Why am I passionate about this?
Writing a mystery novel is no small task. You have to craft a clever plot, stay true to your characters, and bewilder, but ultimately satisfy, your readers, all the while not mixing up your theirs and your there’s. Maybe that’s why we writers like to saddle our heroes with even heavier burdens, forcing them to sort through complex webs of deceit, and fight against deeply rooted cultures full of corruption. When they win, we share their victories… even more so because it means we’ve finished writing the darn book! Enjoy this list of detectives facing long odds, and let it inspire you in whatever creative endeavors are closest to your heart.
Ash's book list on mysteries where the detective is in way over their head
Why did Ash love this book?
I probably wouldn’t even know that I liked mystery novels, much less grow up to write them, if I hadn’t curled up with The Westing Game in my parent’s attic at the start of the summer of my 8th-grade year.
Borrowing from so many wonderful detective traditions which came before, Raskin pits a series of teams against each other to discover which one of them is a murderer. The prize? Sam Westing’s two hundred-million-dollar inheritance.
Unlike the adults on the rest of this list, Raskin’s teenage sleuths are not in over their heads. They’re loyal, crafty, and much smarter than their adult counterparts. The only one truly over his head was young reader Ash Bishop. Thirty years later and I’m still mad I didn’t solve this one.
10 authors picked The Westing Game as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it. This book is for kids age 10, 11, 12, and 13.
A Newbery Medal Winner
"A supersharp mystery...confoundingly clever, and very funny." —Booklist, starred review
A bizarre chain of events begins when sixteen unlikely people gather for the reading of Samuel W. Westing’s will. And though no one knows why the eccentric, game-loving millionaire has chosen a virtual stranger—and a possible murderer—to inherit his vast fortune, on things for sure: Sam Westing may be dead…but that won’t stop him from playing one last game!
Winner of the Newbery Medal
Winner of the Boston Globe/Horn Book Award
An ALA Notable Book
"Great fun for those who enjoy illusion, word play, or sleight…