Category: Unusual Suspects

Hello mystery fans! I didn’t plan it but it happened and I’m happy it did: there’s a lot of history here. I’ve got for you my favorite Sherlock, an amazing real life WWII spy, and a recent historical mystery series that is so good!

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Sponsored by the audiobook edition of Saving Meghan by D. J. Palmer

Fifteen-year-old Meghan has been in and out of hospitals with a plague of unexplained illnesses. But when the ailments take a sharp turn, clashing medical opinions begin to raise questions about the puzzling nature of Meghan’s illness. Doctors suspect Munchausen syndrome by proxy, a rare behavioral disorder where the primary caretaker seeks medical help for made-up symptoms of a child. Is this what’s going on? Or is there something even more sinister at hand?

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My Favorite Sherlock!

The Hollow of Fear (Lady Sherlock, #3) by Sherry Thomas: If you’ve yet to read this amazing historical mystery series–one of my all-time favorites–here is a review for the 1st two books in the series. Read that instead of this review–not to be bossy but don’t spoil it for yourself. And now back to the third in the series: it’s SO good. This series keeps getting better for me and I started at already-in-love-with-it from the first book. Charlotte is still pretending to be Sherlock Holmes in order to solve cases and this time she takes her cover one step further (!!) when Lord Ingram is accused of having murdered Lady Ingram. If you enjoy this series for the witty banter, the inhaling of desserts, the mystery solving, the sexual tension, the twists, and Charlotte’s ability to see what others don’t–especially in relation to society’s treatment of women–you are going to be very pleased. And do I have good news for you: the next book in the series, The Art of Theft, comes out in October! I can’t wait that long! Also, someone needs to adapt this into a TV or film series NOW.

Fantastic Nonfiction! (TW suicide/ torture/ concentration camps)

Code Name: Lise: The True Story of the Woman Who Became WWII’s Most Highly Decorated Spy by Larry Loftis: I inhaled this fantastic audiobook! It’s nonfiction that is written like a novel about Odette Sansom, who basically ended up a spy in WWII because she decided to take the test to prove she wouldn’t pass when the SOE was trying to recruit her. Spoiler: she passed! She left her young children and went off to be a courier during the war and was immediately nicknamed the Angry Gazelle–she was delightfully stubborn. This takes you into her training, her mission, and her capture… If you like spy novels/biographies don’t miss this one. And if you’re an audiobook listener go with the audiobook!

Another Great Historical Mystery! (TW suicide)

Death of a New American (Jane Prescott #2) by Mariah Fredericks: And here’s another historical mystery series that I love. This series is set in early 1900’s New York and has a great balance between focusing on historical moments and solving the mystery, while dissecting the social classes. In the second book the Titanic has just sunk and it’s all everyone can talk about–along with all the phobia and hate against Italian immigrants. Ladies’ maid Jane Prescott is traveling with the family she works for as plans for the youngest’s wedding are underway. And then the nanny at the family estate, where they’re staying, is murdered in what appears to be a kidnapping gone wrong. I really love Prescott’s character and her sometimes sardonic personality. She was raised in a place that took in sex workers and trained them for other jobs and so she’s always been treated as an outcast, has a lifelong friendship with an Italian girl who was an anarchist, and believes in asking many questions and searching for answers rather than believing the first thing someone says. This is an excellent series for fans of historical mysteries.

Recent Releases

They All Fall Down by Rachel Howzell Hall (This great modern Agatha Christie retelling is now out! Review) (TW suicide/ eating disorder/ anxiety attacks)

The Five: The Untold Lives of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper by Hallie Rubenhold (Currently reading: Finally a focus on the women who were murdered.)

Murder by Milkshake: An Astonishing True Story of Adultery, Arsenic, and a Charismatic Killer by Eve Lazarus (True Crime)

Cat Chase the Moon (Joe Grey #21) by Shirley Rousseau Murphy (Feline private investigator)

Someone Knows by Lisa Scottoline (Domestic thriller)

Our House by Louise Candlish (Paperback) (Good psychological suspense) (TW suicide, suicidal thoughts)

Love and Death in the Sunshine State: The Story of a Murder by Cutter Wood (Paperback) (True Crime)

Browse all the books recommended in Unusual Suspects previous newsletters on this shelf. And here’s an Unusual Suspects Pinterest board.

Until next time, keep investigating! And 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.

Hi mystery fans! So I highly recommend the first two seasons of On My Block (Netflix) if you like a balance between having feels and dying of laughter. It isn’t a mystery/crime show buuut the setting reminds me of Joe Ide’s IQ series, the first season does have a mystery adventure story threaded through, and it’s partially a crime show revolving around gangs. Bonus: it’s a quick marathon. Okay, on to books!

