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Crime by the Book

A girl investigates crime fiction from around the world, by the book.
  • Blog
  • Quick Reviews
  • Nordic Noir
    • Introduction
    • Background
    • Book Recommendations
    • By Country
    • Interviews
    • Reviews
    • Features
  • #ReadWithCBTB
  • Features
  • Reading Lists
  • Events
  • Go-to Book Recs
  • As Seen In
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the cbtb blog

One girl's ongoing investigation of the crime fiction genre.

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RECOMMENDED READING: HALLOWEEN 2022

October 7, 2022

It’s the most wonderful time of the year: Halloween season is upon us! I firmly believe that you can read thrillers any time of year, but there’s something undeniably perfect about digging into a dark, creepy crime novel in the lead-up to Halloween. Honestly, every year I have a little bit of a hard time coming up with a list of Halloween reading recommendations, not because I don’t have enough books to recommend—quite the opposite! Just about every single book I’ve ever talked about here on Crime by the Book could be a great Halloween read, and that can make narrowing down my lists of Halloween reading recommendations really tricky. But I’m up for the challenge—and I’m thrilled with how this year’s reading list turned out! For this year’s Halloween reading list, I’m focusing on new (or new-ish!) releases—primarily books that have been published in 2022, with a few slightly older releases in the mix, too. Happy reading, and happy haunting!

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In Halloween Books, Reading List Tags Halloween, Halloween Books, Halloween Reading, Thriller Books, Simone St. James, Riley Sager, Kiersten White, Tara Laskowski, Gabino Iglesias, Isabel Canas, Lars Kepler, C.J. Cooke, Rachel Harrison
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CBTB's Halloween 2019 Reading List

October 6, 2019

Spooky season is here, and it’s the perfect time to pick up a spine-tingling read to get you in the Halloween spirit! I’ve dug through crime and suspense novels old and new to bring you a comprehensive list of some of my favorite crime and suspense fiction titles perfect for Halloween. Whether you’re looking for a psychological suspense read, a serial killer thriller, a creepy book with Gothic inspirations, or a good old ghost story, you’ll find tons of options right here!

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In Reading List Tags Halloween, Halloween Reading, Spooky Books, Ghost Stories, Haunted House, Halloween Books
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7 Spooky Books to Binge-Read Before Halloween

October 28, 2018

Halloween is nearly here… and if you’re in the market for a chilling read to help set the mood for your Hallo-week, today’s post is for you! We’ve got two days to go until the 31st, so you’ll want something quick - and scary - to get you in the Halloween spirit fast. In this post, you’ll find a few of my personal favorite spine-tingling, binge-worthy scary stories that you can devour in a couple sittings. From straight-up horror fiction to psychological thrillers with an edge and more, there’s a little something for everyone in this post—and you can always find even more creepy books by perusing my Quick Reviews page. Happy reading, and happy (almost) Halloween!

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In Reading List Tags Halloween, Halloween Reading, Sharon Bolton, The Craftsman, The Ice Twins, SK Tremayne, Jac Jemc, The Grip of It, The Lingering, SJI Holliday, Yrsa Sigurdardottir, I Remember You, In the Vines, Shannon Kirk, Ania Ahlborn, Apart in the Dark
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7 Chilling Crime Books to Read This October

October 1, 2018

It’s the most wonderful time of the year… October! October also brings with it the perfect opportunity to inject your reading list with some seriously chilling crime novels in preparation for Halloween. If you’re in the market for some “Spooktober” reading recommendations, you’ve come to the right place. Today’s blog post will highlight a number of my favorite thrilling, chilling Halloween reads. Some are standard crime novels, some are crime novels with a supernatural twist, and some are true horror—no matter your bookish preferences, you’ll find a Halloween read to add to your TBR here. Match yourself to the category that most describes you, and find your perfect Halloween read! Plus, as an added bonus for my readers who’ve asked for TV and movie recommendations—below each book recommendation listed in this post, you will also find a quick little blurb for a TV show or film that is likely to appeal to you, too!

