Author: Jamie Canaves

Hello fellow mystery fans! People are getting excited about pumpkin-flavored things and other people are annoyed by those people so fall reading is almost here!

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Sponsored by PORTRAIT OF VENGEANCE by Carrie Stuart Parks

Gwen Marcey has done a good job keeping the pain of her past boxed up, but as she investigates the case of a missing child in Lapwai, Idaho, details surface that are eerily similar to her childhood traumas. What’s going on?

No one knows more about the impact of the past than the Nez Perce people of Lapwai. Gwen is an unwelcome visitor to some, making her investigation more difficult. Questions pile up, answers come slow—and the clock is ticking for a missing girl.

As Gwen’s past and present collide, she’s in a race for the truth.

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Charlotte Holmes is My Favorite Sherlock!

A Conspiracy in Belgravia (Lady Sherlock #2) by Sherry Thomas: I read this a few months back and have not stopped raving about it because it’s one of my favorite series and it’s my favorite Holmes and Sherlock team. Thomas has not only gender-swapped Sherlock and Holmes, but has brilliantly made it so that the quirks we’ve associated with Sherlock aren’t a random personality trait so much as a push-back to society’s treatment of women. It’s so well done. In this second novel, Charlotte and Mrs. Watson are back with a rather delicate case involving a married woman looking to find a past lover–her true love. Scandalous! Making the case super-complicated is the fact that Charlotte knows both the woman’s husband and the true love. It’s packed with mysteries, ladies not here for society’s rules, improper flirting, learning to fight, and more; and I loved every moment of this book!

A Little Q&A: Megan Abbott and Alison Gaylin (I give authors I’m excited about 5 questions and let them answer any three they’d like.)

If you’ve been reading this newsletter for a while you know my love for Abbott–especially, her early noir–so you can imagine how quickly I moved to get my hands on her crime graphic novel: Normandy Gold. After inhaling the first issue, and immediately needing the next issue in the series, I realized it was a duo writing team and that I needed to get my hands on Gaylin’s work pronto! In Normandy Gold you have a detective who goes undercover as a call girl in order to find out what happened to her sister, and it’s set in the ’70s and written by two awesome mystery writers! (illustrated by Steve Scott)

And here’s Abbot and Gaylin:

What would you like to see more/less of in the mystery genre?

Less of….

Megan: Copycat books

Alison: Dead women driving plots.

More of:

Megan: Diversity, of every kind

Alison: Living women driving plots

If you were to blurb your most recent/upcoming book à la James Patterson:

Megan: “Normandy Gold: as if Brian De Palma remade Dirty Harry starring Pam Grier and with a Bernard Hermann score.”

Alison: “To paraphrase one of the characters, Normandy Gold is hotter than Satan’s g-string — and twice as lethal.”

The last book you read that you loved?

Megan: Laura Lippman’s upcoming Sunburn, note-perfect noir and not to be missed.

Alison: I haven’t read Sunburn yet, but I am so excited for it. Also Karen Ellis’ (aka Katia Lief) absolutely riveting psychological thriller, A Map of the Dark, out in January.

Thanks Megan and Alison! I look forward to more Normandy Gold and now have two more books added to my TBR list!

Add Now and Watch on September 15: Strong Island, a Netflix true crime documentary that focuses on racial injustice. Yance Ford takes an emotional and unflinching look at his family’s devastation and lingering pain after the murder of their son and brother, William Ford. Trailer here.

 

A Tale of Four Cities: Must Read International Thrillers via Bookish

On All The Backlist podcast Liberty talked about two very long running mystery series which now I have to read because they sounded interesting: Kinsey Millhone series (has a book for each letter of the alphabet!) and The Cat Who series (a reporter and his Siamese cats who help solve crimes!).

Rincey and Katie talk about mystery writers who have real life mysteries/crimes on Read or Dead!

Psychological Suspense (TRIGGER WARNING: Date rape)

Good Me, Bad Me by Ali Land: I’m going to do this review in two parts: first, for those who like to know as little as possible beforehand so they can be surprised by as much as possible; second, a little more for those that need to know what they’re getting into.

1st: Milly is a teen temporarily living with a foster family who has not only taken her in but the father is preparing her for a court appearance. Things are awful for Milly before she arrives and seeing as her foster sister hates her on sight things aren’t going to get any better… (Told in 1st person readers get front row seats to Milly’s thoughts as she navigates this new life while trying to reconcile with the past.)

2nd: Milly’s mum is a serial killer and Milly is the reason she was finally arrested. Now Milly must testify. Between the stress of that, a foster family where the daughter is bullying her, and a new life where no one seems to understand her or know her secrets how is Milly going to come out of any of this?

More Out This Week:

To Funk and Die in LA (D Hunter #4) by Nelson George (Ex-bodyguard tries to solve the shooting of his uncle in LA.)

Miss Kopp’s Midnight Confessions (Kopp Sisters #3) by Amy Stewart (Historical fic based on real Kopp sisters, one of America’s 1st female deputy sheriff.)

That Last Weekend by Laura DiSilverio (Group of friends reunite but is there a killer among them?)

A Murder in Music City: Corruption, Scandal, and the Framing of an Innocent Man by Michael Bishop (True crime)

March of Crime (Murder-By-Month Mystery #11) by Jess Lourey (Funny cozy mystery.)

A Legacy of Spies by John le Carré (George Smiley is back.)

I Found You More Kindle Deals!

Girl Waits with Gun and Lady Cop Makes Trouble by Amy Stewart (1st two in the Kopp Sisters series) are each $2.99

The Nine Mile Walk: The Nicky Welt Stories by Harry Kemelman for $1.99

 

 

Browse all the books recommended in Unusual Suspects previous newsletters on this shelf. And if you like to put a pin in things here’s an Unusual Suspects board.

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

Hello my fellow mystery fans! Let’s end August with a ton of mystery books!

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Sponsored by Hunting Hour by Margaret Mizushima—the third Timber Creek K-9 Mystery from Crooked Lane Books.

Deputy Mattie Cobb and her K-9 partner Robo get called to track a missing junior high student, until they find the girl dead on Smoker’s Hill behind the high school. But before they can catch the killer, another child goes missing―and this time it’s one of Cole Walker’s daughters.

