Ghosts

Watch Now

Little Fires Everywhere is a Hulu limited series adaptation of Celeste Ng’s novel. Ng writes great novels that walk this beautiful line between contemporary and mystery and/or crime. The story starts with a family house fire, the youngest child accused and then we go back a bit in time to see how we got there and who is responsible and why. And one of the writers on the series is the excellent crime writer Attica Locke (if you’ve yet to read Bluebird, Bluebird you’re missing out!). Seriously, the show’s writing and acting is chef’s kiss so far.

Kindle Deals

Iced in Paradise cover imageIf you’re looking for a great mystery set in Hawai’i and a great escape right now: Iced in Paradise (Leilani Santiago Hawai’i Mystery) by Naomi Hirahara is $5.98! (Review) (TW addiction/ sick parent/ past stalking incident mentioned)

If you’re looking for a character driven psychological mystery: Remember by Patricia Shanae Smith is $4.99! (Review) (TW alcoholism/ social anxiety, panic attacks, agoraphobia, PTSD, on page/ past suicide mentioned)

And if you’re looking for a historical spy novel unlike the others: Who Is Vera Kelly? (Vera Kelly #1) by Rosalie Knecht is $2.99!

Things That Made Me Happy This Week

The sequel to Flowers Over The Inferno (a great Italian procedural–Review) is forthcoming this year: The Sleeping Nymph by Ilaria Tut!

Liberty pointed me in the direction of an app game Disney Emoji Blitz which my brain has found very soothing and makes my heart happy.

The third season of Man Like Mobeen is now on Netflix!

Browse all the books recommended in Unusual Suspects previous newsletters on this shelf. See 2020 upcoming releases. An Unusual Suspects Pinterest board. Get Tailored Book Recommendations!

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

If a mystery fan forwarded this newsletter to you and you’d like your very own you can sign up here.

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April Releases 🔪

Hi mystery fans! The decade that was March is finally over and I am here to put a bunch of April releases on your radar. I’m doing my best to keep track and note when publishing dates change (this is going to happen a lot due to the current circumstances), but some books may fall through the cracks so be patient with me–and publishing. Now to get our mystery on! (📚= I’ve read and recommend; 📖= currently reading and enjoying.)

The Silence of Bones by June Hur: 📖 Here’s a historical mystery I’m really enjoying. It’s set in the 1800 Joseon dynasty and follows sixteen-year-old Seol who is indentured to a young inspector trying to solve a politically charged murder of a noblewoman–a law doesn’t allow men to touch women they’re not related to, so Seol must do female arrests and move female bodies.

Something She’s Not Telling Us by Darcey Bell: The author of A Simple Favor has a new family drama thriller to inhale with some devious sounding ladies!

Death of an American Beauty (Jane Prescott #3) by Mariah Fredericks: 📖 One of my favorite historical mysteries is back. Set in early 1900s New York and following lady’s maid Jane Prescott. This series has a great balance of mystery and interesting historical moments with a great lead character.

No Going Back (Nora Watts #3) by Sheena Kamal: If you’re a fan of the “unlikable” ladies, PIs, and mysteries that have intense scenes, and thriller endings you should definitely be following Nora Watts, the human lie detector whose past is always just around the corner.

The Paris Mysteries by Edgar Allan Poe: Have you ever read some of the Edgar Allan Poe short stories that have been credited with inventing the detective genre? Now’s your chance!

Little Secrets by Jennifer Hillier: The Jar of Hearts author is back with a new thriller! What happens when a mother finds out her husband is having an affair with the woman who may have kidnapped her son?!

The Law of Lines by Hye-Young Pyun, Sora Kim-Russell (Translator): From the author of the slow-burn horror novel The Hole! A daughter doesn’t believe inspectors that an explosive fire was a suicide so she sets out to find the culprit and get revenge!

Strike Me Down by Mindy Mejia: The author of Leave No Trace is back with another thriller! This time we have a forensic accountant who tracks down thieves tasked with finding stolen prize money–expect secrets and twists!

Death in Her Hands by Ottessa Moshfegh: 📖 A suspense novel that feels like a stream of conscious (so far at least) about an elderly woman walking her dog who finds a cryptic note: “Her name was Magda. Nobody will ever know who killed her. It wasn’t me. Here is her dead body.”

He Started It by Samantha Downing: 📚 From the author of My Lovely Wife! A wickedly fun ride! And the only print read recently to hold my attention and help me escape. Three siblings must retrace the road trip they took with their grandad as kids with his ashes in order to get their inheritance. They’re all a-holes, there are stipulations like you can’t get arrested, and you better believe there are secrets! (This still has an April release date on Goodreads/Amazon but PRH site is showing July 28.) (TW past partner abuse discussed/ discussion of pedophile, not detailed nor graphic)

After She Wrote Him by Sulari Gentill: This sounds like an inventive mindfork of the mystery genre. Madeleine d’Leon is writing a book about the fictional character Edward McGinnity but Edward McGinnity has just come up with his next book lead: Madeleine d’Leon. So who is the author and who is the created character?…

Shooting Down Heaven by Jorge Franco, Andrea Rosenberg (Translator): I’m really excited about this novel which follows a group of now adults who were raised in the ’90s by Colombias most dangerous drug cartels.

