Show Me The Color: 2024 Mystery Covers That Aren’t Dark and Dreary
During my first crossroads of life, I had to decide where I would go to college. I ultimately passed on going to art school, where I would have focused on product design. While my choice steered me away from working in product design, it certainly did not keep me from being creative or always seeking out and appreciating visually creative work.
I absolutely pay attention to a book’s cover design and I also deeply love color. Naturally, I have a bookshelf of books displayed as a rainbow (no, I don’t have any issue finding my books, for whatever reason my terrible memory always remembers the color of a book cover before the title or author), and the majority of my crime books, if they aren’t cozy or “fun,” are slotted in the dark color sections. This makes sense: book covers are designed to represent mood and should give readers a feel for what is in the pages inside before they know anything about the book.
But being a lover of color, I do immediately spot and gravitate towards books that either have a bright pop of color, rainbow, or a pleasing (to me) color palette. So, if you also love color or just need something bright to look at for a soul boost, here are some of my favorite 2024 releases with colorful covers.
Almost Surely Dead by Amina Akhtar
Red is not lacking on crime book covers—blood, danger, stop!—but the color blend with pink and purple gives it a lovely color story that I can imagine used in an eyeshadow palette. At least until you see the word “dead.”
Cover design by Mumtaz Mustafa / Cover image: Getty Images/ EyeEm/Ashvini Sihra / Getty
You’d Look Better as a Ghost by Joanna Wallace
This book’s impactful bright green certainly screams “Look at me” on any table display or bookshelf. And now that it’s gotten your attention, you can notice that the title is a death threat and, oh, look she’s holding a hammer dripping with blood!
Cover design: Elizabeth Yaffe / Cover illustration: Paul Blow
Hunted by Abir Mukherjee
Here is a lovely color palette that I find beautiful—especially the sky blue blending into the buttery yellow—except once you focus on the details, it becomes clear that this is a fire, and fires are destructive. Plus, the word “hunted” does not bring feelings of calm and soothing.
Cover design by Gregg Kulick / Cover art by Getty Images
You Shouldn’t Be Here by Lauren Thoman
The title is clearly threatening, and there is a dark feeling in the center image, but the corner sprays of neon colors feel like an ’80s party! I can smell the Zinka nose sunscreen from summer camp!
Cover design by Caroline Teagle Johnson / Cover image: Ingrid Michel / Plainpicture
Butter: A Novel of Food and Murder by Asako Yuzuki, Polly Barton (Translator)
If canary yellow doesn’t stop you in your tracks, you may want to steer clear of ever finding yourself in the area of a hazardous zone. I actually spotted this book this year because of the color of the cover, and then I saw “Food and Murder” and did a double take. The cover for this book had to be super difficult to create because the novel itself is not easy to describe in one image as it delves into the Japanese patriarchy using a reporter, her married friend, and a sensationalized murder case with food front and center. It’s both a novel, and cover, that will stick with me for some time.
Jacket design by Allison Saltzman / Jacket images @SVPPanteon/Shutterstock
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 Goodreads, and Litsy.
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