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Six Great Bossy Mystery Reads I didn't read as many mysteries last year as I typically do, but here are I'm hoping to up my mystery and suspense reading this year. What are some of your favorite mystery or suspense reads? 01 The God of the Woods by Liz Moore I loved this summer-camp setting, the slow build of mystery in two I was intrigued by the mysteries and their layers, which are continually revealed, and while I usually

Historical Fiction Mysteries I adore historical fiction and mystery books, and I love the intersection Something about detailed settings from the past just sets off a mystery beautifully for me. Here's a greedy reading question: What other historical fiction mysteries should I read? I’m glad the circumstances of what led to the mystery—yikes! The Jackaby story is dark, mysterious, and feels Gothic, yet there's humor too.

Solid Mystery and Suspense Reads These six four-star mysteries are all so good and so different--they I'd love to hear about your favorite mystery reads! 01 The Witch Elm by Tana French A Tana French mystery is usually a pretty good bet for me, and I plowed settings are exquisitely wrought, with stark, rugged, lush landscapes serving as the backdrop for a mystery It isn't a police procedural; this is a starkly beautiful book that happens to be a mystery.

You can click here for other mysteries I've reviewed on Bossy Bookworm. What are some of your favorite mystery reads? This is a character-driven mystery with a twist. This is a character-driven mystery with an interesting twist. Exiles was the right mystery at the right time for me.

I loved the twist, double-twist of my first Cavanagh mystery, and the story's revenge and renegade justice In Steve Cavanagh's twisty mystery Kill for Me, Kill for You , two strangers, women bearing the brunt This is the first mystery I've read by Steve Cavanagh. More Mystery Novels You might also want to check out my Bossy reviews of other mysteries .

Atkinson's cozy, Agatha Christie-style novel features former lawman Jackson Brodie, a mystery within a mystery, a real-life killer who becomes mixed up in a trite murder-mystery play, and a reunion between string of unsolved art thefts--and he's led to Burton Makepeace, an old hotel that also hosts Murder Mystery The descriptions of her--as well as her fondness for old-fashioned mystery novels--begin to sound similar performance, and you've got yourself an entertaining mystery with enough sweet connections between characters

Walker offers an unreliable main protagonist, her dedicated new psychiatrist, increasingly inexplicable and complicated occurrences, and speculation about unfathomable possibilities in this novel about memory, connection, love, and wonder. Jane is a young single mother and a librarian at the New York Public Library. She has a perfect memory: she's able to recall events, surroundings, and information down to the finest detail. But just after she visits a psychiatrist, Dr. Byrd, Jane goes missing. She is found face down and unconscious in Prospect Park, with no memory of what has occurred. She experiences other instances of activity and agency without then having any memory of such; she has vivid visions of long-dead figures from her life; and she experiences severe agitation around her erratic behavior. Dr. Byrd begins to believe Jane is suffering from dissociative fugue, a rare condition that could account for her ability to act and function but recall no memory of doing so. Dr. Byrd and Jane form a bond, even as past traumas resurface for both of them and they cope with issues of memory, truth, and unthinkable possibility. The novel alternates between the points of view of Jane and Dr. Byrd, and neither is aware of the full set of circumstances--Dr. Byrd because of Jane's select sharing of the facts with him, and Jane because of the gaps in her recollections. The circumstances around Jane's unexplained visions become more concerning as she seems to encounter a long-dead friend and has an extensive conversation with him; as she becomes convinced that a medical pandemic is occurring--the name of which Dr. Byrd has never heard--and will take the lives of millions; as she recalls details of Dr. Byrd's personal and professional life on dates she could not possibly have encountered him; and as she believes her own beloved child is dead and has been replaced with an impostor. The detail of the delusions and the passion with which Jane believes them seem to indicate that her ability to live on her own and care for her child may be ending. (Her parents' concern and panic is heartbreaking.) But as the book winds to a close, Dr. Byrd is the key to offering an alternate explanation that is posed (but not extensively explored), one in which Jane is sane and the alternate realities may also exist. The novel builds to almost the very end before this mindboggling plausibility is somewhat cursorily presented, leaving me both intrigued and somewhat dissatisfied. The Dr. Byrd-Jane chaste yet deep connection made me feel uncomfortable because of their doctor-client relationship and even more so because of the complications of her intensely acted-out perceived mental illness. Yet the promise of their ongoing link is one of the only ways in which the novel's characters are satisfactorily "settled" for a future by the end of the novel. More Novels about Memory Karen Thompson Walker is also the author of The Age of Miracles . I listened to The Strange Case of Jane O.  as an audiobook. Please click here for more Bossy reviews of books about memory.

