Book picks similar to
The Knife Slipped by A.A. Fair


mystery
hard-case-crime
fiction
crime

American Journey: The First Three Novels


John A. Heldt - 2017
    Heldt’s celebrated American Journey series. In SEPTEMBER SKY, a reporter and his estranged son find southern belles, lawlessness, and danger as they travel to Galveston, Texas, on the eve of its devastating 1900 hurricane. In MERCER STREET, a family of Chicago women, representing three generations, takes a sentimental journey to Princeton, New Jersey, in the turbulent months before World War II. In INDIANA BELLE, a lonely doctoral student follows a trail to the Roaring Twenties, where a beautiful society editor, a cold-blooded killer, and a century-old mystery await. Filled with history, romance, and adventure, the American Journey series takes readers on a ride through the most memorable eras of the 20th century. Start the journey today at a discounted price!

Queenpin


Megan Abbott - 2007
    Notoriously cunning and ruthless, Gloria shows her eager young protégée the ropes, ushering her into a glittering demimonde of late-night casinos, racetracks, betting parlors, inside heists, and big, big money. Suddenly, the world is at her feet--as long as she doesn't take any chances, like falling for the wrong guy. As the roulette wheel turns, both mentor and protégée scramble to stay one step ahead of their bosses and each other.

Sunbaked


Junie Coffey - 2015
    Nina’s new hometown is the charming village of Coconut Cove, with its narrow lanes lined with candy coloured houses and gardens overflowing with tropical flowers. Her back yard is a white sand beach and the mesmerizing turquoise sea. But local big shot Barry Bassett has his eye on Nina’s cozy little beach cottage with the aim of tearing it down to build condos. Then Barry’s obnoxious wife Tiffany goes missing, and Nina finds herself sitting across a desk from the very serious chief of police, Blue Roker, wondering how her day dream of easy living in the islands got so far off track so quickly.Join Nina Spark and her new best friends, the philosophizing mailman Danish Jensen and the ever cheerful Pansy Gallagher, as they careen around Pineapple Cay at the maximum speed of fifteen miles an hour in a golf cart, trying to figure out what the heck is going on.This is a story Jimmy Buffett and Agatha Christie might have come up with if they’d been holed up together for a weekend at some slightly faded beachfront hotel with a pitcher of pina coladas and a box of fireworks.For fans of comedic mysteries, and readers looking for a tropical beach vacation in a book at the tail end of a long, hard winter.

All Things


Amber Belldene - 2018
    She leads her vibrant church of St. Giles’ with compassion and sass. Her busy days involve match-making, meddling, and saving the city’s beloved lesbian landmark, The Carlos Club. Alma meets the intriguing Rabbi Naomi Cohen there, and she’s smitten. Death comes to the church’s door… When the proprietor of The Carlos Club turns up dead on the steps of St. Giles’, Naomi’s brother is the number one suspect. She needs help exonerating him, and Alma’s knowledge of the neighborhood makes her the perfect priest to solve the case. If only Alma’s ex-boyfriend, homicide detective Cesar Garza will accept her help. She still feels the pull of their old connection, but she’s convinced the sexy-smart rabbi is her perfect mate. . . Too bad Naomi is playing by different rules. Can Alma solve the case before the murderer silences her forever? About the Reverend Alma Lee Mystery Series Meet the Rev. Alma Lee, the next priest-detective in a long line of clergy sleuths from Father Brown to Clare Fergusson, Brother Cadfael to Sydney Chambers. Only, instead of a rural village, Alma’s turf is San Francisco—gritty, gay, and glorious. Her methods border on the absurd, and she has more attractive admirers than anyone who’s taken holy orders has a right to. If she's on the case, the murderer doesn't stand a chance.

