Author: Jamie Canaves

Hello mystery fans! If you’re needing some ridiculousness in your life, the second season of NBC’s Trial & Error just started. It’s a spoof of procedurals and this season stars the always amazing Kristin Chenoweth–who may or may not have put her murdered husband into the trunk of her car in a suitcase.

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We’re giving away $500 of the year’s best YA! Click here, or on the image below to enter:

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From Book Riot And Around The Internet

Rincey and Katie review recent Presidential mysteries and more on the latest Read or Dead.

7 Crime Titles Recommended on My Favorite Murder

5 Lessons I Learned as a Murder Investigator (By Ellison Cooper, author of Caged—Review–and there’s a giveaway in the post.)

Two Men Charged with Stealing More than $8 Million in Rare Books from Carnegie Library

July’s Mystery and Thriller Must-Reads

Karin Slaughter: By the Book “People are always surprised that I read a lot of history, but I feel that good crime fiction holds a mirror up to society and tells readers what’s going on in the world. You can’t do that effectively without understanding history.”

Adaptations and News

The trailer for The Girls, a (fake) true crime podcast based on Courtney Summer’s forthcoming novel Sadie. (The book is excellent, you can find my review below.)

I LOVE the official poster for the adaptation of The Hate U Give.

The complete first season of the BBC Sherlock has been adapted to Manga and will release in October in a box set.

Parkland Student Activists Announce Book: Gun Violence “Will Not Be Solved by Shrugging It Off”

Kindle Deals

For fans of British procedurals: Persons Unknown (DS Manon, #2) by Susie Steiner is $1.99

Need to Know by Karen Cleveland is $2.99 if you’re looking for a CIA psychological thriller. (Review)

Goldie Vance Vol 1 is $1.99 and that is a ridiculous price for this delightful graphic novel mystery about a teen valet in a Florida resort who spends most of her time solving mysteries! (Review)

A Bit of My Week In Reading

I started Hollywood Ending (Detective by Day #2) by Kellye Garrett and I love Day’s humor so much and I really like the way it’s moving her into a private detective apprentice role that comes with problems.

I finished the audiobook for Bearskin by James A. McLaughlin which was a good, gritty crime novel set in nature. (TW rape/ animal cruelty)

I had a hard time putting down Sadie by Courtney Summers because it’s so good and smart. It’s about a stubborn young woman who has gone looking for the man who murdered her thirteen-year-old sister, who she raised, in order to kill him. In between Sadie’s chapters is the transcript for a podcast where a radio personality is trying to find Sadie. I think this is going to be one of the big books of fall, as it should be. Fantastic on so many levels. (TW child abuse/ pedophilia/ attempted suicide mentioned)

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 Canaves.

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’m going with a theme since I realized I love the trope wakes-up-covered-in-blood-with-no-memory. It gives me a few mysteries at once: Did they or didn’t they? Who is the victim? Why did this happen? Basically, I am always in when a book has this element so if you agree, or are curious, here are some I’ve enjoyed.

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Sponsored by Epic Reads

These three new novels, set in the perennially popular Fear Street world, are perfect for fans of Stranger Things!

Two Fear family weddings, decades apart… Each bride will find that the ancient curse that haunts the Fears LIVES ON. It feeds off the evil that courses through their blood. It takes its toll in unexpected ways, and allows dark history to repeat itself.

In this all-new Fear Street story, family ties bind sisters together—till DEATH do they part.

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Controversial Blogger Found Covered in Blood and Holding a Knife (TW it’s been a while but I want to say child death)

The Last Day of Emily Lindsey by Nic Joseph: This was a good mystery that I don’t feel got the attention it deserved. Not only does detective Steven Paul get the case of a controversial blogger covered in blood holding a knife, but she’s drawn a symbol that is straight from his night terrors. Literally! That was enough “Whaaaaat?!” to keep me turning the page on this novel with alternating storylines. One is Paul with his kind-of-in-shambles life (divorce, work incident has his colleagues doubting his capabilities, his lifelong night terrors) and the other is a group of kids who are communally parented and are trying to solve a mystery of their own. This one works well for fans of past and present, detectives, and novels that mix adult and child point of view.

