Imagine a buffet, filled with all your favorite dishes. You grab a plate and put just a little of this, a little of that, then sit back down at your table with the crispiest Diet Coke and have the best meal of your life. That is how I feel when I’m reading a really good book. To me, the best books are compelling and detailed with interesting characters and have lush prose.
Now, I love a mystery that falls into a formula. I love literary fiction that meanders and ponders. But it is like a perfectly cooked steak when an author writes a literary mystery well. Literary mysteries are all about the layered context, the subtle clues, the secrets. For tonight’s menu, I’ve prepared a selection of some of the tastiest literary mysteries.
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The God of the Woods by Liz Moore
Summer camp is supposed to be a safe place, right? When Barbara, the “difficult” daughter of Camp Emerson owners, the Van Laars, is discovered missing from her bunk, a frenzied search begins for the girl. Led by police detective Judy Luptak, the investigation follows the mysterious Van Laar family and camp employees as they scramble to find Barbara in the unforgiving Adirondack woods.
Miracle Creek by Angie Kim
Run by the Yoo family, the Miracle Submarine is a hyperbaric oxygen chamber for patients to sit inside for “dives” that are supposed to cure everything from autism to infertility. When the sub randomly explodes and kills two people, all of the divers’ hopes are dashed. The long trial ahead of the divers acts as a pressure chamber of its own kind, revealing all the secrets and lies that have been hiding.
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Wild Dark Shore by Charlotte McConaghy
Off the coast of Antarctica, Dominic Salt and his children live as caretakers for Shearwater Island. Home to the largest seed vault, Shearwater has served as a research base until the storms started getting too bad. It’s time to go. Just as the Salts are beginning to pack to leave, they find a woman lost in the storm waters. Rowan has her own reasons for coming to Shearwater, but something about Dominic and the children just isn’t right.
What’s Left of Me Is Yours By Stephanie Scott
Sumiko begins her quest to find the truth about her mother’s death with the discovery that Rina was murdered. Stuck in a volatile marriage, Rina finds companionship with Kaitaro. Unknown to Rina, Kaitaro was hired by her husband to seduce her. Kaitaro and Rina’s affair is desperate, passionate, and real. The violence that ensues leaves a trail that reaches Sumiko. Simmering and atmospheric, this book transports you to 1990s Japan.
The Frozen River by Ariel Lawton
Based on the real life of an 18th-century midwife, this historical novel is a tragic mystery set in an isolated community. Martha Ballard keeps record of every birth and deathbed she’s attended, detailing her own life alongside her keen medical knowledge. When Martha finds the body of a man accused of rape frozen in the ice, her diary becomes central to the case that could overturn multiple lives.
What We Kept To Ourselves By Nancy Jooyoun Kim
After the disappearance of his wife Sunny, John Kim struggles to adapt, feeling isolated from his children. When John discovers the body of a stranger in their backyard with a letter addressed to Sunny, questions about Sunny’s life and disappearance begin to unravel. This dual timeline family mystery explores themes of secrets, loneliness, and identity.
The Secret History by Donna Tartt
Sometimes referred to as a “whydunit,” this classic campus novel opens with the acknowledgment of a gruesome murder. Narrator Richard Papen recounts his experience being drawn into an elite group of Greek students at Hampden College. As their obsession with the ideal collides with a moral dilemma, the Greek students face their greatest trial.
The Family Chao by Lan Samantha Chang
Haven, Wisconsin has been home to Fine Chao’s Restaurant for decades, despite all of the rumors about the owners. When Leo Chao, the tyrannical owner, is found dead in the freezer, his sons find themselves under the scrutiny of the town. Dagou, Ming, and James each have their own issues with Leo, but was that enough to murder him? The murder investigation turns into a boiling pot of Anti-Asian sentiment and family trauma as the Chao’s fight to clear their names.
Now all that’s left is dessert. Enjoy 8 of the Best Interlocking Mysteries, or browse the rest of our mystery/thriller archives.
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