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Sponsored by Soho Crime

In April 1938, a man calling himself Josef Hofmann arrives at a boarding house in Hamm, Germany, and lets a room from the widow who owns it. Fifty years later, Walter Gersdorff, the widow’s son, who was eleven years old in the spring of 1938, discovers the carefully hidden diary the boarder had kept during his stay, even though he never should have written any of its contents down. What Walter finds is a chronicle of one the most tumultuous years in German history, narrated by a secret agent on a deadly mission.

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From Book Riot And Around The Internet

Spring’s Most Anticipated Mysteries & Thrillers

Writing Mysteries on the Page, Battling Mysteries in My Body

Why It’s Time to Stop Talking About Jack the Ripper

Aboriginal Teen Ghost and Other Favorite Mysteries and Thrillers

Rincey and Katie talk about mysteries with characters who have disabilities, recent news, and new releases on the latest Read or Dead.

9 Young Adult Suspense Novels for Teens

They All Fall Down book trailer

News And Adaptations

‘Death in Paradise’ Producer Red Planet Pictures To Adapt Louise Candlish’s Real-Estate Nightmare Novel ‘Our House’ For TV

BAFTA Bends The Rules To Allow ‘Killing Eve’ To Pick Up 14 Nominations For TV & TV Craft Awards

Paramount TV, Anonymous to Adapt Susan Orlean’s ‘The Library Book’

James Patterson donates $1.25 million to classroom libraries

Kindle Deals

The Last Place You Look by Kristen Lepionka is $2.99 and such a great start to a PI series–I’ve loved watching Roxane Weary grow! (Review) (TW rape)

Bearskin by James A. McLaughlin is $2.99 and a good read for fans of crime novels in the wilderness. (TW rape/ animal cruelty)

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

Fallen Mountains by Kimi Cunningham, James Patrick Cronin (narrator) A great small-town mystery where all the secrets come out–Full review. (TW domestic violence/ addiction/ suicide)

Basil of Baker Street by Eve Titus, Ralph Lister (narrator) A fun children’s series starring a detective mouse who is a big fan of Sherlock Holmes.

Browse all the books recommended in Unusual Suspects previous newsletters on this shelf. And here’s an Unusual Suspects Pinterest board.

Until next time, keep investigating! And 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.

Hello mystery fans! This week I have for you a great modern And Then There Were None, a fun dark domestic thriller, and a really good crime novel about secrets and survival.

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Sponsored by The Center of the Universe by Ria Voros from KCP Loft

Grace Carter’s mother — the celebrity news anchor GG Carter — is everything Grace is not. GG is a star with a following of thousands, while Grace — an aspiring astrophysicist — is into stars of another kind. Then one day GG disappears. News shows speculate about what might have happened and Grace’s family struggles as they wait for answers. While the authorities unravel the mystery behind GG’s disappearance, Grace grows closer to her high school’s golden boy, Mylo. She also uncovers some secrets from her mother’s long-lost past. The more Grace learns, the more she wonders. Did she ever really know her mother?

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Great Modern And Then There Were None! (TW suicide/ eating disorder/ anxiety attacks)

They All Fall Down by Rachel Howzell Hall (April 9): I went into this with high expectations because I love Hall’s detective series and “remakes” of And Then There Were None (strangers suddenly deserted together and one by one they start to be murdered). Hall totally delivered! I don’t want to say much on plot, because the not knowing is a fun element of these stories, so I’m going to focus on why this really worked for me. I loved Miriam Macy–who accepts a trip to a Mexican island in hopes of winning a reality show and getting her life back in order–as the point of view because she clearly has baggage but is a fighter. And Hall used a lot of clever crime genre elements that all blended really well together: a main character known to lie who has anxiety and doubts what she sees; everyone has a motive so the killer can be anyone; they’re all stuck together because of a storm so they’re forced to solve the mystery or fight; the challenge of who we are as people when we’re forced to face our worse self; everyone’s got a secret they’re hiding; the boiled frog fable–you’re in danger and you didn’t even realize it until it’s too late! Hall is also brilliant in how she modernized this tale while staring the problematic aspects of the genre dead in the eyes. I’ll read anything she writes.

