In the world of crime fiction and thrillers, seeing isn’t always enough. As Sherlock Holmes famously remarked, “You see, but you do not observe,” and it’s this keen sense of surveillance that the best mystery novels challenge in their readers.
Some of today’s most compelling stories are interactive, layered, and enriched with multimedia elements – from emails and text messages to police reports, podcasts, and more – offering an experience that goes beyond the page.
The six titles below exemplify this approach offering more than just a puzzle to be solved; they invite you, the reader, to step into the detective’s shoes and play an active role in uncovering the truth.
If you’re ready for a literary experience that pulls you into the heart of the mystery, then read on, dear Watson. The game is afoot.
The Appeal by Janice Hallett
It’s time to play detective and untangle the truth hidden within a small town’s web of deception in Janice Hallett’s debut bestseller, The Appeal.
The Fairway Players, a local amateur dramatics group, are rehearsing for their latest production while also supporting a charity fundraiser for a child’s life-saving treatment. Then, suddenly, the arrival of two mysterious newcomers and a brutal murder sends shockwaves through the community, making everyone a suspect. Soon, someone is arrested for the crime, however, it may not be all that it seems. In the run-up to the trial, two young lawyers meticulously shift through a series of unguarded emails, texts, and letters with a growing suspicion the real killer may be hiding in plain sight. The evidence is there, on paper, sitting between the lines. And it’s down to us, as the reader, to look through the documents and uncover the truth.
The Appeal is an intricately crafted whodunnit that explores how ordinary people manipulate – and can be manipulated by – the stories they create and consume, all while being unwittingly influenced by their own assumptions and biases.
Murder in the Family by Cara Hunter
Murder in the Family by Cara Hunter is a gripping crime thriller delivered in a quirky, and visually fun documentary-style format that took TikTok by storm.
Luke Ryder was brutally murdered in his home 20 years ago. Despite a high-profile investigation and endless media attention, the case went cold and remained unsolved. Now, the sensational, tabloid-esque true-crime TV show, Infamous, wants to crack the notorious case wide open. Supported by a panel of experts, including detectives, forensic specialists, and criminal psychologists, the production team re-examines testimony, re-interviews witnesses, and pulls apart every piece of evidence they can get their hands on. Key players are re-united on camera and buried secrets begin to surface leading to shocking revelations about Luke’s family and the events surrounding his death.
The story unfolds through transcripts, emails, graphs, pictures, and newspaper clips, offering an engaging and insightful exploration of family dynamics, the lasting impact of unresolved trauma, and the media’s influence on public perception in the pursuit of justice.
True Crime Story by Joesph Knox
True Crime Story by Joseph Knox is a dark, twisty novel that skilfully blurs the line between fiction and reality. It centres on the mysterious disappearance of 19-year-old Zoe Nolan, a university student who vanished without a trace after a party in Manchester, UK. Years later, author Evelyn Mitchell becomes fixated on Zoe’s case and begins her own investigation, interviewing friends, family, and other key figures connected to Zoe. As she pulls their conflicting accounts apart, the narrative spirals into a tangled web of secrets, lies, and unreliable memories.
True Crime Story is an original mystery, primarily composed of transcriptions and emails. The format is so convincing that you might mistake it for a work of non-fiction. This clever blend of fiction and non-fiction adds a layer of authenticity, making the narrative feel strikingly real as it weaves together a series of interviews that draw you into what seems like a genuine, tangible investigation.
Knox further enhances this sense of realism by breaking the fourth wall, injecting himself directly into the storyline. This approach not only bends the norms of storytelling but also unpicks the dark undercurrents that lie beneath seemingly ordinary lives.
Horrorstör by Grady Hendrix
Horrorstör by Grady Hendrix is a clever and chilling novel set in the most unexpected of places – a furniture superstore. In a story that uses a horror-comedy framework to comment on consumerism, corporate culture, and the superficiality of modern life, we follow a group of employees working the night shift at Orsk, a knockoff IKEA store in Cleveland, Ohio. When strange and unsettling events occur in the store, the team decides to stay overnight and investigate. But, what begins as a simple slumber party soon escalates into a terrifying ordeal as they discover that the store is built on the site of a former prison, with its dark and malevolent history now returning to haunt them.
Incredibly imaginative and visually eccentric, Horrorstör is designed as an IKEA catalogue complete with product illustrations, French flaps, and sales copy. Its mash-up of horror and satire delivers laughs and scares simultaneously as the mundane turns menacing, starkly mirroring real-life anxieties regarding the underlying fears associated with modern life. A traditional haunted house tale wrapped up in a contemporary setting, Hendrix shines a light on how the corporate world dehumanises employees to mere cogs in a machine.
Six Stories by Matt Wesolowski
Six Stories by Matt Wesolowski is the first instalment in a crime thriller series that unfolds through a fictional true-crime podcast, supported by eerie tales of murder, mystery, and the supernatural. Book one (or episode one as it is referred to) focuses on the mysterious death of a teenager whose body was discovered a year after he vanished during a camping trip.
Podcast host, Scott King, reopens the cold case by interviewing six individuals connected to the incident, each offering their perspective on what happened that fateful night. As the podcast progresses, buried secrets are unearthed, and the horrifying truth behind the young boys death slowly begins to emerge.
The novel unfolds through multiple perspectives on the same event, underscoring how truth can be elusive and shaped by whose account is being heard. This encourages readers to critically evaluate the reliability of the information presented, to consider the subjective nature of truth, and to reflect on the precarious interplay between guilt, personal responsibility, and the wider impact of one’s actions on others.
House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski
House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski is a genre-defying, mind-bending novel that is part horror and part psychological thriller. A young family moves into a small home on Ash Tree Lane and discovers something is terribly wrong: their house is bigger on the inside than it is on the outside. Of course, neither photojournalist, Will Navidson, nor his companion, Karen, were prepared to face this impossibility, until one day their two children wandered off. What follows is an increasingly bizarre and terrifying journey through the house’s labyrinthine hallways and shifting rooms, plagued by darkness, an ever-growing abyss, and an unholy growl that threatens to consume them.
Danielewski’s cult classic is visually impressive with its unconventional structure, including an academic study of a documentary about the house, the obsessive notes of a man deciphering the manuscript, and painfully detailed footnotes. The book requires readers to actively participate in piecing together the narrative – an experience that intensifies the initial sense of fear. It’s one thing to read a scary story, but having to construct it yourself is something far more unsettling. It’s a new level of sadistic! Though it may seem daunting, Danielewski’s work is a haunting exploration of fear, reality, and the unknown. Don’t be surprised if you find yourself questioning the very nature of reality presented in the book.