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In Reading List Tags I Remember You, Yrsa Sigurdardottir, Final Girls, Riley Sager, The Craftsman, Sharon Bolton, The Death of Mrs. Westaway, Ruth Ware, C.J. Tudor, The Chalk Man, It Follows, Security, Gina Wohlsdorf, Halloween, Halloween Reading, October, Spooktober
2 Comments
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CBTB's Recommended Halloween Reads

October 28, 2017

It’s the most wonderful time of the year: Halloween!! Time for all things creepy and chilling—and undeniably the perfect season to dig into a great thriller. I’ve been getting lots of questions about Halloween reads this year, so to make things easy for you, I’ve put together this list of recommended Halloween crime books! To keep things easy to navigate, I decided to organize this list in an “If You Like That, Read This” format. Explore the list below based on your current favorites, and find a new creepy read perfect for your 2017 Halloween! 

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In Halloween Reading List Tags Book Recommendation, Halloween, The Crow Girl, Erik Axl Sund, Yrsa Sigurdardottir, Stephen King, Ruth Ware, S.K. Tremayne
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View fullsize My personal crime fiction collection 🕵🏻‍♀️🖤 aka my favorite corner of my apartment. 📚🙌🏻 If anyone feels so inclined, I’d love to see what YOUR bookshelves look like! Snap a pic, share in your stories, & tag me - I’d love to
View fullsize I can never say no to a creepy read with a gorgeous black & white cover. 🕵🏻‍♀️🤍🖤 next on my TBR: THE SHADOWS by Alex North, available on my birthday, 7/7!!😉🔎 (huge thank you to @celadonbooks for this review copy!🤓) •
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View fullsize Being stuck at home isn’t so bad when you’ve got a massive stack of books to read. 🕵🏻‍♀️🖤 What’s on your social-distancing TBR?! 📖
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I went WAY overboard with books I brought home to CT for my self-isolation TBR list. ?
View fullsize Early afternoon light & a large latte ☕️ & a gripping crime read 🕵🏻‍♀️🖤 aka the perfect combination 🙌🏻
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This right here is my usual Sunday tradition 👆🏻 BUT I’ll be spending this Sunday (and this coming week, and probabl
View fullsize My last day in the city for a while calls for a lunch break coffee stop ☕️🖤 with my totally gripping current read 🕵🏻‍♀️
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Today is my last day in Manhattan for a while 😔 we’re all transitioning to working from home to try and preve
View fullsize In the midst of a crazy week, my brain needs a quick, binge-worthy read, and I think this beauty right here is just the ticket. 👌🏻🖤 NO BAD DEED by Heather Chavez is on sale now, and I can’t wait to dive in! 🕵🏻‍♀️
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Friends, I can&
View fullsize Happy Monday, friends! 🖤 Back in NYC and back to work after an amazing (if much too short) visit to Oslo 🇳🇴 annnd currently drinking a cold brew ☕️ at my desk & hoping it keeps me awake this afternoon 😂 jet lag + not enough sleep last night =
View fullsize Last looks at beautiful Oslo 🇳🇴 for this trip. ❤️ So very sad to leave, but I’m bringing wonderful memories & a suitcase stuffed with books 📚 back to NYC with me. 😉 See you soon, Oslo... you know I can’t stay away for long. 🥰❤️
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View fullsize Spent today doing all my favorite things in Oslo, so obviously a coffee stop was included. ☕️🖤 How are you spending your Saturday?! •
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Does anyone else collect books by a favorite author?! 📚 I don’t have

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  • Crime by the Book
    Loved speaking with @danspapers about the first panel I’ll be moderating at @HamptonsWhodun this year, featuring… https://t.co/hwrdV45fSz
    Apr 4, 2023, 11:48 AM
  • Crime by the Book
    RT @vanessalillie: I’ve had box of Blood Sister arcs unopened for two weeks waiting on tomorrow - cover reveal by @crimebythebook & IG… https://t.co/fnQ35GO1Nd
    Apr 2, 2023, 10:03 AM
  • Crime by the Book
    RT @TheMysterious: We’re making plans to head out to @HamptonsWhodun next month, Long Island’s exciting new crime fiction festival. Se… https://t.co/ra7RPgf7Fv
    Mar 30, 2023, 6:13 PM
  • Crime by the Book
    RT @TheMysterious: Love mystery fiction? We’re hiring a part-time bookseller, beginning immediately. Email info@mysteriousbookshop.com… https://t.co/AJrBLH0Q1t
    Mar 29, 2023, 7:44 PM
  • Crime by the Book
    RT @TheMysterious: BREAKING: We’re thrilled that our friend Michael Connelly is (finally) being recognized as a mystery fiction Grand… https://t.co/3QgWojXVVw
    Mar 28, 2023, 3:05 PM

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