A Slight Change of Plan


Dee Ernst - 2013
    She quits her high-pressure job for something that will allow her more leisure time. She gets rid of the huge family home and moves into a fabulous condo that’s smaller and easier to manage. She’s pretty much got the rest of her life figured out. All she has to do is sit back, relax, and let the pieces fall into place.But her real life never gets the memo. First, her son moves back in with her—along with his girlfriend. Her dream job falls through, leaving her unemployed. Her mother, whom she hadn’t spoken to in years, can no longer live alone and has to move into her basement. And her only daughter is planning the smallest and simplest wedding in the history of all weddings, much to Kate’s dismay.Kate thinks that she and Jake, her former college love who has reemerged on an online dating site, of all places, can build something real, and that maybe her happy ending is in front of her at last. But the arrival of Edward, her daughter’s future father-in-law, presents Kate with an unexpected choice. It looks like real happiness may require a slight change of plan.

The Book of the Sword


Diana L. Paxson - 1999
    The fragile peace imposed by the conquerors has been shattered, compelling Artoria Argantel -- Lady of the Lake and Druid priestess -- to call upon the Spirit of War and Justice to deliver a champion who will unite the broken land. It is from Argantel's ancient and royal blood that the hero will spring; his sword will be forged from star-steel by ancient spells, carried by soldier-priests from the steppes of Asia to the edges of the Empire. Only one man can wield this holy steel, aided by the wizard Merlin, whose heritage is a magic wilder still. Only one man can free the sword from its prison of stone.Artor, a fosterling of unknown parentage. The promised High King.

Four Rabbi Small Mysteries: Friday the Rabbi Slept Late, Saturday the Rabbi Went Hungry, Sunday the Rabbi Stayed Home, and Monday the Rabbi Took Off


Harry Kemelman - 1972
      Spend a long weekend with the scholar and spiritual leader who watches over the Jewish community in 1960s Barnard’s Crossing, Massachusetts—and in his spare time, solves crimes.  Friday the Rabbi Slept Late: A young nanny is found dead in the temple parking lot—and her purse is discovered in Rabbi David Small’s car. Now he has to collaborate with the local Irish-Catholic police chief to exonerate himself.  Saturday the Rabbi Went Hungry: Yom Kippur, the holiest day on the Jewish calendar, is defiled when a body is found—and the rabbi must uncover who has something to atone for.  Sunday the Rabbi Stayed Home: When Passover is overshadowed by congregational politics and a murder at a local university, the rabbi must study the clues.  Monday the Rabbi Took Off: Rabbi Small journeys to Israel for a bit of peace, but instead has to team up with an Orthodox cop to unravel a bombing case.   Don’t miss these four mystery novels featuring an amateur detective who uses Talmudic logic—an introduction to the multimillion-selling series that provides both “an eye-opening snapshot of a particular time in Jewish-American history” and delightfully entertaining whodunits (Los Angeles Review of Books).

The Colorado Kid


Stephen King - 2005
    There's no identification on the body. Only the dogged work of a pair of local newspapermen and a graduate student in forensics turns up any clues. But that's just the beginning of the mystery. Because the more they learn about the man and the baffling circumstances of his death, the less they understand. Was it an impossible crime? Or something stranger still...? No one but Stephen King could tell this story about the darkness at the heart of the unknown and our compulsion to investigate the unexplained. With echoes of Dashiell Hammett's The Maltese Falcon and the work of Graham Greene, one of the world's great storytellers presents a surprising tale that explores the nature of mystery itself...

Nobody's Angel


Jack Clark - 2010
    While Chicago cabbie Eddie Miles drives the city streets at midnight, two killers--one targeting prostitutes, the other cab drivers--are out plying their trade.

