Book List

Starred 2011 Mysteries & Thrillers

MYSTERY & DETECTIVE

PAST TENSE

by Catherine Aird

The latest in Aird’s long string of slyly humorous mysteries featuring Sloan and Crosby (Losing Ground, 2010, etc.) is a... Full review >

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FICTION

A RED HERRING WITHOUT MUSTARD

by Alan Bradley

A splendid romp through 1950s England led by the world’s smartest and most incorrigible preteen. Full review >

FULL REVIEW >

FICTION

THE JANUS STONE

by Elly Griffiths

Ruth’s second appearance (The Crossing Places, 2009) is an enthralling page-turner that delights in complex characters. Full review >

FULL REVIEW >

FICTION

DEAD BY MIDNIGHT

by Carolyn Hart

Hart’s latest cozy puzzler casts a net that will ensnare a wide audience. Full review >

FULL REVIEW >

MYSTERY & DETECTIVE

THE DEVOTION OF SUSPECT X

by Keigo Higashino & translated by Alexander O. Smith

This character-driven mystery by the prolific Higashino (Malice, 2009, etc.), one of only a few translated into English, has... Full review >

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MYSTERY & DETECTIVE

RIZZO'S FIRE

by Lou Manfredo

Bar none, Joe Rizzo is the most authentic cop in contemporary crime fiction. Full review >

FULL REVIEW >

FICTION

BLOWBACK

by Peter May

May's flair for narrative, characterization and evocative descriptions of various locales and historic tidbits makes his... Full review >

FULL REVIEW >

THRILLER & SUSPENSE

ON BORROWED TIME

by David Rosenfelt

As in Down to the Wire (2010), the explanation behind the hero’s ordeal is both less interesting and less plausible than the... Full review >

FULL REVIEW >

FICTION

ECHOES OF THE DEAD

by Sally Spencer

Shifting seamlessly between past and present versions of the case, Spencer produces a tour de force readers won’t quickly... Full review >

FULL REVIEW >

MYSTERY & DETECTIVE

COLD SHOT TO THE HEART

by Wallace Stroby

Another fast, taut winner from Stroby (Gone ’til November, 2010, etc.) As for Crissa, she may be crime fiction’s best bad... Full review >

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MYSTERY & DETECTIVE

THE KING OF DIAMONDS

by Simon Tolkien

A thick web of family tensions and psychological dysfunction with a whodunit chaser, Tolkien's third novel (The Inheritance,... Full review >

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FICTION

THE DANGEROUS EDGE OF THINGS

by Tina Whittle

Tai’s next adventure can’t come soon enough. She’s adorable, Trey is worthy of her and Whittle’s first foray into crime... Full review >

FULL REVIEW >

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