Mystery Podcast 2026 Reading List

The 2026 book list revealed and discussed. What was selected and why? Do you agree? Disagree? Have authors to add?

Get your copy of all of our History of Mystery book selections here! (including even some 2027 selections)

Watch clips from our conversations with guests!

January 2026

Publication: 1943

THE MINISTRY OF FEAR by Graham Greene is a thrilling blend of espionage and psychological mystery set in wartime London. 

Publication: 1944

GREEN FOR DANGER by Christianna Brand is a masterful wartime mystery set in a British hospital during the Blitz.  It’s a standout in Golden Age detective fiction.

March 2026

Publication: 1944

DEATH COMES AS THE END by Agatha Christie is a groundbreaking historical mystery set in ancient Egypt.  It’s the first full-length historical whodunit.

April 2026

Publication: 1944

HOME SWEET HOMICIDE by Craig Rice features a trio of resourceful siblings who set out to solve a murder in their neighborhood. The novel exemplifies Rice’s talent for blending lighthearted storytelling with intricate puzzles, earning her acclaim in the genre — and a Time Magazine cover.

May 2025

Publication: 1945

DIED IN THE WOOL by Ngaio Marsh is a compelling mystery set on a remote New Zealand sheep farm. Marsh was one of the Queens of Crime, and this novel is among her best.

June 2025

Publication: 1946

THE MOVING TOYSHOP by Edmund Crispin is an ingenious mystery featuring eccentric Oxford professor Gervase Fen.  Celebrated for its wit and inventive plot, it’s a crime fiction classic.

July 2026

Publication: 1946

THE HORIZONTAL MAN by Helen Eustis is a psychological mystery set in an Ivy League women’s college.  But as the investigation unfolds, the line between sanity and madness begins to blur.

August 2026

Publication: 1946

THE BIG CLOCK by Kenneth Fearing is a thriller-noir about a man trapped inside the machinery of a powerful publishing empire. This classic inspired the film No Way Out.

September 2026

Publication: 1947

THE FABULOUS CLIPJOINT by Fredric Brown is a gritty mystery about the search for truth. Their investigation takes them through the burlesque houses, bars, and back alleys of Chicago.

October 2026

Publication: 1947

IN A LONELY PLACE by Dorothy B. Hughes is a haunting psychological noir told from the perspective of a charming but deeply disturbed war veteran. As a series of L.A. stranglings terrifies the city, the truth about the protagonist’s volatile desires and violent impulses slowly unravel.

November 2026

Publication: 1947

THE BLANK WALL by Elisabeth Sanxay Holding a suspenseful psychological thriller about an ordinary woman who becomes entangled in a man’s suspicious death while protecting her daughter from inside her seemingly quiet home. 

December 2026

Publication: 1948

THE FRANCHISE AFFAIR by Josephine Tey is a mystery centered on a disturbing accusation. The novel is celebrated for its nuanced psychology and dismantling of false

Linden Botanicals
We sell the world’s healthiest herbal teas and extracts.

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.

Transcript

Sarah Harrison: 0:11

Welcome to Tea, Tonic and Toxin, the only book club and podcast dedicated to exploring mysteries chronologically, from Edgar Allan Poe to the present. We're discussing the best mysteries and thrillers ever written, as well as interviewing some of the world's most talented contemporary mystery and thriller writers. I'm your host, Sarah Harrison.

Carolyn Daughters: 0:34

And I'm your host, Carolyn Daughters. We aim to educate, entertain and reignite interest in exceptional and often overlooked authors who shaped the genre. Check us out at teatonicandtoxin.com and on our socials to find tons of great content, take part in the conversation, and listen to tons of exceptionally good mystery podcast episodes. We love hearing from listeners, and we're excited you're joining us on our journey through the history of mystery. Today's sponsor is Linden Botanicals, a Colorado-based company that sells the world's healthiest herbal teas and extracts. Their team has traveled the globe to find the herbs that offer the best science-based support for stress, relief, energy, memory, mood, kidney health, joint health, digestion and inflammation. US orders over $75 ship free. To learn more, visit lindenbotanicals.com

Sarah Harrison: 1:25

And use code MYSTERY to get 15% off your first order. Thanks, Linden Botanicals! Carolyn, welcome to the show.

Carolyn Daughters: 1:35

Thank you for inviting me to the show, Sarah.

Sarah Harrison: 1:39

Of course. I'm excited about this show. This is our prospective. In fact, let me officially, formally introduce it. Today, we're looking ahead to our 2026 reading list, a year that takes us from the final years of World War II into the unsettled years that followed. These are mysteries that play with form, challenge morals, challenge moral certainty and ask what happens when trust breaks down within families, communities and even with ourselves. Some are witty, some are dark. Many refuse to give easy answers. In this episode, we'll talk about why we chose these books, what themes connect them, and what kind of reading experience we think 2026 will offer -- without spoilers and with plenty of curiosity.

Carolyn Daughters: 2:39

I love it.

Sarah Harrison: 2:41

That's exciting. We do have 12 books picked out. Carolyn, do you think that's ambitious of us?

Carolyn Daughters: 2:48

Well, in a normal year, no. In a normal year, I feel like it's completely doable. And I actually think it's doable in 2026. In a year like 2025, 12 books would be crazy.

