Amateur Sleuths

Fiction

Widow’s Long-Awaited European Vacation Becomes Murderous, Madcap Romp

In bestselling author Laura Lippman’s Murder Takes a Vacation, Muriel Blossom, a long-widowed woman in her late 60s, has lived her life for others — her deceased husband Horace, her daughter and her grandchildren. After dedicating 10 years to helping raise her daughter’s family in Arizona, they have moved to…

Jodé MillmanJune 17, 2025

Fiction

A Sheep-Led Mystery with Humor, Heart and Hair-Raising Stakes

Big Bad Wool, written by the pseudonymously named Leonie Swann, was translated from the German by Amy Bojang, the translator of the previous two novels in the Miss Sharp Investigates series. The current thriller, or “Sheep Detective Story,” was first published in Germany in 2010 with the title Garou, derived…

Linda HitchcockJune 12, 2025

Fiction

Sue Hincenbergs’ Debut Novel Isn’t Your Everyday Retirement Plan

“Watching, Pam sensed something shift in the night air. As she cleared the dishes, she looked around the table at her husband and the friends they’d made three decades ago, and wondered again, which of them would die first. “Two days later, she knew.” Pam, Nancy, Shalisa, Marlene — four…

Neil NyrenApril 25, 2025

Thrillers

Dynamic Thriller Brings NYC to Life on Page — The Good, the Bad and the Criminal

Michael Sears brings a feeling of intensity and the no-nonsense urgency of a native New Yorker to his gritty crime novels. It’s as if his characters jump off the pages to declaim “I’m working here, get a move on.” They are at home on Manhattan’s Upper West Side and equally…

Linda HitchcockJanuary 30, 2025

The-Great-Hippopotamus-Hotel-and-The-Conditions-of-Unconditional-Love-by-

Fiction Thrillers

Latest Mysteries from Acclaimed “No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency” Author

It might be unusual to review two novels by the same author at the same time but The Great Hippopotamus Hotel and The Conditions of Unconditional Love were published within the short span of four months — with both read within five days and too good not to laud together.…

Linda HitchcockNovember 18, 2024

Fiction

Time is Ticking for Agatha Raisin to Solve Another Murder in “Killing Time”

In MC Beaton’s Killing Time (Minotaur), Agatha Raisin again proves that no one can outsmart her; not her friend and former lover Sir Charles Fraithe, her assistant Toni, her BFF Roy Silver, or the many criminals trying to best her in her 35th mystery. When, at a friendly dinner, Sir…

Jodé MillmanOctober 11, 2024

Fiction Podcasts

Books & Look Podcast: Painting a “Landscape of Murder” with Michael Jecks

Books & Looks: Real Books for Real Readers was started as a podcast to supplement Blaine Desantis’ website, ViewsOnBooks.com, and expand into audio and video interviews with authors. With Books & Looks, Blaine’s goal is to focus on real books that real people will read. At least half of the books he reviews…

Blaine DesantisMay 22, 2024

Fiction Thrillers Thrillers - Featured

Can a Lethal Celebrity Stalker Outwit This Snarky Ball-Player-Turned-Private-Eye?

In award-winning author D.P. Lyle’s newest detective thriller, The OC (Oceanview), former pro baseball player Jake Longly — reluctant private investigator, lover of women and irreverent smart-ass extraordinaire — once again finds himself in the middle of a tough investigation. Readers first met Jake and his girlfriend, Nicole Jamison, in…

K.L. RomoOctober 5, 2021

Fiction Recommended Thrillers

Bonds of Sisterhood Tested in Thrilling Amateur Sleuth Mystery

The shocking murder of her boss — and the sudden disappearance of her sister — sends Portland paralegal Beth Ralston on a dangerous, dizzying quest to find answers that she may not be able to manage in Mary Keliikoa’s smart thriller, Don’t Ask, Don’t Follow. At a holiday office party…

Peggy KurkowskiJune 4, 2024

Thrillers

A Local Newscaster Finds Her New Story Hits Too Close to Home

“When most people think of Larry Lemmon, they remember the guy who called for a wall across the U.S.-Mexico border long before Donald Trump did. When I think of Larry Lemmon, I remember a guy who cut my lunch – and nearly my life – short.” In Christina Estes’ Off…

Neil NyrenFebruary 23, 2024

Fiction Recommended

A Pop-Punk Band, a Missing Person Case & an Ode to the Best — And Worst — Of Charlottesville

Liz Larson's debut novel Fireflies and Zeroes (Brandylane Publishers, Inc.) offers a carefully crafted story of suspense as Max, the leader and songwriter of a three-person pop-punk band goes missing, on the eve of their reunion tour in Charlottesville, Virginia and just six months after the explosive racial violence of…

Anne Eliot FeldmanJanuary 18, 2024

Thrillers

Chinese Veteran Turns Detective in 1920s London

What do you get when you combine two multi-talented creative minds that collaborate on an imaginative new series? This clever one is probably the best homage to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s iconic pairing of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. John Watson. Elementary, my dear reader, it is the hottest must-read murder…

Linda HitchcockApril 29, 2024

Fiction

Alexander McCall Smith Sets Up The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency to Solve Two More Crimes

From a Far and Lovely Country is the 24th and most recent novel in the ever delightful No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series written by beloved and prolific but never formulaic or boring author Alexander McCall Smith. Dropping in for a visit with Mma Precious Ramotswe and Mma Grace Makutsi…

Linda HitchcockMarch 7, 2024

Fiction Recommended Thrillers

Catching an Extramarital Affair Has Killer Consequences

Victoria Mancusio follows her husband Nick one night and discovers he’s having an extramarital affair. On the very same night, Nick’s lover is murdered in the house where Victoria spied on them kissing. And now the police are looking at him — and maybe her too — as suspects in…

R.G. BelskySeptember 21, 2023

Fiction

Three Generations of Women Unite to Find a Killer

Lana Rubicon lay sprawled on the dark slate floor of her kitchen, wondering how she got there. Her interest was not philosophical. She didn’t want to know how she’d arrived on this planet or which of her Greek ancestors had blessed her with wrinkle-proof skin. She wanted to know why…

Neil NyrenAugust 25, 2023

Book Club Network Fiction

Good Morning America Book Club Pick Explores A Father’s Disappearance

Angie Kim’s Happiness Falls (Hogarth) expertly balances a page-turning plot, beautiful writing, and memorable characters to tell a story of love, family, and the importance of communication as the Parkson family tries to figure out what happened to their missing father. Kim captures our attention immediately with her choice of…

Darryl OliverSeptember 6, 2023

Sue Hincenbergs’ Debut Novel Isn’t Your Everyday Retirement Plan

Latest Mysteries from Acclaimed “No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency” Author

Books & Look Podcast: Painting a “Landscape of Murder” with Michael Jecks

Can a Lethal Celebrity Stalker Outwit This Snarky Ball-Player-Turned-Private-Eye?

Bonds of Sisterhood Tested in Thrilling Amateur Sleuth Mystery

A Pop-Punk Band, a Missing Person Case & an Ode to the Best — And Worst — Of Charlottesville

Catching an Extramarital Affair Has Killer Consequences

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