The Mystery Guest - Nita Prose - Top Book Pick!

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The Mystery Guest - Nita Prose - Top Book Pick!

Mystery

Rating: 8/10

Molly has a new mess to clean up. A situation if you will. A problem of epic proportions with limited solutions. A colossal catastrophe. A famous author has dropped dead on the tearoom floor of the hotel in which she was recently promoted to head maid. Before he had a chance to make his big announcement. In one moment, the words “I’ve been keeping a secret” are uttered and in the next, he is a goner. Not to worry, our charming Molly is on the case!

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The Mystery Writer - Sulari Gentill - Top Book Pick!

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The Mystery Writer - Sulari Gentill - Top Book Pick!

Mystery

Rating: 8.5/10

When Theo shows up on her big brother’s doorstep with an abandoned life plan and an unfinished novel in hand, she never expects to be drawn into a hidden literary world. One in which identity is something that can be obscured and remade for the sake of a reader. Or stolen might be a better way to put it. I loved the portrayal of writing and publishing as something murky and even murderous on its path to success. So juicy!

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The Spider - Lars Kepler

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The Spider - Lars Kepler

Thriller

Rating: 8/10

When a decomposing body is discovered alongside a white bullet casing, the police begin to receive complex riddles from the killer, taunting them with opportunities to stop future planned murders. One down, eight to go. With the unrelenting game of cat and mouse afoot, a sense of desperation pervades the book, ensuring an outstanding read. One not for the faint of heart.

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Mother Daughter Murder Night - Nina Simon

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Mother Daughter Murder Night - Nina Simon

Mystery

Rating: 7/10

Teenager Jack becomes a suspect when she discovers a body floating in the river she spends all her free time on. Her grandmother, whose living with her and her mom while she battles cancer, resolves to ferret out the real killer. And absolutely nothing, and no one, will dissuade her. Do not mistake granny for anybody’s push over, she is a force to be reckoned with.

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Noir Novels...

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No Happy Endings Here…

Noir fiction offers an alternate reality, one rife with vice, temptation, corruption, and deep-seated desperation. At its best, noir is a roadmap to the subversive. It is where the clarity of moral division disintegrates, where the black and white blur into gray. Where flawed characters are revered, and the truth wielded with blunt force. These novels are not for the faint of heart or those looking for a happy ending. Or even a satisfying one. If you like your prose gritty, your verbs punchy, your settings darkly lit, your plots twisty and unpredictable, and your protagonists utterly, irrevocably doomed…here we go.

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Titanium Noir - Nick Harkaway - Top Book Pick!

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Titanium Noir - Nick Harkaway - Top Book Pick!

Sci-Fi/Noir

Rating: 8.5/10

Cal is a detective working with the police on certain, shall we say, sensitive cases. Think of him as a fixer. When he’s called in to investigate a homicide, at first, he thinks it’s a mistake. That it’s just a run of the mill murder and not one that involves a Titan. Society’s richest, most powerful, medically enhanced and genetically altered elites. The world the author plops us into is shadowy and visceral, the plotting impeccable and the characters gleefully immoral. In other words, fun!

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Literary Sleuths & Such...

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“Just One More Thing”…

I have wonderful memories of watching television mysteries with my mom. Sunday nights were must-see TV, hobnobbing with Jessica Fletcher as she ambled into yet another murder in her quaint hometown. Thursdays were all about Columbo, our eyes were riveted to the boob tube in stupefied fascination as the seemingly bumbling detective laid it all out. The chagrin of the dastardly culprits as they were unmasked by either of these genius sleuths was priceless. Is it any surprise that love translated to books? Enjoy a read that celebrate sleuths of all kinds!

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5 Year's Worth Of Books & Reading...

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5 Top Book Picks Across 5 Fav Genres Over 5 Years…

September 7th, 2023 will mark the 5th Anniversary of Cracking The Spine.

Over these years I have shared an abundance of content with my readers. Profiling 1,500+ books through innovative and in-depth features as well as reviews of the books I have read during this time. To honor this moment of celebration, I will share my five-fav reads in the last five years under each of my five-fav genres.

I hope you have found as much joy in my bookish wanderings as I have in sharing them! More to come…

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An Exploration Of Science Fiction...

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Pull Of The Stars…

For as long as most of us have been alive, we have looked up at the stars and dreamed of the remarkable. Visions of sprawling and distant worlds, parallel universes, artificial intelligence, unearthly creatures, and concepts we would be hard pressed to put a name to have tumbled through our minds. Recent offerings in the genre are limitless, bringing to the page the fantastical as well as the futuristic. Fans are ravenous and the last few years have offered up an unprecedented level of satiation for that hunger.

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A Wonderland Of Fantasy Fiction...

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Tell Me A Story…

At the very least, books are meant to ignite our imagination.  That spark, when given full reign is arguably the most transformative and revelatory capacity we as humans have access to. And no genre wields this influence more fully than Fantasy. Authors in this category regard a sheet of paper empty of words as a blank canvas on which to paint unfathomable universes. So reader, allow me to lead you into the language of dreams.

