Mystery | Prepub Alert, April 2025 Titles

Readers can look forward to a Jazz Age murder mystery featuring Jay Gatsby’s sleuthing younger sister, a story inspired by a real-life antiquities scandal in Pakistan, and the return of senior sleuth Vera Wong.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Anderson-Wheeler, Claire. The Gatsby Gambit. Viking. Apr. 2025. ISBN 9780593831632. 368p. $30. MYSTERY

Anderson-Wheeler, a former literary agent who has written relationship fiction under the pen name Claire Amarti, writes a Jazz Age murder mystery featuring Jay Gatsby’s 21-year-old sleuthing younger sister, plucky Greta, in which death comes to West Egg. The release date will coincide with the 100th anniversary of The Great Gatsby.

Courage, Rachel Ekstrom. Murder by Cheesecake: A Golden Girls Cozy Mystery. Hyperion Avenue. Apr. 2025. ISBN 9781368102988. pbk. 304p. $16.99. MYSTERY

Publishing on the 40th anniversary of the first episode of The Golden Girls, this debut from literary agent Courage is a cozy mystery series that stars the indomitable Blanche, Rose, Dorothy, and Sophia. Rose is hosting a wedding for her cousin, but when Dorothy’s date is found dead, the friends will have to find the killer to save the day.

Dini, Elisabeth. Bearer of Bad News. Gallery. Apr. 2025. ISBN 9781668063576. 352p. $28.99. MYSTERY

Faced with dwindling funds and a cheating fiancé, hairdresser Lucy accepts a job that offers a trip to the Italian Dolomites in exchange for her delivering a message, but it lands her in an old mystery and a world of secrets. A debut novel from Dini, a lawyer and former prosecutor of war crimes at the International Criminal Court.

Hegarty, Louise. Fair Play. Harper. Apr. 2025. ISBN 9780063360556. 288p. $28.99. MYSTERY

Following her prize-winning short fiction, Hegarty makes a buzzy international debut with this detective novel. Benjamin’s sister and friends gather at a rented mansion to celebrate his birthday with a Jazz Age murder mystery–themed party, but in the morning, Benjamin is found dead. With a house full of suspects, an eminent detective arrives to find the culprit.

Lumley, Sam. How To Have a Killer Time in DC. (Oliver Popp’s Travel Guides to Murder, bk. 1). Kensington Cozies. Apr. 2025. ISBN 9781496753557. 288p. $27. MYSTERY

Lumley’s debut stars Oliver Popp, a 24-year-old gay autistic travel writer. He’s most comfortable with a schedule, but on an assignment in Washington, DC, his well-ordered life is upended by adorable photographer Ricky Warner and then an unexpected death, which Oliver and Ricky team up to solve.

Mullen, Kelly. This Is Not a Game. Dutton. Apr. 2025. ISBN 9780593854471. 320p. $29. MYSTERY

With publisher plans to make this a splashy global release, Mullen debuts with a locked-room mystery on Michigan’s Mackinac Island, where game designer Addie is visiting her grandma Mimi for the weekend. They’re attending a charity auction when a storm arrives, trapping all the guests in the mansion. When the host is murdered, Mimi and Addie turn sleuth.

Nee, John Shen Yen & SJ Rozan. The Railway Conspiracy. Soho Crime. Apr. 2025. ISBN 9781641296601. 304p. $27.95. MYSTERY

Nee and Rozan follow up The Murder of Mr. Ma with this second adventure featuring Judge Dee and Lao She, a Holmes and Watson–like duo who use their powers of deduction and martial arts skills to solve crime in 1920s London. This time they’re trying to unravel a conspiracy as they also investigate two deaths.

Patterson, James & Candice Fox. 2 Sisters Murder Investigations. (A 2 Sisters Detective Agency Mystery, bk. 2). Little, Brown. Apr. 2025. ISBN 9781538758496. 368p. $35. MYSTERY

Patterson and Fox offer a second story featuring Rhonda and her half-sister Barbara “Baby” Bird, who run 2 Sisters Detective Agency in Los Angeles. Troy Hansen hires them to search for his missing wife and brings them clues that point to a serial killer. When Troy is charged with murder, the sisters will have to fight to find the truth.