Knowing that each hour a child remains missing lessens the probability of finding her alive, Mattie and Robo lead the hunt while Cole and community volunteers join in the search. It seems that someone has snatched all trace of the Walker girl from their midst. Grasping at straws, Mattie and Robo follow a phoned-in tip into the dense forest, where they hope to find a trace of the girl’s scent and rescue her alive. But when Robo does catch her scent, it leads them to information that challenges everything they thought they knew about the case.

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Great Procedural With A Bit of Horror:

I Know a Secret (Rizzoli & Isles #12) by Tess Gerritsen: Rizzoli and Isles–a detective and medical examiner–are perplexed with their recent victim: she’s dead (seeing as she’s holding her eyeballs), but there doesn’t appear to be a clear cause of death. Has an unhinged fan killed a horror movie creator and staged it to look like a scene? Or is there much more to this case?–hint: much more! Also mixed in with the mystery solving are Rizzoli and Isles current personal lives, mostly family issues. If you’ve only watched the show, the characters’ personal lives are different in the books (which I love because it allows me to read and watch while being comforted by the similarities in the personalities, but getting fresh stories/plots). Gerritsen does a great job writing her series (and Rizzoli & Isles, who are very different, while having a great relationship) where you can jump in here and not feel “lost.” And if the personal issues make you want to know more of what you missed, then you can decide to start at the beginning. (A great Little Q&A with Tess Gerritsen.)

Over on Book Riot a guide to Nancy Drew readalikes and a Sherlock edition Book Fetish.

While you wait for the second book in the Lady Sherlock series to release next week (it’s SO GOOD I LOVE IT!) here’s a stand-alone short story set in the universe: Charlotte Holmes and the Locked Box.

Marcia Clark is developing a series for ABC that may sound really familiar because it sounds a lot like her life! (Will 100% watch!)

Watch Me Disappear by Janelle Brown will be adapted.

The adaptation of Stephen King’s suspense novel Gerald’s Game will premiere on Netflix on September 29th.

All the Trigger Warnings: Fantastic Mystery That Explores Trauma and Living With Grief

The Good Daughter by Karin Slaughter: I cracked this novel open right before bed and ten minutes later felt like I’d been running for my life and was going to have a heart attack. And this continued to happen to me randomly throughout the book because Slaughter explores violent crimes and trauma with writing that places you right there with the characters.

The novel begins by introducing you to the Quinn family, who have just had to move because their home was burned down by someone angry with their father who is a criminal lawyer–the kind of lawyer who represents rapists/murderers. And then the family is attacked, destroying their world. Almost thirty years later, Charlie, the youngest daughter, finds herself in another violent tragedy. Still living in the small town she grew up in, things really hit the fan when her father decides to represent the person accused of the crime Charlie just witnessed. This event dredges up the tragedy Charlie survived as a child, and as much as she wants to forget it, she’s now about to relive it. The characters have so much depth, the mystery has plenty of twists, the lawyering scenes are excellent, and there are tiny bursts of humor throughout that perfectly deflate the tension, making clear Slaughter is a gifted writer.

A Park Police Officer and A Crime Scene Investigator Make a Perfect Team:

The Weight of Night (Glacier Mystery #3) by Christine Carbo: Gretchen Larson (a crime scene investigator) and Monty Harris (a park police officer) work together to try and recover human remains found near Montana’s Glacier National Park. Problem is there’s a raging fire that firefighters have been working to put out, so Larson can’t treat this with the care a crime scene needs—they literally need to get what they can and run! Told from alternating point of view between Larson and Harris, this procedural takes you through the case as they try to identify the remains and also find a boy who was camping with his family and disappeared. Both Larson and Harris have past traumas they carry, while Larson also has a sleeping disorder she keeps hidden and refuses to get close to anyone because of it. Great read for fans of procedurals who are looking for a new setting.

More Books Recently Released Because What’s a TBR For if It’s Not About to Explode:

The Hole by Hye-Young Pyun, Sora Kim-Russell (Translation) (Slow-burn suspense)

Girl in Snow by Danya Kukafka (I love novels that give both YA and Adult POV)

See What I Have Done by Sarah Schmidt (Liberty Hardy loved and reviewed)

Atlanta Noir edited by Tayari Jones (Currently reading: almost had to sleep with the lights on after the first, super good, story!)

Unraveling Oliver by Liz Nugent (Seeing this one mentioned a lot.)

A Thousand Cuts (Spike Sanguinetti #5) by Thomas Mogford (Thriller set in Gibraltar)

Death by His Grace (Darko Dawson #5) by Kwei Quartey (Really enjoyed.)

On Her Majesty’s Frightfully Secret Service (Her Royal Spyness #11) by Rhys Bowen (Historical mystery)

From Holmes to Sherlock: The Story of the Men and Women Who Created an Icon by Mattias Boström, Michael Gallagher (Translation) (Sounds interesting.)

The Arsonist by Stephanie Oakes (Looking forward to reading this one!)

The Dire King (Jackaby #4) by William Ritter (Enjoying reading this series that’s like a Sherlockian fantasy!)

Normandy Gold #3 by Megan Abbott, Alison Gaylin, Steve Scott, Lovern Kindzierski, Claudia Ianniciello (Detective goes “undercover” as an escort to find out what happened to her sister.)

Snap Judgment (Samantha Brinkman, #3) by Marcia Clark (My review of the 1st two in the series)

Glass Houses (Chief Inspector Armand Gamache #13) by Louise Penny (Latest in this great series!)

Browse all the books recommended in Unusual Suspects previous newsletters on this shelf. And if you like to put a pin in things here’s an Unusual Suspects board.

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

Hi my fellow mystery fans! We are once again at the newsletter issue where I recommend you pop some popcorn and watch some mysteries. (Don’t worry, plenty of book-talk too, including must-read upcoming mysteries and Kindle deals!)

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Sponsored by The Dire King by William Ritter

In the epic conclusion to the bestselling Jackaby series, the Sherlockian detective of the supernatural and his indispensable assistant, Abigail Rook, face off against their most dangerous, bone-chilling foe ever. EntertainmentWeekly.com calls the series “fast-paced and full of intrigue.” The Dire King is filled with everything fans could hope for: new mythical creatures, page-turning action, surprising plot twists, romance, and an apocalyptic battle that will determine the fate of the world.