The Truth About Keeping Secrets by Savannah Brown: The only psychiatrist in a small Ohio town dies leaving his daughter to solve the mystery of his crash, starting with why the homecoming queen is at his funeral…

Final Judgment (Samantha Brinkman #4) by Marcia Clark: The newest in  this lawyer behaving like a private eye mystery series perfect for fans of fun and entertaining legal shows. (Yes, that Marcia Clark.)

A Bad Day for Sunshine (Sunshine Vicram #1) by Darynda Jones: Here’s a romantic mystery with a hunky US Marshall, kidnapper on the loose, and a returned-to-small-town elected sheriff, set in New Mexico!

The Split by Sharon J. Bolton: Author of The Craftsman is back with a standalone thriller! A woman hiding from her ex, just released from prison, is afraid that even on the remote island South Georgia she can’t stay hidden and safe…

The Closer You Get by Mary Torjussen: The author of Gone Without A Trace is back with a psychological suspense! Coworkers fall in love and decide to leave their spouses for each other, but only one shows up at their meeting place. And then weird things start to happen…

Barker House by David Moloney: A novel that follows a bunch of correctional officers over the course of one year in New Hampshire.

Browse all the books recommended in Unusual Suspects previous newsletters on this shelf. See 2020 upcoming releases. An Unusual Suspects Pinterest board. Get Tailored Book Recommendations!

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

If a mystery fan forwarded this newsletter to you and you’d like your very own you can sign up here.

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We’re Getting A New Tana French Novel! 🔪

Hi mystery fans! I hope you’re all doing as well as possible under the current circumstances. I’m here to hopefully offer you some relief in the form of some mystery related links to click, Kindle deals, AND there’s a little section of upcoming books you may want to prebuy today, or ask your library to purchase, so you’ll have a nice little gift waiting for you later in the year.

From Book Riot And Around The Internet

miracle creek cover image10 Mystery Novels To Prepare For THE WOMAN IN THE WINDOW Movie

The Uncanny Appeal of the Seaside Mystery

9 Unreliable Books With Narrators Who Love to Keep You Guessing

10 Facts About Agatha Christie Fans Should Know

Have you read… Japanese crime fiction?

The Best Classic Mystery Books Always Worth the Read

(Last chance to enter!) Win a $250 Gift Card to Barnes & Noble!

In a Thicket: PW Talks with Riku Onda

 

News And Adaptations

The Apple TV limited series adaptation of Defending Jacob, starring Chris Evans and Michelle Dockery, now has a trailer!

Tana French has a new suspense standalone novel coming this fall. I repeat: Tana French has a new suspense standalone novel coming this fall!

Acorn TV premieres ‘Miss Fisher’ film

If you want to keep up with all the bookish news and items related to COVID-19 here’s a regularly updated page–lots of posts for free books and resources at the moment.

Kindle Deals

Want to travel to Ireland with an American musician as she gets caught up in solving crimes and talking to a ghost? The cozy mystery Murder in G Major by Alexia Gordon is $0.99!

Spy thriller fan? Why not read one written by an actual real life former spy?! John le Carré’s A Legacy of Spies is $1.99!

Have you read yet one of my favorite dark thrillers?! As Long as We Both Shall Live by JoAnn Chaney is $2.99! (Review) (TW suicide/ rape/ revenge porn/ domestic violence)

the birds that stay cover imageMaybe you want to start a Canadian procedural with past and present mysteries: Ann Lambert’s The Birds That Stay is $2.99! (Review) (TW alcoholism/ child abuse/ past suicide briefly mentioned with detail/ sexual assault/ pedophile)

 

 

 

Worth The Prebuy (Either I read and loved or am SUPER anticipating!)

Murder on Cold Street cover imageWe’re getting the 5th Lady Sherlock book and I squealed: Murder on Cold Street (The Lady Sherlock #5) by Sherry Thomas. (September 8, Berkley)

Obviously Tana French’s upcoming The Searcher–I will drop everything to read this. (October 6, Viking)

Khurrum Rahman’s East of Hounslow is already available in ebook and audiobook (super good, here’s my review) but if you read in print the paperback will release July 28th!

the silence of the white cityI inhaled this upcoming Spanish procedural about a serial killer about to be released from prison–his policeman twin put him there years before–when the same type of murders begin to happen again. I know! If fictional serial killers is up your alley and you want to spend some time in Spain check out The Silence of the White City by Eva Garcia Sáenz. (July 28, Vintage Crime)

If you’re a fan of the Detective Elouise Norton series you should be as excited as me to learn that the author has an upcoming standalone cat and mouse thriller! And Now She’s Gone by Rachel Howzell Hall. (September 22, Forge Books)

Browse all the books recommended in Unusual Suspects previous newsletters on this shelf. See 2020 upcoming releases. An Unusual Suspects Pinterest board. Get Tailored Book Recommendations!

