murder mystery

image with black background and a golden spoon

The Golden Spoon

By Jessa Maxwell
Star Rating
★★★★

Rated by Jesseca B.
Mar 16, 2023

Six contestants compete to win the Golden Spoon in a baking competition TV show, but nobody can guess the outrageous events in store for them. There's an unspoken rivalry between the established baking judge Betsy Martin (and owner of the grand Grafton Manor house where the TV show is filmed) and the smarmy new judge, Archie Morris. Tensions rise as the pressure to create the best bake and keep the show relevant are all on the line. Some contestants have secret reasons for wanting to be on the show, and someone seems to be tampering with competitor's ingredients (Gasp! Sabotage!). I was

Cover for Decision to Leave

Decision to Leave

By Park Chan-wook
Star Rating
★★★★★

Rated by Zachary C
Jan 9, 2023

A man is found dead at the base of a mountain peak.  Was it a suicide?  Could it be murder?  With the deceased's wife as the prime potential suspect, the investigator in charge of the case begins to tumble down a rabbit hole of obsession as he investigates her.  

The thing that makes Park Chan-wook's films so special, for me at least, is while other films employ dream sequences, or visions, or flashbacks, no other filmmaker uses them in a story without feeling a separation between real and unreal.  Using picture and sound, he somehow harnesses the subconscious in a visceral way.

Comparisons

The Secret History

By Donna Tartt

Rated by Library Staff (not verified)
Oct 25, 2019

Donna Tartt  has been on my radar for quite awhile, and I finally picked up The Secret History at the recommendation of multiple coworkers. To be honest, I finished this novel over a week ago, and I am still unsure how I feel. I was unimpressed with much of the book, but something about it is still stuck in the back of my brain. The entire book is a psychological analysis of the six main characters before and after murdering their friend. Tartt opens the book with a prologue describing Bunny’s murder from the point of view of Richard, the narrator. The rest of the novel is then split up into

Safe Houses

By Dan Fesperman

Rated by Library Staff (not verified)
Oct 1, 2018

Helen Abell runs four CIA safe houses for the Berlin Station in 1979. While performing routine microphone inspections she captures two important conversations that will change the course of her life. Helen knows her clearance does not allow her to investigate these agents, however a series of events leads her to uncover sinister cover ups within the CIA. In 2014, Helen and her husband are murdered in their Maryland farmhouse by their son. Anna goes home to bury her parents and discover what lead her brother to this horrific act. She enlists the help of a private investigator new to town, Henry

Wind River (DVD)

By Taylore Sheridan
Star Rating
★★★★★

Rated by Zachary C
Dec 3, 2017

On the Wind River Indian Reservation in Wyoming, Cory Lambert (Jeremy Renner) is a tracker and hunter of threatening wildlife on the reservation, protecting the people from dangerous animals. Cory finds the corpse of a teenage girl when patrolling the reservation. Young FBI agent Jane Banner (Elizabeth Olsen) is sent in to investigate. New, inexperienced, and idealistic, Jane is quickly in over her head trying to solve the murder while adjusting to the culture shift on an Indian reservation. Cory knows the land and the people of Wind River, and Jane enlists his help. To say more would start to

Behind Her Eyes

By Sarah Pinborough
Star Rating
★★★★

Rated by Catherine G.
Jun 26, 2017

I picked up Behind Her Eyes simply because Stephen King said it was "bloody brilliant." He said you'll never see the ending coming. I decided if he couldn't figure it out, then it must be good. Even if some of his books are too terrifying to read, I think King is a genius.

The opening scene in this book is a man walking out of the woods with dirt under his nails after having killed someone. You will spend the rest of the book trying to figure out his identity. Behind Her Eyes is a psychological thriller about the deeply troubled marriage of Adele and David. At the beginning of the book, David

In Death Series

By J.D. Robb

Rated by Emily D.
May 29, 2017

The In Death murder mystery series is based on Lieutenant Eve Dallas solving homicides in 2058 New York City. Eve, with her troubled past and guarded demeanor, works tirelessly to give the dead the justice they deserve. Coupled with Roarke, Eve's billionaire and tech savvy husband, she often finds herself digging through cases with his help. Along with standing for the dead, Eve must face the demons in her own past. These futuristic crime novels will keep you guessing until the last page!

You can read any book out of order for a suspenseful murder mystery, or read in order to follow the

Agatha: The Real Life of Agatha Christie

By Anne Martinetti
Star Rating
★★★★

Rated by Sarah As
Aug 16, 2016

Surely you’ve read one of Agatha Christie's detective novels, or seen a movie, TV show or play based on one of her stories. At the very least you are familiar with the one the Guinness Book of World Records lists as THE best-selling novelist of all time – Agatha Christie. I recommend you take a little bit of time and learn more about her in this new graphic biography by the talented trio of Anne Martinetti, Guillaume Lebeau and Alexandre Franc.

Agatha: the Real Life of Agatha Christie begins with her planned “disappearance” in 1926, but you also learn about her childhood on the coast of

Not Dead Enough: a Cal Claxton Oregon Mystery

By Warren C. Easley

Rated by Library Staff (not verified)
Jul 26, 2016

Back in the 50’s many of the rivers that salmon swam up were dammed to create cheap energy for the surrounding communities. The Indian villages were against changing the countryside and they also used salmon fishing as a way of making a living. The Dalles Dam is now 50 years old with a commemoration during the month that Cal Claxton moves to Oregon.

Cal Claxton, a retired Lawyer from the Prosecutors office in Los Angeles, has retired to Oregon. Cal blames himself and his fast track lifestyle for the suicide of his wife and he’s now trying to recover from the loss. His small pension, plus

If I Run

By Terri Blackstock
Star Rating
★★★★

Rated by Lisa J.
Feb 10, 2016

Casey Cox was twelve years old when she came home from school and found her father hanging in the garage. While the police investigators officially ruled her father’s death a suicide, Casey never believed that her father would kill himself, knowing she would be the one to find him.  Now, ten years later, Casey walks in to find her best friend murdered just inside his front door. Brent, a journalist, had been investigating her father’s death and the circumstances surrounding it in an effort to help her find peace and move on with her life.

Feeling that she won’t get a fair shake from local law

Midnight On the Mississippi

By Mary Ellis

Rated by Lisa J.
Sep 23, 2015

Nicki Price has just arrived in the Big Easy with her newly minted private detective's license and the desire to get to work right away, hopefully with her cousin Nate Price who has his own detective agency. Nicki plans to use her investigative skills to not only help Nate and make some money but to solve her father's murder from years ago. Nate tries to put Nicki off but she won't be deterred and follows Nate to a client meeting and manages to insinuate herself into the investigation of a recent murder.

Hunter Galen has a big problem. His business partner and friend has been found murdered

That Night

By Chevy Stevens
Star Rating
★★★★

Rated by Lisa J.
Sep 29, 2014

High school seniors Tony and Ryan had a plan for after graduation.  They were going to get jobs and an apartment and live together—Toni to get away from her mom who favored her younger sister, and Ryan to leave behind his alcoholic and abusive father.  It all seemed so simple.  But that's not what happened.  Senior year the "mean girls" clique started harassing Toni, just to be mean.  Then, unbelievably, Toni's little sister, Nicole, starts hanging out with the clique and harassing Toni too.  Nicole has also changed a lot since starting high school; she's gotten secretive, and sullen, although