Sarah Harrison: 3:02

Yes, I don't know if you've been keeping track, listeners, but we didn't do 12 books in 2025. I thought we would, and then we didn't. I don't know if we should chat about that a little bit.

Carolyn Daughters: 3:17

Let's do I think we did six books. Now, in our defense, it's a miracle we covered six.

Sarah Harrison: 3:34

Yes, and dear listener, not that we need a defense, as we just discussed. We're grown, and we're the boss of ourselves. And I think we just decided that six was the right number and 12 was the wrong number that we previously stated.

Carolyn Daughters: 3:55

2025 was an incredible year, very busy. I'll sum it up at a very high level. There were geographic shifts for both of us. There were job shifts there. There was a lot going on that affected our ability to record. Are you back with us? Sarah, you're back.

Sarah Harrison: 4:25

This is a very good mystery podcast -- as in audio. Nobody knows I'm moving my camera around, right?

Carolyn Daughters: 4:30

Okay, yes, just me. I moved from Denver to Manitou Springs, Colorado, which is a really small town outside Colorado Springs. And that move took me pretty much 12 solid months, where it would take many people a couple of weeks, and I'm now in Manitou Springs. We're still not moved into the house. So that's my side of the story. Apparently I do things very slowly.

Sarah Harrison: 5:12

I don't think that's apparent at all. I think there's some things to be said about trying to contract work on your house, at least in Colorado. For instance, I had the same experience. What was supposed to be a six to eight month project when I lived in Denver turned into a nine-year project that never finished, and so we didn't unpack for nine years. I do not wish that upon you. Carolyn.

Carolyn Daughters: 5:38

I hope not. I've started to unpack, but to be fair, there's not a lot of rooms that are ready to take unpacked items. But that's not stopping me. I'm like, what's a little construction dust? So now I'm starting to unpack. And we're hopeful that the construction will be done very soon, and we can actually have a house to live in, which I think would be fun. And so I'm ready for 2026. I'm ready for 12 books, our usual schedule. We're about to launch our fifth year, by the way.

Sarah Harrison: 6:26

It's gonna be our fifth year?

Carolyn Daughters: 6:40

I know. Five years!

Sarah Harrison: 6:42

2025 was rough on me. Apparently I don't know the year.

Carolyn Daughters: 6:46

The year is gone. And so our usual schedule is one book a month and anywhere from two to four good mystery podcast episodes per month. In our chronological order, we're focused on the history of mystery, as everybody knows by now. We're coming into this period 1943 to 1949. And then also, as we'll discuss, we're going to talk to some contemporary authors of amazing new books. We like to mix it up. But before we get too deep into that, you also moved this past year. So after nine years of not unpacking in your home ...

Sarah Harrison: 7:26

Another home to not unpack.

Carolyn Daughters: 7:29

Forget this house. I am done with this house, and so you moved all the way across the country.

Sarah Harrison: 7:36

It's a pretty much done house, but it was the first moment we could make our escape, basically. And now we're not unpacking very effectively in Virginia, so that's exciting.

Carolyn Daughters: 7:54

You said you're not unpacking?

Sarah Harrison: 7:56

I'm working on it.

Carolyn Daughters: 7:59

You've been able to shift the not unpacking successfully from one state to a whole new state.

Sarah Harrison: 8:07

I mean, successfully is a really questionable word to use in this situation. But, yes, I suppose we have not unpacked now in Virginia for six months. We're getting there, though. We just had a lot of work to do, as you're aware, before you can get into a particular room. We were all camped out in the living room as a camping family for much longer than we had hoped.

Carolyn Daughters: 8:36

Yes, camping. That's charming, actually, the whole family camping out together for a very short six months.

Sarah Harrison: 8:46

The kids loved it. The kids did love it. They're struggling to adjust to a bedroom.

Carolyn Daughters: 8:51

Oh, that's so interesting. That would be a change, because they've grown accustomed to how the family gathers at night, and now they have their own space, and they're like, huh, I feel so far away from everyone.

Sarah Harrison: 9:07

They do feel far away. And also they go crazy instead of going to sleep. But we're finding all our books. That's important for a good mystery podcast. That, and getting our addresses updated. So, also important.

Carolyn Daughters: 9:25

Very good. I found my headphones yesterday, so I have a mic, but I need to get a USB. There's a special thing I need to get to make the mic work. But look at this progress. I found a box that had podcasting things in it. I was like, yes!

Sarah Harrison: 9:47

Labels are so important to boxes. People underestimate them, but they're pretty crucial when you're not unpacking everything right away.

Carolyn Daughters: 9:59

These boxes were in what will in the future be my office. And in that office, the podcasting box was at the bottom corner, far corner, bottom of a stack of boxes. So I had to go through all the different boxes just to find this box. So that's how important finding the podcasting box was to me.