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Streaming on Netflix:

Shimmer Lake: This isn’t a book adaptation but because of the unique structure of the film I have a book recommendation for fans of it: All the Missing Girls by Megan Miranda. (Or if you read and liked the book, here’s a movie rec.) First the film: a small town bank (owned by a judge) is robbed and the police are looking for the robbers. Being a small town, things are a bit sensitive in that everyone grew up together, and the sheriff and one of the robbers are brothers. Adding to the mix are two non-local FBI agents who are there to do the bare minimum (Not that I would expect anything more from Berger–the guy who broke up with Carrie Bradshaw on a post-it.). This is a crime film, with humor, where you watch the criminals plot and carry out their heist while also watching the police and FBI try to catch them. The unique part is that it’s told backwards. It starts on Friday, after the robbery has taken place, as the criminals are hiding and the police and FBI are after them, and works its way back to how it began.

The backwards storytelling has a thin line to walk to be successful: it has a lot of unexplained things, but can’t be confusing or frustrating. Both Shimmer Lake and All the Missing Girls achieve this tightrope walk successfully.

All the Missing Girls is a thriller, the kind where a woman goes back to the hometown she left years ago–in this case to help her brother sell the family home. Nic left after her best friend went missing (still an unsolved case) and everyone in their group of friends, including Nic’s brother, were suspects. Nic isn’t back very long before another girl goes missing… You get a mystery, thriller, and a novel mostly told backwards, which is a refreshing change in the genre. My favorite part of the novel was the exploration of how Nic reviewed her childhood friendships now through adult eyes.

Both film and novel look at the relationship in small towns, play with structure, and are twisty. While the novel has more depth and thriller tension, the film sets out to entertain and succeeds.

Riverdale: Confession time: I was not expecting to like this as much as I did because I was honestly never a fan of the Archie comics growing up (sorry, love triangles have just never been my thing), and I will forever be mad at The CW for cancelling the amazing show No Tomorrow (s1 on Netflix). Yet, here I am recommending Riverdale for anyone looking for a bingeable show because it sucked me in.

This isn’t really an adaptation of Archie, but rather a very loose reimagining of the characters mixed with some semi-woke 90210 and Twin Peaks murder/mystery darkness (not weirdness) overlaid on top. For starters, this isn’t original Archie so much as Mark Waid and Fiona Staples a bit hotly drawn Archie in the recent comic reboot (no murder/mystery in the comic). And in Riverdale, their families are steeped in drama and criminal activity. Oh, and most importantly, there’s been a murder! Yup, one of the students has been found dead and the more his death is looked into, the more this “idyllic” small town looks anything but. And there are so many options when it comes to possible suspects. So while Betty, Veronica, Archie, and Jughead (and friends) are trying to navigate teen life and all the social issues that comes with it. they’re also turning into those meddling kids who just won’t stop investigating this murder. My favorite part was that they steered mostly away from the love triangle–although the whole teacher/student plot was gross and not handled well. so I’m glad that went away rather quickly. I’m looking forward to season two, which will bring in Mark Consuelos to play Veronica’s father and have my fingers-crossed that season two will also gives us more Josie and the Pussycats and Barb storylines!

If You Like To Pre-Buy or Be First In Your Library Hold Line, Here Are Upcoming Books I Loved That Are A Must-Read!

Bluebird, Bluebird by Attica Locke (Mulholland Books, Sept 12) : My Best-Read pick for June!

A Conspiracy in Belgravia (Lady Sherlock, #2) by Sherry Thomas (Penguin, Sept 5): My Best-Read pick for July!

Force of Nature by Jane Harper (Flatiron Books, Feb 6, 2018): If you loved The Dry and are anticipating the sequel you won’t be disappointed it is as good!

I Poked Around The Kindle Deals and Found You These!

One Kick (Kick Lannigan #1) by Chelsea Cain for $1.99 (Perfect timing for my I-must-read-all-the-Chelsea-Cain!)

The Boy in the Suitcase (Nina Borg #1) by Lene Kaaberbøl, Agnete Friis for $1.99

 

 

And I’ll Leave You With Some Interesting Links:

BBC One tweeted this trailer for the adaptation of The Cuckoo’s Calling by Robert Galbraith (really J.K. Rowling) which will premiere on the 27th in the UK–when can we see it in the U.S.?!?!?!

In stranger than fiction news: Chinese crime writer arrested for four cold-case murders.

Over on Book Riot Emily Martin makes a case for Why We Should Stop Searching For the Next Gone Girl.

Rincey and Katie talk cozy mysteries (and more) in the latest Read or Dead: Murder at a Chippendales. (A+ show title!)

Watch the season 2 trailer for Good Behavior. (TNT’s adaptation of Blake Crouch’s Good Behavior.)

Browse all the books recommended in Unusual Suspects previous newsletters on this shelf. And if you like to put a pin in things here’s an Unusual Suspects board.

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

Hello fellow mystery fans! If like me you’re still melting and looking for “chilly” mysteries, Linda Greenlaw’s Shiver Hitch is set during a Maine winter. Bring on the brrrrrrr.

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Sponsored by Gone to Dust by Matt Goldman

A brutal crime. The ultimate cover-up. How do you solve a murder with no useable evidence?

A woman has been found murdered in her bedroom, her body covered with the dust from hundreds of emptied vacuum cleaner bags, all potential DNA evidence obscured by the calculating killer.

Praised by Lee Child as “a perfect blend of light touch and dark story,” and Harlan Coben as “Irreverent and insightful…sure to become a fan favorite,”Gone to Dust is the debut private eye murder mystery you don’t want to miss.

Start Reading Gone to Dust today!

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Amateur Sleuth (I Want to Be BFFs With) Needs Reward Money:

Hollywood Homicide (Detective by Day #1) by Kellye Garrett: Dayna “Day” Anderson needs money (and fast) or her parents are going to lose their house. Day has quit her dream of becoming an actress and is trying to land work when she decides to solve a hit-and-run case that is offering reward money. Day is one of those characters who I loved from the very beginning (she’s smart, determined, funny, a good friend), and while in my head I’m certain my friends and I solving a murder case would look as efficient and competent as Veronica Mars, we’d probably be more like Day and her friends: disaster-ish and pointing the finger at everyone. Garrett has written a novel with great voice, characters, hilarious moments, and a lot of Hollywood, which is a perfect start to a series. Also, if anyone wants to turn this into a TV series you can count me in as a viewer! (You can read Kellye Garrett’s great Little Q&A here.)

The ear piercing squeal you just heard was me finding out there is a novel (Back to Brooklyn by Lawrence Kelter) that updates where Mona Lisa Vito and Vinny Gambini are today: My Cousin Vinny updated by new novel. I need to go get a copy and read this–I feel like it’s either going to be awesome or terrible, and either way I’ll be entertained and love it. Maybe? I’m gonna go find out!

