The CrimeReads editors pick the month’s best new books out in paperback.
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John Fram, The Bright Lands
(Hanover Square Press)
“John Fram delivers with his mix of Southern Texas humidity, mystery and dread — along with police corruption and toxic masculinity…[The Bright Lands] gives us the queer thriller in the age of Grindr we’ve been waiting for.” —Rolling Stone
Lisa Lutz, The Swallows
(Ballantine Books)
“With a memorable cast of characters and more than a few secrets, Lutz’s latest is a turbocharged tale for our times.”—Newsweek
Stuart Turton, The Devil and the Dark Water
(Sourcebooks Landmark)
“The locked room murder meets a Michael Bay movie, by way of Treasure Island; you can’t know what’s going on, if only because the author won’t let you know until he’s delivered the final surprise – and another one after that. The effect is irresistible.” —The Guardian
David Heska Wanbli Weiden, Winter Counts
(Ecco Press)
“Suspenseful, gritty, gruffly endearing, and resonant, Weiden’s thriller, with its illumination of Lakota spiritual traditions and hopes raised for Virgil’s evolution from thug to sleuth, launches a promising and meaningful series.”—Booklist
Lisa Unger, Confessions on the 7:45
(Park Row)
“Confessions on the 7:45 is a brilliant study of characters as damaged on the inside as they are perfect on the outside, populated with enigmatic female protagonists that will haunt readers long after the story is over.”—Shelf Awareness
Robin Wasserman, Mother, Daughter, Widow, Wife
(Scribner)
“Explores the line where close female friendships can blur into obsession and self-obliteration…At the heart of the dark story is an intoxicating and all-consuming friendship between two teenage girls.” —The New York Times
Joe Clifford, The Lakehouse
(Polis)
“Captivates with pell-mell action, striking characters, and a tantalizingly complex plot.” ―Library Journal
Michelle Campbell, The Wife Who Knew Too Much
(St. Martin’s Griffin)
“This page-turner is poolside ready.” —Publisher’s Weekly
Peter Lovesay, The Finisher
(Soho)
“Mr. Lovesey, a veteran master of mayhem and misdirection, laces ominous suspense with wit. The Finisher showcases his enduring abilities in this, his 50th year writing crime fiction.”—Tom Nolan, The Wall Street Journal
Jo Nesbø, The Kingdom
(Vintage Crime/Black Lizard)
“The Kingdom is a complex and simmering standalone novel from the author of the popular Harry Hole detective series, and it dives deeply into the psyches of its characters. Twisty, violent, gripping, and very disturbing.” —Buzzfeed
