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.

When You Leave Me, an Irresistible Small Town Murder Mystery by Susan Wingate

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The Bottom Line: An intense, irresistible small town murder mystery that crackles with twists.  When You Leave Me dangles its delicious first clue in the opening sentence: a shoe containing a human foot, one of several that have washed ashore on the San Juan Islands over the past year. Does it belong to Larry Michaels, whose footless body was found months earlier?  Susan Wingate’s fifth Friday Harbor novel – which […]

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Gottiguard, a Painfully Funny, Can’t-Miss Mystery by Rich Leder

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The Bottom Line: Witty Sleuth Kate McCall returns to solve her father’s murder in this supremely satisfying and painfully funny mystery.  When readers first fell in love with Kate McCall, Rich Leder’s Workman’s Complication introduced us to the clever way-off-Broadway actress who walked dogs for a living. After her father’s brutal murder, she inherited his PI firm and reluctantly took over his cases. Gottiguard takes

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Woman Over the Edge, a Smoldering Small Town Romantic Suspense Thriller

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The Bottom Line: A provocative, smoldering small town romantic suspense thriller that fans of Big Little Lies will love. Each summer, high school sisters Bella and Mia Hughes work in their family’s lakeside resort in Minnesota. After hours, they spend their time hanging out with a close circle of friends and flirting with boys on the lake. But their idyllic summer existence comes to an

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Gag Me, a Must-Read Whodunnit by Susan Wingate

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The Bottom Line: A must-read whodunnit that is fresh, funny and truly innovative. Gag Me transports readers into the fragile psyche of a small-town waitress whose best friend, Winsey, is murdered. She works at a diner in tiny Friday Harbor, Washington, and had the misfortune of being the last person seen with Winsey. As such, she’s called in for questioning, and soon after, taken to

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The Lincoln Highway, an All-American Mystery by Amor Towles

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The Bottom Line: The cross-country quest at the heart of the novel defies genre, but will delight fans of unconventional crime thrillers. In 1954, Emmett Watson is releases from a juvenile work farm after accidentally killing another boy. His father has died, and the family ranch is being repossessed. His young brother Billy urges him to take them west in search of the mother who

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The Pine Barrens Stratagem, a Smoldering and Timely Crime Thriller by Ken Harris

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The Bottom Line: A contemporary crime thriller that works on every level, from the smoldering investigation to the whipsaw banter between characters you’re bound to love. Ken Harris’ The Pine Barrens Stratagem centers around Steve Rockfish, a private detective hit so hard by the COVID-19 pandemic that he’s on the verge of losing everything. Creditors are even threatening to repossess his car, a 2015 Dodge

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Threads, a Mesmerizing Crime Thriller by Bryan Cassiday

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The Bottom Line: A fast-paced, mesmerizing blend of classic LA noir and contemporary whodunnit. Bryan Cassiday’s fourth Scott Brody thriller finds the private investigator framed for the the murder of a controversial LA fashion designer. It doesn’t look good for Brody. The explosion that killed designer Max Reed happens not long after Brody delivers a package from local mobster Sal Andrasi, and he knows the

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Vice & Virtue, a Smart Police Procedural by Justin M. Kiska

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The Bottom Line: This smooth-as-whiskey police procedural proves Kiska’s already smart series is only getting better. Recommended. The trouble with skeletons is that they never stay buried for too long. And novelist Justin Kiska unearths them literally and figuratively in his sophomore novel and continuation of the Parker City Mystery series. Detective Ben Winters and his partner Tommy Mason are back. When we first met

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A Quantum Alibi, The Year’s Best Sci-Fi Thriller

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The Bottom Line: Murder mystery meets quantum fiction in this addictive, cinematic novel from the author of The Newton Code. Honored in the Best Thriller Book Awards as the Best Sci-Fi Thriller of 2021. Liam Fialkov’s latest novel opens with a lecture at Columbia University by Professor Patrick Eldrige, an authority on quantum physics. Eldridge makes a bold claim: after the lecture, he will travel

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Time Out!, a Quirky Romantic Suspense Novel by Kevin Creager

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The Bottom Line: A quirky romantic suspense novel told through the lens of time travel. Time Out! is the story of Wally Stephens’ unusual journey back in time. Faced with his 10-year high school reunion, he finds himself disappointed by how little he’s accomplished in life so far. He’s also obsessed with Cindy Connor, a girl he admired from afar but never had the courage

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