Fun Domestic Thriller! (TW suicide)

My Lovely Wife by Samantha Downing: For me, this one did a really good balance of being bonkers enough to be fun, while also not going too off the rails where I think it’s too ridiculous to care–the details of the family dynamics worked really well. This starts with the husband out in a bar trying to get laid and, immediately, you have a few WTF moments which perfectly situate you for the ride you’re about to go on. Because why is this seemingly ordinary couple with two teenage kids straight up hunting women to murder? I told you it’s banana pants! But it also balances it so well with the day-to-day child care and marital issues that it gave the novel a good depth. I went with the audiobook and was pleasantly surprised that being in the husband’s head all the time didn’t make me want to murder dudes. If you’re looking for a dark-ish murder thriller that reads like fun–yes, you can judge me–pick this one up!

Really Good Crime Novel! (TW domestic and child abuse/ rape/ suicide)

The Night Visitors by Carol Goodman: This was a great crime novel where no one is who they seem, but why and how will that change the course of their lives? Alice and ten-year-old Oren have escaped an abusive home and need to hide. Mattie is a social worker living in the middle of the woods who takes them in. But both women clearly have secrets, and while they can spot the deception in the other both assume it’s just for survival reasons. Add a storm, tempers flaring, and secrets rising and you’ve got a volatile mixture destined for explosions. If you like crime novels, slow-burn suspense, and character driven reads, this was really good. I especially enjoyed the audio narrated by Jane Oppenheimer.

Recent Releases

The Killer in Me (Frankie Sheehan #2) by Olivia Kiernan (Really enjoying this dark Irish procedural series–bonus: audiobook has an Irish narrator.) (TW suicide/ animal cruelty/ domestic abuse)

Bluff by Jane Stanton Hitchcock

The Loch Ness Papers (Scottish Bookshop Mystery #4) by Paige Shelton

The Execution of Justice by Friedrich Duerrenmatt, John E. Woods (Translator)

The Poison Bed by Elizabeth Fremantle

An Artless Demise (Lady Darby Mystery #7) by Anna Lee Huber

Black and Blue (Doug Brock #3) by David Rosenfelt

Treason (Trident Deception #5) by Rick Campbell

Who Slays the Wicked (Sebastian St. Cyr #14) by C.S. Harris

Nancy Drew: The Palace Of Wisdom by by Kelly Thompson, Jenn St. Onge

And in case you missed it last week, and are looking for picture books, we have a new podcast, Kidlit These Days, hosted by New York Times bestselling author Karina Glaser and children’s librarian Matthew Winner.

Browse all the books recommended in Unusual Suspects previous newsletters on this shelf. And here’s an Unusual Suspects Pinterest board.

Until next time, keep investigating! And 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.

Hi mystery fans! Before I get to muuuuurder I thought you might like to know that there’s a new podcast, Kidlit These Days, hosted by New York Times bestselling author Karina Glaser and children’s librarian Matthew Winner. Yay!

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Sponsored by Designs on Murder by Gayle Leeson

When Amanda decides to lease a space in historic Abingdon, Virginia’s Shops On Main, she’s surprised to learn that she has a resident ghost. But soon Maxine “Max”, a young woman who died in 1930, isn’t the only dead person at the retail complex. Mark, a web designer who rented space at Shops On Main, is shot in his office. Amanda is afraid that one of her new “friends” is a killer, and Max is encouraging her to solve Mark’s murder a la Nancy Drew. Easy for Max to want to investigate–she can’t end up the killer’s next victim!

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From Book Riot And Around The Internet

Reading Pathways: Kate Atkinson

2 New Documentaries Pinpoint the Uniquely Troubling Grift of Elizabeth Holmes and Theranos

A ‘Clue’-Inspired YA Novel Is Coming Out This Year — Start Reading ‘In The Hall With The Knife’ Now

Meet the Cast of Pretty Little Liars: The Perfectionists, the New Murder-Mystery Thriller

The Talented Mr. Ripley Is Coming to TV—But Will He Be Gay?

Charlie Barnett (Russian Doll) is set for a recurring role on the upcoming second season of Netflix’s You.

How the Killing Eve story is evolving in the original book series

True Crime

Last Surviving Person of Interest in Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum Heist to Be Released From Prison

True crime grips London book fair 2019

‘Monster: The Zodiac Killer’ Podcast Scores 12M Downloads In Two Months

Hope This Finds You Well: The Archive of Dorothea Puente, Serial Killer

Netflix’s ‘Delhi Crime’ Is a Horrific, Unnerving True Crime Drama

Kindle Deals

The World’s Greatest Detective by Caroline Carlson is $1.99! (I enjoyed this delightful book so much I want it to be a series!–Full review)

The Blinds by Adam Sternbergh is $1.99! (One of my favorite crime novels–full review) (Sorry, I don’t remember the TWs.)

