Ruby Falls

Ruby Falls by Gin Phillips, 336 pages

In 1928, a man got lost in the caves outside Chattanooga and found a gorgeous underground waterfall he named Ruby Falls after his wife. Within months, the falls had become a tourist attraction, though Ruby's friend Ada Smith found herself sneaking into the caves to explore beyond the official tour route. Soon, Ada got to know the caves better than almost anyone, which is why she was one of two people chosen to serve as a safety net for a psychic whose latest stunt is finding a hatpin in the caves by only reading the minds of the men chosen to hide it. While the stunt begins innocuously, it slowly unravels, as they pass the deadline to emerge from the caves and still haven't found the pin. Soon everyone is on each other's nerves, which reaches an apex when, after a brief rest, one of the men escorting the psychic is found dead. What was fun now becomes a race to escape the caves before the food, water, and light run out, and with a murderer in their midst.

I enjoyed reading this very claustrophobic book, as I love caves and all the spookiness that they bring. It was hard to tell if this was historical fiction, a mystery, or a thriller, as it certainly had bits and pieces of all three. But in the end, it doesn't really matter, as it was a fun read.

Serial Killer Games

 

 Serial Killer Games by Kate Posey (2025, 384 pages)

Chaotic story of two coworkers that meet in an elevator after someone in their office building is found fallen off the roof -- a victim of the so called Paper Pusher serial killer, plaguing corporate skyscrapers all over the city. They bond over the mundane office life; she's true crime obsessed, he has a body to get rid of.

The storyline and dialogue is a little obtuse sometimes, but it's addicting. The author doesn't always spoon feed you what's happening. The plot is wild but fun! Could not expect anything that happened. A little random, but overall lighthearted fun murders (is that a thing?).

Very entertaining audiobook with great narrators!

What I liked:
✨Funny, witty dialogue
✨Like laugh out loud with a confused face funny
✨Clever ending

What I didn't like:
💤Kinda confusing, took me a while to catch the vibe of the book and just let the story tell itself

Favorite quote: "There's a vase of red roses next to the bed. I toss the flowers on the floor and chug the water."  

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐  

Not Quite Dead Yet

Not Quite Dead Yet by Holly Jackson, 400 pages

Jet is the disappointing daughter of one of the wealthiest families in town, having moved back into her parents' house as she procrastinates starting her life over. But then one day, she's attacked in her kitchen and left for dead. Jet survives the attack, but is given just a week left to live, which she chooses to spend solving her own murder. She moves onto her childhood friend Billy's couch and begins her investigation into everyone she knows, all of whom seem suspicious now.

This is an interesting conceit for a thriller/mystery, and overall it's done pretty well, acknowledging Jet's physical limitations in a way that would be totally ignored in a TV show or movie. However, I do have an issue with the fact that the doctor is able to pinpoint exactly how many days Jet has left before an aneurysm kills her — and the fact that the doctor is correct in her deadline. I get why it was done, but that bit made it hard to suspend disbelief in an otherwise excellent novel.

The Hunting Party

 The Hunting Party by Lucy Foley (2018), 406 pages

A group of thirtysomething friends meet up in the secluded Scottish Highlands for their annual New Year's Eve party. What could go wrong? Everything. bwahahaha

I enjoy Lucy Foley's mysteries. While her characters are not particularly innovative, she does keep you guessing as to who was actually murdered and by whom. It must have been over halfway through the book before we even know who died. She very cleverly and slowly reveals those answers. Of course, there are red-herrings and intricate back stories, but it is a satisfying mystery and quick read.

Death on the Island

Death on the Island by Eliza Reid, 336 pages

When a group of international luminaries gathers at a fancy restaurant on a tiny island off the coast of Iceland, they're expecting good food, experimental drinks, and politically charged conversation where everyone is angling for support of their specific cause. However, they also get a murder, as one of their number doesn't survive the post-dinner drinks. Trapped on the island by bad weather, the ambassador's wife sets out to catch the killer with the help of a couple other diners.