The Astonishing Thing


Sandi Ward - 2017
    . . Pet owners know that a cat's loyalty is not easily earned. Boo, a resourceful young feline with a keen eye and inquiring mind, has nonetheless grown intensely devoted to her human companion, Carrie. Several days ago, Carrie--or Mother, as Boo calls her--suddenly went away, leaving her family, including Boo, in disarray. Carrie's husband, Tommy, is distant and distracted even as he does his best to care for Boo's human siblings, especially baby Finn.Boo worries about who will fill her food dish, and provide a warm lap to nestle into. More pressing still, she's trying to uncover the complicated truth about why Carrie left. Though frequently mystified by human behavior, Boo is sure that Carrie once cared passionately for Tommy and adores her children, even the non-feline ones. But she also sees it may not be enough to make things right. Perhaps only a cat--a wise, observant, very determined cat--can do that . . .Wonderfully tender and insightful, The Astonishing Thing explores the intricacies of marriage and family through an unforgettable perspective at the center of it all."A beautiful and touching look into the intricacies of marriage and family life, all seen through the loving and unique perspective of the family pet." --Modern Cat

Fade to Blonde


Max Phillips - 2004
    She had nice straight shoulders. There was nothing wrong between them and her open-toed shoes, so I guess the trouble must have been somewhere behind those blue-gray eyes. They'd be trouble, of course. She looked up and called, 'Is your name, Corson?' " From the first paragraph, Max Phillips's pitch-pure ear sets the tone; we have entered a back-alley world where men are tough and women are easy; where dirty secrets clog the citadels of power. With its staccato dialogue and its strip-club fusion of sex and vengeance, Fade to Blonde ironically recalls a more innocent age.

White Heart


Sherry Jones - 2012
    For years, Blanche de Castille, the White Queen of France, has lived by this maxim—passed on by her grandmother, Eléonore d'Aquitaine, as she took the girl to marry King Louis VIII. When her husband dies unexpectedly, however, Blanche finds that beauty is not enough to hold, and command, a kingdom against usurpers eager to wrest the Crown from her woman's grasp. Faced with an English invasion, barons' uprisings, and slanderous rumors, Blanche must look within herself for the strength she needs to guard the throne for her young son. Her bold response shocks the kingdom and shapes her into the formidable, seemingly heartless mother-in-law to Marguerite of Provence, wife of King Louis IX (Saint Louis) and the eldest of the "Four Sisters, All Queens" in Sherry Jones's forthcoming novel.Includes an excerpt to the upcoming Four Sisters, All Queens, to be published by Gallery Books, May 8, 2012.

Odd Adventures with your Other Father


Norman Prentiss - 2016
    As she considers these adventures (a rescue mission aided by ghostly hallucinations; a secluded town of strangely shaped inhabitants; a movie star with a monstrous secret), Celia uncovers startling new truths about her family's past."Beautifully un-categorizable but wholly delightful, Odd Adventures With Your Other Father is a heady mix of the surreal, the poignant, the scary, and the heartwarming. A gleeful mash-up of genres, highly recommended!" - Peter Atkins, author of Morningstar and Big Thunder, screenwriter of Hellraiser II and III, creator of Wishmaster"Strange, darkly comic, wonderful book of two fathers and one daughter and just how weird and bright the world can be in the shadows of life." - Douglas Clegg, New York Times bestselling author

Blackmailer (Hard Case Crime #32)


George Axelrod - 1952
    From the Academy Award-Nominated Screenwriter of BREAKFAST AT TIFFANY'S and THE MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE Comes a Breathtaking Story of Murder and Mischief...IT'S THE STORY of a big-game hunter, fisherman, fighter, visitor to Cuba, drunk, and Nobel Prize-winning author, recently deceased of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, whose final unpublished manuscript could fetch a mint...IT'S THE STORY of a short, balding man with a high-pitched voice and a vicious wit, whose cocktail parties are the talk of the town, especially when a beautiful woman dies at one of them...IT'S THE STORY of Hollywood's sexiest starlet, who manages to conceal things even when she's wearing nothing but a towel......and it's the story of Dick Sherman, intrepid New York publisher, on the trail of the literary find of the century-and the killer who will stop at nothing to keep it from being found.

The Pillar of the Sky


Cecelia Holland - 1985
    It is the story of hunters, of kings and matriarchs, and of one outcast boy who becomes a shaman, burning with a vision that will take shape in mighty pillars of stone.