Over on Book Riot Derek Attig has some awesome crafty finds for Nancy Drew fans.

And I recommend mystery comics based on 3 popular TV shows.

Sarah M. Chen sits down with Danny Gardner to discuss his new (great) book A Negro and an Ofay.

I imagined a book club for those meddling kids on Riverdale.

Louise Penny will write three more novels for her Chief Inspector Armand Gamache series and Lisa Jewell (The Girls In the Garden ; I Found You) has closed a deal for two domestic suspense novels according to PW book deals.

Gin Phillips on her new thriller Fierce Kingdom.

Watch the season 2 trailer for BBC America’s Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency adapted from Douglas Adams novels.

A Little Q&A: Kathleen Kent (I give authors I’m excited about five questions and let them answer any three they’d like.)

The Dime was a total surprise for me, in that it didn’t go at all the way I thought it would–which is always a huge plus in this genre. It has a great mystery plot and an excellent detective who, while made of hard edges, also has heart. Betty Rhyzyk is carrying around the ghost of her uncle and trying to balance work with being a good partner to her doctor girlfriend. I was probably less than a 1/4 way into the book when I was already hoping that it would be turned into a series! (You can read my original review here and listen to Liberty Hardy rave about it here.)

And Here’s Kathleen Kent:

If you were forced to live the rest of your life as one of your characters, who would it be? “I would have to pick Detective Elizabeth (Betty) Rhyzyk, my lead character from The Dime. She does and says things that I think about doing, but don’t have the nerve, or muscle strength, to accomplish. While I like to think that I’m fiercely loyal to my family and friends, and fairly pain tolerant, I’m a lousy marksman, tend to drive the speed limit, and take the middle way when confronted by Yahoos (Yankee speak for obstreperous, combative or willfully ignorant citizens).”

If you adapted a well-known book into a Clue mystery, what would be the solve? “Lisbeth Salander, tattooing gun, in the bedroom.”

If you were to blurb your most recent book:  “If you don’t love ferocious, courageous, never-say-die female detectives who don’t like being ‘tied down’, don’t read The Dime. Stick with Nancy Drew.”

Thanks Kathleen! I can’t wait for Detective Betty #2!!!!!!

Mic Drop Climactic Scene!

The Blinds by Adam Sternbergh: Imagine a town so small, most people don’t know it exists. Now place there criminals and innocents (those who witnessed crimes/testified, etc.) who have had different degrees of their memories altered so that they just don’t remember the crime(s). That’s The Blinds, as it’s nicknamed. While the world knows about them–and the residents get to watch the news and have a delivery truck bring them supplies–they aren’t allowed to contact anyone outside their town, or leave. Technically, they can leave, but if they do they can’t come back and their previous life can find them. But how safe are they in The Blinds when there’s been a suicide and a murder? Sternbergh does a great job of slowly unfolding the workings of the town and the people living in it while threading through a mystery that explores who a criminal would become if their crimes were erased from their mind. A fantastic read, perfect for mystery and crime readers, that is one of 2017’s best releases.

I Poked Around The Kindle Summer Deals and Found You These Great Reads!

Monday the Rabbi Took Off (The Rabbi Small Mysteries) by Harry Kemelman for $1.99 (My review)

Blood Defense and Moral Defense by Marcia Clark (the first two in the Samantha Brinkman series) each for $1.99 (My review)

The Spellman Files: Document #1 by Lisa Lutz for $1.99

Browse all the books recommended in Unusual Suspects previous newsletters on this shelf. And if you like to put a pin in things here’s an Unusual Suspects board.

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

Hi my fellow mystery fans! I realized that many of the books I was recently reading had a similar theme where a character(s) past had come back to get them–dun dun dun!– so I rounded-up some of my favorites from recent releases for you.

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Sponsored by Penguin Books

The year is 2037. The Soviet Union never fell, and much of Europe has been consolidated under the totalitarian Union of Friendship. On the tiny island of Isola, seven people have been selected to compete in a forty-eight-hour test for a top-secret intelligence position. THE DYING GAME is a masterly locked-room mystery set in a near-future Orwellian state—for fans of Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale, Dave Eggers’ The Circle, and Suzanne Collins’ The Hunger Games.

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When You’ve Run From Your Past and it Catches Up Via a True Crime Podcast:

Are You Sleeping by Kathleen Barber: Josie Buhrman isn’t living the most honest life. For starters, that isn’t her birth name, nor does her boyfriend know that her mother is in fact alive and that she has a twin sister. So when her mother does really die, she has to pretend her aunt died to go back home after ten years for the funeral. Why all the lies? Her father was murdered and it destroyed her family. Now there’s a true crime podcast about her family, even though the case was solved years ago. Josie returns home to face the twin she hasn’t spoken to in a decade, now with new questions posed by the podcast. Smart and suspenseful, this takes an interesting look from the point of view of the victim’s family as to what it feels like to have a true crime podcast obsess over the tragedy in your life, and whether they do more harm than good.

When the Baby You Put Up for Adoption Goes Missing As a Teen:

The Lost Ones by Sheena Kamal: Nora Watts has carved a tiny life for herself: she works as a receptionist and research assistant at a PI firm that also rents out space to a journalist; lives in the basement of the building with neither of her bosses knowing; and has only recently allowed a stray dog to be the only thing in her personal life. And then her past shows up in the form of the couple who adopted her daughter years ago. The daughter who is missing. The police are treating it as a runaway, but Nora, clearly with a past, sets out across Canada to find the missing girl. A mystery that turns thriller with an intense ending and another “unlikable” woman that I found myself liking a lot–especially her ability to always know when someone is lying.

A Suspenseful “Who did I marry?!”

Undertow by Elizabeth Heathcote: Carmen is still in the honeymoon stage of marriage with Mark until a stranger’s comments throw her into a state of questioning. Years before, Mark had left his wife and kids for his mistress Zena–and all the clichés of married-man-and-younger-woman. Then Zena died. She drowned while swimming in the ocean, a story that Mark himself told Carmen when they first started dating. But it turns out the locals don’t think it was an accident, and as Carmen starts to ask questions and snoop through Mark’s things, it looks like maybe the locals know more than Mark told Carmen. This places you inside Carmen’s thoughts and actions in a way that’ll have you questioning what you would do in this situation. Is Mark’s past going to sink them (sorry, not sorry), or does Carmen need to reign in her imagination?

