Category: Mystery

The Hanged Man by Jane Brookwood (EXCERPT)

The weather is cooling off up here in the northern hemisphere and the sequel to Practical Magic is in theatres too, so what better time to check out a new cozy mystery series featuring Tarot cards and a delicious tinge, if not more, of the supernatural? Jane Brookwood’s The Hanged Man is the first novel …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2026/09/15/the-hanged-man-by-jane-brookwood-excerpt/

Art Attack (The Sherlock Society #3) by James Ponti

with a special shout-out to Yaoyao Ma Van As, who’s done an even better than usual job on the terrific cover. Young sleuth Alex Sherlock is absolutely stunned when one of the most popular girls in school sits down next to him and his best friend Yadi while they’re having lunch one day. He’s crestfallen …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2026/09/08/art-attack-the-sherlock-society-3-by-james-ponti/

New and upcoming books by authors we love!

the cover of the inevitable undoing of zahara douglass by leslye penelope shows a person in silhoutte with the title in all caps

The Inevitable Undoing of Zahara Douglass, by Leslye Penelope, is out today! This August and September are both terrific months for hotly anticipated authors, with Daggerbound, T. Kingfisher’s sequel to Swordheart, coming out on August 25; Wickhills by Premee Mohamed coming out on September 8; and Velvet Knife continuing the Stevie Bell series by Maureen …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2026/08/11/new-and-upcoming-books-by-authors-we-love/

Real Tigers by Mick Herron

Real Tigers by Mick Herron

The Slow Horses series is ostensibly about the fuck-ups and cast-offs of British intelligence, gathered together in Slough House and given make-work designed to push them into resigning, while they hope for redemption and a chance to re-join the regular Service. Nevermind that that plan has never worked for anyone; each hopes to be the …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2026/08/02/real-tigers-by-mick-herron/

Murder On Vacation by Rosie A Point & Charles Timmerman

The latest installment of the Cranberry Creek Word Search mystery series is another winning combination of cozy mystery and related word search puzzles! Abby Jones is thrilled to be going on a romantic vacation with her boyfriend Nathan and her pampered cat Reggie (short for Sir Reginald.) Sure they aren’t going very far from the …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2026/07/30/murder-on-vacation-by-rosie-a-point-charles-timmerman/

In the Time of Five Pumpkins by Alexander McCall Smith

In the Time of Five Pumpkins by Alexander McCall Smith

At the beginning of In the Time of Five Pumpkins, Botswana is waiting for the rainy season to begin. The days are hot, the nights do not offer enough relief. People are on edge and prone to be short with each other. That tendency shows up in the novel’s first case, a husband who is …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2026/07/25/in-the-time-of-five-pumpkins-by-alexander-mccall-smith/

Dead Lions by Mick Herron

Dead Lions by Mick Herron

Dickie Bow got left behind by the spy game after the collapse of European communism, and never really found anything else. By the time that Dead Lions begins — it was first published in 2013 — he’s barely holding on with a job in a sex shop and a routine of steady drinking that will …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2026/06/27/dead-lions-by-mick-herron/

The Strange Disappearance Of Imogen Good by Kirsty Applebaum

Okay, but what happens neeeeeext?! That is less a complaint than a plea for Kirsty Applebaum to keep writing more books about the garden at the heart of The Strange Disappearance Of Imogen Good. The book itself opens with Imogen about to sneak into a forbidden garden, in hopes of ditching her once best friend …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2026/06/26/the-strange-disappearance-of-imogen-good-by-kirsty-applebaum/

Slow Horses by Mick Herron

Slow Horses by Mick Herron

What does an intelligence agency do with its fuck-ups? Not the operational mistakes, or even the policy disasters, but the people who, for one reason or another, cannot be kept as part of the active service but cannot just be let go. Maybe they embarrassed the agency in some way, and giving them the boot …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2026/06/21/slow-horses-by-mick-herron/

The Mystery Of The Stolen World Cup Trophy by Angela Cervantes

Men’s World Cup season has officially begun! Ever since 1998, this has been THE most exciting global sporting event for me, and even tho this year’s promises to be the worst run and most corrupt tournament of all time, not even that can dampen my love of the sport and the community who actually care …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2026/06/11/the-mystery-of-the-stolen-world-cup-trophy-by-angela-cervantes/