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

If a mystery fan forwarded this newsletter to you and you’d like your very own you can sign up here.

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We Begin With The Crime 🔪

Hello mystery fans! In a time of fear where nothing is normal I’m going to try my best to offer you some escape. This week I have for you an excellent narrative nonfiction, a procedural focused on the mystery, and a page-turner missing boss mystery. There’s also a ton of new releases (including paperbacks) and at the end I have a link to all the bookish COVID-19 news if you need that. Please stay safe and home if you can, check in on people, and be kind to yourself and others. On to the books!

Just Mercy cover imageJust Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption by Bryan Stevenson: Even if you don’t read nonfiction, stay with me a moment because this is narrative nonfiction and reads like a story. Bryan Stevenson tells his story of starting his legal practice, Equal Justice Initiative, which focused on helping those in most need. He doesn’t just talk about the failures of our justice system and how it’s designed to only work for a few while punishing poor people for being poor, people with mental illness for being ill, people with disabilities for being disabled, people of color for their race/ethnicity etc. He shows you through the people he defended by taking on their cases and walking you through his defense. Including actual children on death row. Children. He recounts all of the stories, which are infuriating and heartbreaking, in a way that you can’t look away or stop reading but only gives the details needed without ever crossing the line into gratuitous.

If you watch Law & Order, legal procedurals, and/or true crime case shows this is a must-read. The audiobook is narrated by the author, who, let me tell you, could professionally be an audiobook narrator. It’s also been adapted into a film starring Michael B. Jordan, Jamie Foxx, and Brie Larson. And there’s even a young adult adapted version of the book. (TW suicide, attempt/ racism, racial slurs/ accidental child murder/ lynchings/ executions/ domestic and child abuse/ stillbirth/ rape/ ableism)

Watching From the Dark cover imageWatching from the Dark (DCI Jonah Sheens #2) by Gytha Lodge: If you’re looking for a procedural that focuses on the mystery at hand, this should keep you entertained. If you need to start at the beginning of a series, here’s my review for She Lies In Wait (Review) but if you want to jump into this one you can without feeling lost. I honestly didn’t even remember any of the detectives’ personal life matters from the previous book, so it was like starting here for me.

We begin with the crime, at least the crime heard by a man who signed in to videochat with his girlfriend but instead ended up listening to her murder. So he calls the police, kind of, because he’s afraid to tell them who he is. So by the time the detective gets this case they’ve already got an added mystery of why the man who called it in didn’t want to leave his name and contact. We get alternating chapters between the detectives working on the case, the scene, interviewing witnesses, and Zoey, the murdered young woman’s life leading up to her murder. Which timeline will reveal what happened to Zoey? Will you figure it out first?… (TW suspicion of death by suicide/ abusive relationship/ mentions self-harm/ mentions pedophile/ character talks about their PTSD/ talk of rape cases/ child death/ stalking/ talk of alcoholism/ talk of eating disorder)

The Herd cover imageThe Herd by Andrea Bartz: I needed something that would not only grab my attention quickly but would be able to hold it and Bartz totally delivered. This had a lot of elements work for me: interesting workspace; longtime friendships; family drama; character struggling to get their life together; missing person case; secrets!

Katie interviews at her older sister Hana’s job at The Herd, a coworking space designed only for women, but she brings baggage she’s keeping a secret and really running away from something she’s not yet ready to reveal. Quickly, her mess begins to spill into her new work environment but, before she’s found out, Eleanor, the founder of The Herd and close friend of Hana’s, goes missing right before a huge announcement. As the group of women, friends since youth, begin to ask questions, they start to realize there are secrets, they may not have known their friend Eleanor as well as they thought, and there’s still the threat from those livid by the idea of a women-only coworking space…  It’s told in alternating POV between Katie and her sister Hana, which allows the reader to really see their relationship with each other and other people from different perspectives. The audiobook used two different narrators, which worked really well for this story. (TW stalking, not on page/ mentions past child abuse/ mom with breast cancer discussed/ suicide attempt, detail but not on page)

Recent Releases

Goldie Vance the Hotel Whodunit cover imageGoldie Vance: The Hotel Whodunit by Lilliam Rivera: A fun teen sleuth mystery novel based on the comic book characters. (Review)

Execution in E (Gethsemane Brown Mysteries #5) by Alexia Gordon: This is a fun cozy mystery series starring an American living in Ireland teaching music who solves crimes and has a ghost friend. This time around Gethsemane is up against an influencer-turned-bridezilla!

