murder mystery

Black Jade – A Daiyu Wu Mystery by Gloria Oliver

By Mystery Reads Curator Leave a Comment

Could an old-fashioned ballgown be used to commit murder?

Daiyu Wu is aware that fear of the Yellow Terror has made her nationality a rare breed in the Lone Star State. Being Chinese and blind makes her doubly unique in 1930 Dallas. Despite these impediments, anyone who dismisses her for either fact does so at their peril.

One day, at her family-owned laundry business, Dai detects the scent of burned garlic. With the help of her companion, Jacques, the source is soon discovered. It is a green ballgown. The gown has money pinned inside it to pay for the cleaning, but oddly, it came with no address label to identify its owner. Her extensive knowledge leads Dai to believe someone has committed murder using arsenic. The perpetrator is trying to use White Laundry to hide the evidence. But no mention of foul play turns up in the newspapers, and there’s not enough proof to convince the police there’s been a crime.

Her curiosity and intellect stimulated like never before; Dai ignores the possible consequences and sets out to solve the mystery with the help of her canine companion, Prince Razor, and her confidant, Jacques Haskins. It’s either that or let the killer get away with it — assuming a spoiled popinjay, his jealous self-appointed girlfriend, and Dai’s overprotective parents don’t get in her way.

A Daiyu Wu Mystery – Book 1

Targeted Age Group:: 14+

What Inspired You to Write Your Book?
As an author, all my novels up to date have been standalone's. I figured it was about time I tried my hand at a series. 😛 This is also my first stab at a cozy historical mystery. Several of my favorite authors not only wrote fantasy and science fiction but also mysteries. Several of my fantasy and ya fantasy novels already had mystery elements, so I decided to branch out. History is fascinating and a cozy would be a great way to explore some of it. 🙂

The Silent Quarry: A gripping Welsh murder mystery (DI Winter Meadows Book 1) by Cheryl Rees-Price

By Mystery Reads Curator Leave a Comment

A woman’s memory about a fatal attack starts to return. But what she knows could endanger her life.

One morning Gwen Thomas takes a short walk with her Siberian husky in the outskirts of the Welsh town she calls home.

She is drawn to a desolate area where, some twenty years ago as a teenager, she was brutally attacked and her friend killed.

Disorientated by a sudden rush of memories, she has a fall. Later, recovering in hospital, she begins to recollect the events that led up to her friend’s death.

DI Winter Meadows is encouraged to reopen what has for some time been a cold case. If Gwen can remember who attacked her, it could lead to a prosecution.

But not everyone wants Gwen to recover her memory. Having got over her fall, she now faces a greater danger – from whoever else knows what actually happened.

Can DI Meadows find the identity of the attacker before Gwen once more becomes a victim?

THE SILENT QUARRY is the first book in a series of murder mysteries featuring the perceptive but reclusive and love-shy detective DI Winter Meadows. The full list of books is as follows:

1. THE SILENT QUARRY
2. FROZEN MINDS
3. SUFFER THE CHILDREN
4. A KNOT OF SPARROWS

Cheryl is also the author of the standalone thriller BLUE HOLLOW.

All books are FREE with Kindle Unlimited and available in paperback.

Targeted Age Group:: 25+

What Inspired You to Write Your Book?
A lot of my inspiration for writing comes when I’m out walking in the countryside. Close to my home is a disused quarry. It is this location that became the setting for the book and inspired the idea of a woman taking her dog for a walk and not returning home.

Featured Book: MURDER IN HAMPSTEAD by Sabina Manea

By Mystery Reads Curator Leave a Comment

New on Kindle. Just 0.99 for launch!

A witty and sophisticated contemporary take on the classic murder mystery format.

When ex-lawyer, now interior designer, Lucia Steer accepts a job renovating a large London house, she has no idea she’ll discover the owner dead. Lucia is determined to unlock the secret of this closed room mystery, no matter the trouble she’ll inevitably land in.