Sarah Harrison: 10:26

It's vitally important. In fact, folks, we are prioritizing this episode to still get it out, hopefully at a reasonable time frame. And frankly, I think six books was the right number of books so that we don't fall two years behind our episodes. 2026, I think, is going to be turning over a new, more timely leaf. That's my hope of getting very good mystery podcast episodes out shortly after recorded. We wanted to get this out to you guys. For those of you that follow along or want to get the books ahead of time, read along with us, we want you to have that opportunity to hear about some of the upcoming selections and pick where you want to get yours. You can always get it from our Amazon store. One thing we are trying to roll out as well. I know not everyone loves Amazon or prefers a used book. So we're gonna try and get some links for ABE Books. Do you say A-B-E? Is there a proper pronunciation?

Carolyn Daughters: 11:32

I think it's probably "ABE" books. But I think in my head, I've always said A B E, like, a B, C, okay, all right, but I think it's probably ABE. I've been shopping at Abe books for used books for more than a decade. So whatever I locked in many moons ago. That's the name in my head. So I've never even Googled. Like, how do they say this? How do they say their own name? They probably say ABE.

Sarah Harrison: 12:04

I mean, it rolls off the tongue.

Carolyn Daughters: 12:08

It's very nice. And I do a mix. Personally, I usually get maybe half or two thirds of my books from Abe books or some other used bookseller like Sarah, I know you like eBay, but I do Abe. And then a few of them I get on Amazon, and it depends. I'm very book cover oriented. I love good book cover.

Sarah Harrison: 12:39

Whenever I see some on the inner internets, I try and re share them on our social media. They're so cute.

Carolyn Daughters: 12:47

I'll even say like so for every year, including 2026 we have one page for every book on our website, and there's like four different book covers shown on every page. So I've pulled, like, the best and brightest. It's been fun to research them and, like, pull them together. And I love them. Just to give you an idea, like, I think it helps to set the scene, especially since we're in the 1940s like, these are some pretty cool book covers.

Sarah Harrison: 13:18

All right. So folks get hyped. You can select the book you want to read or the cover you want to look at, but if you're getting it anyway, that's an easy way to support a good mystery podcast. We get a tiny, tiny fractional fee for anything.

Carolyn Daughters: 13:35

Roughly three to links we post three to five cents, is what I'm guessing, something like that. But we appreciate any support. You don't pay extra for anything. It's like you just buy it through our affiliate link, the book you were going to buy anyhow, because you want to read these books, because you're into the chronology and the history of mystery, just like we are, which is why we love you.

Sarah Harrison: 14:01

Well, they are so good. I always feel like classics are classics for a reason, and that holds true with mystery classics as well. Every time I read one of these books, I end up saying, This is so good, unbelievably good. It's exciting. We're going to start with the Ministry of Fear by Graham Greene. I'm really looking forward to that one.

Carolyn Daughters: 14:30

Tell us about that. Maybe we just go through each of these books, and then maybe after we go through the 12 books, maybe we can talk about some of the threads that connect these books?

Sarah Harrison: 14:43

One of the things I love is that we're only, we're only going from 1943 to 1948 that's what we're aspiring for those short five years. A lot happened book wise, and we're going to launch a lot of good mystery podcast episodes on mystery books published during this timeframe. So 1949 that's. Not what your sheet says. Really, the franchise affair by Josephine Tey says 1948 oh, setting me up here.

Carolyn Daughters: 15:09

Okay, I think you're right. I think it's 1948. Shoot, I don't know, Sarah, I don't know.

Sarah Harrison: 15:18

I'm going with 48 because I trust Carolyn of the past wrote it down. The header of this sheet you're looking at since 1949, which I think it's just a big mistake. It does. Guys, just ignore us.

Carolyn Daughters: 15:49

Fast forward what we're talking about. Okay, Sarah, tell us about Graham Greene, gladly.

Sarah Harrison: 15:59

It's an espionage thriller set in wartime Linden. The story follows Arthur Rowe, an ordinary man caught up in Nazi intrigue. It's celebrated for its moral complexity and redefined the boundaries of the mystery genre. I am interested to find out what we mean by that.

Carolyn Daughters: 16:22

It is so beautiful. Without spoiling a thing, I will say it's one of the best books I've read in a very long time. It's Graham Greene, so that's probably not a shock, but it's beautiful. It's very beautiful.

Sarah Harrison: 16:36

Well, I loved The Rat Began to Gnaw the Rope by C. W. Grafton, which we just finished up. That was a real page turner for me, though I'm not sure I would have characterized it as beautiful. So that's interesting.

Carolyn Daughters: 16:46

This one felt like a page turner. And also just wow. This author, like Graham Greene, knows what he's doing. He's amazing. Just beautiful.

Sarah Harrison: 16:57

Writing, awesome. What books and good mystery podcast episodes will we have in February?

Carolyn Daughters: 17:03

In February we have Green for Danger by Christianna Brand, 1944. It's a wartime mystery set in a British hospital during the Blitz, and when a patient dies under suspicious circumstances, Inspector Cockrill investigates secrets among the medical staff. It's considered a standout in Golden Age detective fiction. And I've also read this book and loved it. Never heard of Christianna Brand in my life, but we have her on our list, and I loved the book.

Sarah Harrison: 17:38

Awesome. What's next? I love the title. I love the title. In March we have Death Comes as the End by none other than Dame Agatha Christie. It's a groundbreaking historical mystery set in ancient Egypt. The death of a concubine of a wealthy patriarch sparks a series of murders within his family, and suspicion and secrets abound. It's the first full-length historical novel whodunit. How lovely.

