96 Mystery and Thriller Recommendations by Mood and Setting
![](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/misc/1680043168-1680043168_goodreads_misc.png)
One of the fun things we’ve discovered over the years, here at Goodreads World Headquarters, is that there are many, many, many ways to shuffle and categorize books. The traditional genre tags and topic lists are useful. But if you get a little wacky with it, interesting connections present themselves.
To wit: our inaugural Mystery Week Choose-Your-Own-Adventure recommendation list. We’ve sorted the stacks in the mystery aisle to accommodate themed pairs of opposites. Are you in the mood for a Locked Room mystery or something with Wide-Open Spaces? In the Air or at Sea? Hot or Cold? Small Town or Big City?
The categories and connections below should mostly explain themselves, though some might require a little sleuthing. (In Church Versus State, for example, we’ve bunched religious investigators and themes in one pile, and espionage thrillers and matter of state in another.)
The books included here are a mix of new releases and old favorites, with an eye toward representative classics. You’ll find a wide range of mystery subgenres (Noir! Cozy! Horroresque!) from a lineup of usual-suspect authors (Christie! Grisham! Highsmith!). You’ll also find some of the best new talent in the genre, with books by Jesse Q. Sutanto, T.J. Newman, and Deepti Kapoor.
Rummage around the book cover images below, and tap or click through to get more information about each title. Feel free to add what you like to your Want to Read shelf.
Locked Rooms...
Which this-or-that situation are you choosing for your next mystery read? What other titles would you suggest for the categories above? Let's talk books in the comments below!
Find more mystery recommendations:
Comments Showing 1-50 of 60 (60 new)
message 1:
by
Milena
(new)
Apr 03, 2023 06:09AM
![Milena Rodrigues](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/users/1650803200p1/73835395.jpg)
reply
|
flag
![Patricia Gulley](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/users/1624807813p1/3393464.jpg)
Thanks I added a few from this list.
![Ashley Lambert-Maberly](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/users/1666525706p1/7017978.jpg)
![Tamara](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/users/1623689260p1/151991.jpg)
Also, a breakdown by time period: published before _____ or after.
Breakdown by time period of the setting.
![Sue Ellen](https://cdn.statically.io/img/s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/f_25x33-d79c46f9428d2aea1444d67c091766a6.png)
![PinkPanthress](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/users/1649429878p1/2045153.jpg)
Miss Merkel: Mord in der Uckermark
Just saying...
![cinnamon.squirrel](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/users/1716042044p1/138000530.jpg)
In winter I like to read books set in winter. In summer I like to read books set in summer. I would be disappointed if I read a winter book in summer.
![Katherine](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/users/1384497112p1/19063334.jpg)
(BTW, we are just finishing up Erik Larson's Churchill biog "The Splendid and the Vile"—not a mystery, but a great book that is oddly suspenseful even though you know how it's gonna end!)
(and yes Karin Slaughter is amazing)
![Nicholas Foster](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/users/1658176275p1/113502648.jpg)
![Greg Mongrain](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/users/1458459524p1/54085861.jpg)
![blue night](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/users/1517892626p1/38353695.jpg)
![MuntahaZad](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/users/1657544074p1/73918390.jpg)
Murdered: Can You Solve the Mystery?"
Thank you so much! Will check it out.
![Deborah](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/users/1683633628p1/6329899.jpg)
![Eva Richens](https://cdn.statically.io/img/s.gr-assets.com/assets/nophoto/user/u_25x33-ccd24e68f4773d33a41ce08c3a34892e.png)
Hi,
Try Still Life by Louise Penny and if your dad likes it the next three books in the series.
Magpie murders by Anthony Horowitz.
Good Reading!
![Farren](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/users/1438296630p1/29738019.jpg)
The article title specifically states that the recommendations are based on MOOD AND SETTING. As a mood reader, so I appreciate how they organized this list and I think it's a fun idea. You might stick with one author or one subgenre all the time, but other people like to pick up whatever sounds appealing to them at that moment. There are plenty of other lists on goodreads specific to your tastes you can browse instead.
![Betsy](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/users/1528782908p1/4718466.jpg)
I find Hawthorne and Horiwitz series by Anthony Horowitz to be similar to AC’s style. Think he would like them.
https://www.goodreads.com/series/2384...
![Jeannie Baker](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/users/1460830942p1/14913157.jpg)
![Yvette Karns](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/users/1514730201p1/4909482.jpg)
I agree
![Jen](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/users/1684885811p1/162366603.jpg)
Disagree!!! This is 100% how I choose books.
![Jen](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/users/1684885811p1/162366603.jpg)
I cannot get into books of this genre if the authors aren't American.
![Dana Salman](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/users/1705284834p1/2246621.jpg)
![Barbara](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/users/1582784129p1/2938370.jpg)
On the other hand, I do like to read books set in Europe, especially in warm weather. There is a possibility that someone in Florida loves reading about the short winter days in Alaska.
![Barbara](https://cdn.statically.io/img/images.gr-assets.com/users/1582784129p1/2938370.jpg)
That's sort of asking which pizza topping someone should try first. It's so much a matter of personal taste. Some series have a lot of humor, some are serious. Some are sexy, some are chaste. There are authors who will terrify you into nightmares and others who will lull you to a peaceful sleep.
If you belong to Kindle Unlimited or register with Libby you can read samples of most books. The selections are usually long enough that you can get a good sense of the style and plot. I do this all the time.