Are you like me, on the edge of your seat, waiting for the spooky season to arrive, finally? Unfortunately, we have about three more months until we are graced with jack o’lanterns. But did you know that there is something called “summerween”? We can get in the Halloween spirit with a few mysteries and thrillers that give us readers the thrills and chills, but during the summertime! Some mysteries make summer camp or a summer vacation a bad idea; however, others bring the spookiness that hopefully chills you through a heatwave.
But if you want to wait patiently for a good mystery to read during the spooky season. Don’t worry! I’ve listed a few book recommendations that are being released later in the year, and I hope they’re to die for…figuratively speaking.
Available Now
Burn After Reading by Catherine Ryan Howard
The night Jack Smyth ran into flames in a desperate attempt to save his wife from their burning home, he was, tragically, too late – but hailed a hero.
Until it emerged that Kate was dead long before the fire began.
Suspicion has stalked him ever since. After all, there’s no smoke without fire.
A year on, he’s signed a book deal. He wants to tell his side of the story, to prove his own innocence in print. He just needs someone to help him write it.
Emily has never ghostwritten anything before, but she knows what it’s like to live with a guilty secret.
And she’s about to learn that some stories should never be told . . . (Credit: Transworld Publishers Ltd)
The House at Devil’s Neck by Tom Mead
An apparent suicide in a London townhouse uncannily mirrors a similar incident from twenty-five years ago, prompting Scotland Yard’s George Flint to delve deep into the past in search of the solution to a long-forgotten mystery.
Meanwhile, Joseph Spector travels with a coach party through the rainy English countryside to visit an allegedly haunted house on a lonely island called Devil’s Neck. The house, first built by a notorious alchemist and occultist, was later used as a field hospital in the First World War before falling into disrepair. The visitors hold a seance to conjure the spirit of a long-dead soldier. But when a storm floods the narrow causeway connecting Devil’s Neck to the mainland, they find themselves stranded in the haunted house. Before long, the guests begin to die one by one, and it seems that the only possible culprit is the phantom soldier.
Flint’s and Spector’s investigations are in fact closely linked, but it is only when the duo are reunited at the storm-lashed Devil’s Neck that the truth is finally revealed. Tom Mead once again creates a brilliant homage to John Dickson Carr and the Golden Age of mysteries with this intricately plotted puzzle. (Credit: Mysterious Press)
Welcome To Camp Killer by Cynthia Murphy
When an American-style residential camp is set up in the grounds of an English stately home, the teenage instructors are looking forward to a summer of fun activities. But right from the start, things don’t feel quite right at Camp Miller.
There are rumours of a tragedy that took place in the grounds and unexplained sightings of a ghostly presence. Then the incidents begin–a near-drowning out on the lake, a fatal fall from a cliff-face . . . Are these tragic accidents or is there something more sinister going on at Camp Killer . . . ? (Credit: Union Square & Co.)
This Is Where We Die by Cindy RX He
Sadie, Will, Isla, Anthony, Emily, and Charlie are survivors. They were the six (out of eight) to return from a ski holiday turned nightmare two years ago. Although… nobody knows exactly what happened; the details hushed up via the wealth and connections of Sadie’s rich parents.
When an exclusive private island with a mansion for rent goes viral on social media, their graduating class persuades Sadie to rent it for the weekend. The six arrive first by helicopter and wait for the rest of their classmates to join them by boat the next day.
But nobody ever comes.
Cut off from the rest of the world with no cell service and no means off the island, paranoia and terror mount as they start to be picked off one by one by an unseen killer. Their past has finally caught up with them, and they’ll need to figure out who is killing them before they all wind up dead. (Credit: Sourcebooks Fire)
Circle of Liars by Kate Francis
Seven liars in the circle. Only one can survive…’
Seven teens arrive for a school retreat – only to find an abandoned motel and a sinister text message waiting for them: I know what you did a year ago.
Each of the seven buried a guilty secret about their tragic school fire. And now someone is out for revenge.
Every hour they must choose the guiltiest one among them to cross over the white line that circles the motel and be killed. Otherwise, they all die.