Carolyn Daughters: 18:10

It's set in 2000 BC Egypt.

Sarah Harrison: 18:16

And it's full on historical, huh? Was it like a true story or just like setting?

Carolyn Daughters: 18:24

Oh, historical setting. Her husband, I believe, was an archeologist, and so she would travel with him, and apparently she drew on some of this experience in this book. I have not read this book, but I'm so excited to read it.

Sarah Harrison: 18:43

I haven't read that one either. I know we have a ton of Agatha Christie fans out there, and I'm wondering, who should our guest be? We still want to keep having a number of expert guests join our discussion, so I'm looking forward to that. Listeners, if you have suggestions, feel free to throw them out there. We'd love to hear it.

Carolyn Daughters: 19:08

That's a great idea. With a lot of these books, we like to bring on a third voice, somebody else to talk through the book with us. It's one of the things that make ours a good mystery podcast. If you're a frequent listener, you know we've had so many great guests on and we want to do the same for 2026. April is Home Sweet Homicide by Craig Rice. This is also 1944 the book features a trio of resourceful siblings who set out to solve a murder in their neighborhood. The novel exemplifies Craig Rice's talent for blending light hearted storytelling with intricate puzzles, earning her a claim in the genre and a Time Magazine cover. Craig Rice is a woman.

Sarah Harrison: 19:56

Is Craig Rice her actual name or her pen name?

Carolyn Daughters: 19:59

I believe it's her middle name and her pen name. And this is the Time Magazine cover.

Sarah Harrison: 20:06

What's her first name, her birth name?

Carolyn Daughters: 20:09

I don't know. We will find out. But I'm holding up to the camera. Look at that. I have a copy of the Time Magazine with Craig Rice on the cover.

Sarah Harrison: 20:23

Where did you get that?

Carolyn Daughters: 20:25

Ebay.

Sarah Harrison: 20:26

Ebay for the win.

Carolyn Daughters: 20:27

January 28, 1946. Craig Rice is on the cover. It says, "Author Craig Rice, successful murder still requires imagination." So that's how big she was, as she was on the cover of Time Magazine.

Sarah Harrison: 20:43

That's awesome and very sneaky that that is a lady name I know. Well, look for we have, we have a number of hard-hitting mystery ladies this year, I will say three. What is that? Oh, man, actually a bunch. Christianna Brand, Agatha Christie, Craig Rice, Ngaio Marsh.

Carolyn Daughters: 21:12

Ngaio Marsh. We have all women in a row.

Sarah Harrison: 21:18

May is Died in the Wool by Ngaio Marsh from 1945. It's a compelling mystery set on remote New Zealand sheep farm. Love it when a politician is found murdered in a bale of wool. Yes, Inspector Allen uncovers political intrigue and secrets. Marsh was one of the queens of crime, and this novel is among her best. Obviously, it's on a sheep farm. The body's in a bale of wool. Amazing, promising.

Carolyn Daughters: 21:55

New Zealand. How fun is that?

Sarah Harrison: 21:58

Yes, I love New Zealand.

Carolyn Daughters: 22:00

In June, we we'll read and launch good mystery podcast episodes on The Moving Toyshop by Edmund Crispin, 1946. It's a mystery featuring eccentric Oxford professor Gervase Fen. When a poet discovers a murdered woman in a toyshop that later vanishes. Gervase Fen investigates the surreal case. The book is celebrated for its wit and ingenious plot. It's a crime fiction classic.

Sarah Harrison: 22:27

I love when books are celebrated for their wit, it always turns out to be pretty delightful. July, I love the titles this year. I don't know. I guess probably the titles every year are great, but The Horizontal Man is our July selection by Helen Eustis from 1946 this is a psychological mystery set in an Ivy League women's college when an English professor is found murdered. Suspicion falls on a troubled student, but as the investigation unfolds, the line between sanity and madness begins to blur.

Carolyn Daughters: 23:13

I love it, and I put these two books together. They're both in 1946 but because we have 319 46 books, I put these to the Moving Toyshop and The Horizontal Man together because they both have university settings and backgrounds. In August, I am so excited about this book. So I'm unreasonably excited about this book. Okay, The Big Clock by Kenneth fearing, 1946 thriller noir, about a man trapped inside the machinery of a power, powerful publishing empire. When a journalist becomes entangled in a murder, he's assigned to hunt down the killer who happens to be himself. What the book inspired a film No Way Out with Kevin Costner.

Sarah Harrison: 24:03

Okay, well, we're gonna have to do a movie bonus feature on that one.

Carolyn Daughters: 24:08

Have you seen No Way Out? It's so good. It starts Kevin Costner, it's decades old, and it is like an edge of your seat thriller. It's amazing. And when I saw that, I was like, Oh my gosh, I can see how this book is going to play out. And I'm so excited to read it.

Sarah Harrison: 24:28

It's not a spoiler to have just said, who happens to be himself?

Carolyn Daughters: 24:34

It's in the back. It possibly is. But they should tell whoever wrote the book jacket, because that's where I go that.

Sarah Harrison: 24:40

It's on the book jacket. Fascinating.