A Missing Woman is Found 18 Years Later, Murdered:

The Lost Woman (Louise Rick #9) by Sara Blaedel, Mark Kline (translator): Detective Louise Rick’s colleague (who is also her boyfriend) disappears, leaving Rick frantic. While trying to locate him, she learns things about him that she wasn’t aware of, which seem like a big deal until she finds Eik and learns he’s under suspicion of murder. Now on the case of a murdered missing woman, Rick must unravel years of questions while also questioning her relationship with Eik. Great read if you like your mysteries to take on current social issues with weight. Reads as a standalone and Christine Lakin (from Step by Step!) does a great narration on the audiobook. 

Over on Book Riot Tirzah Price has YA novels that actually have earned a Veronica Mars comparison.

On the newest Read or Dead podcast episode Rincey and Katie talk about James Patterson and former President Bill Clinton pitching their 2018 book to Hollywood and two of my favorite mysteries: A Rising Man by Abir Mukherjee and A Study in Scarlet Women by Sherry Thomas!

Nicole Kidman, Reese Witherspoon, Jean-Marc Vallée, Alexander Skarsgård discuss HBO’s Big Little Lies (adapted from Liane Moriarty‘s novel) at Deadline’s Emmy FYC event.

I Poked Around The Kindle Summer Deals and Found You These Great Reads!

The Tokyo Zodiac Murders by Soji Shimada, Translated by Ross MacKenzie, Shika MacKenzie for $1.99 (My review)

Everything You Want Me To Be by Mindy Mejia for $1.99 (My review)

Still Midnight (Alex Monrow #1) by Denise Mina for $2.99

 

Browse all the books recommended in Unusual Suspects previous newsletters on this shelf. And if you like to put a pin in things here’s an Unusual Suspects board.

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

Hello fellow mystery fans! Salvador Dali was exactly where his body was supposed to be and in a delightful twist, his mustache is in tact.

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Sponsored by The Dark Net by Benjamin Percy

The Dark Net is real. An anonymous and often criminal arena that exists in the secret far reaches of the Web. And now an ancient darkness is gathering there as well. This force is threatening to spread virally into the real world unless it can be stopped by members of a ragtag crew. Set in present-day Portland, The Dark Net is a cracked-mirror version of the digital nightmare we already live in, a timely and wildly imaginative techno-thriller about the evil that lurks in real and virtual spaces, and the power of a united few to fight back.

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What If Everyone’s Short-Term Memory Only Lasted a Day or Two?

Yesterday by Felicia Yap: There has been a new surge of mystery/thrillers written by women that I like to say, “that book has a bite.” I would place Yesterday in that category BUT it also is unique in that Yap has managed to create a slightly different world within our current society. In Yesterday people are either Mono or Duo: Monos only retain short-term memory for 24 hours; Duos only retain short-term memory for 48 hours. It creates hierarchy within society: Monos are considered less than, laws etc. have existed based on it. Now imagine if that’s how short-term memory worked and try being a detective solving a murder! Not only is DCI Richardson trying to solve the case of the body dumped in England’s River Cam, but it turns out the victim was having an affair with a Duo married to a Mono. It feels like everyone in this story is struggling with their memory and has secrets to keep. Told from the point of view of the victim’s iDiary (how everyone keeps track of their memory), DCI Richardson, and Mark and Claire (the Mono/Duo couple at the center of it all).

Over on Book Riot Amanda Nelson put together a great list of mystery/thriller audiobooks.

A Conversation With Walter Mosley. (If you haven’t yet read any of Mosley’s work–you really should–here’s a reading pathways.)

Louise Penny (Chief Inspector Armand Gamache author) video interview.

In stranger than fiction news: A parrot helped convict a woman of murdering her husband.

Watch the trailer for My Friend Dahmer based on Derf Backderf’s graphic novel depicting serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer as a teenager.

Michelle Richmond’s The Marriage Pact sold its film rights to 20th Century Fox.

Watch the trailer for Netflix’ Mindhunter based on the same titled book by Mark Olshaker and John E. Douglas. (Premieres October 13.)

Fictional Female Serial Killer? Yes, Please!

Heartsick (Archie Sheridan & Gretchen Lowell, #1) by Chelsea Cain: I’ve been meaning to read this series for-ev-er. The cancellation of Cain’s Mockingbird left me so bummed that I finally reached for my Heartsick copy and shame on me for not having gotten to this series sooner! If you like dark, fckd-up serial killers who play some seriously wicked games, you’ll love Gretchen Lowell–from afar. Stay very far away from this evil woman. Archie Sheridan lives with a scar on his chest and a mind full of damage after barely having survived being kidnapped and tortured by serial killer Lowell. He had been the detective on her case and had spent 10 years trying to catch her. Ultimately he did, but considering his life is in shambles and he can’t stop visiting her in jail, who really caught whom? With a new killer snatching victims, Archie is asked to help catch the killer while also giving a young reporter access into his life for a series of feature articles. This felt like a mental cat-and-mouse where everyone seems to think they’re the cat, but that’s just not possible. A fantastic, dark read I stayed up way past my bedtime reading. And now I need to read all the Chelsea Cain.

Literary Mystery With a Unique PI Who I Love!

Celine by Peter Heller: Celine is no longer a spring chicken and has emphysema, but that doesn’t stop her from being a great PI who takes on mostly pro bono cases. Her new case comes via Gabriela, a woman with quite a story of her upbringing who needs Celine to help her find out what happened to her father years ago. Celine takes on the case and brings her partner Peter along for the adventure to Yellowstone National Park. While Celine is focused on Gabriela’s case, Celine’s son is focused on unraveling a mystery about Celine which gives a great look into Celine’s life. A good mystery that doesn’t go the way you’d think, filled with great characters, and a fabulous, dry-witted, unique PI. I hope to someday get to spend time with Celine again. And I really enjoyed the narrator, Kimberly Farr, on the audiobook.

Watch Now: If you’ve been looking forward to watching the adaptation of Petra Hammesfahr’s novel The Sinner–the USA Network mini-series starring Jessica Biel–it premiers tonight.

Browse all the books recommended in Unusual Suspects previous newsletters on this shelf. And if you like to put a pin in things here’s an Unusual Suspects board.

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

Hello fellow mystery fans! Canuck is a crow who not only managed to stop mail delivery but also once stole a knife from a crime scene. This crow desperately wants to be a character in a small town mystery novel and should not be denied.