The Black Ghost Vol 1: The Hard Revolution by by Alex Segura, Monica Gallagher, Greg Lockard, George Kambadais, Ellie Wright, Taylor Esposito: If you skip reading issues and wait for the volume here you go! A vigilante obsessed reporter tries to uncover the truth and help her city while ignoring her own problems which never really works out, right?

Flowers Over The InfernoFlowers Over the Inferno (Teresa Battaglia #1) by Ilaria Tuti, Ekin Oklap (translator) (Paperback): Great start to an Italian procedural series following a detective hiding her dementia as she solves a murder-mystery. (Review) (TW child abuse)

The Gone Dead by Chanelle Benz: (Paperback) For Southern lit and past mystery fans! (Review) (TW past child abuse/ suicide/ dog harmed–you’ll see it coming and it’s skippable)

The Other Americans by Laila Lalami (Paperback): Super good read great for fans of literary works, murder mysteries, multiple points of view, love stories, and explorations of the effects of a crime on a family and community. (Review) (TW addiction/ PTSD)

If She Wakes cover imageIf She Wakes by Michael Koryta (Paperback): If you’re looking for a page-turning thriller to escape into! (Review)

Death of a New American (Jane Prescott #2) by Mariah Fredericks (Paperback): If you need a really good historical mystery series this one is set in early 1900’s New York and has a good balance between historical events and solving the mystery. (Review) (TW suicide)

COVID-19 Updates from the Bookish World

Browse all the books recommended in Unusual Suspects previous newsletters on this shelf. See 2020 upcoming releases. An Unusual Suspects Pinterest board. Get Tailored Book Recommendations!

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

If a mystery fan forwarded this newsletter to you and you’d like your very own you can sign up here.

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Acorn TV Extends Free Trial For Crime Drama Watching

Hi mystery fans! I know things are hard right now so if helpful for you Book Riot has a story stream (one page with updating article links) for bookish coverage of COVID-19. If instead you need an escape from all that, I’ve wrangled some mystery links to click and read, something to watch, and some Kindle deals perfect for bookfort hiding and reading.

From Book Riot And Around The Internet

Death of a Red Heroine cover imageRincey and Katie are back on the latest Read Or Dead with how the ghost of Agatha Christie might be haunting a museum, Snoop Dogg is adapting the IQ series, and some backlist books.

Liberty and Tirzah talk about Mrs. Mohr Goes Missing and other new releases on All The Books.

Quiz: Which Political Thriller Should You Read?

2020’s Must-Read And Best Crime Thriller Books

Win a $250 Gift Card to Barnes & Noble!

The Best Lies cover image12 YA Thrillers You Won’t Be Able to Put Down

5 Creepy Books to Read Once You’ve Finished You

Natalee Holloway-Inspired ‘Saint X’ Is More Than a Beach Read

The Best Historical Fiction of 2020 (So Far)

7 Great Books Hitting Shelves This Week

News And Adaptations

Carved in Bone cover image2020 Lambda Literary Awards Finalists

Romance author Alyssa Cole wrote an upcoming thriller, When No One Is Watching, and I need it now! Also, here’s the cover reveal and her talking about the book.

Mystery and thriller author Tiffany D. Jackson‘s upcoming two novels will be horror and they sound amazing!

Acorn TV extends free trial for TV crime drama watching

Watch Now

If you read Lauren Wilkinson’s American Spy (if not chop-chop!) and want even more Black women spies, and are a James Bond type fan, let me introduce you to Netflix’s Queen Sono series: A highly trained woman working for the South African intelligence unit out on missions and kicking butt–literally. Here’s the trailer.

Kindle Deals

widows of malabar hill cover imageIf you’re looking for a great historical mystery about a female lawyer in Bombay: The Widows of Malabar Hill (A Perveen Mistry #1) by Sujata Massey is $1.99! (Review)

If you want to start a recent procedural set in Dublin: Too Close to Breathe by Olivia Kiernan is $4.99! (Review) (TW: self-harm/ domestic abuse/ suicide)

Browse all the books recommended in Unusual Suspects previous newsletters on this shelf. See 2020 upcoming releases. An Unusual Suspects Pinterest board. Get Tailored Book Recommendations!

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

If a mystery fan forwarded this newsletter to you and you’d like your very own you can sign up here.

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Mysteries For One, Please!

