Here are 100 books that An American Spy fans have personally recommended if you like
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I’m an undying, relentless, optimistic champion of right winning over wrong, of justice prevailing over injustice, and of good people and animals (especially horses) being protected, championed, and loved. And I know from experience that all of this is seldom easy when the stakes are high. Couple that with my love of horses, especially Thoroughbreds, and you might understand that I admire main characters who are committed to protecting the innocent and bringing the bad guys to justice, whether that’s in the human or the equine world. And I love learning almost as much as I love people with character, heart, and courage. These books, I think, check all these boxes.
By now, you probably think I only read books by male authors who create male protagonists. Nope! Here’s a case in point. Sasscer Hill is a woman after my own heart—she writes horse racing mysteries set in the Thoroughbred racing world (!), just like me. Unlike me, Sasscer Hill was a racehorse breeder, trainer, and rider—and she brings all that experience to bear on creating an incredibly realistic setting for all her racing novels. I know a lot about Thoroughbred racing myself, so one thing I’m really drawn to in her books is how authentic they are. She does the “behind the scenes” thing with pinpoint accuracy and ease. And I love that she doesn’t shy away from the “dark underbelly” of racing, either.
In this book, her main character, Fia McKee, is on leave because she uses a little too much force when making an arrest. Ok, yeah, I…
Winner of the $10,000 Dr. Tony Ryan Award for Best Book in Racing Literature! Baltimore police officer Fia McKee is put on leave for excessive use of force after interfering in a crime that turns deadly. Given a second chance, she is sent to work undercover for the Thoroughbred Racing Protective Bureau (TRPB) at the Gulfstream Park in Florida, where she works as an exercise rider. Her assignment is to watch and report back on two racetrack workers who have been suspected of illegal activities and whose horses continue to outperform all expectations, winning their owners unseemly amounts of money…
As a writer, I’ve always been drawn to exploring the teenage experience. Maybe that’s because my experiences in high school and college were rife with the highest of highs and the lowest of lows—everything was intensely beautiful and painful at once. That tension played a major role in my self-discovery process, and story-wise, it makes for a compelling character. But in a lot of literature, I find the depiction of teenage characters to be either sensationalized or infantilizing, melodramatic, or unconvincingly flat. When writing my own adolescent subjects in The Wayside, I turned often toward the rich, complex characters in the stories here.
I can’t talk about notable adolescent protagonists without mentioning Blue van Meer. Marisha Pessl’s cult-favorite debut made an impact on me as a teenage reader, but I recently picked it back up on a whim and was just as enthralled as an adult.
This is a formally inventive novel interspersed with hand-drawn illustrations and pop quizzes. It also defies generic categorization, weaving in elements of murder mystery, campus novel, and coming-of-age saga. It’s a lot to take in (and it clocks in at a door-stopping 540 pages), but Blue’s always-surprising observations keep the pages turning.
The mesmerizing New York Times bestseller by the author of Night Film
Marisha Pessl’s dazzling debut sparked raves from critics and heralded the arrival of a vibrant new voice in American fiction. At the center of Special Topics in Calamity Physics is clever, deadpan Blue van Meer, who has a head full of literary, philosophical, scientific, and cinematic knowledge. But she could use some friends. Upon entering the elite St. Gallway School, she finds some—a clique of eccentrics known as the Bluebloods. One drowning and one hanging later, Blue finds herself puzzling out a byzantine murder mystery. Nabokov meets Donna…
I was in fifth grade when I brought home my first paranormal thriller from the library. It was love at first read. Since then, I’ve broadened my reading horizons to many fiction genres, but fast-paced stories grounded in our world with a dash of magic continue to be my favorite. The same can be said of my viewing habits—give me shows like Severance or Black Mirror, and I’ll be glued to the screen all day long. It probably doesn’t surprise anyone that it is my favorite entertainment genre and writing genre. Many of the books on this list have served as inspiration—I hope you love them too!
This book has one of my favorite paranormal tropes—a girl with an ability she doesn’t want but must use to find the bad guy. But the execution felt truly unique, and despite all my best efforts to figure out who the killer was, the twist at the end caught me completely off guard. Brava.
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Maddie Fynn is a shy high school junior cursed with an eerie intuitive ability that's out of her control—one that entangles her in a homicide investigation For as long as she can remember, Maddie has seen a series of unique digits hovering above the foreheads of each person she encounters. Her earliest memories are marked by these numbers, but it takes her father's premature death for Maddie and her family to realize that these mysterious digits are actually deathdates, and just like birthdays, everyone has one. Forced by her alcoholic mother to use her ability to make extra money, Maddie…
Many of us were taught as children that life isn’t fair. I never accepted this; shouldn’t we do all we can to make life fair? I grew up to be a lifelong activist and a writer for social justice organizations. As a reader and writer, I love books about women’s lives, especially women who realize that the world around them shapes their own experiences. Sometimes history is happening right here, right now—and you know it. Those transformative moments spark the best stories, illuminating each book I’ve recommended.
