| The Queen Who Came in from the Cold by S.J. BennettIn 1961 England, Queen Elizabeth II and her private secretary Joan discreetly investigate after a lady-in-waiting claims she saw men disposing of a body on the royal train. Before it's all sorted, the queen travels on the royal yacht around the Mediterranean and helps a Soviet defector. This fun 5th outing for the queen and Joan works for newcomers. Try this next: Allison Montclair's "A Royal Affair". |
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| Everyone in the Group Chat Dies by L.M. ChiltonA 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". |
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| The List of Suspicious Things by Jennie GodfreyIn 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. |
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| Silent Bones by Val McDermidIn 2025 Scotland, a motorway landslide unearths the body of investigative journalist Sam Nimmo, who'd gone missing 11 years ago after his girlfriend was murdered. In her compelling 8th outing, DCI Karen Pirie of Police Scotland's Historic Cases Unit digs into the case that has ties to Scottish independence, gambling, and Edinburgh's the Scotsman Steps. Try these next: Stuart MacBride's Logan McRae mysteries; Jane Casey's Maeve Kerrigan novels. |
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| The Burning Grounds by Abir MukherjeeIn 1920s Calcutta, India, where the dead are burned by the river, a popular British philanthropist is found murdered. Police detective Sam Wyndham is assigned to the case, giving him a chance to reignite the career he sacrificed to help his wrongly accused colleague, Surendranath Banerjee. Meanwhile, Banerjee has returned from Europe to look for his missing cousin, leading the two to reunite in order to help each other in their gritty, intricately plotted 6th outing. |
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The Castaways
by Lucy Clarke
An adrenaline-fueled thriller about two sisters torn apart when a vacation turns unthinkably. Two years ago, a small plane disappeared over Fiji. For Erin, it's been two years of obsessing over every detail, refusing to move forward even as life does. Her sister Lori was on that plane, and Erin was meant to be, too, but after a bitter argument, she failed to show. Everyone thinks Lori is dead, but Erin refuses to let go. Just when Erin is on the verge of losing hope, the pilot of the missing plane turns up, seemingly with no memory of the crash. In a final bid to find her sister, Erin travels alone to a remote Fijian island-but what she discovers is beyond anything she could have predicted.
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How to Commit a Postcolonial Murder
by Nina McConigley
A bold, inventive, and fiercely original debut novel that begins with an uncle dead and his tween niece's private confession to the reader-she and her sister killed him, and they blame the British.
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Books You May Have Missed
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| Fever Beach by Carl HiaasenDale 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'). |
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| How to Seal Your Own Fate by Kristen PerrinAnnie 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". |
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Marguerite by the Lake
by Mary Dixie Carter
Marguerite Gray is a lifestyle icon known for her garden parties, high-end business ventures, and being the muse behind the famous Serge Kuhnert painting Marguerite by the Lake. For the last few years, Phoenix has been the gardener on the famed Rosecliff grounds, home of the Gray family: Marguerite and her husband Geoffrey. Phoenix came from humble beginnings, and now she works hard to craft the landscape that underpins Marguerite's brand. When a storm threatens the launch party for Marguerite's latest book, it's Phoenix who spots the danger to the guests and rushes to Geoffrey's side to save him from a falling tree. Geoffrey is grateful--perhaps too grateful. Marguerite is jealous. Phoenix senses the danger of being drawn deeper into their lives but can't resist the attention, becoming embroiled in an affair that could destroy her career.
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