Did you know that a group of booktubers host a month long celebration of mystery novels in March? This year is the 10th anniversary of March Mystery Madness! The group is on Discord, Twitter, Instagram, and has a Goodreads group if you’re interested in participating. Here are 3 of my recent favorite mysteries to get you started…
The Frozen River, Ariel Lawhon
Believe the hype! This one is really great. I listened to it on audio and felt that the narration was done well. I initially read this because it was the pick of the book club I’m part of at work. I wasn’t all that jazzed about the choice but I’m so glad I was pushed into reading it! It did not disappoint. Highly recommend.
Maine, 1789: When the Kennebec River freezes, entombing a man in the ice, Martha Ballard is summoned to examine the body and determine cause of death. As a midwife and healer, she is privy to much of what goes on behind closed doors in Hallowell. Her diary is a record of every birth and death, crime and debacle that unfolds in the close-knit community. Months earlier, Martha documented the details of an alleged rape committed by two of the town’s most respected gentlemen—one of whom has now been found dead in the ice. But when a local physician undermines her conclusion, declaring the death to be an accident, Martha is forced to investigate the shocking murder on her own.
The Other Side of Midnight, Simone St. James
This was such a fun one! I’ve been making my way through Simone St. James’ earlier publications and listened to this one a couple of months ago. Most of her earlier books are historical mysteries with her trademark paranormal touches. I loved the audio of this.
London, 1925. Glamorous medium Gloria Sutter made her fortune helping the bereaved contact loved ones killed during the Great War. Now she’s been murdered at one of her own séances, after leaving a message requesting the help of her former friend and sole rival, Ellie Winter.
Ellie doesn’t contact the dead—at least, not anymore. She specializes in miraculously finding lost items. Still, she can’t refuse the final request of the only other true psychic she has known. Now Ellie must delve into Gloria’s secrets and plunge back into the world of hucksters, lowlifes, and fakes. Worse, she cannot shake the attentions of handsome James Hawley, a damaged war veteran who has dedicated himself to debunking psychics.
What Have You Done? Shari Lapena
I read this book for the January Monthly Motif challenge of “Punctuated Titles”. I can always count on Shari Lapena for a solid mystery. I got through this one pretty quickly and didn’t see the reveal coming. Now, I’m wondering if I would have made the same choice for the ‘killer’ or done something different.
The teenagers get their kicks telling ghost stories in the old graveyard. The parents trust their kids will arrive home safe from school. Everyone knows everyone. Curtains rarely twitch. Front doors are left unlocked. But Diana Brewer isn’t lying safely in her bed where she belongs. Instead she lies in a hayfield, circled by vultures, discovered by a local farmer.
How quickly a girl becomes a ghost. How quickly a town of friendly, familiar faces becomes a town of suspects, a place of fear and paranoia. Someone in Fairhill did this. Everyone wants answers.
What’s the best mystery novel you’ve ever read?