Carolyn Daughters: 24:47

I believe, if it's like the movie, we're in the action and we see what's happening, but what he has to do is try to solve a crime while not being discovered. He's got a lot of balls in the air, so I don't think there's a question as to whether he did something or not. The question is, can he come out on the back end?

Sarah Harrison: 25:13

All right, wow, that's gonna be a good one, folks.

Carolyn Daughters: 25:16

I know. I'm so excited.

Sarah Harrison: 25:19

In September, we'll read and launch good mystery podcast episodes on The Fabulous Clipjoint by Frederic Brown. The book was published in 1947. It's a search for the truth. When a man is murdered, his young son teams up with his uncle to uncover what really happened. Their investigation takes them through the burlesque houses, bars and back alleys of Chicago.

Carolyn Daughters: 25:42

Right on. I'm so excited about Chicago 1940s. October is so the our last three books are female writers, and it's how it how it just came together. We weren't seeking this out per se, but I'm thrilled that it came together this way In a Lonely Place by Dorothy B Hughes, 1947. It's is a haunting psychological noir told from the perspective of a charming but deeply disturbed war veteran as a series of LA stranglings terrifies the city. The truth about the protagonists, volatile desires and violent impulse. Violent impulses slowly unravel.

Sarah Harrison: 26:33

And another 1947 book. November is going to be The Blank Wall by Elisabeth Sanxay Holding. How you say that?

Carolyn Daughters: 26:48

I don't know. I'm not sure.

Sarah Harrison: 26:51

The Blank Wall is a psychological thriller about an ordinary woman who becomes entangled in a man's suspicious death while protecting her daughter from inside her seemingly quiet home. How far will she go to safeguard her family?

Carolyn Daughters: 27:14

I think it's pretty interesting from 1947. I have this book already, and this was the last edition. So even though it's our November, it's our 11th book, it was our last edition for the year. Because I'm always putting these books on trial for their lives, right? Like, is this a book that we want to read? Is it doing something that's moving the genre forward? Is it going to initiate a lot of interesting conversation? I think this book hit the mark. I started reading it the other day. I didn't want to read the whole thing, because I've got 10 months of books to read before it, but the 40 or so pages I read told me that, yes, we have to include this book.

Sarah Harrison: 28:04

Awesome. We're gonna circle back to that in just one second, because I want to hear a little bit about all the reading Carolyn's doing right now.

Carolyn Daughters: 28:15

Let me first tell you about December. In December, we'll read and launch good mystery podcast episodes on The Franchise Affair by Josephine Tey. So we're now at the end of 2026. 1948 not 1949 as some of us, weird documentation suggests, no, it's 1948. The Franchise Affair is a mystery centered on a search for the truth. When a teenage girl accuses two women of kidnapping her, the novel is celebrated for its nuanced, nuanced psychology and dismantling of false narratives.

Sarah Harrison: 28:57

Whoo, intriguing. All right, tell us about all the reading you're doing right now. I think that's an interesting point to make here on our perspective, because I think it's going to come up more throughout the year.

Carolyn Daughters: 29:11

I hope so. I am part of a very small team of four people who are reading a lot of books to determine what to short list for the Dashiell Hammett Prize, done by the International Association of Crime Writers. I've received as of yesterday, more than 130 books.

Sarah Harrison: 29:36

Tomorrow's the day it closes. Is that correct?

Carolyn Daughters: 29:39

Tomorrow is our deadline, and so, I mean, not if I find out it's my deadline for reading and assessing, then I've got to get off this podcast right now, and you can just finish it up without me. But I believe it's the last day they can send us books.

Sarah Harrison: 30:00

So check your mailbox.

Carolyn Daughters: 30:04

There was one day I think I texted you, Sarah, it was maybe Monday or a few days ago, and I said, I've received 27 books today, which was a big day. There were all these boxes. So publishers, some of the books come one off. They're in a package. It's just one book. I've got a few that are signed by the author, inscribed to me. Hey, Carolyn, thanks for reading.

Sarah Harrison: 30:33

Oh, how nice. I love it. Hey, authors, I love it when they do that.

Carolyn Daughters: 30:37

I know. And then some of them are boxes from Norton and Company or Penguin or some publisher, and they will have 2 or 20 or some number in between books in that box. Some publishers are just gathering all of the contenders from their perspective, shipping them off. And so on Monday, I had 27 books, which, wow. And then I'm making my way slowly. I have a spreadsheet. The detail-oriented person in me is like, Yes, I'm creating a spreadsheet. So I've got the book and the summary of the book and my thoughts about it. And does it potentially move on or not? I'm trying to also give every single book careful consideration. We've got some big, big names in here. Martha Grimes is in here. Kathy Reich's latest book is in here. For those of you who listen that we've interviewed Kathy Reichs in the past. Please look for that. Check it out -- it's a good mystery podcast episode. But a lot of big, big, big writers, however, some writers maybe are lesser known. It might be their first book. They could be amazing books that haven't yet been discovered. And so I see it as my job to give every single book a chance. And without really knowing much about the book going in, I start reading, and I'm seeing what is grabbing me. How is the language? How is the story? How am I feeling about the characters? It's been a really fun journey. I've got a ways to go. As I said, if my job had to wrap up by tomorrow, I'd be in a world of hurt.

