Mystery & Suspense
Killers of a Certain Age
By Deanna Raybourn
Start with four badass women in their sixties, best of friends, who also happen to be top-notch assassins. Mix in a super-secret organization, a retirement cruise, and a nefarious plot to kill them all. Result: a fast-paced and exciting suspense thriller that’s full of laugh-out-loud moments. Our heroes are not willing, or capable, of going quietly into the night. Once you pick this up, it will be hard to put down. A super fun read! —Trey
Anywhere You Run
By Wanda M. Morris
Wanda M. Morris has crafted a vibrant thriller, set in the Jim Crow South during Freedom Summer. Violet, a young Black woman who killed the white man who raped her; her sister Marigold (with secrets of her own); the white man who hunts them; and the diverse people they find along the way are large as life, as is the danger they are in. An engrossing chase, driven by Black resiliency and hope, that fully satisfies. —Jocelyn
Marple: Twelve New Mysteries
by Agatha Christie & Twelve Other Authors
As a lover of Agatha Christie books, it is hard to imagine anyone, let alone twelve different authors, stepping into her shoes to write of the timeless character Jane Marple. However, the curse of the ensemble cast does not apply here. Some stories feel more modern in tone, but the key components remain—Jane Marple’s matter-of-fact attitude and last-minute reveals in this book would make Agatha Christie herself proud. There is only one Queen of Crime, but Marple brings Christie’s legacy to life. —Kristina
The Butcher and the Wren
by Alaina Urquhart
This fast-paced, thrilling debut by Alaina Urquhart, cohost of Morbid: A True Crime Podcast, is told from the dueling perspectives of Dr. Wren, a medical examiner who finds herself caught in a quickly escalating game of cat-and-mouse, and a serial killer who is leaving bodies in the streets of Louisiana. Urquhart provides a unique perspective as an autopsy technician and has extensive knowledge of everything true crime. If you’re a fan of the podcast or are just looking for a read-in-one-sitting type of book, this one’s for you!—Maddy
Never Name the Dead
By D. M. Rowell
A sudden call from home. A dead body in the dark. A priceless piece of history missing. D. M. Rowell’s debut own-voices mystery has all the pieces of a classic whodunnit, vibrantly immersed in the modern-day Kiowa community in Oklahoma. Mud (aka Mae) is an achingly relatable heroine, sharply and methodically sleuthing clues, suspects, means, and motive to find the true story behind murder and theft. With her engrossing and satisfying style, Rowell is a new mystery author to watch for. —Jocelyn
Just Thieves
by Gregory Galloway
If you're a fan of Jim Thompson and/or David Goodis, you will love Galloway's modern spin on crime noir. Following the lives of two low down thieves, this thriller spurns the police perspective for the black hearted view of the criminal. It's a refreshing, if not bleak, departure from the police procedural that seems to dominate modern mystery/thriller writing. If you like Gillian Flynn and her romps through the dark side, you'll love this slow burn. —Ed
Box 88
by Charles Cumming
Charles Cumming is the best working spy thriller writer these days, and Box 88 is his finest book yet. It moves effortlessly from a frenetic present to a simpler past as we follow the hero, Lachlan Kite, from his lackadaisical college days into his career in international counterterrorism intelligence. The simplicity of his past contrasts with and deepens the tension of the present and all the triumphs and regrets of the time in between. We may have lost the maestro when John le Carré passed in 2020 but in Box 88, Cumming is proving that the British spy novel is alive and well. —Ryan
Murder in Westminster
By Vanessa Riley
Vanessa Riley’s first mystery is a vivid, atmospheric whodunnit set in the true-to-history diverse streets and parlors of Regency London, where a charmingly beautiful society bride is found dead next door to amateur sleuth and secret abolitionist Lady Abigail Worthington. Riley breathes vibrant life into her characters as Lady Worthington follows secrets, clues, suspects, and hearts through London and country, seeking the motives that can bring a man to kill. A fully satisfying beginning of a new, engrossing historical mystery series, from a writer to know. —Jocelyn