If You Wake Up Next to a Murdered Man Did You Do It?! (TW date rape)

The Flight Attendant by Chris Bohjalian: This is the predicament flight attendant Cassie Bowden finds herself in. She knows she drinks too much and she knows she uses casual sex to escape but now she needs to find out if she’s a murderer… Another story that is told in alternating point of view with suspense that had me glued to the audiobook. And, yes, that’s all I’m giving you because I liked how this unfolded and why would I ruin that for you?

When You Have To Solve If Your Sister Is A Murderer?! (TW rape)

White Rabbit by Caleb Roehrig: Rufus’ half sister wakes up to an empty house, murdered boyfriend, and all signs point to her being the killer. Hoping to clear her name she offers to pay Rufus, desperately in need of money to help his mom out, to figure out what really happened. Except Rufus is not a Veronica Mars type teenager and this night has gotten him stuck with his ex-boyfriend–who broke his heart–and he’s still not over. A good mystery with a horror body count, that has a great main character to follow as he struggles through family, relationship, and anger issues.

Twisty Slow Burn Psychological Whydunnit (TW stalking/ suicide)

The Good Son by You-jeong Jeong, Chi-Young Kim (Translator): Yu-jin wakes up in his house covered in blood and finds his mother dead. He has no idea what could have possibly happened. Slowly the novel begins to reveal Yu-jin’s struggles with seizures, his relationship with his mother, and his childhood. The audiobook has a great narrator that really puts you inside Yu-jin’s mind as he tries to piece together as much as he can to fill in the gaps in his memory. Perfect for fans of “the secrets are gonna all come out” novels.

And next on my list to read for this trope, thanks to Rioters’ recommendations, are The Blood Whisperer by Zoë Sharp and Strange Sight (Essex Witch Museum Mystery #2) by Syd Moore. If you have a favorite let me know!

Recent Releases

A Noise Downstairs by Linwood Barclay (TBR: Psychological thriller.)

Little Girl Lost by Wendy Corsi Staub (Currently reading: Serial killer seems to have killed to put a plan in place to happen in the future. (Tw child rape)

The Boy At the Door by Alex Dahl (Currently reading: Boy with no parents upends a woman’s life who clearly has secrets.) (TW drug addiction/ mentions eating disorder/ domestic violence/ rape/ suicidal thoughts/ self-harm)

What Remains Of Her by Eric Rickstad (TBR)

Hangman (Fawkes & Baster #2) by Daniel Cole (TBR)

The Day of the Dead (Frieda Klein #8) by Nicci French (Final book in the London-based psychotherapist series.)

Atlanta Noir edited by Tayari Jones (Audiobook release is narrated by Bahni Turpin!!!)

The Long Drop by Denise Mina (Paperback) (Crime fiction for fans of true crime: Review) (Sorry I don’t remember TWs)

AND we’re giving away $500 of the year’s best YA fiction and nonfiction so far and you don’t want to miss this epicness!

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 Canaves.

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

Hi mystery fans! Twitter has been playing “You can replace the cast of any movie with The Muppets, but you keep one of the human actors. What movie and which human do you keep?” And “Clue, keep Tim Curry” is my favorite response.

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We’re giving away $500 of the year’s best YA! Click here, or on the image below to enter:

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From Book Riot and Around the Internet

So You Want To Get Into Political Thriller Books?

Hope Never Dies: 5 key ingredients for turning Obama and Biden into literary sleuths

For ‘Killing Eve’ Star Sandra Oh, An Emmy Nomination That Will Go Down In History

(TW self-harm) Sharp Objects Author Gillian Flynn Explains the Show’s Hidden Words: Plus the inspiration behind the show’s eerie Woman in White.

Megan Abbott and Tom Perrotta’s epic, fascinating conversation about moving from novels to TV

Giveaway: Enter to win one of ten copies of I’m Not Missing, a great YA coming-of-age with a running mystery throughout. (You have until midnight to enter!)

Adaptations and News

Karin Slaughter’s upcoming Pieces of Her will be adapted into a TV series with Charlotte Stoudt attached to write and Lesli Linka Glatter directing.

Ausma Zehanat Khan’s Rachel Getty & Esa Khattak series (Which I LOVE!) will have a 5th book in the series and the cover was revealed. I can’t wait!