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Sponsored by The Special Ones by Em Bailey, a HMH Book for Young Readers.

Esther is one of four Special Ones: spiritual guides who live in a remote farmhouse under the protection of a mysterious cult leader. He watches them around the clock—ready to punish them if they forget who they are—while broadcasting their lives to eager followers outside.

Esther knows that if she stops being Special, he will “renew” her. Nobody knows what happens to Special Ones who are taken away for renewal, but Esther fears the worst. Like an actor caught up in an endless play, she must keep up the performance if she wants to survive long enough to escape.

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For fans of dark, fictional serial killers:

Lovemurder (Valerie Hart #2) by Saul Black: Valerie Hart is attempting to live a normal life as a San Francisco detective who has just put a past relationship back together. But then a murder victim is found with a note for Hart. Turns out the serial killing team she split up years before by catching Katherine Glass and imprisoning her is back. Or at least the free accomplice is, and he’s demanding the release of Glass or he’ll continue killing. Hart has no desire to go back to having to interact with Glass and her psychological games–let alone play a cat and mouse game with the serial killer on the loose–but seeing as Glass’ accomplice was never caught because no one knows anything about him, she has no choice. Dark, gruesome, and suspenseful. (Reads as a standalone.)

I wrote about male thriller writers using ambiguous pen names. And Rincey and Katie discussed their feelings in the Read or Dead podcast: The Essence of a Woman is Not Contained in a Bra

First teaser for Alias Grace, upcoming Netflix mini-series, adapted from Margarate Atwood’s novel about an Irish maid who is convicted of her employers murders.

David E. Kelley talks about Stephen King’s Mr. Mercedes adaptation.

Amazon has gotten the US rights to the BBC’s seven upcoming Agatha Christie adaptations.

Upcoming Netflix original crime drama will star Michael C. Hall with Harlan Coben writing.

Blake Lively will star in espionage thriller The Rhythm Section (adapted from Mark Burnell’s first in the Stephanie Patrick novels).

Watch The Snow Man trailer starring Rebecca Ferguson, Michael Fassbender, and Val Kilmer. Adapted from Jo Nesbø’s same titled novel in the Harry Hole series.

If it isn’t your truth to reveal, do you join the lie?

The Lying Game by Ruth Ware: Four women in their early thirties, who as teens bonded over a term at boarding school, are all reunited by a single text message. It is clear there is something more than just old friendships that has Fatima (a Doctor, mother, wife), Isa (a mother of a six-month-old), and Thea (a casino dealer) dropping everything to run back to Kate’s home–the home they spent their weekends at while attending Salten House. The home Kate has called them back to because someone walking a dog came across human remains. While the police are investigating the body, the women are trying to reconcile their past while lying to the people in their current lives and pretending to be home for a school reunion dinner (even though they’ve never attended any previous reunions because they’d been expelled from the school). Told in first person by Isa, we watch as all the women struggle with the lies they once told and the lies they’re still telling. The question is: who are they lying for, why, and when is it time to tell the truth?

Last Comic Standing meets And Then They Were None/Clue– stand-up routines included:

Ten Dead Comedians by Fred Van Lente: Ten very different comedians receive a text message invitation by a famous comedian they all look up to and find themselves on an island together. While they all accepted in hopes of furthering or resurrecting their careers, they all rather quickly realize something is very wrong when one of them dies. And then the next… It’s all comedians for themselves as they try and figure out who amongst them is the killer, and why they traded in comedy for horror. An entertaining read with various personalities, from social justice comedians to ones you’ll recognize from real life, who you get to know just enough to be full characters but not enough where you’re upset with the fact that they’re all probably going to die…

Recent paperback releases:

Winter of the Gods by Jordanna Max Brodsky

The Couple Next Door by Shari Lapena

The Trap by Melanie Raabe, Imogen Taylor (translation)

Unnatural Habits (Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries) by Kerry Greenwood

Browse all the books recommended in Unusual Suspects previous newsletters on this shelf. And if you like to put a pin in things here’s an Unusual Suspects board.

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

Hi my fellow mystery fans! I’m melting and it isn’t even August yet which has me wanting to read mysteries/thrillers set in cold settings. If you’re looking for the same thing I very much recommend North of Boston by Elisabeth Elo–freezing water sounds amazing right now.

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Sponsored by the high-octane political thriller We Are Holding the President Hostage.

The most popular high-octane thriller from the bestselling author of The War of the Roses – We Are Holding the President Hostage is an electrifying death match that grips you from the first page until long after the last. Aging Mafia Don Salvatore Padronelli, a.k.a. the Padre, is furious when fanatical terrorists capture his beloved daughter and grandson on a trip to Egypt. Fed up with diplomatic caution that prolongs their captivity, the Padre and his loyal henchman cleverly insinuate themselves into the White House to hold the President and his wife hostage. Now the Padre calls the shots on getting the President to take steps to release his family. But will his plan go as expected?

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I ain’t afraid of no ghost!

Death in D Minor (Gethsemane Brown Mysteries #2) by Alexia Gordon: And neither is Gethsemane Brown (an American musician living in Ireland), who summons a ghost in the hopes of saving her cottage from developers. Except, whoopsie, the wrong ghost appears. At the wrong time. But that’s a side plot—in a delightful way, not a distracting way—from the actual mystery: Gethsemane’s brother-in-law is in town for an art auction and quickly finds himself entangled in a fraud case as the suspect. Gethsemane makes a deal to help gather evidence against suspected art frauders to prove his innocence, but soon there’s a death and Gethsemane is in danger. This was a great read with a couple of ghosts, music, and art history that complimented well with the mystery at heart and some laughs. Now I have to go read the first in the series!

If you’re going to be in Maine on the 29th Tess Gerritsen is having a mystery garden party!

Over on Paste: Read an excerpt from The Strange Case of the Alchemist’s Daughter.

A judge in Spain ordered Salvador Dali’s body exhumed for a paternity test and because I clearly read too many mysteries my first thought was “But what if the body isn’t there when they open the casket?!”

True crime is stranger than fiction ( A living Jane Doe): Finding Lisa: A story of murders, mysteries, loss, and, incredibly, new life

Chrissy Teigen reads true crime. So does John Legend. The couple that reads true crime together, stays together?

DiCaprio and Scorsese are uniting again, this time on an adaptation for the true crime Killers of the Flower Moon by David Grann.

