I really enjoy a good mystery. But notice the word “good” in there – it has to be well plotted, have good twists, drop enough clues that I feel like I have a shot at solving it, but also be tough to crack and not feel too easy. And for it to really blow me away, it also needs to have the things that make for a good literary fiction – decent to good writing, characters who develop and who I grow to care about, and a setting I enjoy is a bonus. I also avoid certain topics and styles – I don’t mind some graphic elements, but not if they’re over the top or gratuitous. I always have trouble with any genre of book in which an animal is hurt or killed, so if that’s part of the plot I’m out. Likewise I don’t do books about bad things happening to kids. I just can’t find those stories enjoyable, no matter how well executed they are. They’ll just upset me. Some mysteries/thrillers I’ve enjoyed are:
Wrong Place Wrong Time by Gillian McAllister
The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman
What about you guys? Do you agree with any of my opinions? Did you enjoy any of the books I included, and do you have any others to recommend?
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I seem to be less upset by bad things happening to fictional children or animals than some people are. It’s fiction. I don’t like a book that wallows in gore, but a fictional baby being murdered doesn’t upset me more than a fictional adult’s being murdered.
Yeah, I get that. I think everyone has their own pressure points, and that’s why there’s so much diversity in the books out there!