Crime, Mysteries & Thrillers discussion

Best Mystery/Crime Novel
THE LOST MAN, Jane Harper

also nominated
THIRTEEN, Steve Cavanagh
YOUR HOUSE WILL PAY, Steph Cha
METROPOLIS, Philip Kerr
IF SHE WAKES, Michael Koryta
THE BORDER, Don Winslow

Best First Mystery/Crime Novel
THE CHESTNUT MAN, Soren Sveistrup

also nominated
SCRUBLANDS, Chris Hammer
SAVE ME FROM DANGEROUS MEN, S. A. Lelchuk
THE SILENT PATIENT, Alex Michaelides
TO THE LIONS, Holly Watt
AMERICAN SPY, Lauren Wilkinson

Best Paperback Original Mystery/Crime Novel
MISSING DAUGHTER, Rick Mofina

also nominated
WINNER KILLS ALL, R. J. Bailey
THE GODMOTHER, Hannelore Cayre
KILLING QUARRY, Max Allan Collins
FATE, Ian Hamilton
NO GOOD DEED, James Swain

Best Thriller
THE CHAIN, Adrian McKinty

also nominated
TRUE BELIEVER, Jack Carr
MISSION CRITICAL, Mark Greaney
THE BURGLAR, Thomas Perry
WHITE HOT SILENCE, Henry Porter
BACKLASH, Brad Thor

Best Mystery/Crime Novel of the Decade
SUSPECT, Robert Crais

also nominated
NOVEMBER ROAD, Lou Berney
GONE GIRL, Gillian Flynn
THE DRY, Jane Harper
THE BLACK HOUSE, Peter May
THE CARTEL, Don Winslow

Congratulations to all the nominees

The Lost Man was average and Thirteen is stupidly outlandish according to every review I have read. Your House Will Pay is however on my radar. Seems like there were not too many good options this year.

Robert Crais winning best novel of the decade is a suspect (See what I did there, that is basically Crais' level) decision. He is a very generic writer at best, outright crap at worst. But then most of the best of the decade noms were awful choices. The Black house and November Road are nothing special, particularly the former. The Dry is better but not deserving of end of decade noms. I loveed Gone Girl but I read it many years ago. I will have to see if it holds up. Winslow usually does not live up to the hype. Frankly this is not a line up of the best books but best-selling books.

My noms for best of the decade (published between 2010 - 2019):
1. The Glass Rainbow by James Lee Burke
2. Faithful Places by Tana French
3. Ordinary Grace by William Kent Krueger
4. World Gone By by Dennis Lehane
5. Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
6. Claire DeWitt and the City of the Dead by Sara Gran

I read 4 of the nominees for Best First (I'm shocked!), and for me The Chestnut Man easily deserved first place. The only book in the Best Mystery/Crime that I read was Your House Will Pay, which I really enjoyed but I can't do much of a comparison, not having read any of the others.

I tired of Robert Crais many years ago so I doubt that a book of his would be likely to get my vote even if I'd read it. I have read 4 of the others on the Best of the Decade list, and would have cast a quick ballot for November Road. I liked the moody environment of The Black House, and thought The Dry was OK, but not great. I found all of the characters in Gone Girl so unappealing that I couldn't work up any enthusiasm for the book.

I agree with your choice of Claire DeWitt for the Best of the Decade list, Aditya. Other than Gone Girl, the only other one on your list I've read is Faithful Places, which I enjoyed, but not my favorite of the Dublin Murder series.

I was very surprised with all of the best book nods The Dry received after it came out. It was such an ordinary mystery, definitely not worthy of being on the best book of the decade list.

Tana French is worthy of being on list, loved Faithful Places but The Trespasser is even better IMHO.

And The Blackhouse, loved it, brilliant writing, so descriptive, the isolated community. crashing waves, pounding rain, childhood secrets. When you finish the book you feel as if you’ve experienced life & survival there.

So many terrific books this past decade, this was a disappointing nomination list.

Agree that The Trespasser (or Broken Harbour) are better Tana French books.

I think both Burke and French are good enough writers to have multiple books in a ten year period to be up for a nomination. I just went with my personal favorites, I agree with IcewineAnne and MadProfessah The Trespasser was very good.

@Barbara Lehane's World Gone By deals with same themes as November Road, you might want to check it out because you loved November Road.

And I just kept my choices limited to the ones I have read or else one of James Ellroy's books would probably be among my decade end nominees. I understand they made populist choices but even then they could have selected better, say something The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle. The writing, which frankly should be the main barometer for a book award even if it is for genre fiction, is not exactly special but the plot is ingenious.

Where's Tana French??