Category Archives: Mystery & Thriller

How to Kill Men and Get Away With It by Katy Brent

Meet Kitty Collins. FRIEND. LOVER. KILLER. He was following me. That guy from the nightclub who wouldn’t leave me alone. I hadn’t intended to kill him of course. But I wasn’t displeased when I did and, despite the mess I made, I appeared to get away with it. That’s where my addiction started… I’ve got a taste for revenge and quite frankly, I’m killing it.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Date rape, gang rape, paedophilia, incest, sexual assault & rape culture discussed
  • Alcohol & drug abuse
  • Miscarriage mentioned
  • Dismemberment
  • Graphic murder & torture
  • Animal cruelty

Stranded by Nikki Shannon Smith

Eleven-year-old Ava Adams is looking for something different. The tall Manhattan buildings around her feel like walls closing in. And what if she doesn’t fit in with her city-loving friends or busybody family who think Black folks “don’t do nature?” But in a twist of fate, Ava is shocked to learn that her parents are actually allowing her to stay with her Aunt Raven in the Adirondacks for the summer. In her Auntie’s simple cabin, living off the land with nature’s beauty filling her senses, the woods feel more like home than Manhattan. As Summer comes to a close and Aunt… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Physical injuries & illness, including fever from an infected tick bite
  • Animal death & hunting with a bow & arrow mentioned (coyote, rabbit, dogs, on- & off-page)
  • Snowstorm & lightning strike, resulting in property damage

Deep Secrets by Nikki Shannon Smith

Colette only wants three to prove she isn’t weak, to get a job, and to uncover the mystery surrounding her father. All her life she’s heard that he died in a factory accident, but she’s haunted by dreams of bitter cold and a sea of stars—and part of her knows it’s somehow connected to him. Colette is not to work, is not to leave the house, and is to never speak of her father. But when Colette secretly gets a job, she becomes fascinated by the stories that Walter, the store owner, tells. He was aboard the Titanic before it sank. He saw… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Period-typical racism discussed
  • Death of a father in a factory accident
  • Death of a brother in the Titanic tragedy (secondary character)
  • Poverty & financial difficulties during the Great Depression

I Will Find You by Daphne Benedis-Grab

Nicky has disappeared! Olivia, Leo, and Gracie–three seventh graders who have very little in common except for how much they dislike Nicky, the school bully–were the last ones to see him. They are sure that there are clues the police are overlooking. And they each have their own secret reason for needing to find him as soon as possible. As they investigate, they discover that things are more complicated than they had seemed. Nicky’s victims made a plan to get revenge on him–a plan that’s gone terribly wrong. Can they find out where Nicky is before it’s too late?

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Disappearance of a child (theme)
  • Bullying

I Know You’re Lying by Daphne Benedis-Grab

There’s been a theft at the middle school! Sasha’s bag has been stolen from her locker. The security cams on the school’s front entrance have captured four students entering the building early. Present at the time of the crime, Maddie, Jack, Nora, and Henry become top suspects. Each of them has a reason to dislike Sasha. Each has something to hide. But which of them is responsible for the break-in? And can they figure out who the thief is before Sasha gets her revenge… on all of them.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Racism
  • COVID-19 pandemic
  • Blackmail

I Know You Started It by Daphne Benedis-Grab

There’s a fire in a seventh grader’s locker! Is it arson? A prank gone wrong? An accident? Eva, Dani, Liam, and Gabe are determined to figure out who started the fire, and why. And they each have their own reasons for wanting to be the first ones to figure out what really happened. While the administration is looking into it, evidence is scarce. It will take four students who can tap into the rumors, gossip, and hidden secrets of their school to uncover what really went on the day of the fire. And if they don’t figure it out in time? Well, one of them could be accused of the crime. But… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Fire (theme)
  • Bullying & cyberbullying
  • Blackmail

A Risky Game by Alyson Gerber

Deadly stakes, dangerous secrets, and a cut-throat game where the winners are set for life. Welcome to the Boston School, and the world of the Liars Society. Weatherby and Jack have been tapped to join Last Heir, the most powerful secret society in the world, but the night of the first gambit, the game takes a terrifying turn. Now, Jack and Weatherby are in a race against time to discover the truth about the game – and themselves. But how do you know who to trust when everyone is a liar?

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Parental abandonment
  • Hospitalisation
  • Attempted murder by poisoning

Taking Up Space by Alyson Gerber

Sarah loves basketball more than anything. Crushing it on the court makes her feel like she matters. And it’s the only thing that helps her ignore how much it hurts when her mom forgets to feed her. But lately Sarah can’t even play basketball right. She’s slower now and missing shots she should be able to make. Her body doesn’t feel like it’s her own anymore. She’s worried that changing herself back to how she used to be is the only way she can take control over what’s happening. When Sarah’s crush asks her to be partners in a cooking competition, she feels pulled in a million…. Read more,

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Parent & protagonist with disordered eating, including calorie counting & restrictive eating, and discussions of weight loss (theme), including child neglect (specifically forgetting to feed her child)
  • Bullying

The Liars Society by Alyson Gerber

Weatherby is a fish out of water. When she lands a scholarship to the prestigious Boston School, she’s excited to be in the same world as her dad, whom she’s never met, and make real friends. But Weatherby has a secret she’ll risk everything to protect, one that could destroy her new life. Every member of Jack’s wealthy and privileged family has made their mark at the Boston School. Everyone, that is, except for Jack, who is entirely mediocre. He’s desperate to prove his worth to his influential father. But Jack has a secret of his own… one with the power to ruin everything… Read more,

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Parental abandonment

A Secret Escape by Alyson Gerber

The game starts now. Jack and Weatherby—the newest members of Last Heir, the most powerful secret society in the world—have landed at an exclusive prep school in the Swiss Alps, ready to win big. Last Heir is offering the chance of a lifetime: millions of dollars, a private island, and a powerful spot in the society’s inner circle. Not everyone has the same reasons for playing, but with money, power, and influence up for grabs, everyone wants to win. Too bad they’re not all playing by the same rules.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Parental abandonment
  • Death of a parent
  • Kidnapping & captivity