Must-Read Suspense, Mystery And Thriller Novels By Women Of Colour

Lauren Groff writes book reviews at Top Canadian Writers and Assignment Help Services, and is an editor at Essayroo.

Nothing beats relaxing with a good book, whether you’re curled up in front of a roaring fire, or stretched out on the beach – and the ‘keep them guessing ‘til the end’ appeal of suspense, mystery and thriller writing is irresistible, keeping us turning the pages long after the last ember has gone out or the shadows have begun to spread across the sand.  Long the province of white male writers, today the voices of women of colour are being heard and celebrated in the genre, and here we round up six of this year’s must reads by these authors.

Opium And Absinthe By Lydia Kang

Set in New York City in 1899, this novel fuses mystery with a splash of the supernatural, to great effect.  The story’s protagonist, Tillie Pembroke, is addicted to opium; as she tries to solve the mystery of her sister’s death, truth and fiction become enmeshed in the wake of the strange vampiric circumstances that appear to be proliferating around the murder.  Can Bram Stoker’s newly published ‘Dracula’ have any bearing on events?  Immersive, fast paced and full of deliciously gothic detail and intrigue, the plot keeps the reader guessing as much as its heroine.

Silence is a Sense by Layla AlAmmar

AlAmmar’s beautiful debut novel portrays a female Syrian war refugee who has been left mute by the horrors that she has seen and endured in her home country, and her profound isolation, both physical, social and philosophical, in her new life in an unnamed English town.  As part of her attempts to process what has happened to her, she begins to write anonymously for a magazine, recounting experiences of refugee life.

‘This novel is heartbreaking,’ says Catherine Hayes, a writer at Revieweal and Studydemic.  ‘It has important things to say about what is means to be silent, what it means to be alone, and the power that community plays in our lives, whether we want it to or not.’

They All Fall Down By Rachel Howzell Hall

This page turner of a thriller by critically acclaimed author Rachel Howzell Hall details the unexpected events that occur when eight strangers are invited to attend a party on a private island…from which, as they discover, leaving is not an easy option.  The twists and turns come thick and fast in this slick, contemporary mystery, which nods to Agathe Christie’s ‘And Then There Were None,’ as each of the guests discover that everyone present has something to hide, and as disturbing incidents start to occur, begin to wonder who they can trust.

When No-One Is Watching By Alyssa Cole

Alyssa Cole’s suspenseful and disturbing novel charts the gentrification of a neighbourhood, and what this means for those who find themselves no longer welcome within their own community.  But things take a sinister turn when Cole’s protagonist begins to suspect that their neighbours have not necessarily disappeared of their own volition…

Kecia Cordova, a book blogger at Essay Writing Services and Boomessays suggests:  ‘this is a book about social injustice and displacement, about the changing nature of our towns and cities and how this reflects on the individual and the community at large…and all this is contained within the framework of a fantastic thriller.’

Egg Drop Dead By Vivien Chien

The fifth instalment in the Noodle Shop series, this culinary mystery novel, in the ‘cozy’ subgenre that has become increasingly popular in recent years, casts restaurant owner Lana Lee as amateur detective when a domestic worker at the home of one of Lana’s clients is found dead.  Fast paced, entertaining and as compulsively readable as its predecessors, this book will keep readers on their toes until the final page, as Lee and her accomplices work to solve the mystery and prevent the killer from claiming another victim.  This upbeat yet suspenseful book will no doubt be as popular as its predecessors.

Page Turners To Ponder

With the hugely welcome emergence of new, diverse voices reflecting different experience, the suspense, mystery and thriller genres have been reinvigorated, offering new points of view, fresh perspectives and a challenge to expectations.  Each of these novels, though profoundly different in style and tone, enrich the genre and problematize traditional notions of the mechanisms of a thriller or mystery novel – and, most importantly, are a great read.

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Tags: featured, women writers

Category: Contemporary Women Writers, On Writing