By Jenny Tran
As the days grow shorter and the leaves pale to ceaseless brown, the fall season sweeps in every year to dwarf summer. Along with it comes promises of pumpkin spice lattes and comfortable blankets—the perfect atmosphere to pick up some books. And, especially with Halloween being smack dab in the heart of the season, you may want to try out some thriller or mystery novels.
If you’re looking for some slightly dark yet riveting reads to accompany your autumn mood, here are a couple of recommendations!
“A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder” by Holly Jackson
Sal Singh murdered his girlfriend then killed himself before he could confess, and everyone in town seems to collectively agree on this. Everyone except for Pippa Fitz-Amobi, a girl who revisits the five-year-old case for her senior project. However, it isn’t the project she is focused on, but finally proving Sal’s innocence and possibly solving the murder once and for all.
This first installment of the stirring trilogy is sure to have you at the edge of your seat as you follow Pip and her partner Ravi, Sal’s brother, while they work through the case. Page after page, she uncovers startling truths that have been carefully hidden all these years, narrowing down possible suspects one at a time. All the way to the end, this mystery is nothing but an exhilarating, head-turning experience.
“Murder on the Orient Express” by Agatha Christie
When you think of murder mysteries, you may resort to this classic story written by the highly-acclaimed fiction writer Agatha Christie. In this book, you follow famous detective Hercules Poirot as he boards the Orient Express, expecting a smooth trip from London to Istanbul. However, when the train gets caught astray in a snowdrift, the passengers come to realize that one of them has been horrifically murdered.
Once he decides to take matters into his own hands, Poirot confronts every passenger on board until he manages to uncover the truth about what had happened. Despite its dark themes, this book is definitely a comfortable mystery you could read by the fire as you attempt to solve the case along with the detective.
“Shutter Island” by Dennis Lehane
In this gripping thriller, you are suspended into the 1950’s with U.S. Marshal Teddy Daniels and his partner Chuck Aule, who arrive at Shutter Island on an investigation. Under what seems like impossible circumstances, murderer Rachel Solando has escaped the hospital she was residing in. As Teddy, with Chuck by his side, works through the case, he discovers dark secrets about the island, long removed from what his main focus should be on.
Like an onion, this mystery has multiple layers, leaving you hooked as you peel each of them off at a time. New, shocking information constantly unravels throughout the novel, and the plot twists are guaranteed to leave you reeling. This is the perfect read to snuggle up with on the porch in the cool, autumn wind.
“The Inheritance Games” by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
Avery Grambs is the richest teenanger in the world, and it is because of a man she has never met. Billionaire Tobias Hawthorne has died, and he left his entire inheritance to Avery. The issue is—she has no clue why. Now, she has to move into the Hawthorne mansion, and along the way meets Tobias’s four grandsons and the rest of his family, all of them having different opinions about the matter at hand.
Secrets unfold the longer Avery remains in the house, and she attempts to learn once and for all why exactly Tobias Hawthorne left her all of his fortune. This young adult novel is fast-paced, and the pages are sprinkled with humor and even romantic aspects. If you’re looking for a light yet entertaining read, feel free to escape into the world of the Hawthorne House with Avery.
You can pick up any of these novels at your local library or bookstore! These genres are plentiful, so the next time you feel like getting into the fall mood, you might want to get your hands on one of these books.