Sarah Harrison: 33:00

That's very exciting. And that reminds me, this year we're still planning our modern author slots. We do 12 slots for our history of mystery book club, but we want to keep 12 slots open for modern authors, and that has been getting pretty hard. Don't think. Carolyn, I feel like it's gotten increasingly difficult to whittle it down, because there are so many great authors and there's so many interested folks, but I think to keep the quality of what we do up and to keep reading the books. Not do a five-minute blurp that we really have to limit our slots to how many authors we can interview and read their books in a year.

Carolyn Daughters: 33:52

Because we're actually reading the books. Before we did this good mystery podcast, Sarah, you can tell me what you understood, but what I thought I understood was, okay, here's an author, and they're everywhere. They're on NPR, they're on this station and that station, they're interviewed by everybody, and everybody interviewing them has read the book. That's what I thought. Because apparently I'm seven years old and very naive. What we've heard since in this podcast is, wow, Sarah and Carolyn always read the book. We read the book. It's just what we do. That's not the norm, reading the book. And so the questions we have to ask, we're trying to represent not just our own interests. Because if Sarah and I were simply reading them and did not have a good mystery podcast, we'd still want to ask these questions. And we're so grateful to have the opportunity to ask them, but we're also trying to represent our readers. What do our readers want to know, and what are they curious about, and what sorts of things would they want us to dive into? And so we're doing all of that, and our guests have said over and over again, nobody else has ever asked me these questions. They say, "I've literally done 20 or 50 interviews, and nobody else asked me the kinds of questions you both asked me." In some cases, the authors are saying this is one of the best interviews they've ever done.

Sarah Harrison: 35:28

It's obviously very enjoyable for us. And I'll say, with 2025 being what it was, there's a couple times where I'm reading the book and I haven't actually got to finish the book by the time it's been scheduled, and that definitely grates on me. I don't like not being all the way to the end, and so we made a really conscious decision to not over schedule ourselves so that we can keep because at the beginning as well, I would say our intention was to enjoy our good mystery podcast like we want to read books and talk about books. It's not our intention to like interview as many people as possible. We want to enjoy ourselves and enjoy the books. So if you have some authors, you have some favorite modern authors, listeners, and you want to toss their names out there, we would be happy to see who you're reading, who you're interested in, if you'd like us to get them on the podcast. We can do our best on that as well. So let us know you have a special request, and we can put some feelers out there for that. Can't guarantee anything, but we can put some feelers out there for that.

Carolyn Daughters: 36:35

We've had a lot of success landing a lot of the authors that we've wanted to talk to like David Morrell and David Ignatius and Craig Johnson and Kathy Reichs, and just the list is increasingly long, and so there's no guarantee. But if there are authors and books that are like really contemporary books that are rising to the surface for you readers, you must let us know, and we will do our best to bring that person on.

Sarah Harrison: 37:05

Definitely. I love some of the themes collected about this era. One of the first themes, which I always love. What's so special about this era. Do you want to talk a little bit about what you see as special about this five-year span?

Carolyn Daughters: 37:28

It's 1943 to 1948. This period of years, is really interesting, because it's going to span wartime and the post-war period. It's in some cases playful, some cases dark, inventive, which will make for good mystery podcast episodes. And in the psychology is increasingly coming into play in these books. We're really getting to know these characters in these books. So there's that post-war on ease that we see, not just in the mystery form, but we see in literature generally. In the 1940s we're going to see a shift as the post-war mood sets in. So we're going to start with The Ministry of Fear by Graham Greene, which is during the war, and Green for Danger, right in wartime. But we're going to emerge out of wartime and see these authors testing the structures that form of the novel, The mystery novel, but also the moral structures. Do these things work? And if not, what can we put in their place? How can we test? How can we play? And maybe in some cases, we're going to find that the answer is more ambiguous.

Sarah Harrison: 38:52

I like the other one, too. I've been thinking about that. Obviously, you've read a lot of the books already. I have not no war without detectives was one of the themes, and I'm really keen to see how that evolves. We've moved into noir, we've moved into detectives and different kinds of detectives, and now we're moving back out noir without detectives. How does that play out?

Carolyn Daughters: 39:23

We have seen that in some of our books, like, for example, Agatha Christie And Then There Were None. There's no detective on that island with these guests that are dropping like flies. Bit of a spoiler. But if you've not read it, please read it right after this podcast and then listen to our episodes about it. They're very good mystery podcast episodes.

Sarah Harrison: 39:45

But sometimes all that noir, did you? I wouldn't have thought not noir.

Carolyn Daughters: 39:50

Well, it's not noir, per se, but it is darker than some of her books, but not noir. It absence of a formal detective, and we'll see that in several of the books, like The Big Clock and In a Lonely Place. So it's not as much about the who done it as is it, as it is about like, Who is this person at their core? Who are they? And readers are going to feel a shift, especially if you've been following our history of mystery. We've had Sam Spade, and we've had Philip Marlowe, and we've had these detectives guiding us through the Noir. What is it to feel that sense of noir and to not have the detective as the moral voice guiding us well.

Sarah Harrison: 40:46

And I guess in my mind, and it's an obviously incorrect thought, but in my mind, if, if you're like, what are the features of noir?