Any book in which a journalist and a librarian are the heroes gets a gold star from me. In this gripping novel, a Black journalist from Detroit who writes about the Black Lives Matter movement goes to Birmingham, Alabama, in 2019 on a personal and professional quest.
Her great-grandfather was, she believes, killed there by a white policeman 90 years ago, and she’s determined to find out the truth. She also thinks his story can illuminate what’s happening nationwide today. Based on this compelling premise, the novel is a mystery, a love story, a history, and an examination of racial justice rolled into one. I enjoyed the behind-the-scenes view of exactly how a journalist builds a story.
A searing and tender novel about a young Black journalist’s search for answers in the unsolved murder of her great-grandfather in segregated Birmingham, Alabama, decades ago—inspired by the author’s own family history
Birmingham, 1929: Robert Lee Harrington, a master carpenter, has just moved to Alabama to pursue a job opportunity, bringing along his pregnant wife and young daughter. Birmingham is in its heyday, known as the “Magic City” for its booming steel industry, and while Robert and his family find much to enjoy in the city’s busy markets and vibrant nightlife, it’s also a stronghold for the Klan. And with…
I have always loved crime fiction, especially those where justice is served. I love crime stories where ordinary people doing their jobs triumph over evil. But so many crime stories are riddled with profanity, sex, and gratuitous violence. Over the last few years, I’ve searched for books that satisfy my need to read about justice but do it cleanly and in such a way that the story is not compromised. Oh, by the way, I’m also a writer of crime fiction and try to stay true to both justice over evil and telling stories in a clean but realistic way.
I love complex, multi-threaded mysteries that keep me guessing, and this book is one of those that was hard to put down.
This mystery kept me enthralled from beginning to end. And I did not figure it out until Ms. Clark wanted me to. Ms. Clark paints fascinating characters caught up in difficult circumstances. There are several twists, the biggest being at the end, which I immensely appreciated.
I usually have things figured out halfway or three-quarters of the way through. Not this one.
From the “Queen of Suspense” Mary Higgins Clark, a gripping and twisting mystery featuring a television news reporter who finds herself drawn into a terrifying web of treachery, where nothing is as it seems and the truth may be too devastating to pursue...
The murdered woman could have been her double. When reporter Meghan Collins sees the sheet-wrapped corpse in a New York City hospital, she feels as if she's staring into her own face. And Meghan has troubles enough already without this bizarre experience. Nine months ago, her much-loved father's car spun off a New York bridge. Now, investigators…
I’ve poured my life into surfing, competed on the ASP world tour through my late teens and early twenties, was the editor of several different surfing magazines through the late ‘90s and aughts, and still write about it, way too much in fact. It’s my love, my life, my burden, my machete. Earlier today, in fact, I was out there riding waves. There were dolphins and whales. And bright, soul-enriching sun.
I grew up reading Paul Theroux’s fiction and nonfiction. His travel books riveted me, inducing a wanderlust I’ve yet to come down from. When I learned that he’d written a surf novel, I jumped all over it.
I was not disappointed—more like enchanted. There’s the macking surf. There’s Hawaii. There’s the fascinating Joe Sharkey. And there’s a very subtle moment where Paul, the author, pokes his head through and breaks the fourth wall as it were. I loved that. And I love this book.
From renowned writer Paul Theroux comes a dazzling novel following a big-wave surfer in Hawaii as he confronts ageing, privilege and mortality
'It was as if in surfing he was carving his name in water, invisibly, joyously.'
Joe Sharkey knows he is passed his prime.
Now in his sixties, the younger surfers around the breaks on the north shore of Oahu still revere him as the once-legendary 'Shark', but his sponsors have moved on, and Joe wonders what new future awaits him on the horizon. Uninterrupted quality time with the ocean, he hopes.
I picked up And Then There Were None off my parents' shelf when I was probably about thirteen. It was my first Agatha Christie, and I was instantly entranced by her ability to build suspense, write witty dialogue, and plot the perfect murder. As I grew up I continued reading her prolific work, while, like her, making writing my career. When we decided to write our sixth book in the Science of Horror series, we wanted to step out of “horror” and explore more the mystery genre, and we knew Agatha Christie, the Queen of Crime, was the perfect point of view. The Science of Agatha Christie was born.
During research for my book, I came across her own autobiography, which was a rare treat. It made me feel closer to her as I studied her life, getting to read events in her own voice.
