Murder, She Wrote: Queens of the Mystery Bookshelf

Quiet as it’s kept, women writing mysteries rock.  While 35 percent of killings in real-life America go unsolved, writing fiction, let’s you get a rate of 100 percent serving the cause of justice. Today, a handful of females rival the success of their predecessors Agatha Christie and P. D. James.  They consistently make the best seller lists and garner accolades from their loyal readers.

Mary Higgins Clark

One of the reigning queens of suspense has sold more than 100 million books in the United States alone. That’s a number just a bit smaller than the population of Mexico. Meet Mary Higgins Clark, who at 87 remains the monarch of mystery. A widow with five children, she was first published in 1975. Her blockbuster “Where Are the Children” launched a career that has lasted 40 years and produced 49 award winning books. A new novel, The Melody Lingers On, was scheduled for publication in 2015.

Janet Evanovich

Nobody mixes death and humor better than Janet Evanovich, combining comedy and the occasional killing. She began writing romance novels, but after book 12, she turned to another path. In 1995, big- haired bounty hunter Stephanie Plum propelled Evanovich to the best-seller list. Twenty-five books later, Plum continues to keep the 72 year old author fresh and relevant, still at the top of her game. Even after 21 years, “One for the Money” is still hilarious. Wicked Charms: A Lizzy and Diesel Novel by Evanovich and Phoef Sutton went on sale June 23, 2015.

Tess Gerritsen

Alias the Doctor, Tess Gerritsen hitched her star to medical suspense and made it scary enough to garner legions of fans. A graduate of Stanford University and UCSF School of Medicine, she started writing mysteries while on maternity leave. Gerritsen terrifies readers with tales of grisly death and medical malfeasance. Her dynamic duo of Detective Jane Rizzoli and Medical Examiner Dr. Maura are her principal tools in catching killers and serving the cause of justice. The famous pair is played by Angie Harmon and Sasha Alexander on TNT’s Rizzoli and Isles. Die Again: A Rizzoli and Isles Novel by Gerristen was launched by Ballantine Books in 2014.

Sue Grafton

Some call her the Alphabet P. I.  Former screenwriter turned mystery author Sue Grafton dishes readers a female twist in a hard-boiled fictional private investigator.  A new kind of gumshoe, Kinsey Millhone hit the street running in 1982 in Grafton’s first book A is For Alibi. This P. I. is “smarter, younger, and thinner” than her creator now 75 years old and contrary to Grafton’s real -life marriage of 20 years, Millhone is a twice- divorced loner.  Through the years, the author blasted through the alphabet and X is for... published in August 2015.

Sara Paretsky

Kansas- raised Sara Paretsky, 68, alias “The Crusader” made her bones with V. I. Warshawski, ex-defender turned P.I.  “Vic” for Victoria is smart, tough, and though often outraged, always in control. Published in 1982, Indemnity Only showcases a fearless female pathfinder in a rough job.  Paretsky, who holds a MBA and a history PH.D., founded Sisters in Crime to support women mystery writers and readers.  Her new novel, Brush Back, was scheduled for publication July 28, 2015 by G. P. Putnam’s Sons.

Stephanie Plum and Kinsey Milhone: Janet Evanovich and Sue Grafton (Romantic Suspense)

Notorious Nineteen
Janet Evanovich

New Jersey bounty hunter Stephanie Plum is certain of three truths: People don't just vanish into thin air. Never anger old people. And don't do what Tiki tells you to do.

After a slow summer of chasing low-level skips for her cousin Vinnie's bail bonds agency, Stephanie Plum finally lands an assignment that could put her checkbook back in the black. Geoffrey Cubbin, facing trial for embezzling millions from Trenton's premier assisted-living facility, has mysteriously vanished from the hospital after an emergency appendectomy. Now it's on Stephanie to track down the con man. The problem is, Cubbin has disappeared without a trace, a witness, or his money-hungry wife. Rumors are stirring that he must have had help with the daring escape . . . or that maybe he never made it out of his room alive. Since the hospital staff's lips seem to be tighter than the security, and it's hard for Stephanie to blend in to assisted living, Stephanie's Grandma Mazur goes in undercover. But when a second felon goes missing from the same hospital, Plum is forced into working side by side with Trenton's hottest cop, Joe Morelli, in order to crack the case.

The real problem is, no Cubbin also means no way to pay the rent. Desperate for money - or maybe just desperate - Plum accepts a secondary job guarding her secretive and mouthwatering mentor Ranger from a deadly special-forces adversary. While Stephanie is notorious for finding trouble, she may have found a little more than she bargained for this time around. Then again - a little food poisoning, some threatening notes, and a bridesmaid's dress with an excess of taffeta never killed anyone . . . or did it? If Stephanie Plum wants to bring in a paycheck , she'll have to remember: no guts, no glory. . . .



 

V Is For Vengeance (Book 22-Kinsey Milhone Series)
Sue Grafton

A spiderweb of dangerous relationships is at the heart of this daring new novel from the #1 New York Times-bestselling author.

Kinsey on Kinsey: "I know there are people who believe you should forgive and forget. For the record, I'd like to say I'm a big fan of forgiveness as long as I'm given the opportunity to get even first."
-from V is for Vengeance

A woman with a murky past who kills herself-or was it murder? A dying old man cared for by the son he pummeled mercilessly. A lovely woman whose life is about to splinter into a thousand fragments. A professional shoplifting ring racking up millions in stolen goods. A brutal and unscrupulous gangster. A wandering husband, rich and powerful. A spoiled kid awash in gambling debt thinking he can beat the system. A lonely widower mourning the death of his lover, desperate for answers that may be worse than the pain of his loss. An elegant but ruthless businessman whose dealings are definitely outside the law: the spider at the center of the web.

And Kinsey Millhone, whose thirty-eighth-birthday gift is a punch in the face that leaves her with two black eyes and a busted nose.

V: Victim. Violence. Vengeance.

Kinsey and Me
Sue Grafton

In 1982, Sue Grafton introduced us to Kinsey Millhone. Thirty years later, Kinsey is an established international icon and Sue, a number-one bestselling author. To mark this anniversary year, Sue has given us stories that reveal Kinsey's origins and Sue's past.
Kinsey and Me has two parts: The nine Kinsey stories (1986-93), each a gem of detection; and the And Me stories, written in the decade after Grafton's mother died. Together, they show just how much of Kinsey is a distillation of her creator's past even as they reveal a child who, free of parental interventions, read everything and roamed everywhere. But the dark side of such freedom was that very parental distance.

The same feisty voice and witty apercus readers fell in love with in A Is for Alibi permeate the Kinsey stories. Those in the And Me section trace a remarkable voyage, from anger to understanding, from pain to forgiveness. They take us into a troubled family, dysfunctional as most families are, each in their own way, but Grafton's telling is sensitive, delicate, and ultimately, loving. Enriching the way we see Kinsey and know Sue, these stories are deeply affecting.