Hi mystery fans! So things are a bit weird right now, to say the least, and I thought it may be helpful to do a big roundup of all kinds of book recommending posts from the vault. And of course things to watch and listen to. Basically, here are books, films/shows, and podcasts to help you be the best social distancer ever! And now may be a good time to look into mail-in-vote/ absentee ballots in your state, if you haven’t already.

If you’re a fan of cozy mysteries and puns: 6 Cozy Mystery Titles With Truly Magnificent Puns. Or if you want to try one of the 25 best cozy mystery series.

If you’re looking for the best mysteries you may have missed from 2018 and 2017.

For historical mystery fans: 5 Historical Mysteries That Combine Real History With Whodunnit; 7 Historical Mysteries Set Around The World; 8 of the Best Historical Mysteries

So these are the best mystery books for road trips, BUT I argue they’re also excellent audiobooks for staying at home and listening to a great mystery. Seriously, stay put.

American Spy cover imageFor spy lovers: A Secret History: Learning the Past from Spy Fiction; 7 Spy Romance Novels To Pick Up; 3 On A YA Theme: Spy Stories; 9 Great Books About Female Spies

If you love detective novels: 10 of the Best Detectives from Recent Crime Novels; 8 of the Best Private Detectives in Mystery Series; 8 Great Reads with Unusual Detectives

Want to take a quiz to find your next murder mystery read? Here you go!

Diamond Doris cover imageFor true crime readers: The United States of Wrongdoing: 50 Great Books About True Crimes; 10 Historical True Crime Books That Are Stranger Than Fiction; True Crime: Beyond Serial Killers And Sensationalized Crimes

For comic book fans: 10 Murder Mystery Comics; 3 Comics Recommendations for Mystery Readers; 10 Mystery Manga to Investigate and Unravel

If your library has Hoopla and you want an audiobook: 21 Must Read Hoopla Mystery and Thriller Audiobooks!

Or maybe you want to make some popcorn and watch something:

A Definitive Ranking of Agatha Christie Movies

You can use this as book recs or film/show recs: 16 Mystery Book Recs Based on Films and TV Shows

This cover all genres but Liberty is a big crime fan so there’s a bunch of mysteries on the list: 100 Must-Read Adapted Books That Are Movies and Television

On Hulu: Killing Eve; A Simple Favor; Bones; DCI Banks; Veronica Mars; The Fugitive; Elementary; Stumptown

On Netflix: Sherlock; Broadchurch; Riverdale; Dark Places; Mindhunter; The Irishman; Dead to Me; Father Brown; iZombie

Amazon Prime: Psych; Luther; Grantchester; Tom Clancy’s Jack Ryan; Monk; Clue; Grimm

HBO Go: Big Little Lies; Casino Royale; Pokemon Detective Pikachu; Shaft; McMillion$; Miss Sherlock; Barry

Maybe you’ve been meaning to listen to more podcasts? Rincey and Katie always have recent news, releases, and what they’re reading on Read or Dead. According to Lifewire: The 15 Best Mystery Podcasts of 2020. There’s also 33 of the Best Book Podcasts for All Genres. If you’re looking for a scripted mystery podcast: Lethal Lit: A Tig Torres Mystery and Deadly Manners narrated by some famous voices like LeVar Burton and Kristen Bell.

Recent Releases

The Eighth Girl cover imageThe Eighth Girl by Maxine Mei-Fung Chung: “An omnivorous examination of life with mental illness and the acute trauma of life in a misogynist world.”–sold!

Darling Rose Gold by Stephanie Wrobel: Psychological thriller mother vs daughter that’s great on audio. (TW past suicide, brief detail/ disordered eating/ talk of past PTSD, addiction, miscarriage/ child abuse)

The Red Lotus by Chris Bohjalian: A global thriller about deceit!

Mrs. Mohr Goes Missing cover imageMrs. Mohr Goes Missing by Maryla Szymiczkowa, Antonia Lloyd-Jones (Translation): A Polish mystery that follows a bored socialite and is inspired by Agatha Christie!

Browse all the books recommended in Unusual Suspects previous newsletters on this shelf. See 2020 upcoming releases. An Unusual Suspects Pinterest board. Get Tailored Book Recommendations!

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

If a mystery fan forwarded this newsletter to you and you’d like your very own you can sign up here.

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Conan Doyle Took Dictation For His Dying Friend’s Mystery Novel

Hi mystery fans! I’ve got things for you to read, news, Kindle deals and this week I’m pointing out some great new additions to Hoopla audio if you need something in your ears this weekend.

From Book Riot And Around The Internet

A Murderous Relation cover imageOn All The Books Liberty and Vanessa discuss the latest release in the Henry Farrell Series and Veronica Speedwell.

On the latest Unlikeable Female Characters episode “Layne interviews author Hannah Capin about her new Shakespeare-inspired revenge thriller FOUL IS FAIR, her favorite fictional Mean Girls, and why violence is so much fun.”