Breakfast Club meets murder mystery:

One of Us is Lying by Karen M. McManus: This starts with five students in detention–most professing innocence. Each seems to take on the classic trope of teen movies giving you the Breakfast Club type vibes (brain, jock, pretty/popular, bad boy) except things quickly turn tragic when a student dies. Soon it appears he may have been murdered. Suspects? Technically anyone who he’d destroyed in his gossip app (he was like the TMZ/Perez Hilton of his school) but the police are zeroing in on the four students left from that detention. As you get to know each character—point of view changes each chapter—you realize they’re fully fleshed out characters who are complex and not necessarily who they each thought the other was. If “one of us is lying”–and slowly it looks like at some point each of them could be the killer, or at least has a secret–then is it wise for them to be sneaking off to meet to try and figure out the mystery themselves? Especially, when the police are watching them…

PI mystery that ends like a thriller:

The Last Place You Look (Roxane Weary #1) by Kristen Lepionk: Roxane Weary is a PI having a bit of a rough time (aren’t all PIs?): her father, a police officer, has passed away; she’s drinking a bit too much; and her romantic life is more in the unhealthy department. Sure, all of that sounds like this is just a gender swapped PI mystery, but there’s more to Roxane than the usual tropes– starting with her being bisexual. As much as she can be prickly (again, most PI?), she’s genuinely trying. She may not make the wisest choices–romantically, personally, nor professionally–but she evolves at the same time, recognizes her issues, and (most importantly as a PI) doesn’t give up on her case. The case is technically an already solved case–there is a man on death row for the murder of his girlfriend (body never found) and her parents fifteen years ago. But his sister is certain he didn’t kill anyone and she swears she just saw the body-never-found girlfriend walking in broad daylight. The case is complicated enough, and the fact that the town’s police don’t want Roxane anywhere near their town makes it nearly impossible for her to do her job. But a man’s life is hanging on the balance and she really doesn’t take kindly to being told to mind her own business. A good read for fans of mystery and thrillers as you get a healthy dose of both.

Poked around the Kindle monthly deals and found you these:

His Bloody Project by Graeme Macrae Burnet for $2.99

The Murder Game by Julie Apple for $1.99

The Girl Before by JP Delaney for $3.99

 

 

And I’ll leave you with my best read of June review for Bluebird, Bluebird by Attica Locke. Y’all should definitely add it to your TBR list and pounce on it when it releases in September. It’s so good. SO GOOD!

I have to go shopping now:

Agatha Christie typewriter pins with mystery quote

Detective trench coat cufflinks

Browse all the books recommended in Unusual Suspects previous newsletters on this shelf. And if you like to put a pin in things here’s an Unusual Suspects board.

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

Hello my fellow mystery fans! There’s a literacy ambassador pig and it should come as a shock to no one that I love everything about this.

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Sponsored by Dr. Knox by Peter Spiegelman, new in paperback from Vintage Crime Black Lizard.

A gripping thriller about a doctor with a powerful humanitarian impulse and an unhealthy appetite for risk. Dr. Adam Knox, a former aid worker in war zones and disaster areas, runs a clinic near LA’s Skid Row and makes house calls—no questions asked—on those too famous or too criminal. When his search for an abandoned boy’s mother leads him into the crosshairs of a human trafficking ring run by the Russian mob and on a collision course with a powerful and ruthless family, it threatens all—and everyone—that Dr. Knox holds dear.

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My favorite Sherlock!

A Study In Scarlet Women (Lady Sherlock #1) by Sherry Thomas: A gender swapped Sherlock Holmes that is brilliantly well thought out and executed. I don’t want to get into the plot because there was something quite wonderful about how it all unfolds, especially if you go into the book knowing nothing about the plot like I did. I will say that I loved everything about Charlotte Holmes, from her refusing to accept her place in society, to her taking drastic measures to ensure she doesn’t live a life she doesn’t want. Bonus points for the title that you’ll realize means more than one thing… Oh, and Kate Reading does a great narration on the audiobook–really brought Charlotte Holmes to life.

Calling all cozy mystery fans:

Murder at the Male Revue (A Bucket List Mystery #3) by Elizabeth Perona: A group of seventy+-year-young women with bucket lists seem to also have the Jessica Fletcher syndrome of always finding themselves around a murder. This time a fun event of male strippers–catered by Mary Ruth and attended by the ladies to get one of those bucket list items crossed off–is cut short by the stabbing of the fundraiser’s sponsor, Camille Ledfelter. Charlotte (being a fan of mysteries) doesn’t care that the police find her to be a thorn in their side–warning her to stop trying to investigate–she just can’t stop herself. Nor wants to, really. When it appears Ledfelter’s nephew is going to be the prime suspect, Charlotte goes into full-on investigation mode, dragging Francine and some of the other ladies into her schemes to get closer to the truth of who stabbed Ledfelter. The opening Magic-Mike-gone-wrong scene is funny and Charlotte, Francine, and the other ladies are wonderful characters who make me believe my dream of one day becoming a private detective while living in a nursing home can come true.

A little Q&A: Kellye Garrett (I give authors I’m excited about five questions and let them answer any three they’d like.)

You know those books that from page one you already love the main character and know you’re only going to love them even more as you get deeper into the story? That’s how I felt about Dayna “Day” Anderson. She finds herself in amateur sleuth territory now that she’s given up on the Hollywood dream, is broke, and needs to find money fast to save her parents’ home. Day is hilarious, smart, has a great group of friends–and my favorite part is she puts the amateur in amateur sleuth! Being that Hollywood Homicide (Midnight Ink, Aug 8th) is the first in the series I’m so happy that I’ll have more Day in my life.

Here’s Kellye Garrett:

What would you like to see more/less of in the mystery genre? “Granted, I’m super biased but I would love to see more authors of color. Last summer’s Sisters in Crime Diversity Report listed 69 black writers who were published. To clarify, that isn’t the number of black writers traditionally published last year. That is the number who published by a publishing company ever. As in, throughout the entire history of the world there have been only 69 black mystery writers traditionally published in the United States. And we have it better than other marginalized groups.

When you’ve always been represented, you don’t realize how much representation matters. I love what Shonda Rhimes has done with Scandal and How to Get Away with Murder where the shows are extremely diverse and the lead happens to be black. I would love to see that same idea move over to mystery novels.”