But who deserves to live, and who to die? Because only one of them can survive…
Do you dare enter the circle of liars? (Credit: Usbourne Publishing)
Cyanide in the Sun: And Other Stories of Summertime Crime edited by Martin Edwards
Martin Edwards presents a jam-packed travel case of short mysteries bristling with murder and chicanery, perfect for a summer getaway. (Credit: British Library Publishing)
How the Other Half Die by P.C. Roscoe
Summer on ultra-exclusive Mokani Island has always been the highlight of Avery Finch’s year. It’s a chance to hang out in paradise with other super rich families. But this summer, Avery brings along her college roommate, Nora, and the vibe feels off from the start.
Avery’s parents are desperately trying to cover up scandalous secrets. Her ex, Hugo, can’t get over their split. Her best friend, Sydney, is acting weird. Leo, who looks hot in his staff uniform, can’t keep his eyes off her. And nobody likes Nora, who keeps sticking her nose where it doesn’t belong. Everyone on the island is hiding something – and some secrets are worth killing for.
A tropical storm is brewing, and before long someone is going to end up dead … (Credit: Hachette Children’s Group)
Coming Soon To A Haunting Shelf Near You
The Dead Husband Cookbook by Danielle Valentine
Expected Publishing Date: August 5
One husband, well done.
When infamous chef, restaurateur, and television personality Maria Capello’s husband died, the media circus was intense…and quick to cast the blame. Whispers claimed Maria murdered her husband to build her culinary empire on his bones, and that there was an all-too-grisly reason his body was never recovered. Yet for the past few decades, the Capello family maintained their stoney silence–until now.
Thea Woods has no idea why she was chosen to work with Maria on her sure-to-be-infamous memoir, but she doesn’t question her luck. Spirited away to the Capello’s rustic upstate farm, she’s soon embroiled in the mystery–and cut off from the rest of the world. It should be the job of a lifetime, but something’s not quite right with the close-knit clan, and Damien Capello isn’t the only one to go mysteriously missing over the years. As the true story of Maria’s past unfolds and the stench of rot hidden behind the kind coastal grandmother veneer rises, Thea finds herself trapped…and desperately afraid.
Because there are reasons why Damien’s body was never found…and why, in over thirty years, Maria Capello has never revealed the secret ingredient in her most famous recipe. (Credit: Sourcebooks Landmark)
Bury Your Friends by Benjamin Dean
Expected Publishing Date: August 14
Ten friends. One night. A classy celebration. A deranged killer. Lots of murder.
Noah and his best friends Cameron, Baby, Fliss, Griffin, Miles, Tabitha, Wim, Verity and Hugo are finally graduating from Woodthorn Academy with the world and all its promises laid out before them. To celebrate exam results day, they’re hosting a party weekend at Black Stone, an opulent country estate, for the whole school to attend. But for one night only the ten friends will have a low-key celebration – after all, it’s how the upper echelons begin their futures.
But things take a sinister turn when they find themselves in the crosshairs of a killer making one simple demand: every hour, one person must be evicted from the house or someone inside the house will die.
With nowhere to run and a killer on the prowl, choices must be made. But, as people inside the house start to go missing too, it soon becomes clear that nobody is safe. By the time morning comes, who will have survived the night? And is the killer much closer than they realised . . . (Credit: Simon & Schuster)
Five Found Dead by Sulari Gentill
Expected Publishing Date: August 19
On a train, there are only so many places to hide…
Crime fiction author Joe Penvale has won the most brutal battle of his life. Now that he has finished his intense medical treatment, he and his twin sister, Meredith, are boarding the glorious Orient Express in Paris, hoping for some much-needed rest and rejuvenation. Meredith also hopes that the literary ghosts on the train will nudge Joe’s muse awake, and he’ll be inspired to write again. And he is; after their first evening spent getting to know some of their fellow travelers, Joe pulls out his laptop and opens a new document. Seems like this trip is just what the doctor ordered…
And then some. The next morning, Joe and Meredith are shocked to witness that the cabin next door has become a crime scene, bathed in blood but with no body in sight. The pair soon find themselves caught up in an Agatha Christie-esque murder investigation. Without any help from the authorities, and with the victim still not found, Joe and Meredith are asked to join a group of fellow passengers with law enforcement backgrounds to look into the mysterious disappearance of the man in Cabin16G. But when the steward guarding the crime scene is murdered, it marks the beginning of a killing spree which leaves five found dead–and one still missing. Now Joe and Meredith must fight once again to preserve their newfound future and to catch a cunning killer before they reach the end of the line. (Credit: Poisoned Pen Press)
How Bad Things Can Get by Darcy Coates
Expected Publishing Date: August 26
It was supposed to be the party of the century: miles of idyllic white sand beaches, lush jungle foliage…and a dark legend nobody dreamed might be all too true.