BOOM! Studios has a graphic novel release in November that sounds great: “With ‘Smooth Criminals,’ we want to tell a female friendship story wrapped in a jewel heist,” said Smith and Lustgarten.

Nikhil Bhalla filed a petition in India against Netflix to have scenes removed from the adaptation of Sacred Games citing “offensive scenes” and remarks about former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi.

True Crime

Lit Life: Three True-Crime Stories That Are Stranger Than Fiction

9 New True Crime Books That Should Definitely Be Movies

(Genealogy helps again) How DNA Led to Arrest in Cold-Case Killing of Indiana 8-Year-Old After it ‘Haunted the Community for 30 Years’: Prosecutor

Kindle Deals

Street People by Michael Nava is $2.99 and my purchase today!

Murder at Cape Three Points (The Inspector Darko Dawson Mysteries Book 3) by Kwei Quarteyis $1.99! (Really like this detective series set in Ghana)

 

 

And my galleys have run amock!

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 Canaves.

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 fantastic audiobook, Megan Abbott’s new novel (It’s finally here!), and a fictional serial killer.

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Sponsored by A Lady’s Guide to Etiquette and Murder by Dianne Freeman

In A Lady’s Guide to Etiquette and Murder, the Victorian version of Aurora Teagarden investigates murder in the aristocratic world of Edith Wharton, introducing readers to Countess Frances Wynn and her society cohorts.  With some romantic undertones, this historical mystery hits all the high notes: elites behaving badly, historical intrigue, and female independence. Perfect for fans of Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries and Jane Austen alike.

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Fantastic Audiobook! (TW: domestic abuse/ child death/ pedophilia/ rape/ suicidal thought mentioned)

Allegedly by Tiffany D. Jackson: I will listen to anything narrated by Bahni Turpin, she is one of the best audiobook narrators. Period. So, happiest of reading experiences to me to have an excellent crime book narrated by a top-fave of mine. The book follows Mary, now in a group home, after being in jail as a child for having murdered a baby her mother was babysitting. The thing is, Mary has refused to discuss the events of the night since before her trial and even during her sentence. We follow her now as a teenager who is trying to survive living in a group home and figuring out how to one day have a life when you’re labeled the baby killer and the system isn’t really setup for any kind of rehabilitation. Except things once again change quickly for Mary, and now she’s forced to defend herself and her pregnancy and she just may be ready to finally say what happened that night… If like me you hadn’t gotten around to this one yet, change that immediately!–Not to tell you what to do or anything but it’s a really good book that had me thinking about Mary whenever I wasn’t listening to it.

IT’S FINALLY HERE! (TW: suicide)

Give Me Your Hand by Megan Abbott: Megan Abbott is one of my favorite crime writers. Her writing is not only always smart and tapped in to the frenzy channel of girls/women, but she writes in a way that has a constant low wattage current that just burrows under my skin. And she has once again delivered a fantastic read while also managing to top her previous excellent work. Abbott explores not only secrets, but what happens when you’re handed someone else’s, in a “then” and “now” format with a research lab looking into PMDD (premenstrual dysphoric disorder) setting–she’s a genius I tell you! This is a slow burn that expertly explores complex women, and sits high on this year’s best releases list.

Fictional Serial Killer For Fans of Mindhunter!

Caged by Ellison Cooper: This was a good, dark-ish serial killer novel that’s great for fans of procedurals. Especially if you like when they get into forensics and science, including social sciences. Sayer Altair is an FBI agent, but she’s also a neuroscientist currently working on studying the most violent killers’ brains when she’s taken away from her study to help find a serial killer. The case is bizarre, and there are tons of twists. It also focused much more on the FBI and victims and stayed away from glorifying/obsessing over the serial killer, which was a nice change. If this is the start of a series I’m definitely in since I really liked Altair (smart, driven, cares, is aware of her shortcomings) and would like to see more of her and her grandmother who raised her.

Recently Released

Baby Teeth by Zoje Stage (Just started: Told in alternating chapters–so far–between mother and five-year-old daughter who appears to be out to torture her mother.)

