8 Recommended Bookish Mysteries & Suspense Novels
What could be better than a crime novel about books? For so many of us bookworms (myself included!), there’s something especially fun about reading a book about books or authors. In today’s blog post, I’m rounding up 8 mystery and suspense novels that deal with exactly that! The books discussed here all relate to the world of books in one way or another. Some of them feature protagonists who are authors or aspiring writers, some have “book within a book” style plots, and all of them will satisfy your desire to dig into some good old bookish intrigue. This is a category of crime novel I personally never tire of, and I hope this list will help you find a book or two that catches your eye, too! Happy reading!
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TRUST NO ONE by Paul Cleave
Quick Thoughts:
Paul Cleave’s Trust No One was the first book I read by this author, and one of the very first books I photographed for my Crime by the Book Instagram! It’s been quite a while since I read it, but I have great memories of this gripping story. Trust No One follows a bestselling crime writer suffering from early onset Alzheimer’s, who makes a shocking confession: the crimes in his books? They were all real, and he committed them. Truth is a moving target in this story of memory and manipulation.
Plot Details:
Jerry Grey is known to most of the world by his crime writing pseudonym, Henry Cutter—a name that has been keeping readers on the edge of their seats for more than a decade. Recently diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer’s at the age of forty-nine, Jerry’s crime writing days are coming to an end. His twelve books tell stories of brutal murders committed by bad men, of a world out of balance, of victims finding the darkest forms of justice. As his dementia begins to break down the wall between his life and the lives of the characters he has created, Jerry confesses his worst secret: The stories are real. He knows this because he committed the crimes. Those close to him, including the nurses at the care home where he now lives, insist that it is all in his head, that his memory is being toyed with and manipulated by his unfortunate disease. But if that were true, then why are so many bad things happening? Why are people dying?
THE WEIGHT OF LIES by Emily Carpenter
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Quick Thoughts:
Is there such a thing as talking about a book too much? If so, I fear I’m approaching that point with Emily Carpenter’s fantastic suspense novel The Weight of Lies… but hear me out! This book is tons of fun, perfect for readers who want a story of bookish intrigue and family tensions. Here we follow the daughter of a bestselling horror writer who investigates the inspiration behind her mother’s cult-classic book in order to write a tell-all memoir about her mom. This is not a horror novel in and of itself, but it’s got some very fun nods to the genre that I adored! Bonus points for a memorable (and creepy) story locale.
Plot Details:
Reformed party girl Meg Ashley leads a life of privilege, thanks to a bestselling horror novel her mother wrote decades ago. But Meg knows that the glow of their very public life hides a darker reality of lies, manipulation, and the heartbreak of her own solitary childhood. Desperate to break free of her mother, Meg accepts a proposal to write a scandalous, tell-all memoir.
Digging into the past—and her mother’s cult classic—draws Meg to Bonny Island, Georgia, and an unusual woman said to be the inspiration for the book. At first island life seems idyllic, but as Meg starts to ask tough questions, disturbing revelations come to light…including some about her mother.
Soon Meg’s search leads her to question the facts of a decades-old murder. She’s warned to leave it alone, but as the lies pile up, Meg knows she’s getting close to finding a murderer. When her own life is threatened, Meg realizes the darkness found in her mother’s book is nothing compared to the chilling truth that lurks off the page.
LIE TO ME by J.T. Ellison
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Quick Thoughts:
Domestic suspense gets a bookish twist in J.T. Ellison’s fantastic novel Lie to Me. Here, readers follow a seemingly perfect literary couple - both authors - whose marriage hides dark secrets. When his wife goes missing, Ethan Montclair’s world is turned upside down… and police immediately suspect his involvement. This story delves into the drama of the publishing world, and into the secrets that exist between a husband and a wife. It’s juicy, binge-worthy fun to read, a truly clever and fresh take on the domestic suspense novel.
Plot Details:
They built a life on lies
Sutton and Ethan Montclair’s idyllic life is not as it appears. They seem made for each other, but the truth is ugly. Consumed by professional and personal betrayals and financial woes, the two both love and hate each other. As tensions mount, Sutton disappears, leaving behind a note saying not to look for her.
Ethan finds himself the target of vicious gossip as friends, family and the media speculate on what really happened to Sutton Montclair. As the police investigate, the lies the couple have been spinning for years quickly unravel. Is Ethan a killer? Is he being set up? Did Sutton hate him enough to kill the child she never wanted and then herself? The path to the answers is full of twists that will leave the reader breathless.
THE STRANGER DIARIES by Elly Griffiths
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Quick Thoughts:
This might just be my favorite take on a “book within a book” style mystery ever. In The Stranger Diaries, a teacher specializing in the work of a Gothic writer finds that writer’s fiction playing out in the real world to deadly end. Elly Griffiths masterfully blends fact and fiction in this clever and engrossing homage to Gothic literature. She weaves together our main story with the work of the fictional Gothic writer her protagonist studies to absolutely gripping effect; readers will be wholly immersed in this story of a deadly tale coming strangely to life.
Plot Details:
Clare Cassidy is no stranger to murder. A high school teacher specializing in the Gothic writer R. M. Holland, she even teaches a course on him. But when one of Clare’s colleagues is found dead, with a line from Holland’s iconic story “The Stranger” left by her body, Clare is horrified to see her life collide with her favorite literature.
The police suspect the killer is someone Clare knows. Unsure whom to trust, she turns to her diary, the only outlet for her suspicions and fears. Then one day she notices something odd. Writing that isn't hers, left on the page of an old diary:
Hallo Clare. You don’t know me.
Clare becomes more certain than ever: “The Stranger” has come to terrifying life. But can the ending be rewritten in time?
