crime

Unforgotten opens with a series of scenes depicting perfectly ordinary people going about their lives and interacting with other perfectly ordinary people. At the same time, a body is discovered in the basement of a building that's over a century old, and DCI Cassie Stuart and her partner DI Sunny Khan must figure out not only what happened to the deceased, but when, in the long history of that building, he died. This mystery series is smart, engaging, thoughtful, and empathetic, and the story's interplay between ordinary people and the crime that's almost certainly been committed by one of

I was swept away by this miniseries. Not fully knowing what to expect, the first episode traps you in an engaging story of anxiety and murder. The set-up feels like the first half of The Stranger by Albert Camus. Every detail, small or otherwise, will be taken into account in later episodes that depict the trial of one of the protagonists.

The show is spearheaded by John Turturro who plays criminal court attorney John Stone. Stone can be described as an "ambulance chaser" but clearly has a soft spot for people in general and his family specifically. His struggles with eczema mirror the

The In Death murder mystery series is based on Lieutenant Eve Dallas solving homicides in 2058 New York City. Eve, with her troubled past and guarded demeanor, works tirelessly to give the dead the justice they deserve. Coupled with Roarke, Eve's billionaire and tech savvy husband, she often finds herself digging through cases with his help. Along with standing for the dead, Eve must face the demons in her own past. These futuristic crime novels will keep you guessing until the last page!

You can read any book out of order for a suspenseful murder mystery, or read in order to follow the

I suffered through this book! (I know what you're thinking, "Why? Life is too short to read books you don't like! Yada yada . . . .") Well I finished it because I had to lead the discussion at book club. (Spoiler! I'm the only one who finished it! Everyone else quit.)

Allan Karlson climbs out the widow because he doesn't want to go to his 100th birthday party. He then manages to steal 50 thousand dollars and forms a group of unlikely friends (which includes an elephant.) They precede to run and hide from both a police detective and the criminal gang he stole from. Through mostly good luck

Eight years ago newspaper reporter Scott Fleetwood became famous when a kidnapper dubbed "The Piper" used Scott's column to communicate with the FBI. It turns out the person communicating with Scott was a fake and the real "Piper" was able to escape capture.  Now The Piper is back and he's abducted Scott's twins and is leading Scott on a merry chase to safely rescue his sons. Scott's involvement in The Piper's final kidnapping lost him the two million dollar ransom and caused the death of the final young victim. This time The Piper is making it personal.  

Despite his remorse, Scott is an

The Sacrifice, Joyce Carol Oates' new novel, is based largely on the 1987 Tawana Brawley alleged rape case and the author's 1969 novel, Them, based on the 1967 race riots.  The novel takes place in the fictional Red Rock neighborhood of inner-city Pascayne, New Jersey, in October of 1987.  It centers around a black family:  Sybilla Frye, 15, allegedly gang raped and beaten by white police officers; her mother, Ednetta Frye; and her stepfather, Anis Schutt.  At the center of the story are the manipulative Mudrick twins, Rev. Marus Mudrick and his attorney brother, Byron; and Leopaldo Quarrquan

Over the top! There's just no better way to describe Angelmaker. 



The core plot is nothing new: A cautious lead character gets swept into a wild adventure that transforms him into a bold hero ... but with a lot more bells, whistles, and mechanical bees. It's a fun fantastical story, plus you get to figure out the connections among clockmakers, British secret intelligence, the gangster underground, elite craftsmen and plans to end the world as we know it. Take a gander at the book trailer. See what I mean?!



The ordinary Joe Spork is our hero, forced to intervene in a plot set to motion

Originally airing in 1998-1999, Cowboy Bebop is widely regarded as an essential part of anime canon, with very good reason.  The story of a group of down-on-their-luck bounty hunters in a gritty version of the future is a mixture of hilarity and tragedy, and worth a watch from almost anyone.

The show begins with Spike Spiegel and his partner, both bounty hunters—dubbed cowboys—on their spaceship, the Bebop (hence the title of the show), in their perpetual search for a new bounty to collect to keep their ship running and food on the table.  Spike prophetically declares that he hates working

In a spotless suburban home in Ireland, a man and two children are found dead, and a badly-wounded woman is rushed to the hospital. They are residents of Broken Harbor, a nearly-abandoned new development left in the lurch after the housing crisis. This is how Detective Mick “Scorcher” Kennedy finds the Spain family, and has his chance to be top detective on the murder squad. In addition to taking on the biggest case of the year, he has a rookie, Richie Curran, to break in.

