I don't know how a season can drag on endlessly and flash by in the blink of an eye all at the same time, but... August? I've mentioned before that I've been having a tough time concentrating on books lately, so I've been taking out my distractions on knitting, television, and sifting through things I've boxed up, tucked away on shelves, and not touched for years. You have to do what you have to do to maintain some semblance of sanity, right?
One thing that hasn't changed is my need to know what new mysteries are being released, and what follows is my picks of the best new crime fiction in August. The books are listed by release date, and the covers and synopses are courtesy of Amazon because they deserve to be showroomed, too.
Let's see if I've found anything that tickles your fancy!
=== August 1 ===
Title: Tahoe Hit
Author: Todd Borg
Series: #18 in the Owen McKenna private investigator series set in Lake Tahoe, California.
316 pages
*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books.
Synopsis: "Carston Kraytower’s San Francisco
hedge fund is hugely profitable. But Kraytower has a secret background
he’ll do anything to conceal. Two of his colleagues know what he’s
hiding. All seems okay until they start dying in inexplicable ways up at
Lake Tahoe.
Kraytower’s son Joshua grows up surrounded by riches and secrets and deadly mysteries. Those mysteries drive a killer to seek revenge. The killer kidnaps Joshua, the one person who is innocent.
As the murderer’s scheme unfolds, Tahoe Detective Owen McKenna realizes that in order to find and save the kidnapped boy, he has to unravel a mystery that seems to stretch back in time to Shakespeare’s Hamlet, a gripping tale filled with betrayal and murder, where nearly all the characters die..."
Kraytower’s son Joshua grows up surrounded by riches and secrets and deadly mysteries. Those mysteries drive a killer to seek revenge. The killer kidnaps Joshua, the one person who is innocent.
As the murderer’s scheme unfolds, Tahoe Detective Owen McKenna realizes that in order to find and save the kidnapped boy, he has to unravel a mystery that seems to stretch back in time to Shakespeare’s Hamlet, a gripping tale filled with betrayal and murder, where nearly all the characters die..."
=== August 4 ===
Title: The Finisher
Author: Peter Lovesey
Series: #19 in the Peter Diamond police procedural series set in Bath, England
360 pages
Synopsis: "On the 50th anniversary of the publication of his first novel, Peter
Lovesey, Mystery Writers of America Grand Master and titan of the
British detective novel, returns to the subject of his very first
mystery—running.
Through a particularly ill-fated series of events, couch potato Maeve Kelly, an elementary school teacher whose mother always assured her “curvy” girls shouldn’t waste their time trying to be fit, has been forced to sign up for the Other Half, Bath’s springtime half marathon. The training is brutal, but she must disprove her mother and collect pledges for her aunt’s beloved charity. What Maeve doesn’t know is just how vicious some of the other runners are.
Meanwhile, Detective Peter Diamond is tasked with crowd control on the raucous day of the race—and catches sight of a violent criminal he put away a decade ago, and who very much seems to be up to his old tricks now that he is paroled. Diamond’s hackles are already up when he learns that one of the runners never crossed the finish line and disappeared without a trace. Was Diamond a spectator to murder?"
Through a particularly ill-fated series of events, couch potato Maeve Kelly, an elementary school teacher whose mother always assured her “curvy” girls shouldn’t waste their time trying to be fit, has been forced to sign up for the Other Half, Bath’s springtime half marathon. The training is brutal, but she must disprove her mother and collect pledges for her aunt’s beloved charity. What Maeve doesn’t know is just how vicious some of the other runners are.
Meanwhile, Detective Peter Diamond is tasked with crowd control on the raucous day of the race—and catches sight of a violent criminal he put away a decade ago, and who very much seems to be up to his old tricks now that he is paroled. Diamond’s hackles are already up when he learns that one of the runners never crossed the finish line and disappeared without a trace. Was Diamond a spectator to murder?"
=== August 18 ===
Title: Death at High Tide
Author: Hannah Dennison
Series: #1 in the Island Sisters cozy series set in the Scilly Isles off the coast of Cornwall, England
304 pages
*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books.
Synopsis: "When Evie Mead’s husband, Robert, suddenly drops dead of a heart attack,
a mysterious note is found among his possessions. It indicates that
Evie may own the rights to an old hotel on Tregarrick Rock, one of the
Isles of Scilly.
Still grieving, Evie is inclined to leave the matter to the accountant to sort out. Her sister Margot, however, flown in from her glamorous career in LA, has other plans. Envisioning a luxurious weekend getaway, she goes right ahead and buys two tickets―one way―to Tregarrick.