When an online influencer and several hundred of his most loyal fans land on Prosperity Island, the plan is simple: five days of elaborate games, drinking, and suntanned fun.
A week in paradise should have been a welcome respite. The only survivor of an infamous cult, Ruth wants nothing more than to keep her head down and not draw attention. She’s spent decades outrunning her blood-soaked childhood, and her identity is a closely held secret.
But then the true history of the island is revealed…along with its sinister connection to Ruth’s past. As guests go missing and games turn deadly, Ruth and the rest of the attendees are forced to question whether they’ve really been invited to paradise…or whether something much darker–and far bloodier–is waiting for them just beyond the bonfire’s light. (Credit: Poisoned Pen Press)
The Hex Girls: A Rogue Thorn by Lily Meade
Expected Publishing Date: August 26
Coolsville is shaken up when eco-goth band The Hex Girls move to town. Teenagers Thorn, Luna, and Dusk are looking for a fresh start for themselves and their band after the disastrous events that destroyed their hometown and Thorn’s reputation. But things take a turn for the worse when a mysterious mist starts killing crops and making people sick wherever Thorn goes. She quickly becomes the town’s prime suspect and is outcast once again.
As her band falls apart, Thorn turns to the Mystery Inc. gang, especially Velma, for help as they try to solve the mystery and prove Thorn’s innocence. While the gang thinks that Thorn’s magical powers are the key to stopping the growing threat to Coolsville, Thorn is sure magic will only bring more harm than good—and that revealing her true nature would make her an outsider forever. Can they solve the mystery and save Coolsville before someone gets seriously hurt. . . or worse? (Credit: Random House Books for Young Readers)
Let’s Split Up by Bill Wood
Expected Publication Date: September 2
When the town’s “it-couple,” Brad and Shelley, are found brutally murdered in a secluded manor, a brave group of teen friends takes on the mystery.
Set in 2001 Sanera, California-a small, quiet community where nothing ever happens-the shocking murders shake everyone, leaving them to believe the ghost of a murdered landowner has finally taken his revenge. Join Cam, Jonesy, Amber, and the new girl Buffy as they dig deeper into the sinister secrets of the mansion. With every clue they uncover, the eerie rumors seem frighteningly real. As they decide whether to stick together or split up to find evidence, they must face the ultimate question: will this decision be their salvation or their doom? (Credit: Scholastic Press)
Catch Your Death by Ravena Guron
Expected Publication Date: September 2
When Devi, Lizzie, and Jayne get snowed in and stranded at the grand Bramble Estate, home of the wealthy Vanforte family, they find themselves accidentally right in the middle of a murder plot. The matriarch, Emily Vanforte, has been poisoned at her own dinner party, and whoever did it is still on the loose.
The killer could only be one of four people: Charles, Emily’s notorious politician husband; Lottie their seemingly perfect teenage daughter; Douglas, Lottie’s good-for-nothing boyfriend; and Tate, Charle’s nephew who is more than meets the eye.
Cut off from help, confined in an isolated house with a killer, and surrounded by suspects, the girls decide to solve the mystery before one of them becomes the next victim. But no one is safe with knives hidden under the floorboards, vanishing guns, and secret passages in the walls. And in a house full of liars, how will they ever discover the truth in time? (Credit: Sourcebooks Fire)
Keep Your Friends Close by Cynthia Murphy
Expected Publication Date: September 2
Chloe Roberts is on top of the world. After a stellar first year at the prestigious Morton Academy, she’s a shoo-in for Head Girl and a coveted position in the school’s secret society, Jewel and Bone. But her dreams are shattered when her best friend, Nikhita Patel, unfairly snatches the top spot—and steals Chloe’s boyfriend at the same time.
Heartbroken and humiliated, Chloe discovers a shocking truth: Jewel and Bone isn’t as secret as she thought. The rest of the school despises the Jewels, and there’s even a “Book of Crime and Punishment” cataloging their misdeeds. Things take a very dark turn when the names in the book start to correlate with murders of Jewel and Bone members on campus. Suddenly, anyone could be a suspect.
