Criminally Good New Murder Mysteries
The Mystery of the Crooked Man
Sometimes you know immediately that a book is going to get under your skin and stay there. I felt that way only a few pages into Spencer's tart debut, THE MYSTERY OF THE CROOKED MAN (Pushkin Vertigo, 319 pp., paperback, $18.95), which vaults the reader into the world of Agatha Dorn, an irritable archivist and passionate devotee of mystery fiction — particularly the work of Gladden Green (think Agatha Christie through a fun-house mirror.)
When Agatha discovers what appears to be a lost manuscript by Green, one with the potential to tilt the author's legacy on its axis, she becomes famous. It's not long before 'The Dog's Ball,' as the book is called, is revealed to be a hoax. Then Agatha's ex-girlfriend — who had warned her to 'be careful' with the manuscript — dies by suicide. Or did she? Agatha, who's been canceled, thinks otherwise.
Is Agatha 'a crazy woman, haphazardly but unmistakably drifting down and out, sick, unemployed, drunk, obsessed with solving a murder that had never occurred?' Or 'a maverick, pursuing truth and justice … even at the cost of [her] own well-being?' Maybe she's both.
Murder at Gulls Nest
Nora Breen, the plucky, practical sleuth in MURDER AT GULLS NEST (Atria, 323 pp., $28.99) has checked into the Gulls Nest boardinghouse in an English seaside town in 1954. She's there to find her friend Frieda, who has been writing faithfully to her each week until, abruptly, she doesn't. Ominously, Frieda's last letter had concluded, 'I believe every one of us at Gulls Nest is concealing some kind of secret — I shall make it my business to find out and so I shall finally have something riveting to write to you, dear friend!'
Nora arrives at Gulls Nest with some secrets of her own, such as the fact that she spent 30 years as a Carmelite nun, Sister Agnes of Christ. To investigate her friend's disappearance, Nora must leave behind the part of herself that clamored for the solitude of a religious order and live fully in the world, embracing its chaos. It isn't easy, especially when another guest at Gulls Nest turns up dead, poisoned by cyanide. Frieda's handkerchief is tucked into one of his pockets.
Kidd's turn to cozy mysteries after several genre-stretching novels is a welcome one that tantalizes the prospect of more installments. As Nora adroitly observes, 'There's work to be done and deductions to be made.'
Midnight in Soap Lake
Sullivan is channeling 'Twin Peaks' in his latest novel, MIDNIGHT IN SOAP LAKE (Hanover Square Press, 409 pp., $28.99). Not only because of the Pacific Northwest setting, but because of the spookiness that permeates the narrative, thanks to a mineral-filled lake imbued with potentially otherworldly properties and a mythic, creepy figure called 'TreeTop' who has terrorized the area for decades.
Abigail and her scientist husband, Eli, have just moved to Soap Lake. Having expected 'ferns and rain, ale and slugs, Sasquatch and wool,' she's somewhat disconcerted to find they'll be living in the desert, 'scabby with dark basalt, bristled with the husks of flowers.' Not long after Eli decamps to Poland for some research, she's on a walk when she encounters a terrified little boy, caked in dried blood. It turns out his mother, Esme, has been murdered. That night, when Abigail gets home, a strange man wearing goggles, his mouth 'shrouded in white fabric,' taps on her window with a latex-gloved finger. Is it TreeTop?
As he moves back and forth in time between Esme's childhood in Soap Lake and Abigail's present-day sleuthing, Sullivan evokes the richness of a small-town community as well as the secrets-filled uneasiness simmering just below its placid surface.
Vera Wong's Guide to Snooping (on a Dead Man)
I appreciate the recent uptick in books featuring sleuths of a seasoned age, particularly ones as prickly, opinionated and delightful as Vera Wong, who returns for her second outing in VERA WONG'S GUIDE TO SNOOPING (ON A DEAD MAN)(Berkley, 324 pp., paperback, $19). After the thrill of investigating a homicide case in 'Vera Wong's Unsolicited Advice for Murderers,' all Vera wants is to be surrounded by family — biological and chosen — in her beloved Bay Area tea shop, where she can dispense food, drink and advice (lots of it, mostly unsolicited). There's just one problem: She's bored. 'Sometimes, all an old lady wants is a murder to solve. Is that too much to ask for?'
