Mystery
January 2026

Recent Releases
The List of Suspicious Things
by Jennie Godfrey

In 1979, 12-year-old Miv lives with her lonely father, her opinionated Aunty Jean, and her mother, who had a breakdown and no longer speaks. With the (real-life) Yorkshire Ripper terrorizing the area, curious Miv investigates with her loyal best friend. Though steeped in crime, this isn't as much a traditional mystery as an atmospheric coming-of-age tale. Great for book clubs, it explores friendship, community, prejudice, and loss. Read-alike: Deadly Animals by Marie Tierney.
The Botanist's Assistant
by Peggy Townsend

Routine-loving 50-something Margaret Finch is dedicated to her job helping a talented botanist at a small university. But when he dies and it's said to be natural causes, Margaret disagrees, noticing small things that make her sure it was murder. With the help of a former journalist turned custodian, Margaret investigates, turning her precise world upside down. For fans of: Zoe B. Wallbrook's History Lessons; Jesse Q. Sutanto's Vera Wong's Unsolicited Advice for Murderers.
Everyone in the Group Chat Dies
by L.M. Chilton

A year after the death of Esme, a true-crime influencer obsessed with a 1990s serial killer, a text arrives from her: "Everyone in the group chat dies." The group, made up of former 20-something flatmates in small-town England, includes aspiring journalist Kirby Cornell, and when members start dying, she tries to figure out what's going on. Try this next: Kristen Perrin's How to Solve Your Own Murder.
Death at the Door by Olivia Blacke
Death at the Door
by Olivia Blacke

Ruby, a young woman new to Boston, and Cordelia, a ghost who haunts Ruby's apartment, narrate this fun supernatural cozy. The unusual duo's friendship grows as they investigate after a deli delivery guy is found dead at Ruby's new job in this charming sequel to A New Lease on Death. Try this next: Dead and Breakfast by Kat Hillis and Rosiee Thor.
The Living and the Dead by Christoffer Carlsson
The Living and the Dead
by Christoffer Carlsson

Two decades after an unsolved murder in a working-class town, another body turns up, ripping apart friendships and community-a captivating mystery and graceful investigation of brotherhood and family by a renowned criminologist.
Robert B. Parker's Showdown by Mike Lupica
Robert B. Parker's Showdown
by Mike Lupica

Vic Hale is the biggest podcaster in the nation; he hates everybody, but is loved by millions. Susan and Hawk can't stand him, but Spenser goes way back with Vic's father Tommy, and he believes it's all an act. So, when Vic comes to Spenser for help, Spenser can hardly deny him. After all, he still owes Tommy for saving his life. But as Spenser unearths secrets from Vic's past, he realizes Vic isn't who he thought he was. And when he discovers that someone's life is at risk, Spenser might have no choice but to form an alliance with Vic--if only he can be trused.
Books You May Have Missed
Fever Beach
by Carl Hiaasen

Dale Figgo has been kicked out of the Proud Boys for stupidity (he mistakenly vandalized a Confederate statue), but propped up by a congressman and a couple of billionaires, he aims to make the new far-right Strokers for Liberty a success. Mix in money laundering, child labor, a disgruntled wealth director, a rich social justice warrior, fake dating, and more, and you've got "Hiaasen at his finest" (Publishers Weekly).
How to Seal Your Own Fate
by Kristen Perrin

Annie Adams moves into the English country house she inherited from her great aunt Frances, which also contains Frances' diaries notating village secrets. Fortune teller Peony Lane mysteriously visits Annie, then is found murdered inside the locked home, leading Annie to investigate. This sequel to How to Solve Your Own Murder once again uses dual timelines with parts set in the 1960s. Try this next: Brandy Schillace's The Framed Women of Ardemore House.
Beartooth
by Callan Wink

In Montana's rugged Beartooth mountains, two brothers, 27-year-old Thad and 26-year-old Hazen, try to survive while burdened by their dead father's medical bills and a falling-apart off-the-grid house. Luckily, they know how to hunt and deal with the elements. Not so luckily, their long-gone mom reappears and a local man tempts Hazen into illegally gathering elk horns in this gritty, evocative crime novel. For fans of: Peter Heller; the 2016 film Hell or High Water; TV's Yellowstone.
Contact your librarian for more great books!