With a clever and thought-provoking plot worthy of Agatha Christie or Alfred Hitchcock, plenty of red herrings for the reader to puzzle over, a confined main setting, as well as some unexpected twists and turns, The Silent Patient may very well appeal to fans of the work of Robert Galbraith (J.K. Rowling’s mystery-writing alter-ego), and fans of the book, The Woman in the Window.
Read moreBook Review: THE HIDING PLACE by C.J. Tudor
The Hiding Place, by British author C.J. Tudor, is, undoubtedly, one of the best books that Mystery in Minutes will read in 2019! I feel quite confident about this, and it’s only the beginning of the year! Ms. Tudor’s sophomore novel is beautifully constructed, with a wonderful sense of place, and a plot that kept me glued to the pages! If you enjoy well-written, crime fiction with a strong dose of horror, this is the book for YOU!
Read moreBook Review: His Perfect Wife by Natasha Bell
Are you a literary fiction fan who is crime fiction-curious? Do you enjoy crime novels, but appreciate those that are on the more cerebral end of the mystery fiction spectrum? With a special focus on women’s issues, as well as on the arts, Natasha Bell’s His Perfect Wife is an ambitious, well-written, psychologically-complex debut that will resonate strongly with many women and provoke much discussion. His Perfect Wife would certainly make an interesting selection for Emma Watson’s Goodreads book club, “Our Shared Shelf”, and/or Reese Witherspoon’s Hello Sunshine book club on Audible.
Read moreBook Review: THE FIRE WITNESS by Lars Kepler
The Fire Witness is the third installment in the Joona Linna series by critically acclaimed husband and wife team Alexandra Coelho Ahndoril and Alexander Ahndoril, writing as “Lars Kepler”. Their Joona Linna series has sold more than twelve million copies in forty languages! Re-edited and reissued by a new, North American publisher, with a brand new translation from the original Swedish by Neil Smith, The Fire Witness demonstrates the authors’ mastery of layered, complex plotting, replete with numerous scenes of gripping, high suspense!
Read moreBook Review: THE DARKNESS by Ragnar Jonasson
Highly atmospheric and evocative, with steadily mounting suspense, The Darkness, the first in a new series by Icelandic author Ragnar Jonasson, has all of the grim, bleak moodiness typically associated with Nordic Noir, yet leaves the reader with the contented feeling of having read a work of fiction by a crime writer who has matured, and honed his craft. I thoroughly enjoyed it!
Read moreYOU by Caroline Kepnes Book Review and Video Trailer of the Series Adaptation
Season Two of the totally binge-worthy, series adaptation of the debut that generated, arguably, the most crime fiction buzz the year that it was originally published, coming soon!
Daring, captivating, and with a taboo quality that has readers that love it declaring it a guilty pleasure, and others being equally offended by it, YOU by Caroline Kepnes is, still, one of the freshest, most original novels I have read in years!
Read moreBook Review: The Other Woman by Sandie Jones
A deliciously devious, psychological suspense novel that would be a great choice to have at the ready as you prepare yourself for the autumn and winter family holidays, British novelist Sandie Jones's crime fiction debut is not about what you might think……..
Read moreMINM Review: A Noise Downstairs by Linwood Barclay
A twisty-turny mystery that includes a jaw-dropping about-face, new-to-Mystery in Minutes author Linwood Barclay's latest standalone novel, A Noise Downstairs, manages to be about so much more than its eye-catching cover image and title would imply.
Read moreMINM Review: A Gathering of Secrets by Linda Castillo
Suspenseful, chilling, and thought-provoking, A Gathering of Secrets by American writer Linda Castillo is number ten in her Kate Burkholder series, but can easily be read as a standalone. With this installment, Ms. Castillo has, once again, authored a winner!
Read moreMINM Book Review: SHARP OBJECTS by Gillian Flynn
Sharp Objects is the multi-award winning and nominated, 2006 debut by Gillian Flynn, the American author of a little book that you may have heard of, called "Gone Girl". So why is Mystery in Minutes reviewing this in 2018, you might ask? First, because Sharp Objects was the only full length novel of Ms. Flynn's that I had not yet read, and second, because the crime fiction world is all atwitter about the highly anticipated, July 8th premiere of HBO’s Sharp Objects mini-series, starring Amy Adams as Camille Preaker, and Patricia Clarkson as her mother, Adora.
Read moreMINM Review: Our Kind of Cruelty by Araminta Hall
Haunting and thought-provoking, with an underlying sense of inescapable menace, Our Kind of Cruelty by Araminta Hall is a psychological drama that keeps the reader enthralled and turning the pages right up until its unsettling finish.
Our Kind of Cruelty is, at its heart, the tale of one character's obsessive fixation with another.
Or is it?
Read moreMINM Review: Tangerine by Christine Mangan
An assured, stunner of a debut, Tangerine by Christine Mangan is an eloquent, slow-burning, historical novel of nuanced, psychological suspense. Tangerine is set predominantly in Tangier, during the lead up to Morocco's 1956 independence from France. With its Patricia Highsmith vibe, and its "Casablanca-esque" cover, this literary drama of intrigue is evocative of the medinas, the souks, the casbahs, the fragrant spice markets, and the heat of 1950s North Africa.
Read moreMINM Review: THE SANDMAN by Lars Kepler
A breath-holding, heart-stopping thriller, The Sandman is the fourth in the internationally acclaimed Joona Linna series, written by new-to-Mystery in Minutes husband and wife duo "Lars Kepler". With a mysterious and complex plot, iconic and compelling characters, and content that should appeal equally to men and to women, this highly immersive novel can be read as a standalone.
Read moreMINM Review: LOOK FOR ME by Lisa Gardner
Bestselling author Lisa Gardner has written an engaging police procedural with a plot, characters, and a finale almost operatic in their poignancy. Look For Me resonates within the current cultural shift toward empowerment of survivors, and the reckoning of those that abuse their positions of power.
Read moreMINM Review: Into the Black Nowhere by Meg Gardiner
Building to a gripping, race-against-time crescendo, Into the Black Nowhere is an immersive, meaty thriller for readers to sink their entertainment teeth into.
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