I Know You Know by Gilly Macmillan is a recently released thriller on my TBR list that is $1.99

Few Galleys I Got My Greedy Little Hands On This Week

The Five: The Untold Lives of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper by Hallie Rubenhold (The five women finally get a voice!)

They All Fall Down by Rachel Howzell Hall (A modern And Then There Were None by one of my favorite mystery writers–yes, please! I started reading it while walking to the house from the mailbox.)

Girls Like Us by Cristina Alger (I enjoyed The Banker’s Wife and look forward to the next ride Alger takes me on.)

Browse all the books recommended in Unusual Suspects previous newsletters on this shelf. And here’s an Unusual Suspects Pinterest board.

Until next time, keep investigating! And 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.

Hello mystery fans! I’m doing things a little differently this time because I just finished a book I loved that won’t be out for a bit, so I’m going to highlight some upcoming crime books that should be on your radar. Great for anyone who loves to pre-buy or be first on their library hold list! Or, if you want to just shake your fist at me for telling you about an awesome book you can’t read just yet, that works too.

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Sponsored by The Perfect Girlfriend by Karen Hamilton. Published by Graydon House Books.

Juliette loves Nate. She will follow him anywhere. She’s even become a flight attendant for his airline, so she can keep a closer eye on him. They are meant to be. The fact that Nate broke up with her six months ago means nothing. Because Juliette has a plan to win him back. She is the perfect girlfriend. And she’ll make sure no one stops her from getting exactly what she wants. True love hurts, but Juliette knows it’s worth all the pain… Entertainment Weekly says of The Perfect Girlfriend, “this twisted page-turner should appeal to fans of the Netflix series YOU.”

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The Things She’s Seen by Ambelin Kwaymullina, Ezekiel Kwaymullina (May 14th): I was writing about upcoming crime novels for a post and the summary left me so curious I decided to just read the first chapter and, instead, I ended up reading it in one sitting. It was so good. It’s an Australian novel that follows Beth Teller, an Aboriginal girl who died at fifteen and is now a ghost. A ghost that her father, a detective, can see. And talk to. She’s trying to help him solve a case involving a fire at a children’s home that left an unidentified dead body and missing caretakers. She’s helping him stay focused on the case in order to help him get past grieving for her, but then she meets a witness to the fire who can also see her. The novel alternates between Beth and her father solving the mystery and Isobel Catching, the witness, telling her story–one told almost like poetry. It’s a beautiful crime novel about grief, death, family, and friendship, that never feels heavy but rather uplifting. I’ve been thinking about it for days–publishing really needs to be putting out more crime novels like this.

The Best Lies by Sarah Lyu (July 2): This is one of those you had me at the cover and tag line books: “Thelma and Louise meets Gone Girl.” It centers around a toxic friendship, the mystery of why one shot her friend’s boyfriend dead, and it’s told in a lyrical prose style–seriously I am all in for this.

 

 

Murder in the Crooked House by Soji Shimada, Louise Heal Kawai (Translator) (June 25): All I needed to hear was that the author of The Tokyo Zodiac Murders has another novel being translated and I became all gimme-gimme hands. TTZM is one of the only mystery novels where I had no idea what the solve was, and I will forever love Shimada for that. And this is another locked room mystery–my excitement can’t be contained!

The Stories You Tell (Roxane Weary #3) by Kristen Lepionka (July 9): this is one of my favorite PI series, I love not only watching Weary solve a mystery, but also her personal growth through the first two books. It’s one of those reads where I’m cheering for her to solve the mystery, and also cheering for her personally because, as much as she starts off as a hot mess at the beginning of the series, she’s a person trying to figure it all out. This time around, her brother looks like a suspect after a DJ friend shows up at his house and vanishes, leaving behind her blood.

Recently Release

Murder Lo Mein (A Noodle Shop Mystery #3) by Vivien Chien (Enjoyable cozy mystery set in an Asian mall that will leave you hungry.)

Killing November (Killing November #1) by Adriana Mather (Fun!–Group of kids at a spy school but who aren’t allowed to get to know each other…)

Murder by the Book: A Sensational Chapter in Victorian Crime by Claire Harman (True crime)

The Night Visitors by Carol Goodman (Great suspense–when you’re on the run can you trust anyone?) (TW child and domestic abuse/ suicide/ rape)

No Tomorrow (Killing Eve #2) by Luke Jennings (The sequel to the book the hit BBC show is based on.)