Carolyn Daughters: 40:55

Well, there's a nice femme fatale element, there's a gritty sort of detective of morally ambiguous character. There's an interesting undercurrent of crime.

Sarah Harrison: 41:09

But if there's no detective, like, how do you define Laura, Carolyn? What would you say are the key elements, the must haves?

Carolyn Daughters: 41:17

I think, gritty. The grittiness can come into play with regard to the characters who can feel just blunt and perhaps not as socially aware, or maybe socially aware, but they just don't care. They're characters who don't give a damn. They do what they want, they say what they want. They're set in cities, so the grittiness also applies to the geographic location. So you picture LA, for example, you picture a Chicago, we've got a story set in Chicago, The Fabulous Clipjoint, for example, and gritty in the sense that it's not romantic, it they're not necessarily and in all probability, two characters who are going to fall in love by the end, and it's just this wonderful ending to the story. We're done many good mystery podcast episodes on cozy mysteries, but these aren't cozy mysteries. It's not playful in that way. In fact, playful is a word that probably is not used with regard to to the noir form generally in film, in the black and whites that were done, it had to do with a lot of the darkness on screen. You would see a lot of the dark colors. And it felt, it felt heavy and felt darker, and it had a sense of foreboding. And it it felt like a murder mystery that was not going to wrap up with a bow on the end.

Sarah Harrison: 42:58

I feel like, visually, movie wise, like visually detecting noir, it's maybe a little bit easier, and maybe it's my little engineering brain, trying to over define things here. But how would you separate? Or would you separate? Maybe they're entangled noir and hardboiled as ways of describing grittiness. Not detective fiction, detectiveless fiction.

Carolyn Daughters: 43:30

That's a great question. I think there's a lot of crossover between hardboiled and noir. And so in some cases, they may be synonymous hard boiled, I think often refers to the detective. They're just the facts, ma'am, really cut to the chase. They're not extremely social people. They are Philip Marlowe, who lives in this very small, one room apartment, where the kitchen basically flows into the bedroom space. Whereas Noir is more of a sensation or a feeling. It is the atmosphere in which we enter the story, whether it's in literary book form or on the screen. I think, and I'm sure some of our guests from 2025 Owen Hill, for example, Anthony Rizzuto, could probably do a better job than I'm doing right now. But we did, I think, five episodes on Philip Marlowe stories and novels. They're exceptionally good mystery podcast episodes. And if you love Philip Marlowe, you must go back and listen. And if you think, Well, I like Philip Marlowe, I haven't read him yet, read and go back and listen, because wow. And we've had some great guests who are experts on the genre and on. On Philip Marlowe and on noir.

Sarah Harrison: 45:02

Yes. Another thing I like to because we already talked about, like, wow, eight of these authors are women. That's surprising, given how things have been developing, there's always been a featured woman or a key woman, I think, starting with Lady Molly of Scotland Yard, correct?

Carolyn Daughters: 45:27

Lady Molly of Scotland Yard, which we read a few years back.

Sarah Harrison: 45:31

Female detective, and potentially writer, if I'm remembering correctly. And so now we have eight. And then also noted that many of the primary characters and much of the plot hinges on how we're thinking about women in these books. What's going on do you feel like at the time, either in the literary world or the world at large, that suddenly, like this female aspect, is exploding with both as an author and as a character element.

Carolyn Daughters: 46:12

Another great question. Okay, we're coming into this post-war period. During wartime, everything was chaotic, and everything was in the air, roles and responsibilities and even how people ran their household shifted. And then post war, a lot of things returned to and I could put quotes around this world normal? Well, returning to normal is complex. Women had taken a lot of different roles during wartime because everybody was stepping up to the degree that they were able. And I think we're seeing this questioning of women's roles. And even, for example, in which of the books is it? These kinds of questions make for a good mystery podcast. It's The Blank Wall, for example, and also The Franchise Affair, when a woman makes an accusation, or a woman states a case, to what degree is she understood, respected and responded to by authority? So to what degree is she valued enough and respected in in her own community, by society writ large. And to what degree is she shouting out into the ether? This is what happened. And then also questions remain as to whether she is telling the truth. One of the really interesting things about some of the books that we're doing is this idea of false narrative, and the idea that during this period there's this obsession about reputation and about fear of exposure, public judgment. The books aren't necessarily asking not just who's guilty, but how does society determine who's guilty? And we're going to start this right off in January with with The Ministry of Fear. If you have a idea of somebody who has guilt, how do you undo the damage that's done if it turns out that you're wrong.

Sarah Harrison: 48:46

No, that's great. And it hearkens back to when we read The Wheel Spins and The Lady Vanishes, if you're talking about the movie and how she was perceived as she was trying to understand what was going on and solve the mystery she found herself in. It was a great book, by the way.

Carolyn Daughters: 49:09

I was gonna say we loved that, didn't we? Sarah, like that was a total surprise. And it's a, it takes place on a train, which Sarah and I love.

Sarah Harrison: 49:18

Yes. And we had a fantastic guest, and the collective book that his work was going to be a part of is out now. So look for more. Ethel Lina White, Alex Csurko was our guest. That was that was a terrific interview, one of the world's only experts.

