Crime Reads » Essays

How Reading Mystery Novels Made Me a Better Fantasy Writer

How Reading Mystery Novels Made Me a Better Fantasy Writer

Studying the craft behind a great mystery novel is a worthy endeavor for writers working in any genre.

By Kim Neville | March 16, 2021

Discover the Weird, Mythical, Mystical World of <em>Fire Bones</em>

Discover the Weird, Mythical, Mystical World of Fire Bones

William Boyle on a new transmedia work steeped in noir and Deep South carnivalesque

By William Boyle | March 15, 2021

How Marilyn Monroe's Death Ushered in a Dark New Era of Celebrity

How Marilyn Monroe's Death Ushered in a Dark New Era of Celebrity

The death of a celebrity offers a chance to be a spectator, indulging in a kind of morbid curiosity bordering on fetishization.

By Ava Barry | March 15, 2021

Cipher Girls: The Women Who Cracked Hitler's Codes

Cipher Girls: The Women Who Cracked Hitler's Codes

Thousands of women contributed to the codebreaking efforts at Bletchley Park. Few were honored in their time.

By Kate Quinn | March 12, 2021

Fairy Tales Are Dark For a Reason—They're Trying to Warn Us About Danger

Fairy Tales Are Dark For a Reason—They're Trying to Warn Us About Danger

Like thrillers, fairy tales teach us to navigate the deep, dark wood...

By Cynthia Pelayo | March 12, 2021

The Mystery Is The Human Psyche: On Shakespeare, Crime, and Human Motivation

The Mystery Is The Human Psyche: On Shakespeare, Crime, and Human Motivation

It's not the "how" that drives a narrative. It's the "why".

By E.J. Beaton | March 12, 2021

Best Reviewed
Books of the Week

The Cult of the Campus Thriller

By Laurie Elizabeth Flynn | March 11, 2021

Is China the Next Spy Fiction Supervillain?

By Matt Miksa | March 11, 2021

It's Day 362 of My Lockdown and French Kiss Still Isn't Available for Streaming

By Dwyer Murphy | March 10, 2021

Killing Machines: How Car Culture in 1970s Los Angeles Fueled a Terrifying String of Murders

Killing Machines: How Car Culture in 1970s Los Angeles Fueled a Terrifying String of Murders

Millions of cars and miles of freeway contributed to a dangerous cultural shift in a city choked with smog.

By Chip Jacobs | March 9, 2021

Behind Enemy Lines: Women in Combat During World War II

Behind Enemy Lines: Women in Combat During World War II

Women served as snipers for Stalin, codebreakers for Churchill, and special operatives behind enemy lines across the board.

By Kelly Bowen | March 8, 2021

My Novel Reopened A Cold Case. My True Crime Book Puts Ghosts To Rest.

My Novel Reopened A Cold Case. My True Crime Book Puts Ghosts To Rest.

In 1973, my fiancé's mother was murdered. Decades later, I wrote a crime novel that reopened the case. I hope my true crime book can finally close the case for good.

By Stephanie Kane | March 5, 2021

Napoleon Has Always Fascinated Novelists, But His Life Really Was Fit for a Thriller

Napoleon Has Always Fascinated Novelists, But His Life Really Was Fit for a Thriller

On the art of using real historical figures—and wild events—to craft thrilling narratives for readers.

By Loren D. Estleman | March 5, 2021

What's the Key To Finishing That Novel Of Yours? Try Working at the Library.

What's the Key To Finishing That Novel Of Yours? Try Working at the Library.

Chris Whitaker wanted to write a book. First he needed to quit his job in finance and go to work at the local library.

By Chris Whitaker | March 4, 2021

Hard Science Fiction Is Still Overwhelmingly White—But It's Getting Better

Hard Science Fiction Is Still Overwhelmingly White—But It's Getting Better

When we think hard scifi, we think of white male authors. But the truth of the genre is far more diverse.

By S.B. Divya | March 3, 2021

Sara Paretsky on Dorothy B. Hughes and the Meaning of 'Noir'

Sara Paretsky on Dorothy B. Hughes and the Meaning of 'Noir'

In Hughes's Ride the Pink Horse, a disturbing portrait of human suffering—and sometimes kindness.

By Sara Paretsky | March 2, 2021

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