This book melds the locked-room vibes of Agatha Christie with the atmosphere of Nordic noir, and for the most part, it works. I don't want to spoil anything, but I will say that the end didn't really work for me. If you pick it up and want to chat though, I'm here and ready to talk. :)

Death at the White Hart

Death at the White Hart by Chris Chibnall, 352 pages

When the owner of the White Hart pub is found dead — and gruesomely tied to a chair in the middle of the road with antlers affixed to his head — the small town of Fleetcombe is shaken to its core. On the case is Detective Nicola Bridge, who has just returned to her hometown after years working for the Liverpool police department in an attempt at a slower life. Too bad this murder and subsequent investigation into the secrets of the whole community won't let her do that.

I'm going to be completely honest and say that while I remember reading this and thinking it was a solid police procedural mystery, nothing really stuck out to me as either particularly fantastic or problematic. So solid but forgettable in my eyes. However, fans of Broadchurch will probably enjoy a complex mystery novel by the creator of that show.

The Ghostwriter

The Ghostwriter by Julie Clark, 368 pages

Ghostwriter Olivia has long been estranged from her father, Vincent, despite the fact that he's a famous horror writer and they occasionally turn up at the same writing conferences. When he was an awkward loner teen, Vincent's two siblings were found murdered in their family home, and while he was never convicted, most of the residents of their small hometown assume he killed his brother and sister. Growing up in that same small town, Olivia had to deal with more than her share of rumors and bullying based on her dad's notoriety, so it's only natural that she'd try to distance herself from it as much as possible. But when a new work offer comes along — ghostwriting her father's memoir of his siblings' death — Olivia literally can't refuse, and starts to dive into her family history.

Told in chapters that bounce back and forth in time, this thriller is good and twisty. I particularly like the way it handles difficult family relationships that are further complicated by dementia, outsized egos, and unreliable narrators (and that's all one person, at different times of his life). Definitely worth a read.

A Ghostwriter's Guide to Murder

 

A Ghostwriter's Guide to Murder by Melinda Mullet (2025) 311 pages

Maeve Gardner is a ghostwriter for writer Harlan Oak's mystery series, which features PI Simon Hill. She would love to be able to write her own books, but for now, this pays the bills. Her boyfriend of 4 years, Gav, had cheated on her four months ago, and when they split up, she got the small boat that she lives in on a London canal, along with The Captain, a large dog who adores her (and sausage rolls).

The Captain draws her attention to a tire that serves as a bumper along the canal wall where she parks. She finds 50,000 quid stashed in the tire. She ends up returning the cash to the hiding place and fetching the police. When they return, the cash is gone and Gav is dead in the water. Maeve is the prime suspect.

The story gets better from here: her friends are pulling out all the stops to investigate because they don't trust the over-worked police to do so: The computer guru who used to work for the police dept., the ex-navy pub owner, and a proprietor of a floating bookstore. The friends are close, but still have secrets from each other that they don't press each other about. There are also a couple of Wiccan boat neighbors for good cheer (and to clean up auras). Eventually Gav's dart team gets involved, too, but mostly to find out who killed their mate, not that they have any affection for Maeve. 

As the friends get stuck, from time to time, Maeve conjures up the fictional PI, Simon Hill, to help get them unstuck. I found this to be quite the page turner!

Nightshade

Nightshade by Michael Connelly, 352 pages

After rubbing the LA Sheriff's Department top brass the wrong way, Detective Stilwell has been exiled out to Catalina Island, where he has few deputies to help him deal with the drunken tourists that regularly end up in the holding cell. So when a body turns up in the harbor (near the rich tourists' private yachts, of course), Stilwell has to figure out how to juggle that investigation with the day-to-day drunk-and-disorderlies and a recent spate of poaching on the island's reservation. When the poaching investigation runs afoul of a local politician, it complicates the murder investigation too.

This is a solid police procedural and series starter from Connelly. While there are definitely some things that bugged me (such as the fact that Stilwell doesn't seem to have a first name, and nobody, including his girlfriend, seems to care), I did appreciate the relative realism of having to juggle multiple cases while handling a murder investigation.