Buy MURDER IN HAMPSTEAD Here

Follow Sabina Manea on Facebook
Sabina Manea’s GoodReads Profile

BODY ON THE SHORE by Diane M. Dickson

By Mystery Reads Curator Leave a Comment

A nameless victim, an elusive killer, and a puzzling case for a detective in a new role

When a body washes up on Crosby Beach in Liverpool Bay, detectives quickly declare foul play. Yet they will struggle to establish the identity of the victim, let alone the killer.

Leading the inquiry on his first murder case, DI Jordan Carr must marshal a somewhat motley team to build a picture of what happened one grim day on the Mersey. Like footprints in the sand, in time the clues will disappear.

With a victim who has clearly concealed her own identity, it will require a journey into Liverpool’s underworld to shake loose the facts.

But once they have their man, the police still need to know why the woman was killed. And answering that question will be DI Carr’s biggest challenge.

BODY ON THE SHORE is the first book in a new mystery series by Diane Dickson. Look out for the second book, BODY BY THE DOCKS, also available FREE with Kindle Unlimited and in paperback. Diane is the author of many crime fiction titles, including the bestselling DI Tanya Miller series set in the Midlands and Oxfordshire.

Targeted Age Group:: 25+

What Inspired You to Write Your Book?
It was quite simply the figures on Crosby Beach in Antony Gormley's installation, 'Another Place'. I have been there a few times and feel that they are quite haunting, especially when you take into account that they will be left to decay and rot away (probably).

The Concrete Vineyard by Cam Lang

By Mystery Reads Curator 1 Comment

Why would anyone want to murder the most respected senior citizen, Niagara-on-the-Lake has ever had?

Retired history professor Edward Mitchell was surely not long for the grave, so why would someone risk life in prison to kill him? Picking up the clues is the reluctant Homicide Chief Detective, Bryan Dee. Thinking he might be out of his depth he is happy to enlist the aid of his friend, Kris Gage. But when Dee reads the deceased’s last entry in his diary, ‘time to take care of K. Gage,’ he becomes torn between investigation and friendship.

As an urban planner, Gage understands real estate and the bureaucracy of planning. Following the money, he soon finds himself in the middle of corrupt developers who seek to take all the charm out of the area. Over two hundred years after the War of 1812, is Niagara-on-the-Lake, once again, on-the-Take?

The Concrete Vineyard is an intriguing and unique whodunit. Packing an intellectual punch, this smart murder/mystery will have you guessing and gripped! If you like great characters, clever plots and intelligent storytelling, then you’ll love this creative and thought-provoking novel.

Buy The Concrete Vineyard today for a thoroughly enjoyable read!

Targeted Age Group:: Adult

What Inspired You to Write Your Book?
Although everyone has a planning opinion (there’s a joke about this in the novel), urban planning can be a pretty boring subject. With the exception of an accounting summary, nothing will put you to sleep faster than skimming through a technical planning report. Ironically, planning benefits from visioning, creativity and innovation, however, the political and administrative structures in which planners often operate stifles the very traits we need them to exhibit. I wanted to write a novel that would help educate people about planning and urban design but allow them to experience it in a fun way. Nobody, including myself, likes reading planning reports – but people do love a good murder. Canada 150 provided the perfect moment in time to write this ‘murder history’.

Gemini Rising (Mischievous Malamute Series, Book 1) by Harley Christensen

By Mystery Reads Curator Leave a Comment

Gemini Rising (Mischievous Malamute Series, Book 1) by Harley Christensen

There’s a body in your alley…

Arianna Jackson—AJ to her friends—and her occasionally well-behaved Alaskan Malamute, Nicoh, live a normal, uneventful, admittedly mundane existence, where nothing out of the ordinary ever happens.Until it does.Early one morning, AJ stumbles upon a horrifying scene—a girl’s body lies broken in the dumpster behind her home, her face beaten and mutilated.

