16 of July’s New Mystery and Thrillers For Summer Reading

⚓ Books    📅 2026-07-06    👤 surdeus    👁️ 2      

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Whether you’re a cozy mystery reader or a thriller fan, July’s new releases have something for you. And if, like me, you enjoy the entire crime genre range, you’re in for a giant treat of new mysteries and thrillers.

There’s a conman story set in 1940s Mexico, a one-last-job heist, a murder-for-inheritance thriller, an Australian crime novel, a Havana-set mystery, and more standalone mystery and thrillers. For series readers, there’s the final book in Colson Whitehead’s historical crime trilogy, a mystery set on the Rosebud Indian Reservation, two foodie cozies, a Copenhagen procedural with an excellent adaptation series, and more. Prepare yourself for some criminal entertainment this month!

cover of The Intrigue by Silvia Moreno-Garcia. Neon text on a black background and the bottom half o a face smoking a cigarette

The Intrigue by Silvia Moreno-Garcia

For fans of noir, historical fiction, and con men stories!

It’s not easy being a conman when your partner in crime has died, you realize the looks you rely on will fade one day, and the economy is not great. This is Ulises’ current problem in 1940s Mexico. So he needs a big fish to con, which he thinks he’s found with Perla. Problem? Perla has a niece who wants in on the con. Bigger Problem? Perla has her own secrets…

Cover image of The Haul: A Heist Novel by Gary Phillips

The Haul by Gary Phillips

For fans of heists and the one-last-job trope!

O’Conner may have once been known as Warlord of Willow Ridge, but now he owns a bunch of body shops and only his girlfriend knows of his past life as a thief. That is, of course, until a job too good to say no to presents itself: a tech billionaire has stashed a lot of money in a bunker, and O’Conner suddenly feels up for one last job.

cover image for Killer Vibes by Jack Friday

Killer Vibes (Peter Key Mystery #1) by Jack Friday

For fans of messy PIs, inheriting money, and money that comes with a whole lot of trouble!

Peter Keys refers to himself as the laziest PI in Texas. He’s also a stoner, bi, and recently inherited quite a bit of money and a house from his uncle— even though he hadn’t seen him in over a decade. This adds a bunch of colorful characters to Peter’s life, plus a mystery related to his uncle’s death, and of course: the inheritance that comes with trouble!

Cover image of Buyer Beware by Catherine Ryan Howard

Buyer Beware by Catherine Ryan Howard

For fans of twisty, multiple POV and timelines, with the question of how they will intersect!

In the present day, we follow a woman in her early 40s, Ellie, as she moves into a house. She’s keeping her identity and life private, the neighbors are concerned with the sale of the house, and soon things like break-ins make Ellie paranoid that someone knows who she is. We also follow two women’s lives in the past, 18-year-old Erin and shop owner Hannah, both living different lives at different times, both with one thing in common…

cover image of A Quiet Place by Seicho Matsumoto

A Quiet Place by Seichō Matsumoto, Louise Heal Kawai (Translator)

For fans of Japanese crime novels!

The way this crime novel unfolds is part of the mastery so I’m going to be brief: after Tsuneo Asai’s wife’s death, he feels like something is off, so he visits the store where she died. Only that leaves him more puzzled…

First published in 1975, A Quiet Place now has a new introduction by Pico Iyer.

cover image for Black Girls Don't Cry

Black Girls Don’t Cry by Alex Travis

For fans of YA mysteries with a prom queen competition!

After a gross list ranking the teen girls of a high school’s hotness gets called out for also being racist, the school’s BSU members want Ida to run as the school’s first Black prom queen candidate. Ida doesn’t have time to fear her competition when she realizes that someone is harming them…

Cover Image of Getting Away with Murder by Shari Lapena

Getting Away With Murder by Shari Lapena

For fans of will-kill-for-money domestic thrillers!

If your entire identity revolved around your social status, which revolved around a New York brownstone you’d poured all your money into and you suddenly were at risk of losing it, what would you do? Married couple Jill and Ted have decided that murdering for an inheritance is the way to go…

cover image for The Novel Detective

The Novel Detective by Teresa Dovalpage

For fans of metafiction mysteries with dual timelines!

1980, Havana: Teresita is 14 years old when a teacher and a student die in two different locations on her school’s campus. The deaths are ruled suicides, but leave behind many questions.

2020, New Mexico: Now Teresa is a mystery writer, when a Miami DJ who was a childhood friend sets in motion a trip to Havana to look into what really happened to their teacher and classmate 40 years ago.

cover of The Lady Killer by Masako Togawa

The Lady Killer by Masako Togawa (Author), Simon Grove (Translator)

For fans of Japanese crime novels and redesigned paperbacks.

Written in three parts, in Tokyo in the 1960s, we first meet Ichiro Honda. He’s a cad who refers to picking up women to sleep with as “hunting.” Yes, he has an unsuspecting wife at home. Next we follow Honda’s appeal lawyer, who is trying to figure out if Honda did commit the murder he’s been convicted of. And then you get to see all the puzzle pieces fit into place…

Cover image of Three Reasons for Revenge by Dervla McTiernan

Three Reasons for Revenge by Dervla McTiernan

For fans of multiple POV crime novels set in Australia!

Told in parts, you follow three strangers and how their lives are unraveling following a mysterious package delivery. First up we meet a psychologist accused of assaulting a patient. Melbourne Detective Judith Lee is soon on the case of his death…

New in Mystery Series

book covers for Cool Machine, Wisdom Corner, and Murder At First Slice

Cool Machine (The Harlem Trilogy #3) by Colson Whitehead: This is the conclusion to this literary historical crime trilogy that follows family man and business owner Ray Carney through a different decade each book, as crime and trouble just keep finding him. The first in the series, Harlem Shuffle, begins in the 1960s.

Wisdom Corner by David Heska Wanbli Weiden: Beginning a year after the events of Winter Counts, Virgil Wounded Horse is back solving mysteries as an enforcer on the Rosebud Indian Reservation in South Dakota.

Murder at First Slice (Baker Street Mystery #5) by Valerie Burns: A delicious new installment in a fun cozy mystery series that began with Two Parts Sugar, One Part Murder when Maddy Montgomery inherited a bakery and a giant English mastiff!

Book covers for The Mortal Enemy Murder Club, Deadly Does It, Savvy Summers and the Po'boy Perils

The Mortal Enemy Murder Club (Hu Done It #2) by Gloria Chao: A fun amateur sleuth sequel that started with The Ex-Girlfriend Murder Club, where women who came together for revenge end up having to solve a murder instead.

Deadly Does It (Mann & Mason #2) by Abbi Waxman: The author of The Bookish Life of Nina Hill has an amateur sleuth mystery series that pairs an ex-con/actress/lawyer with a Gen Z sobriety sponsor. The series starts with One Death At a Time.

Savvy Summers and the Po’boy Perils (Savvy Summers #2) by Sandra Jackson-Opoku: A Chicago-set foodie mystery that follows soul food cafe owner Savvy Summers. She is forced to become a sleuth when people’s deaths put a negative spotlight on her delicious food, starting with a death (maybe) by sweet potato pie in Savvy Summers and the Sweet Potato Crimes.


Browse the books recommended in Unusual Suspects’ previous newsletters on this shelf, and see 2026 releases! Until next time, come talk books with me on Bluesky, Goodreads, Litsy, and Multitudes Contained.

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