Mystery Book Reviews

The best mystery book reviews. Mysteries are typically crime stories in which readers follows a detective or amateur sleuth attempting to solve a criminal puzzle. Compared with “crime thrillers,” mysteries often feature less graphic violence and shocking subject matter.

The Will to Die, an Edge-of-Your Seat Thriller by Joe Pulizzi

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The Bottom Line: A small town conspiracy thriller that is anything but small. Joe Pulizzi’s debut novel delivers edge-of-your-seat intrigue with a huge heart. Desperate entrepreneur and gambling addict Will Pollitt is on the verge of winning a much-needed contract. Will is out of cash, deep in debt, and if he doesn’t pay his daughter’s college tuition, her academic career at Penn State will be […]

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West of Sin, an Explosive Crime Thriller by Wesley S. Lewis

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The Bottom Line: A nail-biting mob thriller featuring a truly memorable hero you’ll want to read again and again. When desperate commercial real estate agent Jennifer Williams stumbles into a robbery at a truck stop an hour outside of Vegas, her odds of survival don’t look good. The most menacing of the three thieves reveals his colleagues’ name right in front of her, and a glimpse of her designer panties is enough to distract him

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The Bullhead Murders, a Spectacular Crime Thriller by Michael Allan Scott

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The Bottom Line: A cinematic tour de force with a spectacular payoff. Jena Halpern is a psychic heroine that you’ll want to spend a lot of time with. When psychic Jena Halpern gets a voicemail from police Lieutenant Daniel R. Kropp, it goes without saying that she’s been expecting his call. News headlines about a rash of grisly murders in Bullhead City, Arizona – a

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Hercule Poirot's Christmas

Cozy Mystery Classic: Hercule Poirot’s Christmas

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This one is hardly new, but would could be more perfect for the holiday season? I for one, will be spending several hours with the legendary sleuth! Sometimes, you just want a classic. Agatha Christie, the acknowledged mistress of suspense—creator of indomitable sleuth Miss Marple, meticulous Belgian detective Hercule Poirot, and so many other unforgettable characters—brings her entire oeuvre of ingenious whodunits, locked room mysteries, and

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The Secrets We Kept, an Electrifying Spy Novel by Lara Prescott

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The Bottom Line: Did the world need another spy novel pitting the CIA against Russia? The answer is a resounding yes. Part historical fiction, part spy fiction, Prescott’s highly original novel begins in 1956 as Pasternak Boris is writing his future masterpiece, Doctor Zhivago. The Kremlin decides to ban it. The CIA has other plans. Why not use the subversive novel to create civil unrest in the

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Bionic Bug, One of the Year’s Best Thrillers

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The Bottom Line: A funny, vibrant, high-tech detective novel. One of the year’s best thrillers. Set nearly a decade in the future, Bionic Bug begins as struggling private investigator Lara Kingsley and her partner and best friend, Sully, are hanging out at their favorite local haunt. Lara notices something odd about his appearance, but he doesn’t want to talk about it. Days later, the pair

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Run Away, One of Harlan Coben’s Best Crime Thrillers

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The Bottom Line: A believable thriller about the lengths to which parents will go to protect their children. You’d never know by looking at her, but drug addict Paige Green is the daughter of a Wall Street financial adviser and a pediatrician. When her father, Simon, spots her playing guitar and panhandling in Central Park, he tries to help. But all hell breaks loose as

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What You Did, an Engaging Psychological Thriller by Claire McGowan

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The Bottom Line: Big Little Lies meets The Big Chill. A thoroughly engaging whodunnit. Ah, reunions. They are always filled with both anticipation and dread. But in Claire McGowan’s new novel, the 20th anniversary get together of six college friends is also a deadly one. Host Ali finally has the life she always wanted: a career she can be proud of and a wonderful family with

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This Storm, a Smoldering New LA Crime Thriller by James Ellroy

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The Bottom Line: Elloy’s most challenging work yet, This Storm is strictly for fans of LA Noir and James Ellroy completionists. With This Storm, the author of classics like LA Confidential and Black Dahlia has entered yet another novel in the canon of crime thrillers set in the city of angels. As torrential rain hits LA in 1942, a body is unearthed in Griffith Park. The cops

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Solving Cadence Moore, a Highly Recommended Mystery by Gregory Sterner

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The Bottom Line: Solving Cadence Moore is the quintessential mystery for the podcast era. Highly recommended. In the age of hit true crime podcasts like Serial, Criminal and My Favorite Murder, debut novelist Gregory Sterner has delivered the first work of fiction to effectively capture the contemporary media zeitgeist. Prepare to be hooked on page one, and stay tuned for the jaw-dropping final chapter. Radio

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