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Books Set In A Circus Or Carnival

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A Backstage Pass To A World Of Wonders…

There's one fantasy that doesn't get old even as we do: running away with the circus. Escaping to a place where you can inhale the mouthwatering scent of cotton candy and fresh popcorn, behold dazzling lights that turn night into day, be held captive by impossible feats of magic, and surrender yourself to a place of vast spectacle. Bring a spark of extraordinary into your everyday life with these incredible books that will sweep you away to the dark and glamourous world of carnivals and circuses, where nothing is as it seems. A setting ripe for literature as any I can imagine.

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A Very Inconvenient Scandal - Jacquelyn Mitchard

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A Very Inconvenient Scandal - Jacquelyn Mitchard

Fiction

Rating: 7.5/10

This author crafts stories that are as heartwarming as they are heartbreaking, expertly guiding us through the complexities that emerge within families. Her latest packs an emotional punch, delivering a page turning family drama that explores the consequences of loyalty, deception, jealousy, scandal, and fraught family dynamics. And the big secret that the scandal in the title is referring too, its a doozy!

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Master Mind Games...

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Books That Keep You Guessing…

Anna O - Matthew Blake

Yellowface - R.F. Kuang

The Busy Body - Kemper Donovan

My Murder - Katie Williams

Kill For Me Kill For You - Steve Cavanagh

Last Murder At The End Of The World - Stuart Turton

The Fury - Alex Michaelides

End Of The Story - A.J. Finn

A Talent For Murder - Peter Swanson

The Split - Kit Frick

Assassins Anonymous - Rob Hart

First Lie Wins - Ashley Elston

One Of The Good Guys - Araminta Hall

Not By Blood - Chris Narozy

He Started It - Samantha Downing

Blood Sugar - Sascha Rothchild

No One Will Miss Her - Kat Rosenfield

Woman In The Window - A.J. Finn

For More Reads Like This, Check Out…

Master Mind Games

Books Set In The Art World...

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Artsy Lit…

Curse Of Pietro Houdini - Derek B. Miller

The Lost Van Gogh - Jonathan Santlofer

The Flanders Panel - Arturo Perez-Reverte

Fake - Erica Katz

The Art Forger - B.A. Shapiro

Chasing Cezanne - Peter Mayle

The Last Mona Lisa - Jonathan Santlofer

The Swan Thieves - Elizabeth Kostova

The Violin Conspiracy - Brendan Slocumb

Loot - Aaron Elkins

Girl With The Botticelli Eyes - Herbert Lieberman

The Raphael Affair - Iain Pears

The Gauguin Connection - Estelle Ryan

Loving Frank - Nancy Horan

The Cabinets Of Barnaby Mayne - Elsa Hart

The Art Thief - Michael Finkel

Con/Artist: Life & Crimes Of The World’s Greatest Art Forger - Tony Tetro

Hot Art: Chasing Thieves & Detectives In The World Of Stolen Art - Josh Knelman

For More Reads, Check Out…

Literary Compositions

If You Prefer Your History In Fictional Form...

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Historical Fiction Reads…

The Women - Kristin Hannah

Warm Hands Of Ghosts - Katherine Arden

Table For Two - Amor Towles

James - Percival Everett

The Widow Spy - Megan Campisi

Homecoming - Kate Morton

The Last Russian Doll - Kristen Loesch

The Marriage Portrait - Maggie O’Farrell

The Starlet Letter - Julie Mathison

The Spectacular - Fiona Davis

The Sin Eater - Megan Campisi

The Puzzle Master - Danielle Trussoni

Essex Dogs - Dan Jones

Hotel Of Secrets - Diana Biller

Strangers In The Night - Heather Webb

A Gentleman In Moscow - Amor Towles

The House With The Golden Door - Elodie Harper

L.A. Confidential - James Ellroy

For More Historical Fiction…

Now & Then

Yellowface - R.F. Kuang - Top Book Pick!

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Yellowface - R.F. Kuang - Top Book Pick!

Fiction/Satire

Rating: 9/10

Juniper is a fledging writer, ravenous with ambition. When her bestselling author friend Athena chokes to death one night when they are hanging at her fancy schmancy apartment, Juniper steals her just-finished masterpiece. A masterpiece she hasn’t whispered a thing about to anyone. Did I mention she is also an unabashed liar. Flat out, bald faced, deluded and narcissistic, she even manages to fool herself. Seriously, she cannot help herself. A brilliant read!

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The Quiet Tenant - Clemence Michallon

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The Quiet Tenant - Clemence Michallon

Thriller

Rating: 7/10

Aidan is charming, objectively handsome, and always willing to lend a hand. But behind the meticulously fabricated veneer, he’s also a kidnapper and serial killer. While we all have reason to shy away from the “serial killer” novels, which have seen a resurgence of popularity in the last year, this one delves a little deeper than most. What is, at a glance, a twisted premise, is in fact a novel that raises unexpected moral considerations.

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Paradox Hotel - Rob Hart

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Paradox Hotel - Rob Hart

Sci-Fi

Rating: 9/10

January is head of security at the Paradox Hotel, a luxury locale where trillionaires stay when travelling to and from different time periods. With a big summit planned to determine the new owner of the hotel, she struggles to keep herself in the here and now while juggling a maelstrom of complications that arise. The hotel is losing bits and pieces of past events, almost as if history is dissolving. And she herself is unstuck, a little like Alice In Wonderland. And then there’s the body in a room that doesn’t exist. What’s a girl to do? Well, this girl’s not telling!

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