The Robin-Strike tension is finally spoken aloud, although not resolved, and the mystery twists to involve The Hallmarked Man is the newest in the Cormoran Strike mystery series, and in the story, a dismembered Regarding the mystery: The dismembered corpse mystery leads to a whole host of even more dark, disturbing This and Other Mystery Series You can click here to check out my reviews of Cormoran Strike books 1 through You can also find many other mystery series I've enjoyed here or by searching this site.

Six Four-Star (and Up) Bossy Mystery Reads If you want more favorite-mystery lists, check out round 1 Reads I Loved Last Year and Six More Four-Star Mysteries I Loved Last Year. You can click here for other mysteries I've reviewed on Bossy Bookworm. And here's a link to my Greedy Reading Lists featuring mystery titles. What are some of your favorite mystery reads?

It always seemed clear that we would have clean resolutions to the mystery; the sometimes-gruesome aspects In this mystery by Allen Eskens, Joe Talbert is busy trying to build a life apart from his mother, who's The Life We Bury offers a slow start focused on Joe's personal situation, and when the mystery ramped More mystery novels to check out This is the first in a series of three books about Joe Talbert. If you like reading mysteries, you might enjoy some of my Bossy reviews of other mystery novels .

Six Four-Star Bossy Mystery Reads Doesn't the cold winter feel like the perfect time to cozy up with a mystery that hooks you with its twists and turns? Here are six of my favorite mystery and suspense reads of last year--with another list to come! A couple of these are historical fiction mysteries, one was jointly written by two authors, one was set And I'd also love to hear: what are some of your favorite mystery reads?

Historical Fiction Mysteries I adore historical fiction and mystery books, and I love the intersection Something about detailed settings from the past just sets off a mystery beautifully for me. Here's a greedy reading question: What other historical fiction mysteries should I read? I’m glad the circumstances of what led to the mystery—yikes! The Jackaby story is dark, mysterious, and feels Gothic, yet there's humor too.

There aren't significant subplots, so this is a straightforward-feeling story, a sort of "mystery light

Six More Four-Star (and Up) Bossy Mystery Reads "Is she going to just keep rehashing all the big hits I recently posted about Six Four-Star Mystery Reads I Loved Last Year. You can click here for other mysteries I've reviewed on Bossy Bookworm. And here's a list of Six Historical Fiction Mysteries I Loved, if you like the melding of those two What are some of your favorite mystery titles or mystery genres?

Harpman's slim novel poses a mysterious situation without promising concrete explanations. My friend Amy suggested that I read this one, and Harpman's slim novel is mysterious, eerie, and strange

playful tone and clever main protagonist in Olivia Waite's science-fiction novella make for an appealing mystery In Olivia Waite's slim science-fiction mystery, Dorothy wakes up...in a body that's not her own. In this outer-space-set mystery, Dorothy must figure out who's behind the destruction and how to save

I like a story driven by a female investigaor of a main protagonist, and in this small-town mystery and More Slaughter and More Bossy Mysteries I listened to this story as an audiobook. For other mysteries I've read and Bossily reviewed, please check out the titles at this link .

Solid Mystery and Suspense Reads These six four-star mysteries are all so good and so different--they I'd love to hear about your favorite mystery reads! 01 The Witch Elm by Tana French A Tana French mystery is usually a pretty good bet for me, and I plowed settings are exquisitely wrought, with stark, rugged, lush landscapes serving as the backdrop for a mystery It isn't a police procedural; this is a starkly beautiful book that happens to be a mystery.

It's nominally a mystery, but it's mainly a heartwarming story about determination and honoring old loyalties We track back in time to her youth as pieces of the mystery are revealed. The story is nominally a mystery, but more so a tale of a pony who is thwarted at nearly all of its headstrong

The author of the fantastic Wrong Place, Wrong Time is back with a smart, twisty mystery that's wonderfully Famous Last Words  is another smart, twisty mystery from Gillian McAllister. I loved this smart mystery that relies heavily on character development and mental agility for our narrator

sometimes running over) the local police chief to try to find a missing teen and untangle past unsolved mysteries In book two of the Martini Club, the mystery at hand--a missing teen--draws in local citizens as well