And now, Chloe must navigate a web of lies and deceit to get to the bottom of this twisted game before she’s next on the kill list. (Credit: Delacorte Press)
How to Survive a Horror Movie by Scarlett Dunmore
Expected Publication Date: September 9
Horror movie buff Charley Ryan isn’t expecting much when she’s enrolled at a girls’ boarding school on a remote island. That is, until someone starts killing off the senior class. From elaborate scare tactics to severed heads in fridges, these gruesome murders are straight out of Charley’s favorite films. To top it off, she’s also seeing the ghosts of her former classmates.
No one’s surprised when Charley’s taste in movies makes her the prime suspect. Determined to clear her name, she sets out to find the killer before her campus becomes more graveyard than school. She’s equipped only with her encyclopedic knowledge of horror cinema and the help of her trusty cinephile best friend, Olive–oh, and those pesky ghosts, if they can shut up long enough to lend a helping hand.
With a plot twist sure to make you SCREAM, this is an addictive love letter of a slasher that will keep you guessing until the very last page.(Credit: Union Square & Co.)
Other People’s Houses by Clare Mackintosh
Expected Publishing Date: September 16
The Hill is the kind of place everyone wants to live: luxurious, exclusive and safe. But now someone is breaking and entering these Cheshire homes one by one, and DS Leo Brady suspects the burglar is looking for something, or someone, in particular.
Over the border in Wales, DC Ffion Morgan recovers the body of an estate agent from the lake. There’s no love lost between Ffion and estate agents, but who hated this one enough to want her dead – and why?
As their cases collide, Ffion and Leo discover people will pay a high price to keep their secrets behind closed doors . . . (Credit: Sourcebooks Landmark)
Body of Water by Adam Godfrey
Expected Publication Date: September 23
Don’t let the water drag you down…
It’s been six years since Glen Masters lost his wife in a tragic accident. In hopes of reconnecting with his grieving teenage daughter, Lauren, he decides to take her on a road trip through the Appalachian mountains, where he has fond memories of their past as a family. But what was supposed to be a quick diner pit stop suddenly transforms into a nightmare when armed men stumble in, ranting about a mysterious and deadly “living water” that attacked several people up the road. The story the men spin seems to be the rantings of drunken lunatics, but soon Glen, his daughter, and the other diners find themselves hostages to both the gunmen and the inexplicably terrifying entity.
Because there’s truly something wrong with the water, and it has no mercy.
Panic grows as the diners play witness to a nature-defying being that seeks only to swallow everything in its path. With help nowhere in sight, the group of strangers must work together to devise an escape, and ultimately, Glen will have to face his worst fears to reconcile with the past or risk losing everything.(Credit: Sourcebooks Landmark)
The Killer Question by Janice Hallett
Expected Publication Date: September 23
Sue and Mal Eastwood run an isolated rural pub called The Case is Altered where a weekly trivia game has revived its flagging fortunes—that is, until a body is found in the nearby river. Soon after, a mysterious new team arrives and shakes up the diverse field of regulars by scoring top marks in every round…every week.
Meanwhile, Sue and Mal have a secret of their own. Before arriving here, they were caught up in a secret police operation which meant they had to leave town—and whatever happened back then seems to have finally caught up with them.
Five years later, the pub lies derelict, and their nephew Dominic is determined to make a documentary about their story. What happened at this unassuming pub? And can a single question really kill? (Credit: Atria Books)
The Librarians by Sherry Thomas
Expected Publication Date: September 30
Sometimes a workplace isn’t just a workplace but a place of safety, understanding, and acceptance. And sometimes murder threatens the sanctity of that beloved refuge….
In the leafy suburbs of Austin, Texas, a small branch library welcomes the public every day of the week. But the patrons who love the helpful, unobtrusive staff and leave rave reviews on Yelp don’t always realize that their librarians are human, too.
Hazel flees halfway across the world for what she hopes will be a new beginning. Jonathan, a six-foot-four former college football player, has never fit in anywhere else. Astrid tries to forget her heartbreak by immersing herself in work, but the man who ghosted her six months ago is back, promising trouble. And Sophie, who has the most to lose, maintains a careful and respectful distance from her coworkers, but soon that won’t be enough anymore.