The Ancient Nine by Ian K. Smith (Paperback) (For fans of secret societies.)

Walking Shadows (Peter Decker/Rina Lazarus #25) by Faye Kellerman (Paperback) (Police procedural set in upstate New York.)

Browse all the books recommended in Unusual Suspects previous newsletters on this shelf. And here’s an Unusual Suspects Pinterest board.

Until next time, keep investigating! And 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.

Hi mystery fans!

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Sponsored by Forge Books

When former police detective Ted Conkaffey was wrongly accused of abducting Claire Bingley, he tried to disappear in the tiny town of Crimson Lake. But now Claire’s devastated father shows up with a choice for Ted: help find the real abductor or die. Meanwhile, two young bartenders have been murdered, and private detective Amanda Pharrell is assisting on the case. Amanda’s decade-old conviction for murder left her with odd behavioral traits, but a keen eye for killers. As they hunt for the truth, redemption is on the cards for Ted and Amanda―but it could cost them their lives…

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From Book Riot And Around The Internet

50 More Must-Read YA Mysteries

Rincey and Katie talk news, creepy books, and what they’re reading on the latest Read or Dead.

Quiz: Which Kickass Literary Investigator Are You?

15 Biographies That Tell The True Stories Of Infamous Women Killers

News And Adaptations

Rachel Howzell Hall’s Land of Shadows has an audiobook narrated by Je Nie Fleming and you can hear a sample here. I love this series and am happy to see it have audiobooks–Review. (TW rape/suicide)

This book announcement sounds awesome: Delighted to announce that Ecco/HarperCollins will publish my thriller WINTER COUNTS. An examination of the broken criminal justice system on the rez and a meditation on Native identity. 

An Anonymous Girl to Become Known As a TV Series

Lisa Jewell previews her intoxicating domestic thriller The Family Upstairs

Here’s an Exclusive First Look at Gaby Dunn’s New Graphic Novel, “Bury the Lede”

Watch Now

The Inventor: Out for Blood in Silicon Valley is now streaming on HBO Go if you didn’t get enough of this bananapants story from reading Bad Blood. I will say that John Carreyrou did a hell of a job describing Elizabeth Holmes in the book because in the documentary she is exactly what I imagined when I read the book. You can watch the trailer here. (TW suicide)

Kindle Deals

A Front Page Affair (Kitty Weeks Mystery #1) by Radha Vatsal is $3.82 and a good start to a series I love for fans of historical mysteries and cozy mysteries.

The Crossing Places (Ruth Galloway #1) by Elly Griffiths is $4.99 and follows an archeologist living in a remote area in Virginia who is assisting the police in a murder case.

The Likeness (Dublin Murder Squad #2) by Tana French is $1.99 and if you still haven’t read this fantastic procedural series do yourself a favor and get on that.

A Bit Of My Week In Reading

If you’re wondering how my beat-the-clock-because-all-my-library-holds-came-in-at-once game is going, I’ve read four of the six and then two more holds came in: Duped by Abby Ellin and The Psychology of Time Travel by Kate Mascarenhas. My two favorite reads were The Night Tiger which isn’t a mystery but has a murder mystery throughout and I loved it, and City of the Lost is a great start to a detective in remote area series.

And because I’m me and all those books aren’t enough here’s the pile of books I’m eyeing for starting this weekend:

Borrowed Time by Tracy Clark; Beijing Payback by Daniel Nieh; A Shot in the Dark by Lynne Truss; Lady in the Lake by Laura Lippman; Never Have I Ever by Joshilyn Jackson; Necessary People by Anna Pitoniak; Folio Society’s The Secret Agent by Joseph Conrad, Illustrated by Ben Jones; Folio Society’s Thunderball by Ian Fleming, Illustrated by Fay Dalton

Browse all the books recommended in Unusual Suspects previous newsletters on this shelf. And here’s an Unusual Suspects Pinterest board.

Until next time, keep investigating! And 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.

Hello mystery fans! This week I have for you a ghostly cozy, a book within a book, and a psychological thriller!

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Sponsored by Flatiron Books, publishers of Save Me From Dangerous Men by S.A. Lelchuk.

Nikki Griffin isn’t your typical private investigator. In her office above her bookstore’s shelves and stacks, she also tracks certain men. Dangerous men. She seeks justice for those who need her help in Save Me From Dangerous Men, the debut by S.A. Lelchuk.