Once at the hotel―used in its heyday to house detective novelists, and more fixer-upper than spa resort, after all―Evie and Margot attempt to get to the bottom of things. But the foul-tempered hotel owner claims he's never met the late Robert, even after Evie finds framed photos of them―alongside Robert's first wife―in his office. The rest of the island inhabitants, ranging from an ex-con receptionist to a vicar who communicates with cats, aren't any easier to read.
But when a murder occurs at the hotel, and then another soon follows, frustration turns to desperation. There’s no getting off the island at high tide. And Evie and Margot, the only current visitors to Tregarrick, are suspects one and two. It falls to them to unravel secrets spanning generations―and several of their own―if they want to make it back alive."
Still grieving, Evie is inclined to leave the matter to the accountant to sort out. Her sister Margot, however, flown in from her glamorous career in LA, has other plans. Envisioning a luxurious weekend getaway, she goes right ahead and buys two tickets―one way―to Tregarrick.
Once at the hotel―used in its heyday to house detective novelists, and more fixer-upper than spa resort, after all―Evie and Margot attempt to get to the bottom of things. But the foul-tempered hotel owner claims he's never met the late Robert, even after Evie finds framed photos of them―alongside Robert's first wife―in his office. The rest of the island inhabitants, ranging from an ex-con receptionist to a vicar who communicates with cats, aren't any easier to read.
But when a murder occurs at the hotel, and then another soon follows, frustration turns to desperation. There’s no getting off the island at high tide. And Evie and Margot, the only current visitors to Tregarrick, are suspects one and two. It falls to them to unravel secrets spanning generations―and several of their own―if they want to make it back alive."
Title: The Less Dead
Author: Denise Mina
Standalone thriller set in Scotland
352 pages
Synopsis: "Dr. Margo Dunlop is at a crossroads. Her adoptive mom just passed away,
and Margo misses her so much she can't begin to empty the house-or, it
seems, get her brother on the phone. Not to mention she's newly single,
secretly pregnant, and worried about her best friend's dangerous
relationship. In an effort to cheer herself up she goes in search of her
birth mother. Instead she finds Nikki, her mother's sister. Aunt Nikki
isn't what Margo expects, and she brings upsetting news: Margo's mother
is dead. Worse, she was murdered years ago, and her killer is still at
large-and sending Nikki threatening letters.
Margo is torn. Should she stay out of this mess, or try to find justice? But then Margo receives a letter, too. Someone out there has been waiting and watching, and in Margo sees the spitting image of her mother...
Darkly funny and deeply affecting, The Less Dead is a sharply modern new thriller from the bestselling author of Conviction, and a surprisingly moving story of daughters and mothers, secrets and choices, and how the search for the truth-and a long-hidden killer-will lead one woman to find herself."
Margo is torn. Should she stay out of this mess, or try to find justice? But then Margo receives a letter, too. Someone out there has been waiting and watching, and in Margo sees the spitting image of her mother...
Darkly funny and deeply affecting, The Less Dead is a sharply modern new thriller from the bestselling author of Conviction, and a surprisingly moving story of daughters and mothers, secrets and choices, and how the search for the truth-and a long-hidden killer-will lead one woman to find herself."
Title: Hidden Creed
Author: Alex Kava
Series: #6 in the Ryder Creed K-9 series set in Florida
326 pages
Synopsis: "A TRAILBLAZER IN THE K9 MYSTERY GENRE, award-winning Alex Kava
delivers her signature trademark combining "well-developed characters"
(Publishers Weekly) with "a highly original plot" (Suspense Magazine)
then packing it with "twists, turns and suspense galore" (Modern Dog). "Did I mention the dogs? They and their human partners are simply the heart and soul of everything." (Florida Weekly)
2019 Nebraska Fiction Award (Lost Creed) winner author, Alex Kava adds another dynamic chase between murderers, Ryder Creed and his amazing scent dog Grace.
2019 Nebraska Fiction Award (Lost Creed) winner author, Alex Kava adds another dynamic chase between murderers, Ryder Creed and his amazing scent dog Grace.
During
a training exercise, Creed's scent dog, Grace, is drawn off course and
discovers a shallow grave. The body was never meant to be found, hidden
deep in an isolated part of Florida's Blackwater River State Forest. The
remote area has no easy access in or out. The killer obviously hoped
his secret would be scattered and swallowed up by the forces of nature.
When Creed's dogs continue to find more remains, investigators quickly realize they're dealing with someone who knows the forest intimately and has been using it to hide his handiwork for years
Soon Ryder Creed and everyone who's close to him will discover just how far this killer is willing to go to keep his secrets hidden forever."
When Creed's dogs continue to find more remains, investigators quickly realize they're dealing with someone who knows the forest intimately and has been using it to hide his handiwork for years
Soon Ryder Creed and everyone who's close to him will discover just how far this killer is willing to go to keep his secrets hidden forever."
