A Huge Loss to the Mystery Genre

I hope you’re looking for your next great read because this round of mystery book news is filled with recommendations. This also marks an anomaly newsy send because I don’t have any new adaptation news to share — weird, right? Anyhoo, there is plenty of goodness to entertain yourself with, from a podcast chat to ’90s books!

First, though, in sad news, we lost one of the best Japanese mystery writers.

Mystery writer Keigo Higashino Has Passed Away

Keigo Higashino, the Japanese author of detective mysteries, has passed away at the age of 68. His most recent series followed detective Godai (Guilt), but his well-deserved popularity stems from his two previous series: the Detective Galileo books (opens with The Devotion of Suspect X) and his Detective Kaga series (begins with Malice). He not only wrote great mysteries—including puzzle mysteries and locked room mysteries— but he also focused on human behavior and society with an underlying “why?”

Your Next Podcast Episode

Jo Piazza chatted with Sarah on Smart Podcast, Trashy Books about her latest novel, The Parisian Heist. Come for the 1990s Orsay museum heist and stay for the chat about mythologizing artists and Jo van Gogh, Vincent van Gogh’s sister-in-law.

5 Best ‘GMA’ Book Club Picks for Mystery Lovers This Summer

If you’re looking for a book club pick for your next mystery or thriller read, here’s a selection of Good Morning America’s top 5, as selected by Woman’s World. Both Listen for the Lie (thriller) and Best Offer Wins (obsession) were top reads for me.

All About the ’90s

Goodreads has a great all-genre ‘90s throwback reading list of both books written in the ’90s and recent books set in the ’90s. There are a lot of mysteries and thrillers on the list, from classics like Devil In A Blue Dress and The Firm, to recent favorites like Your House Will Pay and Rainbow Black. If I didn’t have so much to do, I’d go play “how many have adaptations?”

Two New Mystery Books to Know

The Sun Sentinel reviewed two new books, a culinary mystery (with recipes included) and a suspense novel with a “professional liar” as an unreliable narrator.

Browse the books recommended in Unusual Suspects’ previous newsletters on this shelf and see 2026 releases! Until next time, come talk books with me on Bluesky, Goodreads, Litsy, and Multitudes Contained.

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