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Cozy Mystery With A Ghost

Fatality in F (Gethsemane Brown Mysteries #4) by Alexia Gordon: I’m terrible at reading every book released in a cozy mystery series with the exception of a few, and this is one. It centers around Gethsemane Brown, an American classical musician living in a small Irish town, who can’t stop finding herself in the wrong place at the wrong time and getting into trouble. The trouble obviously means she needs to solve a murder. This time around we get gardens and rose bush competitions and a Flower Shop Killer–Gethsemane Brown to the rescue of course. What always draws me into this series is Gethsemane’s no-nonsense, sarcastic personality and her friendship with a ghost. Yup, as in now-dead-still-haunting-around spirit that helps her solve mysteries when he can–he can only visit places he was at when alive. I especially enjoy their bickering in public since no one else can see who in the world she’s talking to.

Book Within A Book!

The Stranger Diaries by Elly Griffiths: This is a modern murder mystery with wonderful nods to Gothic tales, including a short story layered within. Clare Cassidy is an English school teacher writing a book about R. M. Holland, a fictional Gothic author who once lived in the school she works at. When a coworker, and friend, is murdered, Cassidy finds strange things happening that have her and the police believing she too is in danger. That’s all I’m giving you on plot, because I really enjoyed feeling the tension of how this unfolds since I knew nothing about it. The story changes point of view between Cassidy, her 15-year-old daughter Georgie, and police detective Harbinder Kaur, while also weaving in R. M. Holland’s short story. It’s a great read for fans of The Magpie Murders, books within books, literary nods inside mysteries, Gothic tales, and anyone looking for a good mystery with great characters where you feel the emotions but never get plunged into dark and gruesome waters. The book also left me 100% wanting a series that follows detective Harbinder Kaur because I loved her, and being in her head as she puts together evidence in a case.

Psychological Thriller (TW domestic abuse/ PTSD)

Beautiful Bad by Annie Ward: This opens up with a crime, a bloody kitchen, without revealing the who or why, and then mostly takes you back to two time periods before the reveal. In the few months leading up to the crime you get to know Maddie and her toddler Charlie as she’s in therapy after an accident that scarred her face and left her with memory issues. The police think her accident was domestic abuse, but she thinks she just fell while camping and that her husband Ian wouldn’t have hurt her. But she’s using the writing therapy to try and work it out. We also go years further into the past to when Ian, a British soldier, met Maddie and her best friend Joanna in war-torn Southeast Europe to see how their love story came to be… While told mostly from Maddie’s point of view, we also get to hear Ian’s stories, especially of war, and Diane Varga the Kansas police officer that shows up to find the bloody kitchen… Even though I had this one figured out, which is usually the case for me, the audiobook kept me sufficiently glued to being in Maddie’s head and wanting to see how everything would be put together.

Recent Releases

Catch Me When I’m Falling (A Charlie Mack Motown Mystery)by Cheryl A. Head (Detroit PI series that I am super excited to start reading–the paperback is out now, the ebook next week.)

Redemption Point (Crimson Lake #2) by Candice Fox (Really looking forward to starting since I really liked the first in this Australian crime series.) (Review for first in series.)

Run Away by Harlan Coben (TBR: A father gets sucked into a dark world while trying to bring home his daughter who is an addict and in an abusive relationship–You can generally count on Coben for a page-turner and lots of twists.)

Murder Once Removed (Ancestry Detective #1) by S.C. Perkins (Cozy mystery following a Texas genealogist.)

If You’re Out There by Katy Loutzenhiser (TBR: A best friend is convinced she hasn’t been ghosted and needs to find out what happened to her friend.)

Browse all the books recommended in Unusual Suspects previous newsletters on this shelf. And here’s an Unusual Suspects Pinterest board.

Until next time, keep investigating! And 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.

Hi mystery fans! If you’re a fan of heist films I recommend Logan Lucky: It has a great cast, was funny, and totally scratched my itch for a heist movie. Now on to books!

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Sponsored by Putnam Books

For the past two weeks, seventeen-year-old Kate Bennet has lived against her will in an isolated cabin in a remote beach town—brought there by a mysterious man named Jim. Part captor, part benefactor, Jim calls her Evie and tells her he’s hiding her to protect her. That she did something terrible one night back home in Melbourne—something so unspeakable that he had no choice but to take her away. The trouble is, Kate can’t remember the night in question.

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From Book Riot And Around The Internet

The Future of Indie Crime Fiction Belongs to Female Authors of Color

Talking about The Feather Thief with Dawn Roberts of the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum

For Your Consideration…Mystery Books on One Anthony Awards Ballot

Lady Spies And Other Favorite Mysteries And Thrillers

Liberty recommended some great mysteries on All The Backlist.

