Reviews
A Rising Man – The BOLO Books Review
A Rising Man is Abir Mukherjee’s debut historical mystery. It was nominated for the the 2018 Best Novel Edgar Award, so a review hardly seems necessary. But a concerted effort must be made to celebrate the diversity within the crime fiction genre, so this series must...
FlabberGassed – The BOLO Books Review
Michael Craft is the talent behind the highly-regarded LGBTQ+ mystery series featuring Mark Manning. Those novels, along with his other writings, have allowed readers to meet multifaceted characters populating engrossing mystery plots. In 2016, he welcomed his readers...
Under My Skin – The BOLO Books Review
Under My Skin is Lisa Unger’s contribution to the current renaissance of psychological suspense novels lead by unreliable narrators. As with any influx of releases within a hot, of-the-moment sub-genre, the quality of writing varies across the board, but fans of Lisa...
Hold The Dark – A BOLO Books Television Review
Regardless of whether you classify it as Alaskan noir, a revenge thriller, or metaphysical suspense, the new Netflix original movie Hold the Dark will maintain your interest from first frame to final shot. Based on William Giraldi’s well-reviewed novel of the same...
The Druid of Death – The BOLO Books Review
In June of 2014, the character of Sherlock Holmes and the world-building that surrounds him was decreed by court order to be in the public domain. This freed up writers such as Richard T. Ryan to expand upon the existing canon with new stories featuring these iconic...
Lies – The BOLO Books Review
Domestic suspense was once the sole domain of female writers – which is sadly also why it was often sneered at by so-called “serious readers” of crime fiction; but more and more, male authors are exploring what their version of domestic suspense looks like. Take for...
Sweet Little Lies – The BOLO Books Review
With her debut novel, Sweet Little Lies, Caz Frear has knocked it out of the ballpark. It doesn’t take any hidden twists or clever convolutions to manipulate the reader into this love affair; strong writing and a faith in the audience’s intelligence are Caz Frear’s...
School Lies – The BOLO Books Review
Kimberly G. Giarratano’s School Lies is an academic-set mystery with LGBTQ+ themes. Like many books set in the hallowed halls of institutions of higher learning, School Lies pivots on the interactions of the student body, often out of the sight of “responsible...
In Her Bones – The BOLO Books Review
The reading public’s interest in psychological suspense shows no sign of diminishing. In Her Bones is Kate Moretti’s third book in this genre and yet, each of these stand-alones is distinctly different. Unifying them all is an easily-readable writing style and a gift...
November Road – The BOLO Books Review
Nostalgia is a complex concept. Most often, we define it as fondly looking back on a simpler time, a better time; but it has a sinister side as well. Because, in order to long for yesteryear, we must also forget – or at the very least obfuscate - that those times had...
Idyll Hands – The BOLO Books Review
From the Booking Desk: I have made it well known that I am a fan of Stephanie Gayle's Thomas Lynch Series. Below I will post links to my reviews of the previous books. Plus I will include the review blurb I did for the most recent book, which is being released today. ...
Into the Black Nowhere – The BOLO Books Review
After the harrowing events of UNSUB, Caitlin Hendrix has been recruited by the FBI’s Behavioral Analysis Unit. This is where readers will find her at the start of Meg Gardiner’s Into the Black Nowhere. Like the first book in the series, Gardiner molds a classic serial...
Leave No Trace – The BOLO Books Review
With Leave No Trace, Mindy Mejia so organically incorporates setting into the structure of the novel that years from now, future writers will refer to this book as a blueprint for how to nail location. By dividing the story between the inside and the outside, Mejia...
Little Comfort – The BOLO Books Review
Little Comfort is the title of Edwin Hill’s debut novel, but it is also an apt description of the reader’s experience while reading this suspense-filled book. Little Comfort is billed at the first Hester Thursby Mystery, but let’s get that marketing matter out of the...
The Mystery of Three Quarters – The BOLO Books Review
By this point, most crime fiction readers know that Sophie Hannah was chosen by the Agatha Christie Estate to write new novels featuring the iconic Belgian detective, Hercule Poirot. The Mystery of Three Quarters is the third of these “reboots” to be published and...
Pieces of Her – The BOLO Books Review
If you told me that I was about to read a book with a plot that encompasses sexual politics, domestic violence, workplace discrimination, mental health regulation, heath care reform, world political strife, gun violence, and a few other huge – but spoiler-y topics – I...
Presumed Dead – The BOLO Books Review
Carter Blake finds people – that is what he does; but in many ways, it is also who he is on the deepest level. Having such purpose makes the challenges of life bearable and the rewards that accompany success are undeniably fulfilling. So when his latest case – in...
Trust Me – The BOLO Books Review
Many authors are content with discovering their niche, honing their craft in relation to that choice, and writing similar novels across their career. Hank Phillippi Ryan is not such a writer. Fans can trace her evolution from debut novel to the most recent book, all...
Hollywood Ending – The BOLO Books Review
It would be fair to call my review of Kellye Garrett’s debut, Hollywood Homicide, downright glowing and I may have been heard on more than one occasion predicting the novel’s potential for winning awards (which it has in fact done), so to say that my anticipation of...
Death on the Menu – The BOLO Books Review
Even though Lucy Burdette has a new publisher for her Key West Food Critic Mystery series, rest assured that the same loveable characters, sun-soaked setting, and humorous escapades remain present and accounted for. Death on the Menu finds series heroine, Hayley Snow,...