LIES SHE TOLD by Cate Holahan
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Quick Thoughts:
Another fantastic example of a “book within a book” style novel, this one with a psychological thriller twist! Lies She Told follows a writer on deadline, with 30 days to deliver a book that will save her career. Consumed by stress, she dives headlong into the process of writing her book’s protagonist authentically… and then the lines between her real life and the book she’s writing begin to blur. Cate Holahan does a superb job crafting this story; it’s a whole lot of fun to read (perfect vacation book!) and genuinely impressive to see how she weaves fact and fiction together here.
Plot Details:
The truth can be darker than fiction.
Liza Cole, a once-successful novelist whose career has seen better days, has one month to write the thriller that could land her back on the bestseller list. Meanwhile, she’s struggling to start a family, but her husband is distracted by the disappearance of his best friend, Nick. As stresses weigh her down in her professional and personal lives, Liza escapes into writing the chilling exploits of her latest heroine, Beth.
Beth, a new mother, suspects her husband is cheating on her while she’s home caring for their newborn. Angry and betrayed, she aims to catch him in the act and make him pay for shattering the illusion of their perfect life. But before she realizes what she’s doing, she’s tossing the body of her husband’s mistress into the East River.
Then, the lines between Liza’s fiction and her reality eerily blur. Nick’s body is dragged from the East River, and Liza’s husband is arrested for his murder. Before her deadline is up, Liza will have to face up to the truths about the people around her, including her own. If she doesn’t, the end of her heroine’s story could be the end of her own.
OPEN YOUR EYES by Paula Daly
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Quick Thoughts:
Open Your Eyes is a stylish, subtle take on psychological suspense, centering around the wife of a bestselling crime writer. When Jane’s husband is brutally attacked in broad daylight, she finds herself thrown into the midst of a crisis. With her husband in a coma, Jane must take responsibility not only for the business of running her family, but also for the business of managing her husband’s professional affairs while he recovers. As she settles into this new role, she uncovers shocking truths about the man she thought she knew so well.
Plot Details:
Jane Campbell avoids confrontation at any costs. Given the choice, she’ll always let her husband, Leon—a bestselling crime writer—take the lead, while she focuses on her two precious young children and her job as a creative writing teacher. After she receives another rejection for her novel, Leon urges Jane to put her hobby to rest. And why shouldn’t she, when through Jane’s rose-tinted glasses, they appear to have the perfect house and the perfect life?
But then Leon is brutally attacked in their driveway while their children wait quietly in the car, and suddenly, their perfect life becomes the stuff of nightmares. Who would commit such a hateful offense in broad daylight? With her husband in a coma, Jane must open her eyes to the problems in her life, as well as the secrets that have been kept from her. Although she might not like what she sees, if she’s committed to discovering who hurt her husband—and why—Jane must take matters into her own hands.
HOUSE OF SPINES by Michael J. Malone
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Quick Thoughts:
I typically recommend House of Spines around Halloween, because it has a supernatural element to it, but bear with me here! This story also follows a writer, and will deliver a fun blend of spine-tingling chills and bookish intrigue. In House of Spines, a down-on-his-luck writer receives life-changing news: he has inherited a mansion from a long-lost great-uncle. As he settles into his new home and renews his determination to write, he discovers that not all is as it seems with the old estate.
Plot Details:
What you see isn’t always real…
Ran McGhie’s world has been turned upside down. A young, lonely and frustrated writer, and suffering from mental-health problems, he discovers that his long-dead mother was related to one of Glasgow’s oldest merchant families. Not only that, Ran has inherited Newton Hall, a vast mansion that belonged to his great-uncle, who had been watching from afar as his estranged great-nephew grew up.
Entering his new-found home, it seems Great-uncle Alexander has turned it into a temple to the written word - the perfect place for poet Ran.
But everything is not as it seems. As he explores the Hall’s endless corridors, Ran’s grasp on reality appears to be loosening. And then he comes across an ancient lift; and in that lift a mirror. And in the mirror … the reflection of a woman.
A terrifying psychological thriller with more than a hint of the gothic, House of Spines is a love letter to the power of books, and a reminder that lust and betrayal can be deadly…
EXQUISITE by Sarah Stovell
Quick Thoughts:
This sharp, clever take on psychological suspense isn’t a full-on stalker novel, but it sure does have some dark, obsessive vibes to it. In Exquisite, a bestselling author sets out for a writer’s retreat, and her life is changed forever. At the retreat, our protagonist meets a young, aspiring author with a dark side. Sparks fly, and the women begin a secret affair. But something is amiss here, and readers will follow a dark and twisting journey to find out exactly what that is.
Plot Details:
She loves me. She loves me not.
Bo Luxton has it all – a loving family, a beautiful home in the Lake District, and a clutch of bestselling books to her name.
Enter Alice Dark, an aspiring writer who is drifting through life, with a series of dead-end jobs and a freeloading boyfriend.
When they meet at a writers’ retreat, the chemistry is instant, and a sinister relationship develops…
Or does it?
Breathlessly pacey, taut and terrifying, Exquisite is a startlingly original and unbalancing psychological thriller that will keep you guessing until the very last page.
Home ownership feel like a distant dream? Zillow listings have you convinced you’ll be renting for the rest of your life? The woman at the heart of Carissa Orlando’s debut The September House feels your pain—and she’s prepared to put up with a lot if it means she and her husband can finally have a place to call their own. In this case, that might just mean living in a house that’s haunted. Playful and irreverent, spine-tingling and spooky, The September House puts a fresh spin on the classic haunted house story, delivering an immersive tale about the secrets lurking within one building’s walls, and within the lives of its inhabitants.