News And Adaptations

Steph Cha’s upcoming novel, Your House Will Pay, has a cover!

FX Grabs Don Winslow’s Cartel Novels to Develop for TV

Russell Hornsby To Headline ‘Lincoln’ NBC Pilot Based On ‘The Bone Collector’ Books

Kindle Deals

Run to this deal: My Sister the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite is $3.99!!!! (Review) (TW child and domestic abuse/ rape)

Under the Midnight Sun by Keigo Higashino, Alexander O. Smith (Translator) was one of my favorite reads of 2016 and is $1.99! (Review) (I don’t remember TW, sorry.)

Dervla McTiernan’s The Ruin is $1.99 and it’s a super good Irish crime novel. (Review) (TW child abuse/ suicide/ rape)

Watch Now

In theaters: Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase has a new adaptation and she’s investigating a haunted house. Check out the trailer here.

On TV: Prosecutor and author Marcia Clark executive produces and co-writes a new legal drama show on ABC starting March 18th titled The Fix. It stars Robin Tunney, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Breckin Meyer and you can see the trailer here.

A Bit Of My Week In Reading

So that thing where ALL your library holds come in at once happened to me and now I’m playing beat-the-clock reading edition with: Sex, Murder and a Double Latte by Kyra Davis; The Night Tiger by Yangsze Choo; City of the Lost by Kelley Armstrong; The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson; Code Name: Lise by Larry Loftis; Beautiful Bad by Annie Ward. Wish me luck!

Browse all the books recommended in Unusual Suspects previous newsletters on this shelf. And here’s an Unusual Suspects Pinterest board.

Until next time, keep investigating! And 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.

Hello mystery fans! This week I have for you a small-town mystery where the buried secrets will rise, a real life double agent, and a dark serial killer novel!

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The Huntress, new from Kate Quinn, the New York Times bestselling author of The Alice Network.

One of Marie Claire’s Best Women’s Fiction of the year! One of Bookbub’s biggest books of the year! “If you enjoyed The Tattooist of Auschwitz, read The Huntress.” – The Washington Post From the author of the New York Times and USA Today bestselling novel, The Alice Network, comes a fascinating historical novel about a battle-haunted English journalist and a Russian female bomber pilot who join forces to track the Huntress, a Nazi war criminal gone to ground in America.

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Small-Town Missing Person (TW domestic violence/ addiction/ suicide)

Fallen Mountains by Kimi Cunningham Grant: I’m a sucker for small-town mysteries where the buried secrets are gonna rise and this novel did all of that really well. It’s told in past and present while following a group of people in Fallen Mountains, Pennsylvania: Red, a widowed sheriff set to retire; Transom, Chase, and Laney, friends who grew up together; Possum, a once bullied kid now out of prison. Transom is missing and while most think this is just his usual M.O. of leaving without saying anything his girlfriend is certain something is wrong and convinces Red to investigate. This set’s off Transom’s father to hire an investigator sent to work with Red–and a thing I really liked about this novel was that instead of them fighting and trying to stop the other they actually work together in trying to figure out where Transom is. The thing is Transom was the type of person who even those who loved him knew to watch out for his possible bite. So soon you realize, if he didn’t pull a Transom and take off, lots of people had a reason to harm him. While Red is a good sheriff he has a secret that Transom’s disappearance may drag out into the light and, well, it’s a small-town filled with secrets and it seems this missing person case may be a reckoning for many…

Real Life Double Agent! (TW suicide mention)

Agent Zigzag: A True Story of Nazi Espionage, Love, and Betrayal by Ben Macintyre: For fans of spy novels this is a must-read nonfiction that details the life of a conman turned double agent during WWII. I knew this was going to be a ride when just at the beginning of getting to know Eddie Chapman–prior to his double agent days–there was safe heists, blackmailing women he’d given STDs too, and a prison escape. He was a criminal and conman who managed to always slip by and ended up being sent into Britain on a mission as a German spy but ended up working for MI5 for years! The thing with Chapman was no one ever really knew who he was really working for and while MI5 believed he could be trusted to always complete any mission they gave him they knew he couldn’t be trusted with anything else. Literally nothing else. This is one of those nonfiction reads that has the pacing and feel of a thriller with moments where you do a double take and have to remind yourself this is a true story. I really recommend the audiobook if you’re a listener, and if you’re a fan of John le Carré type novels get thee this book now!

