Police Procedural Books

The best police procedural book reviews. A subgenre of crime fiction, police procedurals focus on the methods and tactics used by law enforcement to solve cases and catch criminals.

Blues of Autumn, a Hilarious Small Town Mystery by Richard Adamson

The Bottom Line: Janet Evanovich fans should flock to this hilarious small town mystery. Set in the mountains of upstate New York, Blues of Autumn is the story of Police Chief Norris Tanager, who moved to tiny Glen Echo to avoid the headaches of big city crime fighting. When not moonlighting as a bar band bass player, he keeps busy curbing jay-walkers, graffiti taggers and […]

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Terror Machine, an Awe-Inspiring Terrorism Thriller by Denison Hatch

The Bottom Line: An awe-inspiring terrorism thriller that takes huge risks en route to a hugely satisfying climax. In Manhattan’s Winter Village, Abdel Hayat drives a truckload of explosives through dozens of innocent civilians and a skating rink until skidding to a stop in the middle of the ice. Hayat is armed, but he doesn’t shoot anyone. Instead, he douses himself in gasoline. Seconds after

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The Night Fire, a New Harry Bosch Novel by Michael Connelly

The Bottom Line: If you haven’t caught Harry Bosch fever yet, I dare you to read The Night Fire and not be hooked. Amazon doesn’t provide ratings information on its magnificent Bosch series, but going by the success of Michael Connelly’s Bosch books, it’s bound to be a juggernaut. The Night Fire is a more-than-worthy volume in the expansive book series, and a decent entry

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The Art of Dying, a Stunning Crime Thriller by Derik Cavignano

The Bottom Line: An edge-of-your seat detective thriller that crackles with gore and wit before delivering a stunning knockout blow. Fans of The Silence of the Lambs should flock to Derik Cavignano’s new series debut. Boston Police Detective Ray Hanley has seen a lot of gory crime scenes in his career, but he’s never seen anything quite like the body of murdered mob soldier Danny

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

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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Black Frog, a Small-Town Crime Thriller that Fires on All Cylinders

The Bottom Line: Get in on the ground floor of this engrossing small-town crime thriller. Highly recommended for fans of C.J. Box and Craig Johnson. In B.D. Smith’s second Detective Douglas Bateman series novel, Bateman is called to investigate multiple axe murders in northern Maine. Bateman, who serves with Maine’s Major Crimes Unit, soon discovers that the victims attended a town hall meeting to voice

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The Tale Teller, a Gripping Crime Thriller by Anne Hillerman

The Bottom Line: An exemplary and emotionally resonant police procedural set in Navajo country. We couldn’t put it down. With her latest book, Anne Hillerman weaves a riveting tale of crime, superstition and tradition. Retired Navajo police Lieutenant Joe Leaphorn finds himself knee-deep in a perplexing case involving a priceless artifact—a reminder of a dark time in Navajo history. Joe’s been hired to find a

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Spiral Into Darkness, a Throughly Compulsive FBI Thriller by Joseph Lewis

The Bottom Line: A thoroughly compulsive police procedural by one of America’s most promising new writers. Joseph Lewis, author of our Best of 2018 pick Caught in a Web, is back with another crime thriller featuring world-weary Milwaukee detective Jamie Graff. This time, Jamie’s expertise is requested by Summer Storm, the leader of the FBI serial killer task force. There are seven loosely connected murders, no

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Verses for the Dead, a New Classic by Preston & Child

The Bottom Line: Preston and Child shake up their Agent Pendergast series, and in doing so, elevate it to a new level. What could be worse than an extended government shutdown? For the eccentric Aloysius Xingu Leng Pendergast, the answer is a leadership overhaul at the FBI New York field office. Pendergast likes to work alone, and thanks to the agency shakeup, those days are seemingly

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A Knife’s Edge by Eliot Parker, a Memorable Crime Thriller by Eliot Parker

The Bottom Line: A truly memorable police procedural for the 21st century. Trouble has a way of finding middle-aged Charleston Police Department Sergeant Ronan McCullough. While he appears in uniform at the dedication for a new children’s cancer center, it’s to support his boyfriend, Ty, an ER nurse. But those plans change when a vehicle slams into the building. Moments later, he discovers the driver

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