Detective Kennedy, a scrupulous man who holds fast to the rules, seems to be the one for the job. His new man, Curran, is

Belgium filmmaker Michael Roskam’s first feature-length film, Bullhead, was nominated last year for best foreign language film, which is perhaps a surprise considering its subject – the Flemish underground hormone mafia.  

The film's title, Bullhead, refers both to where cattle gather before slaughter and to the film’s protagonist, Jacky Vanmarsenille, a cattle farmer and illegal hormone seller for the meat trade. When a deal with buyers goes bad, Jacky’s story unfolds to reveal one of the most tragic characters seen on film. The film’s realism combined with Nicolas Karakatsanis’

Andrea Kane’s new adventure brings together a dynamic team of investigators working to solve crimes any way they can. From the ex-Navy Seal who doesn’t mind inflicting a bit of pain to get his answers to a computer genius able to hack into any system, the team will do anything to help their clients. Local police and FBI may not love them but they can’t argue with the results. This case is a race against time with a little girl’s life in the balance.  The Girl Who Disappeared Twice is a fast read reminiscent of a crime show script. Readers will race along with Casey and her team as they try to

Donna Leon, an American living in Venice, is the author of several popular crime novels with Commissario Guido Brunetti as the main hero.

The main characters of the series, mild-mannered and witty inspector Brunetti and his exemplary family, together with the depiction of the magical beauty of Venice, are an obvious and sharp contrast to the world of corruption and criminal energy residing behind the Venice's centuries-old walls. Leon describes the everyday infrastructure of the city that tourists don’t see.  So pervasive is the hot and humid weather on the Venetian canals that it could be

Light Yagami is a bright young man, so when he finds the notebook of a death god that will kill anyone whose name is written in it, he’s understandably skeptical.  It doesn’t take much experimentation to find out that it does exactly what it claims, and it takes even less time for Light to decide that he’s going to clean up the world by killing all the criminals. 

Mass murder, even by untraceable means, will eventually result in public notice.  The eccentric L, the world’s best detective, is hired on for the case.  The elaborate games of cat and mouse between Light and L are astounding in

Do you like mysteries set in the art world? Do you like mysteries with Wiseguys? Then this is your ticket. The main character is a mixture of hero/anti-hero who has gotten himself into a fine pickle and has only himself to blame! Tom Davin is an insurance investigator who works both sides of the art world and now everyone is out to make him pay! I enjoyed the dialogue and all the twists and turns. A fun read!

As author Ande Parks points out in his afterword, Capote in Kansas is not entirely factual. This graphic novel does deal with the research Truman Capote did in composing In Cold Blood, but Parks has mixed in fictional elements as well.

In November 1959, Perry Smith and Dick Hickok murdered four members of the Clutter family in Holcomb, Kansas. Capote's book, published a few years later as a "nonfiction novel," became one of the best-selling books of the 1960s and a "true-crime" classic.

In Capote in Kansas, Parks and illustrator Chris Samnee give an accounting of Capote's time in western

Another mystery with dark humor, Benacquista has offered up something quite different from his previous book, Framed, takes place in the Paris art world. Antoine is happy to live on the perifery of the art world in his job as picture hanger for a gallery. His real world comes to life only at night, at the billiards hall. He is dragged into the art world during an art theft which turns violent. Antione has to find out why the painting was stolen to help him come to terms with the accident. The coming to terms turns into a desire for revenge, which is never quite satisfied. In the end, Antione

Winner of three prestigioius awards, Holy Smoke did not disappoint. Antonio Polsinelli has worked very hard to distance himself from his Italian upbringing, living in Paris and speaking only French. But, a mystery arises from the Italian community that Antonio has escaped from, dragging him back, kicking and screaming. After his childhood friend, Dario, dies and Antionio is shot in his own apartment, he finds himself intrigued, despite his misgivings and begins to investigate just what his friend was up to. Once back in Italy, Antonio is completey involved and must see Dario's plan through to