Winter is the perfect time to cozy up with a crime book. For me personally, my holiday break from work is always my time to dig into some slow-burning and immersive detective novelsβthereβs nothing more blissful to me than a quiet morning cozied up under a blanket, sipping some coffee, and reading a murder mystery while the snow falls outside. If that sounds like your idea of a perfect winter morning too, todayβs blog post is for you! In todayβs blog post, Iβve rounded up a whole bunch of mysteries, thrillers, and suspense novels with wintertime vibes for your end-of-2020 reading list! Whether youβre in the mood for chilling psychological suspense, Nordic Noir, or a good old fashioned detective story, thereβs a little something for everyone in this reading list. (Iβm even sharing one of the books I bought for myself this year at the end of the list, too!) So grab your coziest blanket, put on a pot of coffee, and dig in to find your perfect winter read.
Read MoreNordic Noir November: Spotlight on Norwegian Crime Fiction
Happy Sunday, readers, and welcome to our first #NordicNoirNovember feature! If youβve been around Crime by the Book for a while, youβll know that Iβm always looking for a reason to talk about my favorite crime fiction subgenre: Nordic Noir, aka Scandinavian Crime Fiction. This year, weβre celebrating Nordic Noir November here on CBTB! Every Sunday this November, Iβll be spotlighting a different Nordic country and my personal favorite crime writers from that country here on my blog, and on my Instagram account. To kick off our Nordic Noir November celebration, weβre starting with my personal favorite Nordic country to visit: Norway. From my favorite city, Oslo, to the countryβs beautiful fjords and mountains, to smaller (and no less beautiful!) cities and towns in between, Norway is a country filled with stunning locations to visit, and since most of us have to stay home for the time being, now is the perfect time to βarmchair travelβ to this incredible part of the world. The authors highlighted in todayβs blog post will take you from the streets of Oslo to the stunning and remote landscape of northern Norway and beyond, in some of my personal favorite crime books Iβve ever read.
Read MoreBook Review: THE HEART KEEPER by Alex Dahl
What do you get when you cross Scandinavian sensibility with psychological suspense? Enter Alex Dahlβs unputdownable, wholly original brand of Nordic psychological thriller. On the heels of 2018βs excellent The Boy at the Door, Dahlβs 2019 release THE HEART KEEPER delivers a story of motherhood and grief even more emotionally impactful and addictive than Dahlβs first US outing. In THE HEART KEEPER, tragedy strikes a Norwegian family, and their young daughter passes away. But somewhere else in Norway, another familyβs life is changed for the better when their young girl receives the call that sheβs been waiting for her whole life: a donor heart has been found for her, at long last. As the paths between the two families slowly but surely converge, a motherβs grief turns to dark obsession. THE HEART KEEPER is a slow-burn story, but donβt let its pacing fool you: this book is utterly riveting with just the right amount of juicy dramaβthe kind of novel youβll find yourself turning off the TV just to keep reading. The visceral emotion on display in this story, and Dahlβs uncanny ability to write characters whose twisted actions do nothing to diminish our sympathy for them, make THE HEART KEEPER a Summer 2019 standout. Alex Dahl continues to distinguish herself for her compelling blend of Nordic and domestic noir, and THE HEART KEEPER is another feather in the cap of this up-and-coming crime fiction star.
Read MoreQ&A: Alex Dahl, Author of THE HEART KEEPER
Some books stick with you long after youβve turned their final page. For me, Alex Dahlβs newest suspense novel THE HEART KEEPER was such a bookβand Iβm absolutely thrilled to welcome Alex to CBTB today to discuss her intense, emotionally-resonant new release with us! If youβre not yet familiar with Alex Dahlβs work, consider this the perfect opportunity to dip into her world. Dahl is a Norwegian author whose books bridge the gap between Scandinavian sensibility and modern, razor-sharp psychological suspense. Dahlβs writing is easy to devour, but itβs got very sharp teeth; her books put womanhood under the microscope, wrapping resonant social commentary up in binge-worthy suspense plots. Dahlβs debut novel THE BOY AT THE DOOR released in the U.S. last year, and this week, sheβs back. In THE HEART KEEPER, Dahl explores the powerful force of a motherβs love in the face of tragedyβand considers what happens when that tragedy drives an ordinary person to do unthinkable things. THE HEART KEEPER is in many ways a quiet novel - itβs not a story of rip-roaring action or shocking violence - but its underlying intensity and emotional charge make it utterly unputdownable. I loved Dahlβs newest novel, and was thrilled to have the opportunity to ask her a few of my most pressing questions about it!
Read MoreCBTB's Most-Anticipated Crime Books of May - July 2019
Dear crime readers: βtis the season for another βmost anticipatedβ list! 2019 has already delivered a whole slew of stellar new crime reads, and there is so much more to come as we look towards the summer months. Between May, June, and July 2019, we crime readers will be treated to some of the best the genre has to offer: from new Nordic Noir to page-turning psychological thrillers and dark stories of revenge, thereβs a little something for everyone on sale in the coming months! Todayβs blog post will be focused on crime fiction releasing from May 2019 through July 2019 -- aka all the crime books you need to take you from spring into summer with a jam-packed TBR list. And not to worry: I will be sharing additional βmost anticipatedβ lists for late summer, fall, and winter 2019 down the road, too! Without further ado, read on for my picks for Most-Anticipated Crime Books Hitting Shelves May - July 2019!
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