When two patrons turn up dead after the library’s inaugural murder mystery–themed game night, the librarians’ quiet routines come crashing down. Something sinister has stirred, something that threatens every single one of them. And the only way the librarians can save the library—and themselves—is to let go of their secrets, trust one another, and band together….
All in a day’s work. (Credit: Berkley)
The Devouring Light by Kat Ellis
Expected Publication Date: September 30
When Haden Romero and her rival, Deacon Rex—alongside their bands, including Haden’s ex, Cairo—are stranded on their way to a rock festival, she thinks missing the gig is the worst thing that could happen.
She’s wrong.
Marooned in treacherous swamplands with no way out, the group stumbles upon an eerie, decaying house. It seems like a safe haven, a place to wait out the storm.
The house, however, isn’t just abandoned—it’s been waiting for them.
Bodies begin to pile up. The walls start to close in. Twisted secrets come to light. And unless Haden and the others can survive long enough to escape, the house will claim them—forever. (Credit: HarperCollins)
Make Me A Monster by Kalynn Bayron
Expected Publication Date: September 30
Meka is used to death. After all, it’s the family business.
As a newly certified mortician’s assistant at her parents’ funeral home, her days are not for the faint of heart. Luckily her boyfriend Noah isn’t squeamish, and Meka is finally feeling ready to say the three little words that will change everything.
But then tragedy strikes, and Meka’s world is torn apart. Nothing makes sense, especially the strange things start happening. Ravens are circling her home. Strangers are following her. Someone is leaving mysterious items at her door. And worst of all . . .
The dead don’t seem to be staying dead.
Meka thought she understood death better than anyone. Turns out, the family business is a bit more complicated than it seems. And Meka isn’t the only one desperate to unearth their secrets . . . because the truth may be worth dying for. (Credit: Bloomsbury YA)
The Scammer by Tiffany D Jackson
Expected Publication Date: October 7
Out from under her overprotective parents, Jordyn is ready to kill it in prelaw at a prestigious, historically Black university in Washington DC. When her new roommate’s brother is released from prison, the last thing Jordyn expects is to come home and find the ex-convict on their dorm room sofa. But Devonte needs a place to stay while he gets back on his feet—and how could she say no to one of her new best friends?
Devonte is older, as charming as he is intelligent, pushing every student he meets to make better choices about their young lives. But Jordyn senses something sinister beneath his friendly advice and growing group of followers. When one of Jordyn’s roommates goes missing, she must enlist the help of the university’s lone white student to uncover the mystery—or become trapped at the center of a web of lies more tangled than she can imagine. (Credit: Quill Tree)
Be Right Back by Bill Wood
Expected Publication Date: October 9
DO YOU DARE STEP OUT ALONE? Scream meets Scooby Doo.
A year has passed since the events in Sanera left the town reeling. Buffy, Jonesy, Amber and Cam unmasked the killer of 2001, but now, a new horror stirs. Back for the inaugural Hallowed Fall Fest where tourists wander the streets in masks and costumes, the bodies start piling up. With each new death, the gang is left a cryptic clue, leading them deeper into a horrifying mystery. An online forum is filled with speculation about local legends, and there is a clue buried within it . if the gang can work it out, they will be able to stop the killer in their tracks. but it’s possible the killer is one step ahead. It all leads to a grand finale, back where it all began, if they can make it there alive.(Credit: Scholastic)
The Forest of Missing Girls by Nichelle Giraldes
Expected Publication Date: November 11
The forest is hungry, and her family’s secrets are tangled in the trees…
Lia Gregg always hoped to outgrow her fear of the woods surrounding her childhood home. The dark, menacing trees have long been the site of whispered legends and disappearances of girls like her. But after a breakup sends her back to live with her family, the woods feel more sinister than ever.
When a teenage girl disappears from their backyard, Lia’s childhood fear becomes terrifyingly real. The missing girls are no longer just faces on the news. Now, the danger is closer than she imagined, and her younger sister could be next.
As Lia digs into the disappearances, she begins to suspect her mother knows more about the forest–and the horrors within–than she’s letting on. To save her sister and uncover the truth, Lia must confront the secrets lurking in the trees and the darkness they conceal…before it’s too late. (Credit: Poisoned Pen Press)
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