Then Vera meets a young woman rattled by the disappearance of a friend who, it turns out, is the social media influencer Xander Lin. It soon transpires that he has died in murky circumstances, and everything about him — real name, money sources, family background — is made up. Vera, undaunted, assembles a crew of friends and begins to unearth the dark secrets at the heart of Xander's short life.
Further adventures cannot arrive fast enough.
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New York Times
09-04-2025
- New York Times
Criminally Good New Murder Mysteries
The Mystery of the Crooked Man Sometimes you know immediately that a book is going to get under your skin and stay there. I felt that way only a few pages into Spencer's tart debut, THE MYSTERY OF THE CROOKED MAN (Pushkin Vertigo, 319 pp., paperback, $18.95), which vaults the reader into the world of Agatha Dorn, an irritable archivist and passionate devotee of mystery fiction — particularly the work of Gladden Green (think Agatha Christie through a fun-house mirror.) When Agatha discovers what appears to be a lost manuscript by Green, one with the potential to tilt the author's legacy on its axis, she becomes famous. It's not long before 'The Dog's Ball,' as the book is called, is revealed to be a hoax. Then Agatha's ex-girlfriend — who had warned her to 'be careful' with the manuscript — dies by suicide. Or did she? Agatha, who's been canceled, thinks otherwise. Is Agatha 'a crazy woman, haphazardly but unmistakably drifting down and out, sick, unemployed, drunk, obsessed with solving a murder that had never occurred?' Or 'a maverick, pursuing truth and justice … even at the cost of [her] own well-being?' Maybe she's both. Murder at Gulls Nest Nora Breen, the plucky, practical sleuth in MURDER AT GULLS NEST (Atria, 323 pp., $28.99) has checked into the Gulls Nest boardinghouse in an English seaside town in 1954. She's there to find her friend Frieda, who has been writing faithfully to her each week until, abruptly, she doesn't. Ominously, Frieda's last letter had concluded, 'I believe every one of us at Gulls Nest is concealing some kind of secret — I shall make it my business to find out and so I shall finally have something riveting to write to you, dear friend!' Nora arrives at Gulls Nest with some secrets of her own, such as the fact that she spent 30 years as a Carmelite nun, Sister Agnes of Christ. To investigate her friend's disappearance, Nora must leave behind the part of herself that clamored for the solitude of a religious order and live fully in the world, embracing its chaos. It isn't easy, especially when another guest at Gulls Nest turns up dead, poisoned by cyanide. Frieda's handkerchief is tucked into one of his pockets. Kidd's turn to cozy mysteries after several genre-stretching novels is a welcome one that tantalizes the prospect of more installments. As Nora adroitly observes, 'There's work to be done and deductions to be made.' Midnight in Soap Lake Sullivan is channeling 'Twin Peaks' in his latest novel, MIDNIGHT IN SOAP LAKE (Hanover Square Press, 409 pp., $28.99). Not only because of the Pacific Northwest setting, but because of the spookiness that permeates the narrative, thanks to a mineral-filled lake imbued with potentially otherworldly properties and a mythic, creepy figure called 'TreeTop' who has terrorized the area for decades. Abigail and her scientist husband, Eli, have just moved to Soap Lake. Having expected 'ferns and rain, ale and slugs, Sasquatch and wool,' she's somewhat disconcerted to find they'll be living in the desert, 'scabby with dark basalt, bristled with the husks of flowers.' Not long after Eli decamps to Poland for some research, she's on a walk when she encounters a terrified little boy, caked in dried blood. It turns out his mother, Esme, has been murdered. That night, when Abigail gets home, a strange man wearing goggles, his mouth 'shrouded in white fabric,' taps on her window with a latex-gloved finger. Is it TreeTop? As he moves back and forth in time between Esme's childhood in Soap Lake and Abigail's present-day sleuthing, Sullivan evokes the richness of a small-town community as well as the secrets-filled uneasiness simmering just below its placid surface. Vera Wong's Guide to Snooping (on a Dead Man) I appreciate the recent uptick in books featuring sleuths of a seasoned age, particularly ones as prickly, opinionated and delightful as Vera Wong, who returns for her second outing in VERA WONG'S GUIDE TO SNOOPING (ON A DEAD MAN)(Berkley, 324 pp., paperback, $19). After the thrill of investigating a homicide case in 'Vera Wong's Unsolicited Advice for Murderers,' all Vera wants is to be surrounded by family — biological and chosen — in her beloved Bay Area tea shop, where she can dispense food, drink and advice (lots of it, mostly unsolicited). There's just one problem: She's bored. 'Sometimes, all an old lady wants is a murder to solve. Is that too much to ask for?' Then Vera meets a young woman rattled by the disappearance of a friend who, it turns out, is the social media influencer Xander Lin. It soon transpires that he has died in murky circumstances, and everything about him — real name, money sources, family background — is made up. Vera, undaunted, assembles a crew of friends and begins to unearth the dark secrets at the heart of Xander's short life. Further adventures cannot arrive fast enough.
