Recent Reviews

Whiskey Business – The BOLO Books Review

A few times each publishing season, a book generates enough buzz to enter a community’s zeitgeist—that moment when it seems like everyone you know is talking about the same book. It’s rare when that happens for a self-published debut, but Adrian Andover seems to have...

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The Girl in the Green Dress – The BOLO Books Review

By this stage in her career, readers have come to understand that they can count on Mariah Fredericks to always publish high quality historical crime fiction—works that demonstrate a deep knowledge of the story’s setting and time period, a rich tapestry of intriguing...

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The Cut – The BOLO Books Review

After Geneva, Richard Armitage’s second novel, The Cut, shows that his literary output will be as varied as his acting choices. By expertly manipulating the dual timeline narrative, Armitage documents the long-standing effects of poor decision making. Back in 1994, in...

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Recent Interviews

Cynthia Kuhn – A BOLO Books Guest Post

From the Booking Desk: I have long been a fan of the academic mystery, so when Cynthia Kuhn's Lila Maclean Academic Mystery series was announced, I knew that it was going on my To-Be-Read pile. (And since then, of course, BOLO Books has posted reviews of both The...

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Trace Conger – A BOLO Books Guest Post

From The Booking Desk: I am pleased to welcome Trace Conger to BOLO Books today. Trace's new novel, The Prison Guard's Son, is out now and he's with us today to tell us a bit more about the inspiration for this novel. Fans of true crime will want to read on... The...

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Owen Matthews – The BOLO Books Interview

From the Booking Desk: I recently reviewed Owen Matthews' The Fixes here on the blog. And last year, I reviewed his YA debut - How to Win at High School. To say that I am thrilled to welcome Owen Laukkanen (the real man behind the Owen Matthews pen name) to BOLO Books...

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Recent Articles

Cover Reveal – First Week Free at the Roomy Toilet

From the Booking Desk: Many of you know that after years of writing exclusively short stories, Josh Pachter released his debut novel--Dutch Threat--in 2023. That book would go on to be a finalist in the Best Debut Novel category for the Agatha, Lefty, and Macavity...

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Cover Reveal – Hold Me Down

From the Booking Desk: Today's cover reveal is a bit different. Clea Simon's Hold Me Down is re-release with a new publisher, so the novel has been given an awesome new look. Since I previously reviewed this book, I'll link to that review as well. If you haven't...

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All the Colors of the Dark – The BOLO Books Review

The epic scope of a tale like Homer’s The Odyssey resonates universally because at its core it is simply the story of man on a journey home—albeit a circuitous route fraught with peril and temptation at every unplanned turn. While it is a completely different type of...

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About

Welcome to BOLO Books. The blog name comes from the common police acronym meaning “be on the look out.” (or “be on the lookout” – depending on your source). This is especially appropriate in this case, as this blog will focus on books in the mystery and thriller genre. Crime fiction is my passion and I want to share that with you.

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