Perrin, Kristen. How To Seal Your Own Fate. Dutton. Apr. 2025. ISBN 9780593474044. 368p. $28. MYSTERY

In the sequel to How To Solve Your Own Murder, a LibraryReads Top Pick and GMA Buzz Book, Annie Adams is settling into the English country estate she inherited. When local fortune teller Peony Lane ends up dead inside the manor, Annie will once again put her great-aunt’s diaries to good use to solve the murder.

Phillips, Maha Khan. The Museum Detective. Soho Crime. Apr. 2025. ISBN 9781641296564. 336p. $27.95. MYSTERY

Phillips makes her U.S. debut with a story inspired by a real-life antiquities scandal in Pakistan. Archaeologist Dr. Gul Delani, a curator at the Museum of Heritage and History in Karachi, is called on to examine a seemingly authentic mummy found during a drug bust. As she investigates the mummy’s origins, she uncovers a dangerous conspiracy.

Sullivan, Emily. A Death on Corfu. Kensington. Apr. 2025. ISBN 9781496751416. 288p. $27. MYSTERY

Sullivan (“League of Scoundrels” series) turns from historical romance to a mystery set on a Greek island at the turn of the 20th century. Widow Minnie Harper accepts a typist job from new neighbor Stephen Dorian, a famously grumpy mystery writer. When a maid is murdered, Minnie launches her own investigation, with some help from Stephen.

Sutanto, Jesse Q. Vera Wong’s Guide to Snooping (on a Dead Man). (Vera Wong, bk. 2). Berkley. Apr. 2025. ISBN 9780593546253. pbk. 352p. $19. MYSTERY

Sutanto offers a sequel to the award-winning and bestselling Vera Wong’s Unsolicited Advice for Murderers. After solving a murder in her teahouse, Vera’s life has been good, if boring. When she encounters a young woman looking for her missing friend, who’s a jet-setting social media influencer, Vera is on the case.

Forthcoming Series Titles

Brown, Rita Mae. Sealed with a Hiss. (Mrs. Murphy, bk. 33). Bantam. Apr. 2025. ISBN 9780593874080. 224p. $30. MYSTERY

Cambridge, Colleen. A Fashionably French Murder. (An American in Paris Mystery, bk. 3). Kensington. Apr. 2025. ISBN 9781496751195. 320p. $27. MYSTERY

Coyle, Cleo. No Roast for the Weary. (A Coffeehouse Mystery, bk. 21). Berkley. Apr. 2025. ISBN 9780593642283. 352p. $29. MYSTERY

Graves, Sarah. Death by Chocolate Pumpkin Muffin. (A Death by Chocolate Mystery, bk. 8). Kensington Cozies. Apr. 2025. ISBN 9781496744142. 320p. $27. MYSTERY

Harris, C. S. Who Will Remember. (Sebastian St. Cyr, bk. 20). Berkley. Apr. 2025. ISBN 9780593639214. 368p. $29. MYSTERY

Hillerman, Anne. Shadow of the Solstice. (Leaphorn, Chee & Manuelito, bk. 10). Harper. Apr. 2025. ISBN 9780063344853. 272p. $30. MYSTERY

Prose, Nita. The Maid’s Secret. (Molly the Maid, bk. 3). Ballantine. Apr. 2025. ISBN 9780593875414. 304p. $30. MYSTERY

Shelton, Paige. Written in Stone. (A Scottish Bookshop Mystery, bk. 10). Minotaur. Apr. 2025. ISBN 9781250336613. 304p. $28. MYSTERY

Thomas, Will. Season of Death. (Barker & Llewelyn, bk. 16). Minotaur. Apr. 2025. ISBN 9781250343604. 352p. $28. MYSTERY

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