Eerie, Best of 2020, and More Must-Read Mystery and Thrillers

Winter Counts cover imageChris Connolly interviews David Heska Wanbli Weiden, author of Winter Counts (I loved this novel!)

How “My Dark Vanessa” Became One Of The Biggest Books Of The Year

‘My Dark Vanessa’ Courts Controversy on the Page and Off

In 1899, Arthur Conan Doyle Took Dictation for His Dying Friend’s Mystery Novel

American Spy cover image9 Great Books About Female Spies

Cleveland mystery writer Vivien Chien shines spotlight on AsiaTown, and Asian-American characters

We’re Giving Away a $50 Gift Card to Barnes and Noble!

Win A Book Club Bundle!

 

News And Adaptations

Blanche on the Lam cover imageIn sad news: Barbara Neely, author of first Black female series sleuth Blanche White, dies at 78

I loved the series (but it’s definitely a pay attention show not a background watch show): The Explosive Dare Me Finale That Almost Wasn’t

‘Truth Be Told’ Drama Renewed For Season 2 By Apple

Tana French has a Pandora station that offers 80+ handpicked songs and 30+ minutes of exclusive commentary–and she’s working on a new book about an American detective retired in Ireland!

On Hoopla Audio (If you don’t know about Hoopla)

Hollywood Homicide by Kellye Garrett has the amazing Bahni Turpin narrating this great cozy mystery, so run to that one.

And as a fan of Sarah Pinborough’s twisty thrillers up next for me is her recent release Dead To Her. (Don’t tell me anything about it I want to be surprised!)

Kindle Deals

Jar of Hearts cover imageFor fans of twisty, dark, and fictional serial killers: Jar of Hearts by Jennifer Hillier is $2.99! (Review) (TW: rape scenes/ domestic violence/ pedophile off page)

Another dark read by a fantastic writer for fans of missing cases: Pretty Girls by Karin Slaughter is $1.99!

If you want a slow-burn suspense with bite: Social Creature by Tara Isabella Burton is $4.99! (Review) (TW suicide/ rape)

One Small Sacrifice cover imageAnd the great procedural series I recently talked about is on sale: One Small Sacrifice and Don’t Look Down by Hilary Davidson are each $4.99! (Review) (TW suicide/ PTSD) and (Review) (TW sex trafficking/ past domestic abuse mentioned/past drug overdose/ suicide, detail)

Browse all the books recommended in Unusual Suspects previous newsletters on this shelf. See 2020 upcoming releases. An Unusual Suspects Pinterest board. Get Tailored Book Recommendations!

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

If a mystery fan forwarded this newsletter to you and you’d like your very own you can sign up here.

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Teen Sleuths And Revenge!

Hello mystery fans! I noticed a theme in a few of my last reads so I thought I’d share two great teen sleuths and a YA revenge fantasy.

Goldie Vance the Hotel Whodunit cover imageGoldie Vance: The Hotel Whodunit by Lilliam Rivera: Welcome to Florida where Goldie Vance works as a valet at the resort her father manages but really she’s always up in the in-house detectives business because Goldie has a one-track mind and it’s always focused on solving a mystery. For the first half of the book you get to know her and her friends, also working at the hotel, her mermaid performing mother, the in-house detective, how the hotel runs, and that there’s a monster movie being filmed there. The big case starts halfway through when a prized piece of costume jewelry is stolen! Nothing will get in Goldie’s way of figuring out what happened, especially when fingers point at her mother as the thief.

This is the first in a series and is based on the Goldie Vance comics–if you’ve already read those, the mystery is new but the book is introducing Goldie, her family, and friends to potentially new readers, which, as someone who loves Goldie, was a great re-welcome for me. If you’re excited for more Goldie and Diane, you’ll have to wait until the end of this one and the next book as Goldie 100% makes her crush known, but she stays focused on work and the mystery until the end when it’s solved. If you love young sleuths who charge ahead to help and solve mysteries, are kind, and fun you’ll love Goldie and her family and friends.

The Vanishing Girl cover imageThe Vanishing Girl (Daphne and Velma YA Novel #1) by Josephine Ruby: I didn’t know this existed until I saw it while scrolling on Hoopla and I pressed play immediately, which was a great decision on my part because it is so much fun! This takes two characters from the Scooby-Doo franchise, Velma and Daphne, and makes them lead characters with alternating chapters. They used to be best friends but had a falling out and Daphne, the popular one, got a new best friend, and Velma just stayed away from her. Until Daphne’s best friend goes missing and they join up to figure out what happened.

I really enjoyed the characters, which are based on the cartoon characters’ personalities but are further developed and given their own voices as they deal with family and friendship issues. You get the spooky town, appearances from other members of the Scooby gang–Scooby included!–a good mystery, friendships, and the is-it-a-monster-bad-guy reveal! It’s listed as the first in a series and I will do all the gimme hands for the next in the series.

