Author: Jamie Canaves

Hello mystery fans! This week I have for you a great PI I can’t believe I hadn’t heard of, a deliciously evil thriller, and a missing persons mystery.

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Sponsored by Last Woman Standing by Amy Gentry

Dana Diaz is an aspiring stand‑up comedian—a woman in a man’s world. When she meets a tough computer programmer named Amanda Dorn, the two bond over their struggles in boys’ club professions. Dana confides that she’s recently been harassed and assaulted while in L.A., and Amanda comes up with a plan: they should go after each other’s assailants, Strangers on a Train–style. But Dana finds that revenge, however sweet, draws her into a more complicated series of betrayals. Soon her distrust turns to paranoia, encompassing strangers, friends—and even herself. At what cost will she get her vengeance? Who will end up getting hurt? And when it’s all over, will there be anyone left to trust?

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I Want The Next Book Now! (TW suicide)

Broken Places (A Chicago Mystery #1) by Tracy Clark: I’d been craving a solid mystery from beginning to end for a while now, and finally a book delivered! This starts with Cass Raines as a police officer, but after a traumatic work incident she quits the force and starts her own Private Detective firm in Chicago. When the priest who helped raise her is murdered, she’s forced to deal with a cop she hates, while stopping at nothing to find out what happened. I love Raines character, her heart and humor, and really enjoyed how the novel takes you through her process of searching for clues and witnesses. And it isn’t a simple case of “this clue lead to this, and this, and bingo.” She also has her ex-partner as a friend, a childhood friend, and a nun who are great for witty banter; interesting characters; and found family. If you’re looking for a good mystery, don’t miss this one.

Deliciously Twisted Fun! (TW suicide/ rape/ revenge porn/ domestic violence)

As Long as We Both Shall Live by JoAnn Chaney: If you’re a fan of thrillers get thee this book now without knowing anything about it–trust me! For everyone else going, “Yeah, no, you’re going to have to tell me more,” here’s my leaving-everything-I-can-out review: There’s a dude whose first wife died in a house fire and his current wife just fell to her death while on a hike. As you can imagine, the cops have their eyebrows raised at him because that’s a hell of a coinkydink, dude! You get a detective character who I loved (she’s smart and by the book and patient) trying to figure out what happened on this hike, while also bringing in a pure a-hole detective character from Chaney’s previous book, What You Don’t Know, who has a past mystery of his own coming to get him. This book is a wicked page-turner, dripping in dark humor, and a hell of a ride you won’t realize you are on until it’s too late to get off. So strap-in, and read this before anyone spoils the fun.

Return To Small-Town Mystery (TW physical child abuse/ stalking)

The Disappearing by Lori Roy: I inhaled this audiobook since it gave me a few things I always like: good, multiple narrators; small-town secrets; multiple POV–and it just happened that while I was watching You on Netflix, one of the points-of-view in the book happened to be a similar voice as Joe, so I was curious to see how that turned out. Lane, a former journalist, returns to her small Florida hometown with her two daughters after her divorce. It is not a fun homecoming being that the town still remembers when Ted Bundy came through, and her father was accused of horrible crimes. Then Lane’s daughter goes missing… If you’re a fan of small-town mysteries with thriller endings, secrets, and watching characters wrestle with their own demons this was a good read and listen.

Recent Releases

No Exit by Taylor Adams (TBR: Group-of-strangers-snowed-in-and-there’s-a-kidnapper-amongst-them thriller and one young woman is going to attempt to go all John McClane (Die Hard) on the situation.)

Mala Vida by Marc Fernandez, Molly Grogan (Translator) (TBR: Spanish noir starring a reporter looking into murders.)

No Mercy (Ellery Hathaway #2) by Joanna Schaffhausen (TBR: Police procedural. “Police officer Ellery Hathaway is on involuntary leave from her job because she shot a murderer in cold blood and refuses to apologize for it.”)

Last Woman Standing by Amy Gentry (TBR: Author of Good As Gone‘s new thriller about two women out for revenge using the Strangers on a Train method.)

No Sunscreen for the Dead (Serge A. Storms #22) by Tim Dorsey (TBR: Satirical mysteries set in Florida with a vigilante serial killer and plenty of mayhem.)

