Swap Info:

Looking to try a book in a new-to-you genre? Or looking for an excuse to read a book off your Mt. To Be Read? Every month, we'll explore a different genre by reading a single book and sharing our thoughts with our partner. September's genre is mysteries. Whether you're new to the scene or just using this swap to read one you've had your eye on for a long time, this is the swap for you.

Genre Definition:

(Wikipedia) Mystery fiction is a genre of fiction typically focused on the investigation of a crime. Mystery fiction is often used as a synonym for detective fiction or crime fiction—in other words a novel or short story in which a detective (either professional or amateur) investigates and solves a crime mystery. Sometimes mystery books are nonfictional. "Mystery fiction" can be detective stories in which the emphasis is on the puzzle or suspense element and its logical solution such as a whodunit. Mystery fiction can be contrasted with hardboiled detective stories, which focus on action and gritty realism.

Mystery fiction may involve a supernatural or thriller mystery where the solution does not have to be logical, and even no crime involved.

Swap Instructions:

Choose any mystery novel and read it! There are tons of online suggestion guides that might help. I'll list some favorites of the CL mods here at the end of this post to get you started.

Send an email or swap-bot message to your partners with the following info:

• Title & author of the book you read
• Why did you choose this book?
• A brief summary of the book
• A brief review--what did you think of it?
• Your experience with the genre (have you read a lot? a little? was this your first?)
• Your thoughts about the genre overall and if this book was a good representation of it
• Would you read more of this genre in the future?

Some suggestions from your group mods:

• ABC Murders by Agatha Christie
• And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie
• The Cuckoo's Calling by Robert Galbraith
• Sherlock Holmes stories by Arthur Conan Doyle
• In Death series by J.D. Robb
• J.J. Graves series by Liliana Hart
• Nikki Heat series by Richard Castle
• The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon
• The 13th Hour by Richard Doetsch
• Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein
• Paper Towns by John Green
• Camel Club series by David Baldacci

These are just suggestions, in case you need suggestions. Feel free to choose a book from this list or from anywhere else as long as it could be considered part of the genre.

Let me know if you have any questions/comments. Group rules & ratings apply.

Previous genres covered so far: romances, picture books, biographies, young adult fiction, dystopias