We didn’t think we’d see a year to top 2020’s incredible range of crime and thriller novels, but 2021 has surpassed expectations and welcomed some true gems to the beloved genre.
We loved propulsive new thrillers from Michael Robotham and Candice Fox, as well as the return of Michael Connelly’s Renee Ballard and Harry Bosch. Richard Osman was quick to follow up the roaring success of The Thursday Murder Club with The Man Who Died Twice, while new standalone novels from local talents Garry Disher and Sarah Bailey went down a treat. And let’s not forget to mention the total rollercoaster ride that is Chris Hammer’s new bestseller, Treasure and Dirt.
There’s never been a better time to be a crime reader!
—Ben Hunter, Fiction Category Manager
The Housemate
by Sarah Bailey
Listen to our podcast with Sarah Bailey here.
Three housemates. One dead, one missing and one accused of murder. Dubbed the Housemate Homicide, it’s a mystery that has baffled Australians for almost a decade. Melbourne-based journalist Olive Groves worked on the story as a junior reporter and became obsessed by the case. Now, nine years later, the missing housemate turns up dead on a remote property. Olive is once again assigned to the story, this time reluctantly paired with precocious millennial podcaster Cooper Ng.
Buy it here
Before You Knew My Name
by Jacqueline Bublitz
Listen to our podcast with Jacqueline Bublitz here.
When she arrived in New York on her 18th birthday carrying nothing but $600 cash and a stolen camera, Alice Lee was looking for a fresh start. Now, just one month later, she is the city’s latest Jane Doe, an unidentified murder victim. Ruby Jones is also trying to start over; she travelled halfway around the world only to find herself lonelier than ever. Until she finds Alice’s body by the Hudson River. From this first, devastating encounter, the two women form an unbreakable bond.
Buy it here
The Dark Hours
by Michael Connelly
Read our review of The Dark Hours here.
There’s chaos in Hollywood on New Year’s Eve. At the end of the countdown, LAPD Detective Renee Ballard seeks shelter from the traditional rain of lead as hundreds of revellers shoot their guns into the air. Minutes later, Ballard is called to a scene where a hardworking auto shop owner has been fatally hit by a bullet in the middle of a crowded street party. Ballard swiftly concludes that the deadly bullet could not have fallen from the sky and connects it with another unsolved murder – a case at one time worked by Detective Harry Bosch.
Buy it here
The Last Thing He Told Me
by Laura Dave
Before Owen Michaels disappears, he manages to smuggle a note to his new wife, Hannah: protect her. Hannah knows exactly who Owen needs her to protect – his sixteen-year-old daughter, Bailey, who lost her mother tragically as a child. And who wants absolutely nothing to do with her new stepmother. As her increasingly desperate calls to Owen go unanswered, his boss is arrested for fraud and the police start questioning her, Hannah realises that her husband isn’t who he said he was. And that Bailey might hold the key to discovering Owen’s true identity, and why he disappeared.
Buy it here
The Way it is Now
by Garry Disher
Charlie is living in his family’s holiday house, on forced leave since he made a mess of things at work. Things have never been easy for Charlie. Twenty years earlier his mother went missing in the area, believed murdered. His father has always been the main suspect, though her body was never found. Until now – the foundations are being dug for a new house on a vacant block. The skeletal remains of a child and an adult are found and Charlie’s past comes crashing in on him.
Buy it here
The Chase
by Candice Fox
Read our review of The Chase here, read a Q&A with Candice Fox here and listen to our podcast with her here.
When more than 600 of the world’s most violent human beings pour out from Pronghorn Correctional Facility into the Nevada Desert, the biggest manhunt in US history begins. But for John Kradle, this is his one chance to prove his innocence, five years after the murder of his wife and child. He just needs to stay one step ahead of the teams of law enforcement officers he knows will be chasing down the escapees. Death row supervisor turned fugitive-hunter Celine Osbourne is single-minded in her mission to catch Kradle. She has very personal reasons for hating him – and she knows exactly where he’s heading.
Buy it here
Treasure and Dirt
by Chris Hammer
Read our review of Treasure and Dirt here, read a Q&A with Chris Hammer here and listen to our podcast with him here.
In the desolate outback town of Finnigans Gap, police struggle to maintain law and order. Thieves pillage opal mines, religious fanatics recruit vulnerable young people and billionaires do as they please. Then an opal miner is found crucified and left to rot down his mine. Nothing about the miner’s death is straightforward, not even who found the body. Sydney homicide detective Ivan Lucic is sent to investigate, assisted by inexperienced young investigator Nell Buchanan. But Finnigans Gap has already ended one police career and damaged others …
Buy it here
The Man Who Died Twice
by Richard Osman
Read our review of The Man Who Died Twice here.
It’s the following Thursday, and Elizabeth has just had a visit from a man she thought was dead. It’s (one of) her ex-husbands, and he’s being hunted. His story involves some diamonds, some spies, and a very angry mobster. Elizabeth puts it down to his normal grandstanding, but then the bodies start piling up. So she enlists Joyce, Ibrahim and Ron in the hunt for the killer. If they find the diamonds – well, that’s just a bonus.
Buy it here
When You Are Mine
by Michael Robotham
Read our review of When You Are Mine here and listen to our podcast with Michael Robotham here.
Philomena McCarthy has defied the odds and become a promising young officer with the Metropolitan Police despite being the daughter of a notorious London gangster. Called to the scene of a domestic assault one day, she rescues a bloodied young woman, Tempe Brown, the mistress of a decorated detective. The incident is hushed up, but Phil has unwittingly made a dangerous enemy with powerful friends. Determined to protect each other, the two women strike up a tentative friendship. Tempe is thoughtful and sweet and makes herself indispensable to Phil, but sinister things keep happening and something isn’t quite right …
Buy it here
Wild Place
by Christian White
Read our review of Wild Place here and listen to our podcast with Christian White here.
In the summer of 1989, a local teen goes missing from the idyllic Australian suburb of Camp Hill. As rumours of Satanic rituals swirl, schoolteacher Tom Witter becomes convinced he holds the key to the disappearance. When the police won’t listen, he takes matters into his own hands with the help of the missing girl’s father and a local neighbourhood watch group.
Buy it here
We’re rounding up the Best Books of 2021 — check it out!
About the Contributor
Ben Hunter
Ben is Booktopia's dedicated fiction and children's book specialist. He spends his days painstakingly piecing together beautiful catalogue pages and gift guides for the website. At any opportunity, he loves to write warmly of the books that inspire him. If you want to talk books, find him tweeting at @itsbenhunter
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Comments
December 30, 2021 at 9:24 pm
I’m after any books written by Lynwood Barclay?
December 31, 2021 at 11:35 am
Hi Frances – we have a number of books available from Linwood Barclay! Check out the books we have on offer here: https://www.booktopia.com.au/search.ep?author=Linwood%20Barclay. Happy reading!