Title: Never Forget
Author: Michel Bussi
Standalone thriller set in France
480 pages
Synopsis: "In the town of Yport, during a run along Europe’s tallest cliff, Jamal
notices a red scarf hanging on a fence. Then he sees the woman, her
dress torn, her back to the void, her eyes fixed on his own. Jamal holds
the scarf out to her like a buoy.
A few seconds later, the stranger’s lifeless body is found lying on the icy pebbles of the empty beach below. Around her neck, the red scarf.
Everyone thinks he pushed her. He only wanted to save her.
That’s Jamal’s version. Do you believe it?"
A few seconds later, the stranger’s lifeless body is found lying on the icy pebbles of the empty beach below. Around her neck, the red scarf.
Everyone thinks he pushed her. He only wanted to save her.
That’s Jamal’s version. Do you believe it?"
=== August 20 ===
Title: Midnight at Malabar House
Author: Vaseem Khan
Series: #1 in the Persis Wadia historical series set in 1950 Bombay, India.
336 pages
*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books.
Synopsis: "'the leading character is the deftly drawn Persis Wadia, the
country's first female detective. She's a wonderful creation and this
is a hugely enjoyable book' - Ann Cleeves
Bombay, New Year's Eve, 1949
As India celebrates the arrival of a momentous new decade, Inspector Persis Wadia stands vigil in the basement of Malabar House, home to the city's most unwanted unit of police officers. Six months after joining the force she remains India's first female police detective, mistrusted, sidelined and now consigned to the midnight shift.
And so, when the phone rings to report the murder of prominent English diplomat Sir James Herriot, the country's most sensational case falls into her lap.
As 1950 dawns and India prepares to become the world's largest republic, Persis, accompanied by Scotland Yard criminalist Archie Blackfinch, finds herself investigating a case that is becoming more political by the second. Navigating a country and society in turmoil, Persis, smart, stubborn and untested in the crucible of male hostility that surrounds her, must find a way to solve the murder - whatever the cost."
Bombay, New Year's Eve, 1949
As India celebrates the arrival of a momentous new decade, Inspector Persis Wadia stands vigil in the basement of Malabar House, home to the city's most unwanted unit of police officers. Six months after joining the force she remains India's first female police detective, mistrusted, sidelined and now consigned to the midnight shift.
And so, when the phone rings to report the murder of prominent English diplomat Sir James Herriot, the country's most sensational case falls into her lap.
As 1950 dawns and India prepares to become the world's largest republic, Persis, accompanied by Scotland Yard criminalist Archie Blackfinch, finds herself investigating a case that is becoming more political by the second. Navigating a country and society in turmoil, Persis, smart, stubborn and untested in the crucible of male hostility that surrounds her, must find a way to solve the murder - whatever the cost."
=== August 25 ===
Title: Shadows of the Dead
Author: Spencer Kope
Series: #3 in the Special Tracking Unit law enforcement series set in various US locations.
384 pages
*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books.
Synopsis: "A woman―abducted and found in the trunk of a car after a high-speed
chase―regains consciousness in the ICU to reveal two crucial pieces of
information: the man who kidnapped her is not the same as the man who
left her in the woods, and she's not the first victim―in fact, she is
number eight.
Magnus “Steps” Craig is part of the elite three-man Special Tracking Unit of the FBI. Known for his ability to find and follow trails over any surface, Steps is called in on cases that require his unparalleled skills. But there’s a secret to his talent. Steps has a kind of synesthesia where he can see the ‘essence’ of a person―what he calls ‘shine’―on everything they’ve touched.
Brought in to track the driver through a dense forest after the blood hounds have lost his trail, Steps and his partner Jimmy find the driver laughing maniacally, babbling about souls, and hiding a pristinely maintained box of eight posed rats. Now the Special Tracking Unit must chase two villains―through not just the real world, but the dark web as well―tracking an enemy they can't see, as time runs out for the unknown victims."
Magnus “Steps” Craig is part of the elite three-man Special Tracking Unit of the FBI. Known for his ability to find and follow trails over any surface, Steps is called in on cases that require his unparalleled skills. But there’s a secret to his talent. Steps has a kind of synesthesia where he can see the ‘essence’ of a person―what he calls ‘shine’―on everything they’ve touched.
Brought in to track the driver through a dense forest after the blood hounds have lost his trail, Steps and his partner Jimmy find the driver laughing maniacally, babbling about souls, and hiding a pristinely maintained box of eight posed rats. Now the Special Tracking Unit must chase two villains―through not just the real world, but the dark web as well―tracking an enemy they can't see, as time runs out for the unknown victims."
Title: Knit of the Living Dead
Author: Peggy Ehrhart
Series: #6 in the Knit& Nibble cozy series set in New Jersey.
304 pages
*Upcoming review on Kittling: Books.