Buzz Feed
24-03-2025
- Buzz Feed
"Agatha All Along" Creator Jac Schaeffer Confirmed This Controversial Fan Theory, And 11 Other Behind-The-Scenes Secrets We Learned From The Cast
This weekend, some of the Agatha All Along cast reunited at PaleyFest to answer fan questions, share behind-the-scenes stories, and reminisce on the fan-favorite Marvel show that aired this past fall. While Joe Locke and Patti LuPone weren't in attendence, the panel included (left to right) Ali Ahn, Sasheer Zamata, (Creator, Showrunner, Director & Executive Producer) Jac Schaeffer, Kathryn Hahn, and Debra Jo Rupp. Here are 12 facts, BTS stories, secrets, and details about the show we learned straight from the cast themselves: 1. Jac Schaeffer was invited to work on another Marvel project after the success of WandaVision, but didn't immediately know that it was going to focus on Agatha. When playing around with characters and plots, Kevin Feige noted that Agatha always wormed her way in somehow, so he suggested that she do an Agatha spin-off. And so, Agatha All Along was born. 2. In the show, it's revealed that Agatha's signature necklace is actually a locket that holds a clipping of her late son Nicky's hair. Coincidentally, Kathryn also wore a locket with locks of hair from her two kids, Leonard and Mae, which her family gifted to her. She wore it right under Agatha's necklace. "It felt like I had double amulets on," she said. 3. Jac revealed that her favorite Easter egg in the show is this tiny detail in Episode 1, where we get a sneak peek of Nicky's bedroom. For a split second, you can see a first-place choir trophy he's won for best vocals. This is, of course, a nod to him and Agatha being the ones behind the ages-old "The Ballad of the Witches' Road." 4. Debra Jo Rupp joked that when she joined the project, she thought she was going to play a witch, too. As we all saw, not only is Debra's character Mrs. Hart not a witch, but she also dies fairly early on into the show. 'The phone call I got was 'We'd love you to join this project, you're gonna be a witch!'... I get there, and no one is looking me in the eye.' Marvel Studios In response, Jac joked that Marvel's timeline is non-linear, so there's always a chance she'll come back! 5. Early on, it was decided that the show would use only practical effects where possible. The bloated faces they donned during the poison trial wasn't CGI at all — they were prosthetics. The Witches' Road itself was also an actual set and only used minimal CGI. Because of all this, it has the lowest production budget of any Marvel movie or show thus far, rounding out at approximately $40 million. Marvel Studios The cast revealed that they had an absolute blast in the prosthetics and couldn't stop giggling at each other, though Kathryn felt she didn't look all that different in them. Sasheer also shared that it was like magic watching the crew make adjustments to the set between scenes, noting that even the smallest of changes made it look and feel like they were in a totally different part of the path. Kathryn actually cried when she first walked onto the set. 6. Kathryn revealed that her biggest challenge while filming the show was crawling out of that swamp in Episode 6. Marvel Studios 7. Since the beginning, Jac intended for the show to be some kind of spell in and of itself. Between that idea and the need for a catchy song like "Agatha All Along" in WandaVision, they came up with the idea to make the Ballad a spell. 8. Kathryn and Joe Locke immediately hit it off when they first met. They were two peas in a were even wearing the same shoes. According to Kathryn, she felt very maternal towards him. 9. In a don't-think-about-it-too-hard-or-you'll-cry turn of events, while working on Agatha All Along, the writers really understood that Agatha is a natural teacher and mentor, and "got kind of a perverse thrill out of the idea that Agatha kind of ended up being more of a guide to Billy than Wanda has [ever] been." Marvel Studios Billy and Agatha's relationship also directly contrasts Wanda and Agatha's relationship in WandaVision, in which all Agatha wants from Wanda is connection, and Wanda isn't interested. While Billy/Teen is the one seeking that out in Agatha All Along, Agatha does eventually reciprocate, because she is at her strongest as a mentor and can't help but to guide the coven. 