I was taken with the premise of conflicts and mystery in a post-colonial West African city, but I didn't In Tochi Onyebuchi's fantasy mystery, main protagonist Boubacar is a war veteran and a private investigator But when a young woman shows up bleeding at his home, then mysteriously disappears, he is shocked into Harmattan Season  is a dark, broody, mysterious fantasy story that takes place in an unnamed city in As Bouba explores recent mysterious events, he realizes that the upcoming election is corrupt and has

A mystery surrounds a deadly moment, and the book ends with a hopeful, imperfect, heartbreaking way forward story of young love blossoming, then shriveling under the first pressures of the outside world; it's a mystery

#youngadult, #mystery 02 The Last Confession of Autumn Casterly ​ In Meredith Tate's newest book, Ivy #youngadult, #mystery, #siblings 03 A Good Girl's Guide to Murder ​ It's been years since a local young As Khayyam eagerly discovers more of Leila's mysterious history, she begins to grow and change in this #youngadult, #mystery, #series Any young adult mysteries you've enjoyed lately? Where was this embarrassment of young-adult-mystery riches when I was actually a young adult?

Angie Kim's sophomore novel is a mystery, but Happiness Falls is primarily an exploration of a complicated Kim's missing-person novel is a mystery and is structured around the discovery and exploration of what I was totally hooked on the mystery aspect and the delving into Eugene's potential communication.

She's been cobbling together enough to get by, but when a mysterious draw to the spooky Starling House

The mystery bookends feel largely unimportant to the story, the cast of characters sometimes feels endless overlap, and their challenges intersect when a young boy is taken from the community, culminating in a mysterious The mystery that bookends the story is not essential to the novel. By the time the story ended, I had forgotten about the mystery's brief introduction at the beginning

Smith was inspired by the real-life Victorian England case of a cockney impostor attempting to wrest an inheritance from the nobility, but I was most captivated by the unmarried, aging, complex character of Eliza and how she found unorthodox avenues by which to find fulfillment. What really interested her in it all was the presumption. Of recognition, of respect, of attention itself. Why did he assume such things as his due? Was this what men assumed? My friend John convinced me to read this, my first Zadie Smith novel, and I'm so glad he did. In her first historical fiction novel, Smith offers a Victorian England tableau featuring a wonderfully complex female character in Eliza Touchet, the unmarried, aging housekeeper, cousin, and confidante to the terrible but prolific, well-to-do novelist William Harrison Ainsworth. Smith builds a subplot from the real-life, much-publicized case of the Tichborne Claimant, in which Arthur Orton, a cockney butcher, returned from an extended stay in Australia and attempted to lay claim to the Tichborne family fortune, insisting that he was a long-lost noble son much changed by his time away--and with the actual Tichborne heir's former slave as his key witness. Along with the nation (which in real life was captivated and divided by the case), the novel's disparate characters become obsessed with the court proceedings and whether the man professing to be the heir to a title and fortune might possibly be the actual man after all--or whether the former slave standing up for him has been coerced or convinced of a falsehood. But I was far more interested in the character of Eliza and the shape of her life. Her voice and point of view are sometimes testy, often incisive, and at other times diminished--a product of the limitations of single women in that time. She becomes intent upon advancing racial equality, but is hamstrung by her sex, her financial dependence, and her unmarried state. She plays housekeeper and is a mother figure to her cousin's children--while he behaves as an unencumbered, silly, selfish fool producing work that is only coherent when Eliza is able to edit it into something workable. When she comes into a financial windfall, she dispenses with it in an unorthodox, secret, wonderful fashion that serves to advance her cause for two specific young children of color--a limited but effective measure for a woman with few freedoms and little agency. I found Eliza irresistible. In The Fraud , characters lie to themselves. Men drink and show themselves to be privileged fools. Women pick up the pieces, creatively fashioning avenues in which they may achieve what they wish within the significant confines of Victorian expectations. The title refers to the impostor butcher Arthur Orton, but also applies to the failed, grasping author, Eliza's cousin William. In the story, much of the populace lines up with the pretend heir, against all known facts and likelihood, clamoring for his recognition and wailing about injustices and being wronged by the snobbery of the elite. The situation parallels in haunting fashion with the modern-day rejection by factions of our society of facts, sense, and reality; of negating science and evidence; and of dismissing educated, indispensable, trained experts and their knowledge. More from Zadie Smith Zadie Smith is also the author of the novels White Teeth , The Autograph Man , On Beauty , NW , and Swing Time , as well as essays and short stories.

community and the emotionally closed-off former FBI agent and current police chief trying to solve the mystery