If you were forced to live the rest of your life as one of your characters who would it be? “I should say my main character Dayna since she’s basically a younger, prettier, more over-the-top version of me. But I’m going to go with her uber-confident best friend Sienna, who spends her days being fabulous, saying whatever she wants, and never, ever gaining weight. Her life goal is to set a World Record for wearing most days in a row wearing red and she could give Beyonce a run for her money when it comes to doing things in heels. And, best of all, Sienna’s also a super supportive ride-or-die friend.”

If you were to blurb your most recent/upcoming book (à la James Patterson): “Hollywood Homicide is my best book in over 20 years! Better than the stories that I used to write as a kid that I would force my mom to read and tell me were great.”

Thanks Kellye! Hollywood if you’re reading this newsletter Hollywood Homicide would make a great TV series so someone get on that–Please, and thank you!

Suspense:

Every Last Lie by Mary Kubica: Clara Solberg’s husband, Nick, dying in a car accident is only the first string pulled in a spectacular unraveling of her life. Not only is she left widowed with a four-year-old and a newborn baby but her daughter Maisie is now having meltdown moments that make Clara question whether Nick’s accident was just his speeding as the police believed or if there was another car involved. The brilliance of this novel is how Kubica builds suspense by taking us into Clara’s daily life, starting with Nick’s death, and alternates the chapters with Nick’s daily life starting in the final months of Clara’s recent pregnancy as he struggled to keep the life they’d built from unraveling and Clara from finding out.

Browse all the books recommended in Unusual Suspects previous newsletters on this shelf. And if you like to put a pin in things here’s an Unusual Suspects board.

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

And don’t forget to check out our newest podcast, Annotated.

The first episode, “Is it 1984 yet?” traces the recent rise of the not-new 1984 to the number one spot on Amazon’s best-selling books list. Jeff and Rebecca explore the backstory of 1984, from how it became stock high school reading to its CIA-supported appearance on the silver screen, to how, seemingly, a January 22nd news interview thrust it back into our collective consciousness as the example of a political nightmare. To listen, visit bookriot.com/annotated or search for Annotated in Apple Podcasts, Google Play, or your podcatcher of choice.

Hello my fellow mystery fans! I should probably add “and horror fans” since this week I’m bringing you mystery/thrillers that are great for fans of horror! I know it isn’t October but horror fans generally read the genre all year round, and it’s summer which means there are plenty of people sitting around in cabins and swimming in lakes unaware that ax murderers are running around in the woods. Basically summer is also the perfect time to read mystery/thrillers with horror nods.

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Sponsored by Warren Adler’s high-caliber mystery American Quartet. Get it for $0.99 exclusively through Book Riot with this link: http://amzn.to/2sLDp0Z

Detective Fiona Fitzgerald maneuvers between two vastly different worlds, moving quickly from opulent State galas to gritty crime scenes. When a string of inexplicable murders rocks the hallowed streets of central D.C., Fiona finds herself charging through the shadows of a mysterious conspiracy where the only answers to her case seem to be whispered from the bloodstained graves of fallen presidents. Fiona stands ready, her finger on the trigger, as an assassination plot decades in the making is about to change history forever.

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Ever wondered what Annie Wilkes and Norman Bates baby would be like? It would be this book!

Perfect Days by Raphael Montes: I read this two years ago and I still–and forever will–shudder at two things in this novel. The creep factor is cranked way up–I never remember the difference between psycho/sociopath but let’s just say Teo is all and everything wrong with a person. Teo meets Clarice and decides he wants to date her. Clarice is not so much into the idea. But Teo isn’t taking no for an answer because he thinks that he can convince her that they should be together so he kidnaps her and decides to hold her hostage in a cabin until she changes her mind. This had me gripping the novel so tight my knuckles were white! *Forever shudders

For fans of slasher films!

Security by Gina Wohlsdorf: If you’re a fan of slasher movies, this for me was that in book form. Picture a high-end resort days before opening as employees rush to finish every last detail in order to be ready for the first guests. Now imagine there is a killer amongst them picking them off one by one and they aren’t even aware! If you like shouting things like “Don’t go in there!” and “Look behind you!” you’ll enjoy this one–just don’t expect them to listen.

For fans of serial killer arcs on procedural shows:

The Fourth Monkey by J.D. Barker: When the serial killer known as the Four Monkey Killer is struck by a bus and killed, Chicago residents and police should be relieved, except this is the beginning of the novel so of course he was carrying a package containing the latest victim’s ear. Yeah, I said “ear.” See, this serial killer kidnaps his victims–always women who are relatives of those he intends to punish–and sends their ear in a box. Next comes their eyes… Found in the serial killer’s pocket is a diary which Detective Porter hopes will help locate the most recent victim. Alternating chapters take you into the investigation which follows Porter, his partner Nash, and fellow detective Norton as they try to find the latest victim before she starves to death; the victim who wakes up to find herself kidnapped and missing an ear; the serial killer’s diary telling the story of his childhood (not the typical serial killer childhood story). The gory bits–even more than just ear and eye removal–and the end is horror-ish enough for both fans of procedurals and horror.

For fans of fictional horror massacres:

Final Girls by Riley Sager: You know those horror films where a group of people are all in one place and there is a straight up massacre? Well Quincy Carpenter survived one of those massacres years ago–hence getting the title Final Girl–but she still has no memory of what happened to all her friends. She’s finally got her life in a good place when another survivor, from a different event, shows up at her door and another Final Girl is found dead. As Carpenter and Sam try to make sense of being Final Girls it seems Sam is pushing Carpenter to relive trauma she would rather not… As readers we get to relive Carpenter’s weekend cabin stay as the story of what really happened slowly unfolds between the current day chapters.

Over on Book Riot: In the recent Read of Dead podcast episode Rincey and Katie talk about the difference between mystery, thriller, and suspense, along with giving recommendations.

AND, and, and, Rebecca and Jeff have a new podcast: Annotated. In the first episode (think podcasts like This American Life, Planet Money for format) Rebecca and Jeff look at 1984 taking over the best selling spot, how our current political state influenced the resurgence of interest (soundbites included), an overview of the book, and how the book came to first exist— super interesting, and my brain feels smarter. I’m looking forward to the next five episodes this season! If this sounds like your jam you can listen at the above link and subscribe via Apple Podcasts, Google Play, or whatever your podcast player of choice is.

Rolling Stone has 11 True Crime Books for Music Lovers.

I’ll be back next week with a funny cozy, suspense, and a great little Q&A with Kellye Garrett!

Browse all the books recommended in Unusual Suspects previous newsletters on this shelf. And if you like to put a pin in things here’s the Unusual Suspects board.

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