Synopsis: "Among the countless revelers at the town’s much-anticipated Halloween
parade, a woman dressed as Little Bo Peep is the only one making people
scream bloody murder. In a scene straight out of a horror movie, the
Knit and Nibblers find the nursery rhyme character dead with thick
strands of yarn looped around her neck. Pamela and her best friend,
Bettina, are set on pinning down who wanted the woman gone forever, but
it’ll take every trick they can muster to catch the culprit without
becoming the next poor souls to join Little Bo Peep’s dark, endless
sleep . . . "
Title: Mesa Verde Victim
Author: Scott Graham
Series: #6 in the National Park series set in Colorado.
220 pages
Synopsis: "'An absorbing archaeological mystery, rich in historical detail and
local atmosphere. With its colorful characters and fast–paced plot, Mesa Verde Victim is a fascinating find.'
—AUSMA ZEHANAT KHAN, author of A Deadly Divide
Hounded by false accusations of murder, archaeologist Chuck Bender and his family risk their lives to track down an unknown killer on the loose in a rugged canyon on the remote western edge of Mesa Verde National Park, where ancient stone villages and secret burial sites, abandoned centuries ago by the Ancestral Puebloan people, harbor artifacts so rare and precious they're worth killing over.
SCOTT GRAHAM is the National Outdoor Book Award–winning author of the six–volume National Park Mystery Series for Torrey House Press, including Canyon Sacrifice, Mountain Rampage, Yellowstone Standoff, Yosemite Fall, and Arches Enemy, and five other books. He is an avid outdoorsman who lives with his wife, an emergency physician, in southwestern Colorado."
—AUSMA ZEHANAT KHAN, author of A Deadly Divide
Hounded by false accusations of murder, archaeologist Chuck Bender and his family risk their lives to track down an unknown killer on the loose in a rugged canyon on the remote western edge of Mesa Verde National Park, where ancient stone villages and secret burial sites, abandoned centuries ago by the Ancestral Puebloan people, harbor artifacts so rare and precious they're worth killing over.
SCOTT GRAHAM is the National Outdoor Book Award–winning author of the six–volume National Park Mystery Series for Torrey House Press, including Canyon Sacrifice, Mountain Rampage, Yellowstone Standoff, Yosemite Fall, and Arches Enemy, and five other books. He is an avid outdoorsman who lives with his wife, an emergency physician, in southwestern Colorado."
Title: Every Kind of Wicked
Author: Lisa Black
Series: #6 in the Gardiner & Renner police procedural series set in Ohio.
320 pages
Synopsis: "Life and death have brought Maggie Gardiner full circle, back to the
Erie Street Cemetery where she first entered Jack Renner’s orbit. Eight
months ago, she learned what Jack would do in the name of justice. More
unsettling still, she discovered how far she would go to cover his
tracks. Now a young man sprawls atop a snowy grave, his heart shredded
by a single wound. A key card in the victim’s wallet leads to the local
university’s student housing—and to a grieving girlfriend with an
unsettling agenda.
Maggie’s struggle to appease her conscience is complicated by her ex-husband, Rick, who’s convinced that Jack is connected to a series of vigilante killings. Also a homicide detective, Rick investigates what seems like a routine overdose on Cleveland’s West Side; but here, too, the appearance belies a deeper truth.
Rick’s case and Jack’s merge onto the trail of a shadowy, pill-pushing physician who is everywhere and nowhere at once, while Maggie and Jack uncover a massive financial shakedown hiding in plain sight. And when Rick’s bloody fingerprint is found at another murder scene, Maggie’s world comes undone in a violent, irreversible torrent of events . . ."
Maggie’s struggle to appease her conscience is complicated by her ex-husband, Rick, who’s convinced that Jack is connected to a series of vigilante killings. Also a homicide detective, Rick investigates what seems like a routine overdose on Cleveland’s West Side; but here, too, the appearance belies a deeper truth.
Rick’s case and Jack’s merge onto the trail of a shadowy, pill-pushing physician who is everywhere and nowhere at once, while Maggie and Jack uncover a massive financial shakedown hiding in plain sight. And when Rick’s bloody fingerprint is found at another murder scene, Maggie’s world comes undone in a violent, irreversible torrent of events . . ."
There's a lot of good reading in coming up in August. Besides Spencer Kope's Shadows of the Dead, I think I have the most anticipation for Vaseem Khan's Midnight at Malabar House. And as far as covers go, I think I might shock you. You know how much I dislike covers that show the back of a person, right? Well, the cover I like the most in this group is Alex Kava's Hidden Creed. Why? Because I really really really want to be in that boat with that dog heading out on the water. Right. Now. Sounds like I need to pick up the knitting needles again...
Which new books did you add to your own lists? Inquiring minds would love to know!