In the first book of Blake Crouch's haunting mystery trilogy, secret agent Ethan Burke tries to grasp plans for Wayward Pines--while trying to avoid being killed by murderous small-town vigilantes or by mysterious reeling--was to locate two missing federal agents who were dispatched a month earlier to investigate a mysterious Theresa's mysterious encounter with an odd man makes it even more clear that time is not passing in a

I love a frigid setting, and Rene Denfeld's The Child Finder immerses the reader in an icy, wild forest as instinctive, savvy, and haunted private investigator Naomi Cottle seeks the truth about a young girl's disappearance. This book is dark and beautiful, with such expansive descriptions of the mountains, the closed-in forests, and the traps and dangers of the winter and the wild that I could almost feel the cold. The elements that feel potentially familiar or could have felt overused from use in other stories (a tough, closed-off investigator, broken by her past; a strong, kind man’s singular, devoted but unrequited love for her; the general outline of the disturbing situation at the heart of the book’s main case) are cushioned by Denfeld’s skillful setting of the scene and lovely shaping of the story. This was a fast and engrossing read. There's a second book in this Naomi Cottle series, The Butterfly Girl , which I haven't yet read, and Denfeld also wrote The Enchanted , which I found haunting and arresting, as well as Sleeping Giants . I mentioned The Child Finder in the Greedy Reading List Six Chilly Books to Read in the Heat of Summer . More missing-person stories If you like unlikely heroines and missing-person plots, you might also like Before She Disappeared . And check out this link for more Bossy reviews of novels with missing-persons plots.

This third book in McManus's young-adult mystery series keeps the surprises coming, ties new twists into I listened to this third installment in Karen McManus's young adult One of Us Is Lying mystery series Over the course of the past two books, the Bayview Four solved mysteries and established their own innocence Knox from book one--along with other old favorites and some fresh faces--in a new set of intertwined, mysterious someone unexpected comes to town, our sleuths realize that not everyone is who they say they are; old mysteries

But the year-old mysterious disappearance of Kim Gillespie, a young woman from the area, hooks Falk and Exiles was the right mystery at the right time for me.

When his sister tries to solve the mystery of his death, she and her own unlikely companion unravel secrets neat fashion at the close of the story, but I didn't mind because of the justice being served and the mysteries

, while an unorthodox, brilliant investigator and her stalwart new assistant work to solve a murder mystery The leviathans are grotesque, and their natures and motivations are a mystery. Ana is Sherlock Holmes-esque in that she holds many of the answers to the mysteries that abound--but

The first installment in Faizal's Blood and Tea series offers intriguing secrets, a swirling mystery, , hidden feelings, and wonderfully complex relationships in this mystery. The cover artwork, palette, and the book's title felt off to me; they seemed to indicate Cozy Mystery

I was most intrigued by Kurczy's exploration of the National Radio Quiet Zone and the nearby military facility, but the book felt a little disjointed to me when he delved into some of the regional goings-on that weren't seemingly related to the main topic. Around the country, the tourism bureau had begun distributing a new brochure that read: "Welcome to the National Radio Quiet Zone. 13,000 square miles of land, federally protected from artificial radio wave interference, where the secrets of the universe can be revealed by the world's largest steerable radio telescope at the Green Bank Observatory. Meaning no cell service. No Wi-Fi. Just you, your family, and our grand outdoors. Find your peace." Technology in Green Bank, West Virginia, is not allowed by law--unless you're working in the Green Bank Observatory. Astronomers there use cutting-edge technology to search the stars--while everyone in the area is barred from using devices whose radio frequencies might interfere with scientific study. That means no cell phones, no iPads, and no constant connectivity. At least on paper. "You do have a cellphone that works, correct?" Linda asked. I shook my head. "You don't have a fucking cellphone?" Thompson said. Even he had a cellphone, just no data plan because money was tight. "Really?" By exploring an area of rural Appalachia where cell phone signals and Wi-Fi are banned, journalist Stephen Kurczy considers one of the few places in the United States where technology purportedly does not rule society. But not everyone who comes to Green Bank finds the quiet they're searching for. And many Green Bank locals don't want to abide by the Quiet Zone rules at all--and don't. In fact, Kurczy finds that he seems to be one of a distinct minority in the region who is not carrying a cell phone and hooked up to Wi-Fi. I had to come to Green Bank on the presumption that the less connected life was richer--which seemed to be bearing itself out. But I was also staring down a rabbit hole of alien hunters, government spies, and Wi-Fi refugees. I was interested in the various links and synergistic relationship between the observatory and a nearby military facility, and I was most hooked on the way The Quiet Zone illustrates the contradictions and complications of the seemingly idyllic, forced radio silence in the area. But by the time Kurczy dug into some of the most alarming real-life characters from the Green Bank community (including the doctor who once dressed as a clown--the person the Robin Williams-starring movie Patch Adams was based upon--and members of a well-known hate group that has taken root on a mountaintop in the area), the book began to feel a little disjointed. Yet Kurczy's nonfiction explores the treasure of a promise of quiet in a world largely filled with noise, stimulation, information, images, and constant input, and I found the early sections of the book particularly compelling. Do you have any Bossy thoughts about this book? If you like nonfiction books, you might like the titles on the Greedy Reading List Six Compelling Nonfiction Reads.

