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Summer 2026 Mystery List
102 Plays8 hours ago
Before a short break, Brook and Sarah discuss their plans for mystery-filled summers.
Discussed and mentioned
Brook's List
Marlow Murder Club (2021) Robert Thorogood
The 12:30 From Croydon (1934) Freeman Wills Crofts
The Hallmarked Man (2025) Robert Galbraith
Disclaimer(2015) Renée Knight
Sarah's List
One By One (2020) Ruth Ware
His & Hers (2020) Alice Feeney and His & Hers (2026) Netflix
The Killer Question (2025) Janice Hallett
The Mysterious Case of the Missing Crime Writer (2023) Ragnar Jónasson
Related episodes
Reverse Mysteries (released February 24, 2026)
Freeman Wills Crofts (released June 30, 2026)
For more information
Instagram: @cluedinmystery
Contact us: hello@cluedinmystery.com
Music: Signs To Nowhere by Shane Ivers – www.silvermansound.com
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Order Life or Delft by Brook and Sarah
For a full episode transcript, visit https://cluedinmystery.com/summer-2026-mystery-list/
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Transcript
Season Finale Announcement
00:00:10
Speaker
Welcome to Clued in Mystery. I'm Sarah. And I'm Brooke, and we both love mystery. Hi, Brooke. Hi, Sarah. It's kind of amazing, but another season of Clued in Mystery has come and gone, and we're about to go on our summer recording break.
Summer Mystery Reading Plans
00:00:30
Speaker
While we won't be recording, we will be reading. And that's what we're going to talk about today is what mysteries are we going to enjoy over the next couple of weeks.
00:00:43
Speaker
That's right. Well, I'll go first. The first title on my list is Marlowe Murder Club. This one's by Robert Thorogood. It was published back in 2021.
00:00:55
Speaker
Judith Potts is a 77-year-old crossword compiler who enjoys her independence, her whiskey, and her quiet life in the English town of Marlowe. But when she witnesses what she believes is a murder and the police dismiss her concerns, she teams up with two unlikely companions to investigate.
00:01:14
Speaker
Together they form the Marlowe Murder Club. So obviously this one's been out for a while. There's sequels and I've been hearing great things about it. And I'm kind of interested to see how it compares to some of the other books that we've read with this older sleuth ensemble cast. And it's also a TV series adaptation as well. So I'm once again a little late to this party, but I'm really excited about starting this series.
00:01:41
Speaker
Well, I hope you enjoy it, Brooke. I read it a while ago. I've read, I think, the first couple of books in the series. I haven't seen any of the screen adaptations, but Robert Thorogood is behind Death in Paradise, which is a very popular television series.
00:01:59
Speaker
I think you will enjoy this. The first book on my list is from 2020, and it's something, Brooke, that you have recommended many times. It's One by One by Ruth Ware.
00:02:12
Speaker
It's set in winter, but I'm going to read it over the summer. Getting snowed in at a beautiful, rustic mountain chalet doesn't sound like the worst problem in the world, especially when there's a breathtaking vista, a cozy fire, and company to keep you warm.
00:02:25
Speaker
But what happens when that company is eight of your coworkers and you can't trust any of them? So I think this book, Brooke, has come up probably every season.
00:02:37
Speaker
you've You've said something about it. And I've read other Ruth Ware books, so I'm i'm sure i will enjoy it. I'm glad you're going to read it, Sarah. um You are a skier, though, so I hope this doesn't scare you away from the slopes in the future.
Summer Reads: Golden Age Influence?
00:02:55
Speaker
Next on my list is the 1230 from Croydon, and we just recently did our Golden Age breakdown of Freeman Wills Crofts, who wrote this book in 1934. And I mentioned on that episode that this was one that I wanted to continue reading from his body of work. A businessman carefully plans what appears to be the perfect murder during a flight across the English Channel. Readers follow along with Inspector French's methodical investigation as he works to uncover the truth. um And this one is an example of one of those inverted mysteries. And so ah i will at some point find out who the culprit is and then watch as Inspector French tries to prove that he is the bad guy. um Yeah, so I'm really looking forward to this as a Golden Age read this summer.
00:03:51
Speaker
That's great. I realize I don't have any Golden Age books on my list this summer. I do have um something that was recently adapted for Netflix. And so my plan is to read the book and watch the next Netflix adaptation and maybe do a little bit of compare and contrast. And so this is His and Hers, which is from 2020 by Alice There are two sides to every story, yours and mine, ours and theirs, his and hers, which means someone is always lying.
00:04:24
Speaker
When a woman is murdered in Blackdown, a quintessentially British village, newsreader Anna Andrews is reluctant to cover the case. Detective Jack Harper is suspicious of her involvement until he becomes a suspect in his own murder investigation.
00:04:37
Speaker
Someone isn't telling the truth, and some secrets are worth killing to keep.
00:04:44
Speaker
So the next one I'm hoping to read this summer is The
Exploring Narrative Styles in Mysteries
00:04:48
Speaker
Hallmarked Man. And this is the eighth book in the Cormoran Strike series that I've been working through. And if you listened to our winter TBR book list last winter, you might remember that I was hoping to get to it then. This did come out in 2025, but now is the better time apparently because I'm finally getting to it. And so once again, the description is a dismembered corpse is discovered in the vault of a silver shop. The police initially believe it to be that of a convicted armed robber, but not everyone agrees with that theory.