Foul Is Fair cover imageFoul Is Fair (Foul Is Fair #1) by Hannah Capin: The author kindly lists trigger warnings her work so I’ll link to that at the end, but the entire story hinges on something that I need to talk about so I’m starting with one trigger warning for date rape. That’s what happens to Elle when she goes out partying for her sixteenth birthday to a boy’s prep school party. Afterwards she tells her friends, her parents (withholding who the boys were), and transfers to the school the boys attend. Why? Revenge. All planned out. Every boy involved in her assault is going to die and her group of popular girlfriends, her coven, is going to help, along with one boy from the school she’s going to force to help. It isn’t going to be easy, but her mind is made up and these boys need to pay, and the school’s rape culture needs to come to an end at any cost.

This felt like a melodrama war cry meets Lady Macbeth meets Heathers and should be “fun” for fans of revenge fantasies that want to think of nothing more than revenge. It gets bloody! (TW Capin gives detailed notes here.)

Recent Releases

Hollywood Homicide cover imageHollywood Homicide by Kellye Garrette: Now available on audiobook and narrated by one of my favorite narrators Bahni Turpin (You know her from Dread Nation; The Hate U Give.) (Review)

The June Boys by Courtney C. Stevens: TBR YA mystery about The Gemini Thief who is a serial kidnapper that takes three boys and holds them captive for a year.

Gone by Midnight (Crimson Lake #3) by Candice Fox: TBR the third in the series that follows an unlikely pair of detectives in Australia.

Mimi Lee Gets A Clue cover imageMimi Lee Gets a Clue (A Sassy Cat Mystery #1) by Jennifer J. Chow: The start to a cozy mystery series starring a pet grooming store owner who after reporting a puppy mill becomes a murder suspect. Oh, and a cat she’s watching talks to her and becomes helpful in clearing her name!

A Murderous Relation (Veronica Speedwell #5) by Deanna Raybourn: Currently reading one of my favorite historical mystery series with a will-they-won’t-they pairing that always delivers in adventure and laughs.

Browse all the books recommended in Unusual Suspects previous newsletters on this shelf. See 2020 upcoming releases. An Unusual Suspects Pinterest board. Get Tailored Book Recommendations!

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

If a mystery fan forwarded this newsletter to you and you’d like your very own you can sign up here.

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Unusual Suspects

👻 Agatha Christie Haunts Museum

Hi mystery fans! You know the drill: I am here with some clickity links with interesting things to read, news, something to watch, and Kindle deals. Here’s to a bookish weekend!

From Book Riot And Around The Internet

cover image: a cheery blossom tree branch with a few pink flowers with a watercolor ligth blue backgroundWhere to Start Reading Keigo Higashino (One of my favorite authors!)

Rincey and Katie discuss My Dark Vanessa and Excavation, Latinx mysteries, and what they’re reading on Read Or Dead.

We’re Giving Away a $50 Gift Card to Barnes and Noble!

6 Books That Contextualize Harvey Weinstein’s Monumental Guilty Verdict

For fans of The Whisper Man: Could this be the most terrifying thriller of the year? Here’s your first look at The Shadows

If You Liked My Sister, the Serial Killer, you’ll like…

The month’s best in crime, mystery, and thrillers.

Who you gonna call? Ghost of Agatha Christie knocking her own books off shelves in hometown museum

News and Adaptations

Untamed Shore cover imageHere are the bookstores you can catch Silvia Moreno-Garcia at this month!

Janet Evanovich Moves To Atria For Next Four Books In Substantial 8-Figure Deal

Thriller novelist Harlan Coben on suburban secrets and Netflix hits

Modern Cold War Comic ‘Red Atlantis’ Launching in June

Kylie Bunbury Cast as Lead in David E Kelley’s ABC Series ‘The Big Sky’ (Will watch anything she’s in. Also, BRING BACK PITCH!)

Apple Won’t Let Bad Guys Use iPhones in Movies (Plus other ‘Knives Out’ Facts)

The release of the new James Bond film has been put back by seven months as coronavirus continues to spread.

Watch Now

The finale of Megan Abbott’s Dare Me adaptation airs this Sunday (making all the popcorn!) and if you need to catch up, or marathon, the episodes are streaming on USA website/app. This has been one of the best filmed shows for me, and has really nailed the suspense.

Kindle Deals

Beijing Payback cover imageFor fans of family drama and mystery: Beijing Payback by Daniel Nieh is $1.99!

If you’re looking to start a YA mystery series about a school training elite spies that has one of their own murdered: Killing November by Adriana Mather is $1.99! The sequel, Hunting November, is out end of this month.