Dark-ish And Intense Serial Killer Novel (TW rape/ pedophile)

The Last Woman in the Forest by Diane Les Becquets: This was another one of those reads that rang a lot of my bells: serial killer; character with unique/interesting job; strangers pair up to solve a mystery; did he or didn’t he? Told in past and present we get to know Marian Engström who works with training dogs in remote areas where conservation studies are being performed. This is how she meets the love of her life Tate Mathias, her mentor. But after his death things start to not add up for her and she begins to question if he could have been the still unidentified serial killer. He couldn’t have been really, she would have known, right? But he did tell her the story of having found one of the serial killer’s victims and she can’t let this go, so she contacts the psychologist/forensic profiler from the case who is now retired and dying of brain cancer. I inhaled the audiobook (great multiple narrators) of this dark, atmospheric mystery that had me both fascinated with the conservation studies and the exploration of grief and being a victim. The audiobook ends with the author explaining her own story of rape and why she wrote this novel.

Recent Releases

A Dangerous Collaboration (Veronica Speedwell #4) by Deanna Raybourn (Currently reading and loving–this is one of my favorite historical mystery series!)

The Trial of Lizzie Borden by Cara Robertson (True crime)

Article 353 by Tanguy Viel,William Rodarmor (Translation) (French noir)

The Hunger by Alma Katsu (Paperback) (An eerie, suspenseful reimagining of the already horrifying historical event of the Donner-Reed Party–Full review) (TW child death/ suicide/ rape–including incestual)

Barbed Wire Heart by Tess Sharpe (Paperback) (Super good crime novel–Full review) (TW rape/ domestic abuse/ addiction/ pedophile)

The Italian Party by Christina Lynch (Paperback) (Historical fiction about newlyweds where one doesn’t know the other is a spy.)

Let Me Lie by Clare Mackintosh (Paperback) (Twisty thriller.) (TW: suicide/ domestic abuse)

Too Close to Breathe by Olivia Kiernan (Paperback) (Dark Dublin Procedural–Full review) (Trigger Warnings: cutting/ domestic abuse/ suicide)

The French Girl by Lexie Elliott (Paperback) (Group of friends, decade old mystery.) (TW suicide)

Browse all the books recommended in Unusual Suspects previous newsletters on this shelf. And here’s an Unusual Suspects Pinterest board.

Until next time, keep investigating! And 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.

Hi mystery fans!

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Sponsored by Hanover Square Press and The Lady from the Black Lagoon by Mallory O’Meara.

The Lady from the Black Lagoon uncovers the life and work of Milicent Patrick – one of Disney’s first female animators and the only woman to create one of Hollywood’s classic movie monsters—the Creature from the Black Lagoon. For someone who should have been hailed as a pioneer in the genre there was little information about Milicent available. Patrick’s contribution had been claimed by a jealous male colleague, her career had been cut short and she soon after had disappeared from film history. The Lady from the Black Lagoon restores Patrick to her place in film history while calling out a Hollywood culture where little seems to have changed since.

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From Book Riot And Around The Internet

Rincey and Katie recommend spy novels, list new releases, and talk about the history of mysteries/thrillers in the latest Read or Dead.

Read Harder: A Book Of Nonviolent True Crime

5 Books With Female Serial Killers

The Accidental Crime Novelist: Laura Lippman never meant to become a bestselling author. But when the former newspaper reporter began considering life as a private investigator, the stories began to flow.

Flynn Berry On Her True Crime Inspiration, Writing “Unlikeable” Women, And Why She Loves Thrillers

Crime Fiction Empathy and E.A. Aymar’s The Unrepentant

News And Adaptations

Exclusive preview: Obama and Biden return as action heroes in Hope Rides Again

Kumail Nanjiani has boarded the spy action comedy No Glory which Sam Bain is adapting from a yet to be published manuscript.

‘Agatha Raisin’ Returns For Third Season As SVOD Service Acorn TV Marks First Original Renewal

‘Sherlock Holmes 3’ Moved Back By A Year To Christmas 2021

Kindle Deals

If you’re looking to start at the beginning of a great procedural series Land of Shadows by Rachel Howzell Hall is $2.99! (Review)

If you like mysteries set at prep schools I loved All These Beautiful Strangers by Elizabeth Klehfoth and it’s $1.99! (Review) (TW suicide/ domestic abuse/ rape)

Tess Gerritsen’s The Bone Garden, a past and present thriller, is $2.99!

And for historical mystery fans, and my purchase, Ovidia Yu’s The Frangipani Tree Mystery is $3.99!

Browse all the books recommended in Unusual Suspects previous newsletters on this shelf. And here’s an Unusual Suspects Pinterest board.

Until next time, keep investigating! And 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.