The mystery of the book centers around a post-war haven for soldiers mentally and physically harmed by But the mystery takes a back seat in the book to Maisie's explorations of human motivations, her interest Check out this Greedy Reading List for Six Historical Fiction Mysteries to Intrigue You.

The Final Act of Juliette Willoughby is a historical fiction art-focused mystery told in two timelines wife writing team of Collette Lyons and Paul Vlitos) offers a gorgeously wrought historical fiction mystery The mysterious appearance of what seems to be a Juliette Willoughby original, followed by a tragic death You can click here for lists of more historical fiction novels and historical fiction mysteries I've

Janice Hallett's The Twyford Code explores a mysterious potential connection between a teacher's disappearance But he's got a hunch that the mystery of the code in deceased author Edith Twyford's largely condemned You can find reviews of mysteries I've read and enjoyed here.

read this final installment in Freya Marske's Last Binding trilogy, a queer historical fiction fantasy-mystery unexpected attractions to each other and the uncovering of weighty secrets, the group works to unravel the mysterious

The murder mystery stories were written decades before the book's present-day events take place and are I like a mystery that makes me care about the characters and doesn't foreshadow too much. Which mysteries hooked you this year? This is a pretty eclectic group of mysteries. If you like mysteries, you might also like titles from the Greedy Reading Lists The Six Best Mysteries I Read Last Year and Six Historical Fiction Mysteries to Intrigue You.

The gothic story King Nyx offers haunting imagery, sinister mysteries, unreliable memories, resurfacing imagery of King Nyx is striking, with (oddly specific and elaborate) automatons, gas masks, looming, mysterious until she realizes that all of the events on the island seem to be the mastermind of an unhinged puppet master Meanwhile mysteries from Anna's experiences in the Fort household seem held together by crucial gaps

Nell has left her a book of dark fairy tales by the reclusive Victorian author Eliza Makepeace, who mysteriously Morton is masterful at weaving together several timelines, rich family history, intriguing discoveries , an overarching mystery, and a female protagonist who discovers she's made of stronger stuff than she felt like a Secret Garden (a book I was obsessed with as a child) for grown-ups, with intertwined, mysterious

This is another whodunit winner from Wendy Walker: a character-driven mystery with a neurodivergent main But it becomes clear that Clay was in deep with some seedy characters, and key elements of the mystery wonderful, character-driven suspense that keeps me hooked as she guides the reader through a twisty mystery

ICYMI: Morton offers a strong historical fiction mystery, with assumed identities, dual timelines, twists A hundred and fifty years later, a young archivist, Elodie Winslow, is drawn to the mystery. I’m glad the circumstances of what led to the mystery—yikes! I mentioned this book in the Greedy Reading List Six Historical Fiction Mysteries Sure to Intrigue You

two timelines, a decades-old tragedy, and a modern-day descendant's discovery of her family's link to mysterious There are two mysteries surrounding the Turner Tragedy: the whodunit aspect and the unexplained disappearance This is a long (it's almost 550 pages), winding story with complicated connections and mysterious motivations Morton's story explores secrets, loyalties, mysteries, and the complicated matter of family--those you

A hundred and fifty years later, a young archivist, Elodie Winslow, is drawn to the mystery. I’m glad the circumstances of what led to the mystery—yikes! The story is dark, mysterious, and feels Gothic, yet there's humor too. What are your favorite historical fiction mysteries? I love an intersection of historical fiction and mystery, two genres I adore.

The mystery of what happened to the man is a subplot that winds through the story.

melded into another: young friendship, serial killer, outlaw search, small-town intrigue, and longtime mysteries There are deep betrayals, long-term mysteries, and, finally, many revealed truths (some of which you