Welcome to the midyear list bonanza that is the Best of the Year (So Far). As book nerds, we are always busting at the seams to shout about our favorite books to anyone who will listen, so waiting until the end of the year to do one big list is torture. That’s why I love the June marker, where we get to do part one of the list. While 2026 is not an easy year to be a human enjoying things, it is truly saying something when a book is able to break through all the noise and fully grab a reader’s attention.
Below, I’ve picked three of my fellow Book Riot writers’ picks from the Best Books of the Year So Far mega list (which includes all the genres!), and then I have my personal picks. There’s true crime, a family-centered novel following everyone’s opinion after a tragedy, a twisty puzzle mystery, and many more great 2026 releases for crime readers!
Rioters selections
A Good Person by Kirsten King
If delulu were a book, it would be A Good Person. Lilian has convinced herself that her sometimes guy Henry is the real deal. Except Henry dumps Lilian, so she does a little DIY hex on him and he’s found dead the next day. When Lilian is named a suspect in the murder case, her perfect image as the grieving girlfriend is shattered. Henry’s real long-term girlfriend and family keep getting in Lilian’s way! Lilian is a terrible person and that’s why this book works so well. She believes herself to be rational and admirable while thinking all these awful things and it’s wildly entertaining to read. —Courtney Rodgers
Good People by Patmeena Sabit
This quiet stunner deserves to be read by everyone. It’s a powerful debut about a refugee family in The United States. The affluent Sharaf family seems to have achieved the American Dream. Starting with nothing in the U.S., they have become a success story, with bright children, a large home, and lots of wealth. But when one of the family members dies, it draws a lot of questions and speculation. Narrated by interviews with coworkers, neighbors, classmates, police detectives, and more, it’s a sharp tale of the country’s prejudices and assumptions about immigrants, as well as an examination of the destructive side of rumors and the internet. —Liberty Hardy
Unusual Suspects
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London Falling by Patrick Radden Keefe
The story at the heart of London Falling is a hook on its own—the mysterious death of a family’s 19-year-old son reveals a double life with ties to London’s criminal underground—and in Radden Keefe’s hands, you’ll forget you’re reading nonfiction. His painstaking research, from extensive conversations with the boy’s family to chats with gangsters and oligarchs, is matched by the care he takes in piecing together a narrative that is deeply compelling without leaning into the salacious. That’s the PRK way (see Say Nothing, Empire of Pain, etc) and why this book will surely be a best of 2026 for many a reader at year’s end. —Vanessa Diaz
My favorite mystery and thrillers of 2026 so far
I have two picks on the main list you should check out—a crime trilogy finale and a NY cabbie turned amateur sleuth. And below, in no particular order, I have even more picks that my fellow Rioters haven’t already selected. For some context, I’ve read almost 100 books as of writing this, 40% have been in the crime genre, and 76% have been audiobooks!
And one final note: T Kira Madden’s Whidbey is on the main list under fiction, which I’m not arguing against, as it is literary. It’s technically also on my personal favorite list as a crime novel, which it also is, so definitely read it if you’re a literary crime fan.
The Mystery of the Stolen World Cup Trophy by Angela Cervantes
Diez—a boy named after Lionel Messi’s jersey number—doesn’t want to follow in the soccer star’s footsteps, but rather he wants to be like Poirot and solve mysteries! When the World Cup trophy is stolen from a party he’s attending, he gets to prove his skills.
Things I especially loved:
– Middle school mystery with a deeply lovable child detective.
– References to mystery books, Poirot, and library programs.
– Remains consistently fun, even while dealing with the topic of grief.
-Twisty.
-Understands Miami is an equally serious and ridiculous place.
Hard Times by Jeff Boyd (aoc)
Buddy is a Chicago high school teacher who is caught between protecting his students and his career while navigating politics at work and at home when his brother-in-law, a police officer, puts it all in danger.
Things I especially loved:
– Well done social crime novel with multiple POVs that does not create cartoonish characters.
– Boyd’s writing immediately roots you in the community and characters’ lives.
– Very good pacing.
Together We See by Ari Tison
Ulá must reckon with the strained relationship she had with her father, who her brother was close with, after his death. A death that quickly starts to look like it could have been murder.
Things I especially loved:
-Equally great blend of family drama and murder mystery.
-Sibling relationship.
– Costa Rica setting.
– Bribri culture and history.
– The audiobook narrator, Ina Barrón.
A Ghastly Catastrophe (Veronica Speedwell #10) by Deanna Raybourn
This Victorian mystery series remains consistent, with an excellent balance of mystery, plot, adventure, romance, and super fun banter as it follows a lepidopterist and a historian.
Things I especially loved:
– The characters arguing/bantering over whether vampires can exist (which is related to the murder mystery plot!) is chef’s kiss.
– Raybourn always has really interesting historical tidbits.
– The audiobook’s narrator, Angèle Masters.
The Clock House Murders (House Murders #4) by Yukito Ayatsuji, Ho-Ling Wong (Translator)
An intricately created house—known for a decade-old murder, its architecture, and clock collection—ends up the site of a group of trapped visitors as they start to die one by one…
Things I especially loved:
– Super layered, puzzle mystery that clearly loves the classics of the genre.
– Japanese culture.
– Twisty.
– So many murders, a séance, a mystery author, and students in a mystery club.
The Tuxedo Society by Paul Rudnick
Andrew is working in New York, selling candles with dreams of stardom when a dinner with the Tuxedo Society leads him into a secret and dangerous world of espionage where he joins an all-gay team, fighting crime.
Things I especially loved:
– Super fun, action-packed, and funny.
– The gadgets!
– A serious/not serious secret spy agency.
– The audiobook’s narrator, Daniel Henning.
– I want this to be a series and give me the adaptation now!
Browse the books recommended in Unusual Suspects’ previous newsletters on this shelf and see 2026 releases! Until next time, come talk books with me on Bluesky, Goodreads, Litsy, and Multitudes Contained.
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