Christie was a formidable woman with a life well lived, so hearing her take on her own characters and books was fascinating. She was quite self-effacing, and even admits to being annoyed with Hercule Poirot! I recommend this book for fans of her, of course, but also for aspiring writers.
Back in print in the exclusive authorized edition, is the engaging and illuminating chronicle of the life of the “Queen of Mystery.” Fans of Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple and readers of John Curran’s fascinating biographies Agatha Christie’s Secret Notebooks and Murder in the Making will be spellbound by the compelling, authoritative account of one of the world’s most influential and fascinating novelists, told in her own words and inimitable style. The New York Times Book Review calls Christie’s autobiography a “joyful adventure,” saying, “she brings the sense of wonder...to her extraordinary career.”
When I decided to write about psychopathic killers, I studied real stories and facts about these people. I also read about 80 novels a year as well as writing crime thriller novels. I’ve won more than a few awards and keep studying my craft. Makes me feel young. I love stories with action that make you think and are a little different and unique. I want to make a reader cry and laugh, which is what I look for in a good novel. So, when I write about serial killers, I try to keep it real. I love it!
I love this book! A famous female pianist in Boston who kills bad people, and she has quirks. She also changes boy toys during the story; that whole dynamic is sexy and unusual.
One of my new favorite books. I hate heavy procedural books, and this is not one. The FBI is involved, but not how you think. The railroad killer was also very creative. She does have the FBI chasing her and has friends in the FBI, which is unique, too. The beginning is good, with lots of action and intrigue, and the middle holds up with a bang for an ending.
There are a few surprises here and there, but it is just a solid story.
The Queen's Gambit meets Kill Bill in one of Goodreads' best thrillers of the year.
When a genius pianist turned hunter of serial killers finds herself connected to her latest victim by an eerie twist of fate, her world spirals into dark chaos. Caught in a relentless game of cat-and-mouse with a tenacious FBI agent, she is also thrust into a dangerous face-off with a serial killer whose lethal cunning could rival her own.
"I Kill Killers" is a pulse-pounding journey into moral ambiguity, blurring the slippery line between heroes and villains.
Trigger warning: This book contains sensitive content, including…
I’ve loved murder mysteries since childhood, and during the pandemic–when reading became a challenge–I returned to my first literary love, binging on one mystery series after another. Eventually, I decided to write one with my friend Elizabeth Renzetti. It’s been the most enjoyable writing experience either of us has had. I’ve written three other published novels, and I have a day job as a therapist (I like to think this helps with realistic characterization, but it also pays the bills). I write humor because I like to have fun at work, and I appreciate a good laugh when I’m reading.
I couldn’t help but root for Miranda Abbott, the hilariously self-absorbed heroine of I Only Read Murder. The formerly famous television star of the Pastor Fran crime-fighting series, Miranda’s path to redemption requires her to solve a real-life murder where all the suspects are members of an amateur theatrical society. I Only Read Murder is ridiculously entertaining, a very fun romp that takes full advantage of the cozy mystery tropes we all love.
“Strap in for a hilarious and satisfying ride.” —Terry Fallis, bestselling author of Operation Angus
A once-famous TV sleuth An amateur theater production An onstage murder A town full of suspects…
Miranda Abbott, once known for the crime-solving, karate-chopping church pastor she played on network television, has hit hard times. She’s facing ruin when a mysterious postcard arrives, summoning her to Happy Rock, a small town in the Pacific Northwest. But when she gets there, nothing is what she expected.
In dire straits, she signs up for an amateur production at the Happy Rock Little Theater. On opening night, one…
My name is Christian Klaver, and I’ve had, in turn, many different jobs as a bookseller, martial arts instructor, and bartender before settling into a career in internet security. Books have always been a passion of mine, with science fiction, fantasy, and mystery as my main focus. I’ve been a lifelong fan of Sherlock Holmes and am a proud member of two different Sherlock Holmes Societies.
This is possibly a more Lovecraftian selection than a Holmesian one, as the monsters and the unfathomable world of Lovecraft and Cthulhu really dominate thematically. The sinister darkness of Lovecraft really comes through here.
It’s a little heartbreaking to see Holmes in over his head, struggling with non-Euclidian magic, but very well done and a gripping story.
The third novel in six-time New York Times best-selling author Lois H. Gresh's Sherlock Holmes vs. Cthulhu series.
THE OBLITERATING SHADOW
The deadly dimensions over London have been sealed, and the monsters have departed. But word has come to Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson of a more terrifying creature still - the great Cthulhu has been sighted off the waters of Innsmouth, Massachusetts. Only Holmes can defeat him.
And in the muddy village of Innsmouth, surrounded by villagers who are more sea-monster than human, Holmes meets again his nemesis, Moriarty, and yet greater foes: Amelia Scarcliffe and Maria Fitzgerald, harbingers…
