Crime Reads » Peter Swanson

Seven Books and One Play About Marital Murder

Seven Books and One Play About Marital Murder

Peter Swanson on a great tradition of 'planning to kill a spouse' thrillers.

By Peter Swanson | June 12, 2025

John D. MacDonald's Travis McGee Novels, Ranked

John D. MacDonald's Travis McGee Novels, Ranked

Peter Swanson revisits an iconic crime fiction series, in its entirety.

By Peter Swanson | May 6, 2022

The Unique Pleasures of a Mystery Novel with a High Death Count

The Unique Pleasures of a Mystery Novel with a High Death Count

Peter Swanson celebrates seven novels with multiple bodies dropping as the mystery unfolds.

By Peter Swanson | March 15, 2022

Infidelity Thrillers: Seven Great Books Built Around Cheating Spouses and Affairs

Infidelity Thrillers: Seven Great Books Built Around Cheating Spouses and Affairs

Nothing raises the stakes like a spot of adultery.

By Peter Swanson | March 24, 2021

Sixteen of the Most Perfect Murders in Crime Fiction

Sixteen of the Most Perfect Murders in Crime Fiction

Reading and re-reading mystery novels in pursuit of the platonic ideal of the undetectable, unsolvable crime.

By Peter Swanson | March 6, 2020

The New Vulnerability in the Mystery Genre

The New Vulnerability in the Mystery Genre

The use—and misuse—of mental health disorders in crime fiction.

By Peter Swanson | February 25, 2020

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10 Thrillers That Explore Mental Health

By Peter Swanson | March 6, 2019

10 Classic New England Thrillers

By Peter Swanson | April 4, 2018