Older Features
An archive of past features in mystery, thriller, crime, horror, and other suspense-related genres.
Criminal Minds
Why We Are Captivated by the Criminal Minds in Crime Fiction
Mystery Books for Teens
A Curated Collection of Captivating Whodunits for Teen Readers
Science Fiction Noir
How Sci-fi Noir Reflects Current Events
You, Book vs Show
You by Caroline Kepnes compared to the screen adaptation
1960s Mysteries
Mysteries set in the 1960s
Horror and Harry Potter
Harry Potter as a Horror Thriller
Mysteries for Kids
Five mystery books that are perfect for young readers
Best of John Grisham
The 5 best John Grisham novels and why you should read them
The Suspense Genre
The history and evolution of the suspense genre, and why we love it
1950s Mysteries
Nostalgic Mysteries: Exploring the Intrigue of 1950s Crime Fiction
Domestic Psychological Thrillers
What is the domestic psychological thriller genre?
Gothic Crime
Gothic Crime Fiction: A Genre That Haunts and Thrills
Thrillers for Teens
The Best Thrillers for Teens: Get Hearts Racing with These Suspenseful Reads
The Femme Fatale
A look at the most intriguing character in the noir pantheon
Scandinavian vs Southern Noir
A Comparison of Swedish Noir and Southern Noir
Fiction Podcasts
The appeal of the fiction podcast and some of our favorites
Best Thrillers
The Three Best Thrillers of All Time
The Mystery of Better Call Saul
FeatureBetter Call Saul, the prequel to Breaking Bad, has captivated audiences with its complex characters and intricate plotlines since its premiere in 2015. With the impending launch of its sixth and final season onto Netflix, fans are eagerly anticipating the...
Two Fantasy Novels that are Actually Thrillers
Why A Song of Ice and Fire and The Wheel of Time are also thrillers
Lessons from Raymond Chandler
A stroll through the novels and stories of Raymond Chandler
Hunger in Horror
When we should be satiated but, somehow, are not
Agatha Christie's Hjerson
Should Christie Fans Seek Out Hjerson?
Famous Detectives
Their impact and influence on mystery writers
Location, Location, Location
Mysteries Have Their Place
Time Travel Elements
The Machine, Busting the Space-Time Continuum, and Immortality
Sherlock Holmes and Poetry
Did T.S. Eliot Borrow from Conan-Doyle?
From Page to Film
Reinterpreting the Best Action-Adventure Novels
Small-Town Detective Tropes
The Enduring Appeal of A Familiar Plot Device
The Game Trope
And How it Keeps Readers Coming Back
Shapeshifters in Thrillers
Skin walkers. Shapeshifters. Gods.
Small Communities
Familiarity, Contempt, and Murder
Five Reasons We Love Domestic Thrillers
Why the domestic thriller genre impacts us so deeply
Sherlock Holmes
The enduring appeal of fiction’s greatest detective
The Witch in Horror
A look at witches as folk horror icons
The Art of a Political Thriller
To recipe or not to recipe?
What I learned from Rick Mofina at Bouchercon
Being a crime reporter helps
Masks in Horror
Masks and horror go hand-in-hand
October is for Spies
From classic spycraft to historical espionage
Romantic Mystery Objects
The Appeal of Mysterious Objects in Romantic Mysteries
Blood Moon
A Steamboat Tour Down the River of the Southern Undead
What did I learn at ThrillerFest?
Keep reading, writing, and talking to other writers
Is it Historical Fiction?
How long ago does history start?
Western Horror
Speculative Horror Books and Movies Out West
The Villains of True Crime
The Predators of True Crime Think Differently
Florida Mysteries
Why is Florida an ideal setting for a detective mystery?
Small Town Horror
Popular small-town horror in books and on screen
Father of Monsters
Junior Laemmle – The Forgotten Father of Monsters
Detectives in Crime Fiction
The Evolution of Detectives in Fictional Crime
The Clairvoyant Explained
Clairvoyants in books, movies, and popular culture
The Curious Case of the Cozy
What is cozy crime?
International Adventure Books
Action and Adventure for International Armchair Travelers
Caper Versus Heist
What is a caper, and what makes a heist?
Monsters of Horror
Why We Love The Big Baddies Of Horror
Harry Potter, Private Investigator
The fantasy series as a detective-style mystery
Hell or High Water
The horror, isolation, and mysticism of islands in fiction
What is YA Suspense?
A Peek into What Makes the Genre Tick
The Evolution of the Detective Novel
A quick primer on the detective fiction genre
Stranger Than Fiction
True stories of political mysteries and thrillers
Space Opera Thrillers
Nail-biting tension in worlds of spaceships and doom
Elements of a PI Novel
Four Key Elements of a Great Private Investigator Story
The Iranian Omission
Why aren’t more thrillers set inside Iran?
What Makes a Legal Thriller
What separates a legal thriller and legal mystery from other genres
What is a Psychological Technothriller
A look at the genre that combines psychological fiction and technothrillers
Noir and the Big Top
The masterpiece of William Leslie Gresham's NIGHTMARE ALLEY
Murder Muses
The Dark Influence of True Crime on Modern Fiction
Art Imitates Life
Mysteries and Thrillers Inspired by Real People or Events
Morals and Mysteries
Integration of Cultural and Moral Issues within Mysteries and Thrillers
Magical Mysteries
The Allure of Magical Mysteries
Artificial Intelligence in Thrillers
AI and Identity in Thrillers
Kidnap Thrillers
The fear and catharsis of kidnap thrillers
Magic in Horror
Horror magic grounded with rules, tropes, and limits
True Crime and Espionage
The World of Lies Behind the Alger Hiss Spy Trial
Sci-fi Mysteries
Why we love science fiction mysteries
Two Psychopaths in Fiction
A Comparison of Hannibal Lecter and Anton Chigurh
Best Fiction Podcasts
The best fiction podcasts of 2022
Errors in Medical Thrillers
What Writers Get Wrong in Medical Thrillers
Dual Perspectives
Bringing the Reader into Multiple Characters
Behind The Screen
Where do Medical Thrillers Come From?