The Girl from Greenwich Street

The Girl from Greenwich Street by Lauren Willig, 352 pages

In December 1799, Elma Sands left her cousin's home/boarding house, planning on eloping with a rich beau. A week later, her body was fished out of a nearby well, and one of the boarders was arrested for her murder. The crime swiftly became a shocking and famous event in the early days of the U.S., with handbills accusing carpenter Levi Weeks of Elma's murder as gossip about both parties ran rampant through New York City. But when his wealthy brother calls in Aaron Burr and Alexander Hamilton to defend Levi, the investigation becomes a chance to solve the crime but also wield some political influence.

Based on the first murder trial in U.S. history, this book is thrilling, engrossing, and keeps you guessing, despite its events taking place more than 200 years ago. It's also a brilliant look into the early days of the criminal justice system, which is fascinating from a historic perspective. Well worth a read, though be warned that you will probably have some of the songs from Hamilton stuck in your head as you turn the pages.

Drunk on All Your Strange New Words

Drunk on All Your Strange New Words by Eddie Robson, 277 pages

I first read and reviewed this science fiction mystery back in 2023, and that review still rings true — it's inventive, well-conceived, engaging, and amazing. It was a hit with the Orcs & Aliens too, which is always nice.

A Case of Mice and Murder

A Case of Mice and Murder by Sally Smith, 336 pages

It's 1901 and Inner Temple barrister Gabriel Ward is bogged down with a case concerning the authorship of a popular children's book about a mouse. However, when the Lord Chief Justice of England is found dead (and scandalously barefoot!) on Gabriel's doorstep, he reluctantly divides his attention to attempt solving the murder. 

Full of detail about the hidden legal world of early 1900s London and plenty of suspects and intrigue, it moves a bit slowly at times, but that's to be expected for a series starter. An excellent historical mystery, and highly recommended.

This Is Not a Game

This Is Not a Game by Kelly Mullen, 320 pages

When widow Mimi received an invite to socialite Jane Ireland's charity auction, her inclination is to say no. Despite being neighbors on small, car-free Mackinac Island, they've never been friends and Mimi's always though Jane's relationship with her son-in-law was just too scandalous for words. But along with the invitation, Mimi also gets a threat to buy a specific item or have her deepest secret revealed. Mimi invites her game-designer granddaughter Addie along for moral support, but when Jane turns up dead before the evening is over, Addie's amateur sleuthing skills and love of classic murder mysteries comes in handy. Especially once the party becomes snowbound and everyone in attendance is a suspect.

Set in a grand mansion complete with a conservatory, study, lounge, observatory, basement speakeasy, and secret passages, and with an eclectic group of party guests in themed period costume, this homage to Clue could easily be a cheap imitation of the classic movie and board game, especially once the blackmail element enters the scene. However, the well-plotted clues and red herrings, as well as Addie's game-design background, keep the story fresh and captivating. I had the hardest time settling on whodunnit, switching my guess from chapter to chapter as more information was revealed, and honestly didn't guess the outcome (though looking back, the clues were there — I just missed them in all the other information!). An excellent throwback to classic locked-room mysteries, highly recommended.

Booked for Murder

Booked for Murder by P.J. Nelson, 336 pages

Madeline Brimley was a bit surprised when her eccentric Aunt Rose willed her house/bookstore to Madeline, especially since it's in the tiny Georgia town that Maddy has avoided since she left years ago to pursue an acting career. But since Maddy has hit that "too old to be an ingenue, too young to be a character actress" age, the roles have dried up and she's willing to head home and give the bookstore a try. Unfortunately, as soon as she returns to town, she's met with mysterious fires and threatening phone calls, as well as the news that, in order to inherit, she has to stay for a full year. When things finally escalate to a murder in her parlor, Madeline has had enough, and is determined to figure out exactly who doesn't want her around and why.

This was a good, quick cozy mystery, full of viable suspects, twists, and turns. It's not exactly the best mystery I've read this year, but it is a fun way to spend an afternoon, and perfect for anyone who's ever dreamed of opening a quirky bookstore.

The Socialite's Guide to Murder

The Socialite's Guide to Murder by S.K. Golden (2022) 306 pages

The socialite is Evelyn Elizabeth Grace Murphy, a young woman whose father owns the Pinnacle Hotel. Evelyn hasn't left the hotel in 14 months and rationalizes that she has no need to do so, for everything she could want is in this upscale hotel. It's 1958 and she's the "girlfriend" of Henry Fox, a gay actor who is her best friend. She has another good friend at the hotel‒Mac‒who's a bellhop who walks her dog Presley and helps to pick locks for her snooping, as needed.