00:05:23
Speaker
One of them is Decima Mullins, who calls on the help of private detective Cormoran Strike as she's certain the body in the silver vault was that of her boyfriend, the father of her newborn baby who suddenly and mysteriously disappeared.
00:05:37
Speaker
The more Strike and his business partner, Robin Ellicott, delve into the case, the more complicated it gets. The silver shop is no ordinary one. It's located beside Freemasons Hall and specializes in Masonic silverware.
00:05:53
Speaker
And in addition to the armed robber and Decima's boyfriend, it is clear that there are other missing men who could fit the profile of the body. um So once again, this is going to be a very in-depth, twisty mystery as all of these usually are. And um I'm really also interested to find out what's going on between Strike and Robin because they have this um definite affection for one another that they, but they're trying not to mix business with ah romantic involvement. So we'll see where that goes as well.
00:06:29
Speaker
Well, Brooke, you have referred to this series multiple times. I haven't read anything yet from it, but every time you talk about a book from the series, I think, oh, this is something that I should start as well. So maybe this maybe the first book in this series will make it onto one of my next TBR lists.
00:06:49
Speaker
That sounds great. So next on my list is a 2025 release, and this is The Killer Question by Janice Hallett. And ah I think I've spoken about Janice Hallett's books in the past. She writes in unusual format. So i I think we probably talked about her in that episode that we did some time ago where it's all, the book might be all transcripts from um interviews or all text messages. There's no real narration in the in the book.
00:07:27
Speaker
And I think this is the same. So Sue and Mal Eastwood run an isolated rural pub called The Case is Altered, where a weekly trivia game has revived its flagging fortunes. That is, until a body is found in the nearby river.
00:07:40
Speaker
Soon after, a mysterious new team arrives and shakes up the diverse field of regulars by scoring top marks in every round, every week. Meanwhile, Sue and Mal have a secret of their own.
00:07:51
Speaker
Before arriving here, they were caught up in a secret police operation, which meant they had to leave town, and whatever happened back then seems to have finally caught up with them. Five years later, the pub lies derelict, and their nephew Dominic is determined to make a documentary about their story.
00:08:06
Speaker
What happened at this unassuming pub, and can a single question really kill?
00:08:13
Speaker
That sounds so good, Sarah. I love bar trivia. So I've kind of been having my eye on this book. And Janice Hallett's style and the way she tells a story is just so fun. So I'm sure you're going to really enjoy that.
Adaptations of Mysteries: A Discussion?
00:08:29
Speaker
Well, the last one I have um on my list is Disclaimer, and this is a 2015 book from Renee Knight. Catherine Ravenscroft has built a successful life and career as a documentary filmmaker, but everything begins to unravel when she receives a novel that appears to reveal a secret from her past.
00:08:50
Speaker
As she reads, she realizes someone knows far more about her life than they should, and the consequences could be devastating. So I was at ah my local Barnes & Noble a few weeks ago and just to get a coffee. And this was a book where you could get it for $5 with purchase. And so I snatched it up. And then when I really started looking at it, it has a fair amount of similarity to the book that we recently did for What Would You Do? So I thought it would be a fun read. This one has also been adapted for TV. Cate Blanchett Cate. the lead role in the Apple TV version of this.
00:09:34
Speaker
Oh, it sounds so good, Brooke. And I love the premise. Just the, it's not quite a um author as sleuth, but there's that connection to books and I'm sure it will be great. And I didn't know that there was a series about it. So um that's maybe something to add to my list as well.
00:09:58
Speaker
Well, the final one that I have on my list is a another book set in the winter. um I guess maybe because summer is in full swing here and I'm looking to cool down.
00:10:11
Speaker
I mentioned this book in our summary of what we enjoyed in 2025 as a book that I was looking forward to in 2026. ah So this is the mysterious case of the missing crime writer from 2023 by Ragnar Yonason, who is a bestselling author from Iceland.
00:10:31
Speaker
And this is the first book um by Yonason. think this is the first book um that I will have read. One winter evening, bestselling crime author Ellen S. Jonestauter goes missing.
00:10:45
Speaker
There are no clues to her disappearance, and it is up to young detective Helge to crack the case before it is leaked to the press. As he interviews the people closest to her, a publisher, an accountant, a retired judge, he realizes that Ellen's life wasn't what it seemed.
00:10:59
Speaker
In fact, her past is even stranger than her stories. As the case of the missing crime writer becomes more mysterious by the hour, he you must uncover the secrets of a very unexpected life.
00:11:12
Speaker
Oh, that sounds great. um I wonder if he was at all inspired by Agatha Christie's disappearance. Yeah, good question. Well, I'll have to let you know what I think after I've read it.
00:11:27
Speaker
I suspect that these are not the only things that we will be reading over the break. I do look forward to having a little break and thinking of new episodes for when we come back and start recording again in the fall. And the first episode will be a recap of what we have read.
00:11:46
Speaker
That's right. It's going be a lot of fun to discuss
Listener Engagement for Summer Reads
00:11:49
Speaker
these. And listeners, before we go, here's your question of the week. We want to know what's on your summer reading list. Reach out to us on Instagram or Facebook or send us an email and share your upcoming reads.
00:12:02
Speaker
But until next season, thank you for joining us on Clued in Mystery. I'm Brooke. And I'm Sarah. And we both love mystery.
00:12:15
Speaker
Clued in Mystery is written and produced by Brooke Peterson and Sarah M. Stephen. Music is by Shane Ivers. If you liked what you heard, please consider telling a friend, leaving a review, or subscribing with your favorite podcast listening app.
00:12:29
Speaker
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