If you’re looking for an early 1900’s NY historical mystery: A Death of No Importance (Jane Prescott #1) by Mariah Fredericks is $2.99! (Review) (TW pedophile)

Browse all the books recommended in Unusual Suspects previous newsletters on this shelf. See 2020 upcoming releases. An Unusual Suspects Pinterest board. Get Tailored Book Recommendations!

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

If a mystery fan forwarded this newsletter to you and you’d like your very own you can sign up here.

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Unusual Suspects

🔪 March’s Mystery & Thrillers

Hello mystery fans! We’ve made it to March and here are a bunch of crime, mystery, and thriller books publishing this month to keep your bookish heart happily reading. (📚= I’ve read and recommend; 📖= currently reading and enjoying.)

Goldie Vance the Hotel Whodunit cover imageGoldie Vance: The Hotel Whodunit by Lilliam Rivera: 📚 A delightful middle-grade mystery based on the Goldie Vance comic series that brings us all our favorite characters with Goldie trying to solve a mystery while a monster movie is filmed at the hotel she works at.

Please See Us by Caitlin Mullen: Suspense novel set in Atlantic City where women are going missing and a boardwalk psychic and an art gallery woman team up to figure out what is happening.

Mimi Lee Gets A Clue cover imageMimi Lee Gets a Clue (A Sassy Cat Mystery #1) by Jennifer J. Chow: 📖 (For cozy mystery fans a groomer is accused of murdering the dude she reported for a puppy mill and discovers a cat with a bit of an attitude she’s caring for talks to her to help her clear her name.)

Execution In E (Gethsemane Brown Mysteries #4) by Alexia Gordon: A fun cozy mystery series that follows an American musician living in Ireland who usually gets helped on her mystery adventures by a ghost!

Brown Girl Ghosted by Mintie Das: Small-town teen needs the help of the spirit world to find who killed the school’s queen bee!

The Eighth Girl cover imageThe Eighth Girl by Maxine Mei-Fung Chung: Super excited to read this one marketed as “an omnivorous examination of life with mental illness and the acute trauma of life in a misogynist world.”

City of Margins by William Boyle: I love Boyle’s crime novels and am really looking forward to this one set in ’90s Brooklyn following a slew of characters and how they’re lives intersect.

 

A Murderous Relation cover imageA Murderous Relation (Veronica Speedwell #5) by Deanna Raybourn: 📖 I absolutely adore this fun historical mystery series that follows a smart, adventurous, mouthy woman who partners with a grumpy natural historian. You can always count on a great mystery, adventure, will-they-won’t-they tension, and hilarious scenes–I was cracking up in the opening of this one.

Santa Fe Noir edited by Ariel Gore: A Southwest US installment in the Akashic Noir Series which collects crime short stories–great way to find new authors.

Mrs. Mohr Goes Missing cover imageMrs. Mohr Goes Missing by Maryla Szymiczkowa, Antonia Lloyd-Jones (Translation): Super excited for this one marketed as a Polish mystery “inspired by the work of Agatha Christie, following a bored socialite who becomes Cracow’s most cunning amateur sleuth.”

Victim 2117 (Afdeling Q #8) by Jussi Adler-Olsen, William Frost (Translation): For procedural fans this is a great series that follows Copenhagen’s cold cases division.

Darling Rose Gold cover imageDarling Rose Gold by Stephanie Wrobel: 📚 If you’re looking for a psychological mother vs daughter here’s a page-turner–I listened to the audiobook, with alternating narration, in one day! (TW past suicide, brief detail/ disordered eating/ talk of past PTSD, addiction, miscarriage/ child abuse)

A Conspiracy of Bones (Temperance Brennan #19) by Kathy Reichs: Hello, fans of Bones, Temperance Brennan is back!

The Body Double by Emily Beyda: Dark, suspense about a woman asked by a stranger to give up her current life to impersonate a Hollywood recluse.

The Herd cover imageThe Herd by Andrea Bartz: “Why did the founder of a glamorous coworking space for women disappear? Her best friends will risk everything to uncover the truth.” Yup, I’m in!

You Are Not Alone by Greer Hendricks, Sarah Pekkanen: The authors of The Wife Between Us and An Anonymous Girl are back with a new thriller!

The Red Lotus by Chris Bohjalian: I found The Flight Attendant and The Guest Room to be interesting, page-turning thrillers so I’m looking forward to this global thriller about deceit.

Hour of the Assassin by Matthew Quirk: An action thriller that follows a former Secret Service agent framed for the murder of the former director of the CIA…

Browse all the books recommended in Unusual Suspects previous newsletters on this shelf. See 2020 upcoming releases. An Unusual Suspects Pinterest board. Get Tailored Book Recommendations!

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

If a mystery fan forwarded this newsletter to you and you’d like your very own you can sign up here.