The hotel is the site for a party for artist Billie Bell, who plans to unveil his latest masterpiece, but when the drape is removed, the painting is missing. Later, Evelyn discovers the artist himself has been murdered. Evelyn, who reads Agatha Christie and other prominent mystery writers of the time, is determined to solve the theft and the murder and to win over Police Detective Hodgson, who has failed to appreciate her at all.

The novel portrays agoraphobia in the self-obsessed (and dog-obsessed) title character believably. I'm not sure whether I'll read other titles in the Pinnacle Hotel Mystery series, but maybe...

The Midnight Feast

 The Midnight Feast by Lucy Foley (2024, 354 pages)

Sabotage at the hotel grand opening.
Birds flocking in the woods.
Missing and murdered.

I love Lucy Foley's books, even if the characters are often formulaic. This one has her classic beautiful, wealthy, stuck-up main character along with an underdog from their past. But there's also an interesting setting -- a mix of cult and supernatural that I haven't seen much of in her other books. It was less of "which of these friends committed murder?" and more of "what the hell is going on?" which I appreciated! 

⭐⭐⭐⭐
 

The Hunting Party

 The Hunting Party by Lucy Foley (2018, 406 pages)

A group of friends book a remote lodge in Scotland to ring in the new year, 2019. All mostly wealthy Oxford graduates.

This book skips between new year's eve and January 2nd, where the events of the holiday slowly converge. It wasn't even until about 75% of the way through did I narrow down who the murdered actually was, to two people,  and it wasn't until the very end that it's confirmed. This is a fun thriller with twists and turns and classic Lucy Foley characters (that is, the rich and beautiful one and the underdog).

⭐⭐⭐⭐
 

Loose Lips

Loose Lips by Kemper Donovan, 336 pages

After writing a book about her experience solving a murder the year before, the unnamed ghostwriter/narrator of our book gets talked into teaching a mystery-writing seminar on a cruise for aspiring female authors. And of course, this captive audience is full of crazy characters, one of whom is murdered while several others are poisoned, and the ghostwriter once again finds herself investigating.

While this is a better book than its predecessor (The Busy Body) and I loved the twist at the end, I had to suspend a lot of disbelief to get there. OK, but not great, and maybe not the book to take on a cruise.

The Raven Scholar

The Raven Scholar by Antonia Hodgson, 672 pages

The reign of King Bersun is coming to its mandated end, and representatives from Orrun's seven societies must vie for their chance to replace him. One of those is Bersun's high scholar, Neema, who is thrown into the position after the original candidate from her society (the Ravens) was murdered just before the competition started. Tasked with both finding the killer and surviving (and maybe even winning?) the battle for the throne, Neema must carefully thread the needle of competing against and investigating her fellow fighters, none of whom are entirely as they seem.

This is a beast of a book, in that it's almost 700 pages of political intrigue and untrustworthy characters. But it's also a great start to a well-imagined fantasy tale, with plenty of fodder for future books. And while there is a bit of a romance in this book, it's refreshing to have it not take center stage, as happens in so many fantasy books these days. I'll happily read the sequel(s) to this one when they come out!

This Book Will Bury Me

This Book Will Bury Me by Ashley Winstead, 480 pages

When her father dies suddenly, Jane finds solace in the least likely of places — the online true crime community, where she quickly becomes immersed in solving murders near and far. One case, the murder of three girls in Idaho, is particularly perplexing, and even though they've gained plenty of detractors among both police and amateur detectives, Jane and her online friends from the community are determined to solve the crime. However, as they learn more, Jane discovers that there is much more to the triple murder than meets the eye.

While I enjoyed this book, the slower pace and focus on solving the murders kept this from feeling like the thriller it's marketed as. It also kinda bugged me that the book kept referencing something in the future that made the main character notorious, which I assumed would be the main source of danger and tension, but that didn’t really appear until halfway through the book. Enjoyable, but not my favorite thriller of the year.