A secret reveals you’re living a lie…

As if that weren’t enough to upset the balance of normal, things go from bad to worse when she learns of her connection to the murdered girl. Suddenly, AJ realizes her entire life has been filled with secrets and lies.

A killer hunts for you…

Together with her trusty sidekick, Nicoh, and BFF, Leah, AJ must search for answers. But can she, when finding the truth proves to be more deadly than living the lie?

Would you search for the truth if you knew it could kill you?

Join AJ and her pals as they race to unravel the mystery of her past, where the pieces of the puzzle bring more questions than answers and the only certainty is the killer’s end game—AJ’s life.

Find your truth…

Grab your copy of Gemini Rising TODAY and join others who’ve enjoyed this suspense-filled page-turner that keeps you guessing to the end…and beyond.

Montbel by Angela Wren

By Mystery Reads Curator Leave a Comment

Montbel by Angela Wren

A clear cut case?
A re-examination of a closed police case brings investigator, Jacques Forêt, up against an old adversary. After the murder of a key witness, Jacques finds himself, and his team, being pursued.
When a vital piece of evidence throws a completely different light on Jacques’ case, his adversary becomes more aggressive, and Investigating Magistrate Pelletier threatens to sequester all of Jacques’ papers and to shut down the investigation.
Can Jacques find all the answers before Pelletier steps in?

Forget Me Not by Katt Rose

By Mystery Reads Curator Leave a Comment

There are some things you can never forget.
Alzheimer’s has begun to take away Emmy Jacobs mother. In order to fulfill a promise to her fading mother, Emmy disrupts all that is dear and familiar and embarks on an unknown journey.
As life begins to fall into place, a trauma that shattered the Jacob’s life is awakened from the past. An accusation points to Emmy’s mother. Do the consequences count if someone’s mind is fading?
A desperate Emmy begins to dig for the truth while keeping her family united.
But as Emmy gets closer to the truth, she may discover it can be the most dangerous thing of all.

Targeted Age Group:: Adults

What Inspired You to Write Your Book?
Working in Health Care. you see so many families torn apart by things they can't control. I also saw a lot of people leaning on religion as a coping mechanism and I wanted to explore that aspect as well. However, I wanted to explore the darker side of it. Some people take advantage of that and it ends up being healthy.

Good Bones by L. A. Kelley

By Mystery Reads Curator Leave a Comment

Good Bones by L. A. Kelley

No matter how challenging the case, psychologist Katherine Fleming never shirks from helping a patient confront a painful issue. With keen powers of observation and a compassionate nature, she applies talent and training to help any troubled soul, but accepting a new patient who happens to be dead adds an unexpected wrinkle.

The first time Detective Jake Sumner of the Sandy Shoals PD spied the old house he sensed the good bones. Little did he know the purchase of the property included an unusual tenant far from resting in peace. Can the new psychologist in town help him treat a ghostly trauma case and stop a murderer from claiming the next victim?

With the aid of a mysterious white cat and a mystic mirror, Katherine and Jake join forces to hunt a killer. Because if the living won’t seek justice for the dead, who will?

RUN GIRL RUN by Willow Rose

By Mystery Reads Curator Leave a Comment

RUN GIRL RUN by Willow Rose

Willow Rose’s beloved detective, Harry Hunter is back in this thrilling second installment of the bestselling series.
When a mother and her child are pulled out of the harbor in their car, the case seems pretty straightforward for Miami PD and Detective Harry Hunter.

Everything points to a murder-suicide.

They were homeless, living in their car, and the mother decided to end it all for them both by driving into the water.

But the case is not what it looks like, Detective Harry Hunter soon realizes.

Harry’s daughter is carrying devastating knowledge about their deaths, and soon she becomes the killer’s next target.

As Harry races to protect her, he is betrayed by someone he thought he knew, leaving him terrified of trusting anyone in a town filled with liars.