A sensitive and nuanced exploration of a seldom-discussed subject by an acclaimed novelist The fourteenth volume in the Art of series conjures an ethereal subject: the idea of mystery in fiction. Mystery is not often discussed—apart from the genre—because, as Maud Casey says, “It’s not easy to talk about something that is a whispered invitation, a siren song, a flickering light in the distance.” Casey, the author of several critically acclaimed novels, reaches beyond the usual tool kit of fictional elements to ask the question: Where does mystery reside in a work of fiction? She takes us into the Land of Un—a space of uncertainty and unknowing—to find out and looks at the variety of ways mystery is created through character, image, structure, and haunted texts, including the novels of Shirley Jackson, Paul Yoon, J. M. Coetzee, and more. Casey’s wide-ranging discussion encompasses spirit photography, the radical nature of empathy, and contradictory characters, as she searches for questions rather than answers. The Art of Mystery is a striking and vibrant addition to the much-loved Art of series.

A murdered heiress, a missing necklace, and a train full of shifty, unusual, and suspicious characters leaves Daisy and Hazel with a new mystery to solve in this third novel of the Wells & Wong Mystery series. Hazel Wong and Daisy Wells are taking a vacation across Europe on world-famous passenger train, the Orient Express—and it’s clear that each of their fellow first-class travelers has something to hide. Even more intriguing: There’s rumor of a spy in their midst. Then, during dinner, a bloodcurdling scream comes from inside one of the cabins. When the door is broken down, a passenger is found murdered—her stunning ruby necklace gone. But the killer has vanished, as if into thin air. The Wells & Wong Detective Society is ready to crack the case—but this time, they’ve got competition.

In Art, Mystery, a controversial former footballer, now export agent specializing in chrome, accepts an unusual commission from an odd source, the very man who brought him down, a former football referee turned art handler -- to find and export a pornographic work of Renaissance art. Art, Mystery utilizes the style of crime noir as a delivery system for its high-spirited satire of modern life, catching the gallery scene, footloose Euro-trash, art criticism, the very rich and middle-aged white ennui in its net while hardly pausing for breath. Tersely delivered, with a dry sense of the ridiculous, Art Mystery calmly regards the commodification of aesthetics and their subsequent price-tags as a necessary evil, a machine under which the bodies of his protagonists are rolled. The inclusion of Tile's Antonio Polliauolo files, quoting extensively from E.L. Gombritch's popular study, The Story of Art, provide the raw data of aesthetic value, while providing a framework with which to regard it whimsically. This, along with Tile's drunken deep-dive into scholarly discourse with Dr. Harmoni, give us a sense of the arcana driving the capitalist lust without breaking Thompson's headlong stride or his ability to send up human interplay and its twisted use of language. Perlat Tile, Pablo Pablon, Ms. Jasmine, Naj, Dr. Enver Harmoni and the rest of the characters of Art, Mystery are sketched definitively, but with an eye on their ambiguous, unknowable depths - the darkness of which only emerges once in a rare while. The rest of the time, Thompson's deft strokes tell us what we need to know as the stakes multiply. Art, Mystery is a strikingly breezy read and a delightful introduction to the literary voice of Mayo Thompson.

Former Police Chief Katherine Sullivan has been called brilliant, brave, compassionate, and quirky, but after decades of crime fighting, this resilient grandmother with an artist's soul is discovering that retirement can be just as deadly as being on the job. When Katherine returned to her hometown, her only thought was to comfort her recently divorced daughter. That was before a young woman was found murdered on the estate of the town's richest family. Now, in order to track down the killer, Katherine must uncover the generations of secrets that at least one person as already killed to protect in this charming and smart series debut, The Fine Art of Murder.

To the outside observer, Salt Lake City might seem to be the squeaky-clean "City of Saints"—its nickname since Mormon pioneers first arrived. Its wide roads, huge Mormon temple topped by a horn-blowing angel, and orderly neighborhoods give it the appearance of the ideal American city, but looks can be deceiving. When a beautiful socialite turns up dead, Art Oveson, a twenty-something husband, father, and devout Mormon just getting his start as a sheriff's deputy, finds himself thrust into the role of detective. With his partner, a foul-mouthed former strikebreaker, he begins to pursue the murderer—or murderers. His search takes him into the underbelly of Salt Lake City, a place rife with blackmail, corruption, and death. Based on a true yet largely forgotten murder that once captivated the nation but still remains unsolved eighty years later, City of Saints reveals a darker picture of the Mormon capital than you ever expected.