Blood & Ivy: The 1849 Murder That Scandalized Harvard by Paul Collins (Currently reading: True Crime set in mid 1800s Harvard Medical School.)

The Other Woman (Gabriel Allon #18) by Daniel Silva (TBR)

Bad Girls by Alex de Campi, Víctor Santos (Review) (TW: domestic violence/ rape)

Origin by Dan Brown (Paperback)

And we’re giving away $500 of the year’s best YA fiction and nonfiction so far. (Excellent list, including a few mysteries!)

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 Canaves.

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

Hi mystery lovers! I am SO excited that TNT’s Claws got renewed for a third season–I know it’s not an adaptation, but it is a fantastic crime show and everyone should go watch it. Okay, now onto books!

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Sponsored by Bas Bleu Books & Gifts.

Widely considered an underappreciated gem of British crime fiction, Gervase Fen—eccentric Oxford don and amateur criminologist—is a delightfully unconventional detective. The novels and short stories featuring the compulsively quipping sleuth employ equal elements of ingenuity and comedy, with a touch of the fantastic and an ample smattering of both witty commentary and literary allusions. We’re offering four of his most popular novels and two short story collections, individually or as a discounted set!

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From Book Riot and Around the Internet

Rincey and Katie discuss crime series and more in the recent Read or Dead!

50 Must-Read Mystery Books for Kids

“Things Got Broken”: Anthony Bourdain, Crime Fiction, and the Power of Food

The Best Books on Con Artists, According to True-Crime Experts

The Big Sleep: Reading Raymond Chandler in the age of #MeToo. “What fascinates and compels me most about Chandler in this #MeToo moment are the ways his novels speak to our current climate. Because if you want to understand toxic white masculinity, you could learn a lot by looking at noir.”

(TW self-harm) All The Hidden Words You Missed in Sharp Objects

Giveaways (Hug a Luck Dragon and enter):

Remember we’re giving away $500 of the year’s best YA fiction and nonfiction so far (with a few great mysteries on the list!)

And Macmillan has a giveaway for a signed copy of I’m Not Missing by Carrie Fountain (A great YA coming-of-age with a background mystery.)

Adaptations and News

You can now pre-order Lethal White, the 4th book in the Strike series, by Robert Galbraith (J.K. Rowling).

The Australian Crime Writers Association announced this year’s longlist for the Ned Kelly Awards. Hello list, please meet my TBR!

Another writer was revealed for the secretive second season of John Le Carré’s The Night Manager adaptation by BBC/AMC. “All I am permitted to say is that Le Carré has given his blessing to the project. The four of us in the writers’ room are sworn to silence.”

(TW: self-harm) I’m disappointed in HBO’s handling of trigger warnings and PSA for mental health in their Sharp Objects adaptation. There had been an announcement that they were going to direct viewers to resources for help with an end card that read: “If you or someone you know struggles with self-harm or substance abuse, please seek help by contacting the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) 1-800-662-HELP (4357).” Except I feel like they did this for show rather than actual care since I watched the episode and never saw the card. Seems it was placed after the credits. Apparently for like 1% of viewers to see since I don’t know anyone who watches all the credits to wait for something after. Anyway, I brought it up so that I could list the info for anyone who may need it or know someone who does.

Watch Now

I wanted more crime fiction from around the world, and Netflix heard me and answered with Vikram Chandra’s Sacred Games adaptation. It’s the first Netflix original series from India, and I’ve just started watching and am excited! It’s a dark crime series that follows a police officer who stumbles across massive corruption while investigating a robbery. (Forewarned, it opens with a dog’s death.)

Kindle Deals

The Cutting Season by Attica Locke is $1.99 (Here are my reviews for ALL of Locke’s novels–I love her a lot!)

Death at Breakfast (Maggie Detweiler and Hope Babbin #1) by Beth Gutcheon is $1.99 (A good read for fans of Agatha Christie if you want a modern setting.)

The Fourth Monkey by J.D. Barker is $1.99 (Great for horror fans: Review) (I don’t remember the TW, but think horror movies.)

A Bit of My Week In Reading

I just got my hands on Lamar Giles upcoming Spin which I was planning on reading because I’ll read everything Giles writes but then I read “edge-of-your-seat thriller about best friends, murder, and music” and it moved to the top of my reading list. Also, I’m obsessed with that cover.