Carolyn Daughters: 49:39

There are so many books in this history of mystery where we were fortunate enough to find, in some cases, the for the foremost expert on that book and and he definitely was with with Ethel Lina White. Jennifer Kloester is another one who is the world's foremost expert on Georgette Heyer. We brought her on, which made for two very good mystery podcast episodes. Some of the insights we get from these authors we couldn't get anywhere else.

Sarah Harrison: 50:22

The book was delightful. The guest was delightful. I can't get enough of both of them, so I'm really looking forward to some of the exciting people we're going to get to talk to about these fabulous authors coming up. I don't know, Carolyn, there's a there's a lot of themes we can discuss. But one of the things I was also really excited about was the calendar of all of the physical, actual things going on in the world that are related to what we're doing.

Carolyn Daughters: 50:55

It's amazing.

Sarah Harrison: 50:58

Many are global, right?

Carolyn Daughters: 51:03

The news that we haven't shared is that we're both quitting our day job, and we will just will be traveling the world by train anytime possible. Otherwise, we will take planes or cars, whatever we have to do. But because there are all these amazing gatherings, there are dinners and conferences and events and prizes and ceremonies every almost every month, January is a little slow, probably to just give everybody a quick breather.

Sarah Harrison: 51:34

We're planning for the rest of the year. Do you have a top selection that you would want to go to or do? Or that might be an unfair question, because so many of them look amazing.

Carolyn Daughters: 51:52

They do. I think Left Coast Crime in San Francisco would be really fun. I think the Edgar Awards, which are usually held in May, would be really cool. There are a bunch in the UK and and then some of the ones that are held in the UK are not too far off for ones that are also held in Iceland and Venice. What if I have to go from Iceland to Scotland, or to England, to Venice? I'll do it for this podcast. I would do it.

Sarah Harrison: 52:34

Do it for you, listener that's going to be helping us charter the plane. We will do it for you.

Carolyn Daughters: 52:40

And I'll say, Sarah, we loved Longmire Days.

Sarah Harrison: 52:46

I love doing that and getting a taste of the in person book of it. It made me want to do more, put more different kinds of content, different sorts of interviews and these different contexts out there, and meeting the authors in their own place was really, really neat.

Carolyn Daughters: 53:07

It was great. And Craig Johnson could not have been more generous with his time. We have an exceptionally

Sarah Harrison: 53:13

Oh, my goodness. He was a he was a savior, honestly, when all the power went out at his cabin and like, the generator didn't kick on. And he was like, Don't worry, we'll do the interview.

Carolyn Daughters: 53:28

He's the most popular guy in town, generally, but also, especially during Longmire days. And he acted like we were the only people who wanted to interview. Oh, We'll reschedule. Oh, we'll do this. We'll do that. We'll get it done here like he was just the most generous and accommodating person.

Sarah Harrison: 53:49

That was so super fun. So I don't know. I think maybe one thing Spotify does let me do on their platform is make these little polls. Maybe I'll put a poll out there. See what you guys are interested in. Which of these events sounds most interesting to you? There's one here in Virginia that I feel like I got to try and make that happen. And a couple others that rise to the surface the Agatha Christie Fest in September.

Carolyn Daughters: 54:24

Also Bouchercon in October. And then The Black Orchid Banquet.

Sarah Harrison: 54:33

I've been desiring the Black Orchid Banquet, hearkening back to Rex Stout, and they do that every December, so that that sounds like a lot of fun. That sounded fun. Was Bloody Scotland.

Carolyn Daughters: 54:55

Bloody Scotland. I'm on board. I want to go. The Rex Stout Nero Wolfe, Black Orchid Banquet. Amazing. We have wanted to go ever since we learned it existed.

Sarah Harrison: 55:10

Right. So if possible, we're going to start trying to do more of those in person events. We'd love to bring you along with us and get you a taste of what it's like to be there chatting with folks and giving up content in this different context.

Carolyn Daughters: 55:30

Yes, so so much in store for 2026 I'm so excited. We hope you're as excited as we are. We. We understand the list could invite some disagreement. You may agree with all of our choices or none, or somewhere in between, but at every turn, we're hoping. The books challenge us as readers. They get conversation going. We really get to learn something about the period, which is stuff that we love. So tell us what you think about the list. Tell us who we should bring on as a guest. Tell us what contemporary authors you really want us to interview.

Sarah Harrison: 56:10

And we'd love to invite your disagreement. Honestly, if there's some book in those five years and you're like, you missed the big one, yes, let us know.

Carolyn Daughters: 56:19

Yes, let us know.

Sarah Harrison: 56:22

All right, exciting things in store, so stay tuned. Don't touch that dial and more coming soon in 2026.

Carolyn Daughters: 56:34

Thanks so much for listening. Please help other mystery lovers find our show with a like, subscribe, share, or rating. It's totally free, and it means the world to us.

Sarah Harrison: 56:44

If the spirit of mystery so moves you, we have a few ways you can financially support our labor of love. Click the link in the show notes to support this podcast. Buy your books through our Amazon store, or join our Patreon, where subscribers have access to additional good mystery podcast episodes that include bonus content and discussions of the movies inspired by some of the greatest mysteries ever written.

Carolyn Daughters: 57:08

Thanks for joining us on our journey through the history of mystery. Until next time, stay mysterious.