Nannies in Thrillers
The Hand That Rocks the Cradle
Texas Murder Mysteries
Murder From the Heart of the Lone Star State
Classics as Mysteries
The Classics are Mysteries, Too
Navajo Murder Mysteries
What makes an enjoyable and accurate Navajo Murder Mystery?
Sleuths in Myth
Myth, Mystery and the Mysterious Origins of the Fictional Sleuth
Online Book Clubs
Has your book club been shelved? Find your new group online.
Stakes and the Political Thriller
The allure of the political thriller lies in who might suffer
Best Legal Thriller Adaptations
10 Best Adaptations of Legal Books To Film of All Time
Hard-Boiled Fiction
The Appeal of Hard-Boiled Novels
Games, Stakes, and the Thriller
Why we love horrifying games in our fiction
Giallo and the Crime Thriller
The Continuing Influence of Giallo on Modern Crime Thrillers
Mystery Podcasts
10 Mystery-Suspense Authors with Criminally Cool Podcasts
Aliens in Thrillers
Recurring themes of the extraterrestrial thriller genre
Sports Thriller Books
How Ian Fleming’s Goldfinger was actually a sports thriller
Worlds of Horror
Six Terrifying Horror Locales
Medicine in Thrillers
Two Doctors who have the Right Prescription
Tropes in Sci-fi Thrillers
Tropes as Guideposts and Obstacles
Religiosity in Fiction
Cults, Religion, and the Sci-Fi Thriller
Urban Fantasy Detectives
The allure of urban fantasy detective stories
Folk Horror of Thailand
The ghosts, spirit shrines, and horror of Thailand
Mysteries, Conspiracies, and Thrillers
What makes a conspiracy thriller?
Lesser-Known Crime
Mystery and Crime Sites You May Not Have Heard Of
The Women of Femmes Noir
Modern Noir Part II
Paranormal Mysteries & Thrillers
A Librarian’s Approach to Reading Paranormal Mysteries and Thrillers
Bad Endings
Bad Endings, the Bain of the Reader … and Diner
The Psychic Sleuth
Five outstanding psychic mystery books
Horror Puppets
Rods, Strings, Blood, and Bones
The Crime Fiction Novella
Six experts discuss the form’s creativity, craft, and market
Maritime Thrillers
Why we love thrillers set on the water
The Fantasy Thriller
How A SONG OF ICE & FIRE shaped the genre
Thrills in Paradise
Why the Tropics are Ripe for Thrillers
Unlikeable Characters
Should characters in thrillers be likeable?
Crime and Tech
Has Technology Killed The Crime Novel?
Crime Noir
Anatomy of a Crime Noir
The YA Mystery Category
Where did the YA Mystery Genre Come From?
Modern Noir
Why We Need a “Femmes Noir” Genre
Mystery Waves
The mystery and suspense of surfing
Serial Killers
The three classifications of serial killer
Suspense in Sci-Fi
Gripped by Sci-Fi Suspense
New England Mysteries
Rural New England: A Perfect Place for a Mystery
Horror and Nihilism
How nihilist philosophy permeates horror fiction
Police in Crime Fiction
Are police still the good guys?
Historical Horror
The past, present, and future of historical horror
Myth & Mystery
Using Mythology to Forge Great Mystery
L.A. Film Noir
7 Essential L.A. Film Noir Movies of the Modern Era
The Hybrid of Fantasy and Horror
The dark-fantasy horror of Lord of the Rings
Modern Conspiracy Thrillers
How have conspiracy thrillers changed in the past decade?
Thriller Book Club Questions
10 Book Club Questions for a Thriller
Serial Killers and Us
Through the distorted looking glass
Mystery Quotes
Mystery authors on mystery novels
The Military Thriller Genre
What makes a military thriller, and why they’re beloved
Best Books of 2022
The top 10 mystery, thriller, crime, horror and suspense books of 2022
Martial Arts in Thrillers
The appeal of martial arts in action thrillers
Killer Handwriting
What Makes a Killer? Handwriting reveals the truth.
The Balance of Romantic Suspense
Suspense and romance as equal companions in the novel
Edgar Allan Poe
Three overlooked detective stories by the father of detective fiction
Small Town Thrillers
The psychological suspense of thrillers set in small towns
Rogue Police in Thrillers
Why “police as villains” resonates with readers
Psychological Thriller Book Covers
What Makes A Good Thriller Cover?
Supernatural Detectives
Ten Supernatural Thrillers that are Also Great Detective Stories
Characteristics of Spy Fiction
What makes for a great espionage thriller
Evolution of Conspiracy Thrillers
How the genre has adapted to change
Sci-fi Suspense
The difficulty of achieving suspense in science fiction
Private Eye Fiction
All I Really Need to Know I Learned from Private Eye Fiction
The Bad Girl I Lock Away
On the appeal of domestic thrillers
Cozy Mystery History
The Evolution of the Cozy Mystery Genre
Humor in Mysteries
Humor in the Mystery and Suspense Genres
Women in Psychological Suspense
Five Morally Ambiguous Women in Psychological Suspense
What Is A Slasher Horror?
The origins of slasher horror, current state, and future of the genre
Cold War Thrillers
Seven Classic Cold War Thrillers Made in America
Why We Love Thrillers
A Psychological Perspective on Why We Love Thrillers
Popularity of Domestic Thrillers
Why are domestic thrillers all the rage?