I started Amina Akhtar’s #FashionVictim which has a super strong voice from the beginning–something I always love. I’m only a few chapters in, and it’s already made me want to use the eyes emoji a few times!

And I’m listening to the audiobook of Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup by John Carreyrou and had already said “holyshirtballs” before the actual first chapter so this is gonna be a ride!

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 Canaves.

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’ve got revenge, secret society, and a great thriller for you this week!

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Sponsored by SCOUT PRESS

The author of the bestselling novel The Party—lauded as “tense and riveting” by New York Times bestselling author Megan Miranda—returns with a chilling new domestic drama about two women whose deep friendship is threatened by dark, long-buried secrets.

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Fantastic Japanese Crime! (TW: suicide talk and thoughts/ child death/ child abuse)

Confessions by Kanae Minato, Stephen Snyder (Translation): I couldn’t stop listening to this audiobook, which had excellent narrators! I’m not going to give a lot away on this one because it is a hell of a ride and I don’t want to spoil any of it. It starts with a teacher addressing her seventh grade class on her last day teaching. She has a story to tell, about her daughter’s death… From there, the novel rotates through a few characters telling their story in regards to that day in the classroom and the death of the teacher’s daughter. This novel stays away from cheap thrills, or tricking the audience for shock value sake, and instead takes a dark dive into exploring many things with grief and revenge at the core. You’re gonna want to strap yourself in for this ride.

Page-Turner Prep School With A Secret Society (TW: suicide/ domestic abuse/ rape)

All These Beautiful Strangers by Elizabeth Klehfoth: I read this one in two sittings because it had so much catnip for me: secret society, past mystery, coming-of-age, everyone’s secrets are gonna get dragged into the light! Seventeen-year-old Charlie is attending a New England prep school and has just been tapped to be hazed into a secret society that is known for basically running the school. As she tries to get a handle on the things this society is pressuring her to do, she’s also trying to solve the mystery of what happened to her mother when she disappeared years before. Having been left with a workaholic father, who always feels arms-distance away, and her closest family relationship a male cousin, also a classmate, it’s interesting to see her struggle against the influences they’ve had on her as she does her best to come into her own person. If you’re looking for a book to toss into a beach bag this summer I’d go with this one, which I could not put down.

Great Thriller! (TW: PTSD/ suicide)

Some Die Nameless by Wallace Stroby: You know those action/thriller movies where a group of friends from the past suddenly find themselves being picked off one by one in the present? This is kind of that in book form! But add to the main dude being hunted a journalist struggling at a downsizing newspaper who accidentally stumbles into his troubles and danger. I really liked the balance of good, developed characters with tense action scenes, and the dives into political unrest, and the struggles in print vs digital journalism for newspapers.

Remember we’re giving away $500 of the year’s best YA fiction and nonfiction so far (with a few great mysteries on the list!)

Recent Releases

Watch the Girls by Jennifer Wolfe (A good non-horror book for horror fans that takes a hard look at our treatment of girls/women especially in the spotlight.) (TW: eating disorder/ suicide attempt mentioned/ rape/ self-harm/ gaslighting)

The Last Time I Lied by Riley Sager (From the author of Final Girls, a past and present mystery set at a camp.) (TW: suicide attempt)

Nancy Drew #2 by Kelly Thompson, Jenn St-Onge (I’m loving this modern Nancy Drew series already!)

Caged by Ellison Cooper (Currently Reading: Super good so far dark FBI serial killer novel.)

The Fifth To Die (4MK Thriller #2) by J.D. Barker (Currently Reading: The followup to the horror-ish thriller I really liked, The Fourth Monkey (Review), which starts off where the first one left off.)

Her Pretty Face by Robyn Harding (TBR)

Hope Never Dies by Andrew Shaffery (TBR: A buddy mystery starring President Obama and Vice President Biden!)

I’m Not Missing by Carrie Fountain (This was a really good coming-of-age story that had a mystery thread running throughout the background.)

Name of the Dog (A Lefty Mendieta Investigation # 3) by Élmer Mendoza, Mark Fried (Translator) (TBR)

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 Canaves.

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