Best Mysteries & Thrillers of 2013

by Max Barry

An up-all-night thriller for freaks and geeks who want to see their wizards all grown up in the real world and armed to the... Full review >

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by C.J. Box

Its basis in a real-life conflict makes Joe’s 13th case one of his most tendentious, but it’s Box who makes it one of his... Full review >

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by James Lee Burke

Pruning away the florid subplots that often clutter his heaven-storming blood baths, Burke produces his most sharply... Full review >

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by Lee Child

For the pure pleasure of uncomplicated, nonstop action, no one touches Reacher, who accurately observes that “I trained... Full review >

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by Jeffery Deaver

Perhaps the cleverest of all Deaver’s exceptionally clever thrillers. If you’ve ever wished you could take the film Memento... Full review >

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by P.T. Deutermann

A first-rate yarn of war and the sea that will keep the reader on edge right to the end. Full review >

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by Kevin Egan

A crystalline noir nightmare built on the premise that yes, things can always, always, always get worse. Full review >

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by Robert Galbraith

A quick, fun read. Rowling delivers a set of characters every bit as durable as her Potter people and a story that, though... Full review >

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by Meg Gardiner

If you can accept the preposterous setup, the ruthlessly two-dimensional villains and the world’s most uncomplaining... Full review >

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by Maurizio de Giovanni ; translated by Antony Shugaar

In this crisply translated novel, de Giovanni explores Lojacono’s loneliness and vulnerability while simultaneously... Full review >

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by Charlotte Hinger

This third case for Lottie (Lethal Lineage, 2011, etc.) is filled with surprising historical information, social commentary,... Full review >

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by Ewart Hutton

The sexual peccadilloes are not for the squeamish, but the plot twists are cunning, and Glyn Capaldi is the most appealing... Full review >

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by Craig Johnson

Unlike Walt’s usual adventures (A Serpent’s Tooth, 2013, etc.), this novella shuns mystery for a wild and dangerous... Full review >

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by Jim Kelly

Even if they never came up with such a diabolical plot, long-winded colleagues could well take example from the generosity... Full review >

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by Stephen King

A satisfyingly warped yarn, kissing cousins of Blue Velvet. Readers may be inclined to stay off the Tilt-a-Whirl for a while... Full review >

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by Catriona McPherson

The creator of Dandy Gilver (Dandy Gilver and an Unsuitable Day for a Murder, 2012, etc.) has produced a stand-alone that is... Full review >

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by Jeffrey Moore

Nile and Céleste’s relationship—at times bantering, at times lovingly hectoring—will give enthralled readers the stamina to... Full review >

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by John Sandford

Sandford keeps every stage of the investigation clear, compelling and suspenseful while peeling back layer after layer of a... Full review >

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by Lynn Shepherd

Lynn (The Solitary House, 2012, etc.) takes the familiar story of the Shelley family and fills in the holes in the... Full review >

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by Lachlan Smith

Sensitive, ingenious and suspenseful. A series is promised and very welcome indeed. Full review >

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by Martin Cruz Smith

Anyone who enjoys crime novels but hasn’t read Smith is in for a treat. Read this book, then look for other Arkady Renko... Full review >

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