Michael Connelly can never be accused of resting on his Boschian, Lincoln Lawyer–ian laurels. He’s still exploring new angles and characters, which the moody Nightshade provides in the person of Detective Stilwell, of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. Like Bosch, Stilwell (who also forgoes his first name) goes his own way, which has led to an official time-out on Catalina Island. It’s pretty sleepy there, until a woman’s body is found anchored to the bottom of the ocean. Stilwell locks horns with mainland cops, but one clue helps him identify the victim—the purple streak in her long black hair. The singularity of Catalina, which is far enough from the coast to have its own insular nautical culture, allows Connelly to add deeper blues to his ever shifting Southern California palette.
Now, when we’re all desperate for a psychic escape, is the perfect time to join Mrs. Muriel Blossom, of Baltimore, on her first-ever trip abroad. A supporting player from Laura Lippman’s Tess Monaghan detective series, sensible, plus-size Muriel becomes a leading lady in the delightful Murder Takes a Vacation. When a chivalrous silver fox takes an unusual interest in the 60-ish widow on a plane flight, Muriel is first flattered, then dismayed upon learning he fell to his death from a Paris hotel balcony after they parted. Has she unwittingly been caught up in a crime? Her inner detective says yes, and her French cruise turns into a charming caper as she tries to untangle the silver fox’s game. Lippman cites the movie Charade as an inspiration; making Muriel the Audrey Hepburn character is a clever twist that proves glamour is always possible, as long as you’ve got oversize sunglasses and a perfectly tied scarf.
If you prefer your police procedurals spiked with an extra-dry dash of bitters, Mark Billingham is your man. Over the course of 18 books, the aptly named Detective Inspector Tom Thorne has become the English writer’s Harry Bosch. Billingham briefly stepped away from the popular character, but now Thorne is back in an explosive mystery-within-a-mystery. Someone is picking off police officers in Thorne’s department using random M.O.’s; it’s very Billingham that the first victims succumbed to a box of poisoned doughnuts. Thorne discovers a pattern of crimes committed by some of the dead cops, but his investigation is stymied by a shadowy foe. The revelations that end the book are genuinely upsetting, leaving major unfinished business on the table and readers wanting more.
Lisa Henricksson reviews mystery books for Air Mail. She lives in New York City
