10 books like You Don't Know Me

"The serial killer isn’t on trial he’s on the jury."

Actor Bobby Solomon is accused of murdering his wife and bodyguard in a frenzied attack. Eddie Flynn, former conman turned lawyer, is brought in to assist the defence team. Eddie’s the full package—resourceful, quick-witted, a masterful cross-examiner, and he can handle himself in a fight. He also believes in Bobby’s innocence. But he’s up against an ingenious, ruthless killer who will stop at nothing to achieve his cause. 

If the central premise—that of a killer infiltrating the jury and undermining the entire justice system—isn’t sufficiently terrifying, then the array of corrupt police officers and self-serving lawyers (on both sides) should tip you over the edge. Happily, Eddie stands head and shoulders above them all.

When US police chief, Lucia Gomez, is accused of promoting male subordinates in return for sex, her lawyer and old friend, Rik Dudek, turns to private investigator ‘Pinky’ Granum for help. 

Pinky, who narrates the story, is an unconventional young woman (mohawk, piercings, bi-sexual, neuro-diverse), with considerable sleuthing skills. Part of the fun of the story (and it is great ‘fun’ despite its serious themes) is watching Pinky defy Rik’s warnings with unexpected consequences. The tension builds slowly, with numerous twists, to a dramatic conclusion where all of Pinky’s talents are exploited.  

This book has everything. Clever courtroom scenes, a topical storyline, plenty of action and wonderful, beautifully-drawn characters. On one level it’s a story of organised crime, revenge, and corrupt cops; in reality, it’s so much more.

When Armani-loving lawyer, Leanne Mitchell, is asked to defend millionaire Clive Omartian on fraud charges, she believes her career is on an upward trajectory. But her success puts her at odds with the head of her Chambers, who is desperate to be awarded ‘Silk’ and with her instructing solicitor and old friend, as she begins to suspect he knows more about their client than he is letting on. Before she realises, she’s being dragged into dangerous waters.

Oozing authenticity, twisty and turny, the reader shares Lee’s pain, not just the wounds she suffers from courtroom barbs, but in her everyday experience as a young, black, working-class woman barrister in a mainly white, male, privileged world. Despite huge challenges she remains feisty and principled. A real hero for our times.

Defence lawyer Marty Vail never loses a case. That’s made him the bane of Chicago’s judges and prosecutors. To teach him a lesson in humility, he’s assigned to defend altar boy, Aaron Stampler, on charges of murdering a pillar of the community, Archbishop Rushman. The clergyman was stabbed to death in his apartment and Stampler, a baby-faced, 19-year-old from Kentucky, was found hiding in the confessional box, covered in blood and holding the murder weapon. 

Enter psychiatrist Molly Arrington and she and Marty spend hours with Aaron trying to uncover the real killer. Naturally, in this gritty story of power-seeking and corruption, there’s a sparkling supporting cast and lots of courtroom tricks and ploys, but it’s Aaron who takes centre stage for the haunting finale. 

In a 2019 interview with NPR, Etaf Rum—the daughter of Palestinian immigrants who was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York—said one of her struggles in writing the book was the fear that she was in a way confirming stereotypes about Arabs and Middle Easterners, including “oppression, domestic abuse, and terrorism.” Thankfully Rum overcame these struggles to deliver a courageous, beautiful, and incredibly authentic debut novel that follows the lives of three generations of Palestinian-American women trying to find their voices and identities within the confines of patriarchal and conservative milieus. In a way, the struggles of Rum and her characters mirror the battles that young people throughout the Middle East have been waging against tyranny and oppression since the start of the Arab Spring in 2010.

As a writer, I found so much to admire in The Daughters of Mars by Thomas Keneally. Simply put, it’s epic. I was blown away by Kenneally’s Tolstoian precision of narrative and by the drama of two sisters who leave their confined lives in Australia and serve as nurses in WWI, first on a hospital ship in the Mediterranean and then on the Western Front. Keneally recreates a full sense of the times, showing how individuals can become enmeshed and shaped by huge historical events. The sisters confront not only the terrible effects of war but also a secret that haunts them. This is a stunning, multi-layered novel by a master, The Daughters of Mars has earned numerous accolades—and no wonder. It’s beautifully written and deeply affecting.  

This was the first Lisa Jewell mystery I read. When I finished it, I went on to read several more. Kim is thirty-nine and raising her grandson Noah because her daughter Tallulah has disappeared. She and her boyfriend Zach, who lived with Kim, have gone out for the evening and never returned home. The police discover they ended up spending the evening with a group of young people from a nearby school. As the story progresses, we learn more about these young people and about Tallulah's secret relationship with their leader, a volatile woman. And finally we find out what happened that fateful night.

I am a sucker for contemporary romances with a hint of historical sprinkled in, so when I saw that The Summer of Lost Letters took place on Nantucket (gorgeous), and followed a modern teenage girl whose late grandmother’s love letters to a man other than her grandfather mysteriously show up on her front steps, I knew it was for me. Romance, mystery, and family secrets combine for a compelling summer read!

There have been other stories like this – those featuring prophetic dreams as the core – but none in recent history have carried quite the emotional impact for me like The Sight of You. When I read it, I felt like it carried me on an emotional ride that was at times, quiet, and then suddenly not. Holly Miller beautifully captures the burden that Joel carries with him in the gift/curse of his dreams and the loneliness and turmoil of his heartbreaking choices. All the while, Callie’s unending love and hope for their future made me believe that somehow, things had to end well for them. A heart-wrenching tale of lost loves, the dramatic conclusion of this beautiful story rocked me to my core.

I first met Alafair Burke after my first book was accepted for publication (at a book reading she was giving) and she was extremely generous with her time and advice about being a crime-fiction writer. I’ve read most of her books, but this is my favorite, combining first-rate knowledge of the legal system with long-hidden family secrets and resentments.