Another year, another outstanding array of mystery and crime fiction that delivers thrills and resonates long after you turn the page. This year’s addendum to my list of The 112 Best Literary Mysteries and Crime Novels is based on curated lists from Amazon, The New York Times, The Guardian, Publishers Weekly and more, suggestions from readers on Goodreads, and ratings on Goodreads and Amazon. In a field of over sixty books, the following four* novels stood out as the best literary mysteries of 2025.
To complement these rankings, I have created two pieces of bonus content:
- The favorite literary mysteries and crime novels from nine contemporary mystery and crime authors like S.A. Cosby (author of the number three book on the list), Mark Haddon and and Derek B. Miller.
- A one-page PDF shopping guide to The Best Literary Mysteries and Crime Novels.
You can access both of these free resources using the form below. And now, on with The Best Literary Mysteries of 2025!
4. The Black Wolf by Louise Penny
Chief Inspector Armand Gamache, still recovering from wounds suffered while foiling a domestic terrorist plot by a man known as the Black Wolf, suspects the attack was only a distraction from a deeper, more dangerous conspiracy. Amazon named the latest topical and thrilling Gamache mystery one of the best mystery, thriller and suspense books of the year.
3. King of Ashes by S.A. Cosby
Returning to his Virginia hometown after his father’s car accident, Roman Carruthers is drawn into a violent world of family debts and gang power plays that test his moral limits as he fights to protect those he loves. Cosby’s fast-paced crime novel that asks some big questions made Amazon’s list of the best books of 2025 and was a Goodreads Choice Awards finalist in the mystery and thriller genre.
Click here to download literary mystery recommendations from S.A. Cosby and several other authors.
2. The Missing Half by Ashley Flowers
Haunted by her sister’s unsolved disappearance, Nic Monroe reluctantly teams up with another woman whose sister vanished under similar circumstances, and together they work to finally uncover the truth—no matter the cost. Readers nominated Flowers’s propulsive, expertly crafted mystery for a Goodreads Choice Award in the mystery and thriller category.
1. Strangers in Time by David Baldacci
Set in London during World War II, this story follows three unlikely companions—a young thief, an evacuated nurse and a grieving bookseller—whose lives intersect as they struggle to survive the Nazi Blitz and find hope amid the ruins. Baldacci’s captivating historical thriller was an Amazon favorite and Goodreads Choice finalist among mysteries and thrillers.
I have decided to exclude from these annual updates books that are prequels or sequels to novels that appeared on one of my previous lists in this genre. This year, Richard Osman’s The Impossible Fortune (Thursday Murder Club series) and Robert Galbraith’s The Hallmarked Man (Cormoran Strike series) were critically and popularly acclaimed novels which fit that description.