Duped: Double Lives, False Identities, and the Con Man I Almost Married by Abby Ellin (TBR: True crime memoir)

The Night Agent by Matthew Quirk (Thriller following an FBI agent hunting a Russian mole.)

The Perfect Liar by Thomas Christopher Greene (Domestic thriller)

The Liar’s Room by Simon Lelic (Psychological thriller)

Now Out In Paperback

Two Girls Down by Louisa Luna (Review) (TW child cruelty/ pedophilia/ suicidal thoughts)

The Flight Attendant by Chris Bohjalian (Review) (TW date rape)

Macbeth by Jo Nesbø

Not That I Could Tell by Jessica Strawser (Review) (TW suicide discussion/ domestic abuse)

The Vanishing Season by Joanna Schaffhausen

The Elizas by Sara Shepard (TW: suicide)

The Legacy (Children’s House #1) by Yrsa Sigurðardóttir,Victoria Cribb (Translator) (Review) (TW incestuous rape)

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 our Unusual Suspects giveaway of $100 to the bookstore of your choice!

We’re giving away $100 to the bookstore of your choice! Enter to win by signing up for Unusual Suspects, our mystery/thriller newsletter about new releases, book recommendations, book deals, and more. Enter here.

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From Book Riot And Around The Internet

You can see all the 2019 books Rioters are excited for including a section of mystery/thrillers.

Speaking of 2019 mystery and thrillers, Rincey and Katie talked about what they’re looking forward to in the latest Read or Dead.

Karen M. McManus Takes Readers Inside Her Latest YA Thriller

‘The Likeness’ By Tana French Is The Novel I’m So Jealous You Get To Read For The First Time

7 Spy Romance Novels To Pick Up

Changing the Face of Crime Fiction: 6 Writers of Color on Writing Mysteries, Crime Novels and Thrillers

Adaptations And News

Love this promo image for the upcoming Big Little Lies season two.

All the congratulations to Sandra Oh for winning the Golden Globe for Lead Actress in a Drama  for her role on Killing Eve. The show is so good that even Netflix told people to watch it even though it’s streaming on rival Hulu.

Speaking of watching Killing Eve we now have a premiere date for season 2: April 7 at 8 p.m. ET on BBC America. April can’t get here fast enough.

The trailer for the new Carmen Sandiego is here and one Rioter discusses her feels and thoughts.

Kindle Deals

A Quiet Place by Seicho Matsumoto, Louise Heal Kawai (Translation) is $1.99 and great for fans of slow-burn suspense with a punch.

And if you’re looking for a British procedural with a criminal psychologist: Insidious Intent (Tony Hill & Carol Jordan #10) by Val McDermid is $1.99 !

 

A Bit Of My Week In Reading

I got my hands on two galleys I’m super excited to read: Girl Gone Missing by Marcie R. Rendon (May 14, Cinco Puntos Press) and The Plotters by Un-su Kim (January 29, Doubleday). The first follows a young Chippewa woman who “begins to dream the Cities and blonde Scandinavian girls calling for help” and the second is “an alternate Seoul where assassination guilds compete for market dominance.”

I just downloaded two audiobooks: Tana French’s 1st mystery In the Woods in preparation for the upcoming adaptation series; Black Edge by Sheelah Kolhatkar since I’m still obsessed with nonviolent true crime.

And I’m halfway through two novels I’m currently loving: Erotic Stories For Punjabi Widows by Balli Kaur Jaswal (my mystery break read) and Broken Places (A Chicago Mystery #1) by Tracy Clark.

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’ve got for you a PI with action scenes, small-town mystery, and a great crime novel–plus, a bunch of new releases now that publishing is back to full production mode!

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Sponsored by our Unusual Suspects giveaway of $100 to the bookstore of your choice!

We’re giving away $100 to the bookstore of your choice! Enter to win by signing up for Unusual Suspects, our mystery/thriller newsletter about new releases, book recommendations, book deals, and more. Enter here.

