Publisher: Penguin Group USA
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 05/28/2013
ISBN-13: 9780525954002
ISBN-10: 0525954007

Police Procedural. A message in a bottle has landed on Denmark Police Inspector Carl Mørck's desk several years after it was first found. The plea for help -- written in blood -- is partially illegible, but it's clear that two boys were kidnapped. One of the problems for Mørck is that while the note is clearly not a prank, no children were reported missing at the time the note was written. Also on his plate is an arson case, troubling work politics, asbestos in his basement office, and a variety of problems at home. Featuring a crafty, conniving villain who targets children whose parents belong to religious sects, A Conspiracy of Faith is the 3rd in a twisty, compelling Scandinavian crime series that fans of Stieg Larsson will want to try.

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Publisher: Sarah Crichton Books/Farrar, Straus and Giroux
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 04/16/2013
ISBN-13: 9780374171995
ISBN-10: 0374171998

Mystery. In Nairobi, Kenya, Detective Mollel, a former Maasai warrior, investigates the brutal murder of a Maasai woman, a prostitute who may recently have given birth. Gathering evidence, Mollel discovers that the woman had links to some very prominent people, including the pastor of a mega-church and a very powerful businessman. As the city roils with violence amid the turbulent presidential elections of 2007, Mollel refuses to drop the hot case. Publishers Weekly calls the book "spectacular" and says "the surprising but fair-play solution to the mystery packs a wallop." Readers who've enjoyed other modern, African-set mysteries, such as Michael Stanley's Kubu series, will want to try former BBC journalist Richard Crompton's first novel.

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Publisher: Mulholland Books
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 05/07/2013
ISBN-13: 9780316216791
ISBN-10: 0316216798

Historical Mystery. In 1854, addict and author Thomas De Quincey arrives in London promoting his controversial and satirical essay about a set of killings 40 years earlier. Then, someone replicates those murders to a T. As De Quincey becomes Scotland Yard's top suspect, his strong-willed daughter, Emily, comes to his aid in a search for the real killer. Best known for his adventure story First Blood (the basis for the film Rambo), author David Morrell has written an "exceptional" (Booklist) historical mystery. Though this book is set across the pond and several decades earlier, fans of Caleb Carr's The Alienist should appreciate this fast-paced, thoroughly researched, and highly evocative tale that also uses famous figures as characters.

Publisher: Doubleday
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 05/14/2013
ISBN-13: 9780385535984
ISBN-10: 0385535988

Historical Mystery. At the beginning of Little Green, the 12th in the Easy Rawlins series, readers -- and Easy himself -- are surprised to find him alive. After all, at the end of 2007's Blonde Faith, we left him dying at the bottom of a cliff. When Easy awakes in the hospital a few months after the crash in 1967 Los Angeles, he's weak and confused. But when his dangerous pal Ray "Mouse" Alexander asks him to find a missing man and gives him some voodoo brew to help his recovery, Easy is once again on the case and on the streets. There, much to his surprise, he discovers hippies are everywhere -- and that they are a pretty groovy bunch. For another gritty, stylish look at African-American crime fighters in an urban setting, try Chester Himes' Coffin Ed Johnson and Grave Digger Jones novels.

Publisher: HarperCollins
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 03/26/2013
ISBN-13: 9780062049605
ISBN-10: 0062049607

Historical Mystery. Delightful detective Maisie Dobbs explores an exotic and dangerous part of 1933 London after an Indian woman is murdered and the police can't (or won't) solve the crime. Meanwhile, recent events have Maisie considering various life-changing paths. Though Leaving Everything Most Loved isn't the best place to start for newcomers (that would be the 1st book, Maisie Dobbs), this 12th in an excellent series will surely please fans familiar with the characters and their stories. For those who'd like another series with a psychological focus featuring an investigator between the wars, try Charles Todd's Inspector Ian Rutledge mysteries; though the Rutledge books are set earlier and the detective is a male police inspector, both series are elegantly written and atmospheric.

Lisa Lutz's Spellman File mysteries, which are usually narrated by irrepressible older daughter Izzy, bubble over with witty dialogue, quirky characters, and comedic situations. Following the exploits of the dysfunctional Spellmans, almost all of whom work for the family's San Francisco detective agency, Lutz highlights the madcap antics of her cast of characters while the mystery plots power things along, resulting in a thoroughly engaging stories that, while usually light-hearted, can also be surprisingly thought-provoking. Those unfamiliar with this wacky family should start with the 1st in the series, The Spellman Files. Readers who already love this fast-paced, charming series but are waiting for the latest, The Last Word, to come out in July can check out some of the books below!

Publisher: Avon Trade
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 01/01/2006
ISBN-13: 9780060525118
ISBN-10: 0060525118

Mystery. Former pop star Heather Wells has lost her record company contract, her earnings (which her mother absconded with), and her boy-band boyfriend, Jordon. But plucky Heather has gained two new jobs (one working for Jordon's black-sheep brother, a New York PI, and another as an assistant residence hall director)...as well as a few pounds. When several strange deaths happen at the college, she combines her two vocations and finds herself once again in the spotlight, this time as a detective. Fans of Lisa Lutz's novels will appreciate Meg Cabot's "spunky heroine, witty dialog, unforgettable characters, great plot, and outrageously funny situations" (Library Journal, starred review).

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Publisher: St. Martin's Paperbacks
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 08/26/2008
ISBN-13: 9780312363055
ISBN-10: 0312363052

Humorous Mystery. Agnes is a food writer with anger management issues who loves her multi-purpose frying pan. Shane kills people for a living. The two meet when someone breaks into Agnes' old southern mansion and threatens her with a gun. Despite Agnes' skill with a skillet, Shane's ex-mobster uncle, who loves Agnes like a daughter, calls him home to Keyes, South Carolina to protect her. Sparks fly between the two even as more strangers with guns show up and Agnes prepares the house for her goddaughter's southern mafia wedding. Agnes & the Hitman is plumb full of the wackiness, eccentric characters, and over-the-top humor found in Lisa Lutz's Spellman books, though with more romance.

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Publisher: Scribner's
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 09/01/1994
ISBN-13: 9780684196398
ISBN-10: 0684196395

Humorous Mystery. When Stephanie Plum needs money (she's been laid off, her Miata has been repossessed, her rent is due, etc.), she turns to bounty hunting for quick cash...even though she has no idea what to do and doesn't own a gun. Luckily, her first quarry, an ex-cop accused of murder, turns out to be her first lover, with whom she still shares a powerful chemistry; unluckily, he's better at getting away than she is at catching him. With the help of a mysterious (and hot!) new friend, Ranger, who shows her some tricks of the trade, Stephanie just might turn this new job into a career. This laugh-out loud 1st in a bestselling series was the basis for a movie of the same name and is a good bet for Izzy Spellman fans who don't mind leaving Cali for New Jersey.

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Publisher: Berkley Books
Check Library Catalog Pub Date: 01/05/2010
ISBN-13: 9780425233498
ISBN-10: 0425233499

Humorous Mystery. A man with a gun foolishly enters retired PI Mike Stranahan's house with bad intentions and ends up fatally gored by a taxidermied blue marlin. Now, the laid-back Stranahan needs to figure out who wants him dead and why. As he tries to sort out the mystery, more wild and crazy things happen, much to the delight of readers. Lisa Lutz fans who like books that are fun (and funny) but perhaps a bit darker in tone should appreciate Floridian Carl Hiaasen, who also writes fast-paced novels about oddball characters and situations. Publishers Weekly calls Skin Tight a "wickedly amusing story" and says Hiaasen is a "keen satirist who off-handedly exposes the moral rot at every level of society."