A Spy Thriller Adaptation, New Crime Releases, and More Mystery/Thriller Talk
It’s a great week for fans of spy thrillers. The new season of Slow Horses has started on Apple TV+! If you’ve yet to get on this viewing train, it’s a four-season adaptation of Mick Herron’s book series that follows a group of spies who’ve been kicked out of MI5 (for good reasons). The show has a great balance of humor, pacing, thrills, action, and espionage. It also has a hell of a cast, including Kristin Scott Thomas and Gary Oldman! This is the show’s fourth season.
Bookish Goods
Owl Reading Wall Decal by OwenWallArt
This is an adorable wall decal that would be perfect for bedrooms, reading nooks, libraries, classrooms, and more. $17+, with six size options.
New Releases
Where They Last Saw Her by Marcie R. Rendon
For fans of missing person mysteries, amateur sleuths, and novels set on a reservation!
Quill lives in Minnesota on the Red Pine reservation with her husband and two young children. She’s stubborn and determined, helpful as she is training for a marathon. While out running, she hears a woman scream and later finds an earring on the ground of the woods in the area she heard the scream. She can’t get this out of her mind. Even though her husband really wants her not to investigate, Quill and her running mates decide to start poking around, ultimately putting them all in danger.
This is one of the year’s best mysteries as Rendon takes readers into the reservation and its community, Quill’s family and friendships, and the issues faced by the extractive industries. I love the women sleuths that Rendon writes and I will continue to excitedly pick up anything she publishes.
Rendon also has a great historical mystery series starring an excellent lead, which starts with Murder on the Red River.
(Trigger warnings for recounted past child suicide, method detail/ attempted date rape drugging/ discussions and stories of addiction, domestic violence, rape/ child kidnapping/ child murder, off-page/ human trafficking)
Scotland Yard: A History of the London Police Force’s Most Infamous Murder Cases by Simon Read
For fans of history, forensics, and true crime!
From Henry Fielding’s Bow Street Runners in the 1750s to the first Scotland Yard police force, Read details the beginning of how we got to the modern detective work we now all know. Readers also get a ton of cases up to the 1930s including historically important cases, cases that lead to advancements in forensics, interesting “hey did you know” cases, corruption in Scotland Yard, and infamous cases like Jack the Ripper.
For a more comprehensive list of new releases, check out our New Books newsletter.
Riot Recommendations
A new month means new paperback releases for readers who wait for that format. This is also a good reminder for all format readers that these backlist titles exist and are worth picking up.
Creep: Accusations and Confessions by Myriam Gurba
For fans of outside-the-box true crime mystery with history!
Gurba spotlights the title word creep(s) in all its manifestations. From how we create them, allow them, and defend them, Gurba blends stories of her personal life and historical cases. She uncovers the actual heart of the events, crimes, and criminals, with a focus on the victims and society.
(Trigger warnings: she talks about so many stories, cases, and histories that it’s easiest to just say everything, though I’ll note it never feels gratuitous or graphic for the sake of being graphic.)
Mother-Daughter Murder Night by Nina Simon
For fans of amateur sleuths and families coming together!
Lana Rubicon has essentially been estranged from her daughter Beth since Beth was a pregnant teen. But after a cancer diagnosis, Lana moves in with her daughter Beth and Lana’s now teenage granddaughter Jack. When Jack finds a dead body and eventually has fingers pointed at her, it’s time to solve a murder mystery—and for these very independent women to learn to rely on family!
News and Roundups
- The BTK Killer’s Daughter. Gabby Petito’s Parents. JonBenét’s Dad. America turned their darkest moments into a never-ending spectacle. I went to see just how far that’s gone.
- Liberty and Danika chat new releases on All The Books! including Guide Me Home by Attica Locke and Death at the Sign of the Rook by Kate Atkinson!
- Censorship in Prisons is Part of Slavery’s Legacy
- The Making of Nickel Boys: How a Pulitzer-Winning Novel Became a Radical, Harrowing Film
- The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year is a love letter to cozy mysteries
- Jude Law Crime Thriller Promises to Be One of the Best of the Year
Browse the books recommended in Unusual Suspects’ previous newsletters on this shelf. See upcoming 2024 releases and mysteries from 2023. Check out this Unusual Suspects Pinterest board and get Tailored Book Recommendations!
Until next time, keep investigating! In the meantime, come talk books with me on Bluesky, Twitter, Instagram, Goodreads, and Litsy — you can find me under Jamie Canavés.
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