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PI & Action!–Would Make A Great TV Show Adaptation (TW suicide/ human trafficking/ rape)

Lives Laid Away (August Snow #2) by Stephen Mack Jones: If you’ve been reading this newsletter for a while now you know I’m a fan of ’80s/’90s action movies and mystery/thrillers that are either that in book form or have scenes like that. Jones has created a great character, community, mystery, and tossed in some action scenes which I love! August Snow is a former Detroit cop living in Mexicantown, Detroit, where he helps take care of the community, and works as a PI. He’s asked to look into the death of an unknown Hispanic woman who is pulled from the Detroit river dressed as Marie Antoinette. That’s only the beginning of the problems though, as ICE has been spending too much time harassing residents, and Snow and his friends are trying to protect their community and residents. I really like that the book brings to life this community made up of many different races and ethnicities, while weaving in Snow’s PI work, and ramping up the action scenes. It’s in no way a realistic look at the FBI or a procedural but who expects that in action movies?–Not I! Definitely pick up this series if you’re a fan of Joe Ide’s IQ series. If you’ve read neither, here’s a perfect chance to pick up two great new PI series where the leads are very different from each other but the communities are similar. (Reads as a standalone.)

Small-Town, Unsolved Mysteries

Two Can Keep A Secret by Karen M. McManus: Ellery and her twin brother, Ezra, are forced to move to her mother’s small-town, Echo Ridge, with their grandmother when their mother is sent to rehab. This is the small-town where Ellery’s aunt disappeared in high school, where, five years ago, Lacey was murdered, and now another girl has disappeared. It’s a family, and town, of secrets and Ellery is obsessed with true crime so she’s gonna start poking around… This was a page-turner for me since I really liked the twin characters, found it mindful of the “dead girl” trope, and enjoyed the alternating point-of-view between Ellery and Malcolm–the younger brother of the always suspected murderer of Lacey. If you’re looking for a twisty mystery ride, pick this one up–and the audiobook had good narrators that especially brought Ellery to life.

Great Crime Novel! (TW rape/ domestic abuse/ addiction/ pedophile)

Barbed Wire Heart by Tess Sharpe: This one put its claws in me from the first line: “I’m eight years old the first time I watch my daddy kill a man.” Harley McKenna is raised as the only child of widow Duke McKenna, the violent top-dog criminal of North County. And he raises her to survive anything–including his enemies coming to harm her. A tough and gritty read as adult Harley struggles with how much of her mother she is–including running the motel for abused women seeking help–and how much of her violent criminal father she is. She’s now reached a part of life where she must decide what will happen next, and she’s got a plan, but will anyone come out of it alive? I loved Harley, who isn’t a tough girl character just in term, but a very real character that has been shaped by her life and is doing her best to not only survive but to just be. I really love Sharpe’s writing of girls and women and look forward to more from her. If I’d gotten to this one last year it definitely would have been on my 2018 favorites list. Can’t recommend enough if you’re a fan of dark crime shows like Ozarks.

Recent Releases

An Anonymous Girl by Greer Hendricks, Sarah Pekkanen (TBR: from the authors of Wife Between Us this looks to be another twisty thriller.)

Scrublands by Chris Hammer (Australian mystery with a journalist lead.) (TW mass shooting/ pedophile/ PTSD/ rape/ animal cruelty/ suicide/ domestic violence)

Her One Mistake by Heidi Perks (TBR: child abduction thriller)

The Paragon Hotel by Lyndsay Faye (TBR: historical mystery that 100% has my attention: “The year is 1921, and “Nobody” Alice James is on a cross-country train, carrying a bullet wound and fleeing for her life following an illicit drug and liquor deal gone horribly wrong.”)

Amsterdam Noir by René Appel (Editor), Josh Pachter (Editor)

Sydney Noir by John Dale (Editor)

Burned: A Story of a Murder and the Crime that Wasn’t by Edward Humes (TBR: true crime)

Freefall by Jessica Barry (TBR: a thriller that follows estranged mother and daughter starting with a plane crashing that the daughter is on.)

Tangerine by Christine Mangan (Paperback) (Slow-burn suspense–Full review) (TW suicide)

Force Of Nature (Aaron Falk #2) by Jane Harper (Paperback) (Great Australian procedural series–Full review) (TW eating disorder)

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.