Story Tags

Man Without a Shadow book cover

Fiction With Science, Not Science Fiction

Even those of you who may question the existence of atoms live by the laws of science.  The laws of science apply universally, even in fiction.  Some literary worlds use those laws to solve mysteries, explore individual lives, or test scientific limits.  Others use them to speculate what might have been or may be.  Let’s leave the “What If?” questions for another day--here are some books that incorporate scientific knowledge without falling into science fiction.    

The White Wolf, by Franklin Gregory

Snowy Novellas

Stories that will stay with you long after the snow has gone.

That blizzard we got in January was a great start to making up for the first half of winter 2015-2016 being downright balmy with occasional wintry weather. I know it’s late in the game, but I’m not ready to give up on the idea of more snow.

Agent Zigzag book cover

Agent Zigzag by Ben MacIntyre

February Cleveland Park Mystery Book Club Selection

Join us at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, February 4, to discuss the World War II espionage story of Eddie Chapman, charming criminal,  con man, philanderer, and one of the most remarkable double agents Britain has ever produced. In 1941, after training as a German spy in occupied France, Chapman was parachuted into Britain with orders to blow up an airplane factory.

Walking the Perfect Square book cover

'Walking the Perfect Square' by Reed Farrel Coleman

Cleveland Park Mystery Book Club September selection

On Thursday, Sept. 3, we'll be discussing Walking the Perfect Square by Reed Farrel Coleman, the first in the nine-book Moe Prager series.

Standing in Another Man's Grave book cover

'Standing in Another Man's Grave' by Ian Rankin

Cleveland Park Mystery Book Club August selection

Date change! We moved the August meeting to Aug. 13, same time (6:30 p.m.), same place (Barnes & Noble).  We'll discuss Ian Rankin's Standing in Another Man's Grave.

The Big Sleep

Returning to the Scene of the Crime

Same Place, Different Crime

This book list compares crime stories that unfold in the same place, but at different times: The first comparison highlights a modern take on a classic in Los Angeles; the second, a progression from the '60s through the '80s in South Florida; and the third, crime sprees across the South-Southwest during the Depression and the late '80s.

Gaudy Night by Dorothy L. Sayers

Death in the Dormitories

Murder mysteries set at schools and universities

Holden Caulfield describing his classmates (and everyone else in the world) as phonies. The "O Captain! My Captain!" scene in Dead Poets Society. Victorian schoolgirls dipping their rivals' braids in inkpots in A Little Princess. 

Mermaids in Paradise

Fiction for the Road

Books on disc that make rush hour fly

Here in D.C., we know traffic. Consistently ranking in the top 10 cities for worst traffic congestion, it is not uncommon for Washingtonians to sit in their cars for hours on end just to get to work every day.   My commute is no different, but nothing makes me forget that I'm going 5 miles per hour on I-66 along with hundreds of other cranky commuters quite as fast as a good story. So I have compiled a list of some of the more entertaining, fast-moving, dazzling plotlines that might just have you looking forward to that morning grind.  

What Angels Fear by C.S. Harris

A Trip Through English History

Historical mysteries

Take a trip through England and history by reading historical mysteries set in various eras of Britain’s past. Explore the dawn of British common law in the Plantagenet era, religious upheaval in the Tudor era, the beginnings of formal police services and investigation in the Victorian era, and social change in the Edwardian era, all while trying to figure out 'whodunnit' with citizens turned sleuths.

cover image for The Case of the Missing Marquess

She's A Real Amateur

Female amateur sleuths who are better than the pros

Sure, sometimes being called an amateur's an insult, but when it comes to mystery novels, amateur detective status usually means you're the one showing the officials how it's done. Or even the only one perceptive enough to realize there's a mystery to be solved.

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