10. Here's a fun lil fact: in the '80s throwback trial, the retainer Jennifer Kale wears is actually Sasheer's own. Marvel Studios 11. If you've ever shared an Agatha theory on the internet, there's a good chance Sasheer or Kathryn have actually read it. Sasheer revealed that she's a huge Marvel fan and Kathryn thought the fan theories were awesome. 12. And finally, speaking of fan roll, please! Jac confirmed a hotly debated fan theory, which speculated that Rio (aka Death) is Nicky's father. Marvel Studios Speaking on the theory, Jac joked, "When we were developing it, we — executive producer Mary Livanos and I — got a lot of questions. 'Who is the dad, who is the dad?' And we were like, 'Why you wanna know?'" Kathryn, who played opposite Aubrey Plaza's Rio in the show, chimed in, "They don't need dads!" Jac continued, "That was just something didn't wanna answer the hows and whys of it, because it's witches, but it was just something that was important to the writers and to me and just felt like something special. So it was really lovely to have something that the fans said that we can confirm."
Yahoo
26-02-2025
- Yahoo
Black Panther Spinoff Series Not Happening, Says Marvel TV Chief
Fans of Black Panther's Okoye will have to wait a little longer until they can see Danai Gurira back in action: Plans for the Dora Milaje general's spinoff series have been scrapped. 'I love Okoye. I think fans of Okoye are going to be excited to see her come back,' Marvel Studio's head of streaming, television and animation Brad Winderbaum told Pay or Wait. 'But I don't think it's going to be on a television show. I can't say where or when, but I think there's a lot to look forward to.' More from TVLine Faran Tahir to Return as Iron Man Villain Raza in Disney+'s Vision Series Kathryn Hahn on Possible Agatha Season 2: 'Am I Personally Done With Playing This Witch? No.' Marvel Trailer Reveals New Looks at Ironheart and Wonder Man, Sets Dates for Wakanda Series, Marvel Zombies and Others Back in May of 2021, reports began circulating that Gurira had closed a deal to star in her own origin spinoff series for Disney+. The Wakanda-based series was supposedly in development by Black Panther writer/director Ryan Coogler. Then, two long years ago, Gurira said on The Late Show With Stephen Colbert, when pressed about the rumored series, 'I have been told… that I can gently allude to this possibility. So I am gently alluding.' But there'd been no updates since. Marvel TV Status Report: The Latest on Daredevil, the Vision Series and 10 Others View List However, a Black Panther animated series, Eyes of Wakanda, is still scheduled to release on Disney+ on August 6, 2025. It will consist of four episodes and will be the first series of Phase Six of the MCU. 'Throughout Wakandan history, brave warriors have been tasked to travel the world retrieving dangerous vibranium artifacts,' per the official logline. 'This is their story.' Black Panther, starring the late Chadwick Boseman as the titular superhero, was a huge blockbuster when it was released in 2018, grossing more than $1.3 billion worldwide. A 2022 sequel, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, was also a huge box office hit, with Letitia Wright's Shuri taking over as Black Panther for Boseman's T'Challa. Are you disappointed that Okoye won't get her time in the spotlight on Disney+? Sound off in the comments. Best of TVLine Yellowjackets Mysteries: An Up-to-Date List of the Series' Biggest Questions (and Answers?) The Emmys' Most Memorable Moments: Laughter, Tears, Historical Wins, 'The Big One' and More 'Missing' Shows, Found! The Latest on Severance, Holey Moley, Poker Face, YOU, Primo, Transplant and 25+ Others
