Here are 69 books that Desert Heat fans have personally recommended if you like
Desert Heat.
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As a leader of mountaineering and field science programs, I learned that Mother Earth knows a thing or two about magic. When I see the magic of nature under attack, I have the same response as when witnessing a helpless person being bullied: I want to join the fight. As a writer, my most powerful weapons are my words. And the best use of my words is in the telling of riveting storiesāthat both entertain and educateāin defense of the wild.
I would suggest anything by Hillerman, but you might as well start with the first in the series. Without overtly advocating for activism to protect nature, Hillerman renders the desert southwest in such achingly beautiful detail that one canāt help but want to fight to protect it. In fact, Hillerman is where I got my start in reading/writing environmental thrillers.
Donāt miss the TV series,Ā Dark Winds, based on the Leaphorn, Chee, & Manuelito novels, now on AMC and AMC+!Ā Ā
āBrilliantā¦as fascinating as it is original.āāSt. Louis Post-Dispatch
FromĀ New York TimesĀ bestselling author Tony Hillerman, the first novel in his series featuring Lieutenant Joe Leaphorn & Officer Jim Chee who encounter a bizarre case that borders between the supernatural and murder
Homicide is always an abomination, but there is something exceptionally disturbing about the victim discovered in a high, lonely placeāa corpse with a mouth full of sandāabandoned at a crime scene seemingly devoid of tracks or useful clues.ā¦
It is April 1st, 2038. Day 60 of China's blockade of the rebel island of Taiwan.
The US government has agreed to provide Taiwan with a weapons system so advanced that it can disrupt the balance of power in the region. But what pilot would be crazy enough to runā¦
Deserts are inherently mysterious places. This likely explains why so many good mystery novels have been set in them. We spent better than forty years doing field work in the American Southwest, and we have found mystery novels based in this region among the very best. All good mystery novels must have strong plots and memorable characters, but to us an equally important component is setting. Jane is a botanist with expertise in the use of plant evidence in solving murder cases. Carl is a vertebrate zoologist and conservation biologist. Upon retirement we began writing mysteries. Some are set in the desert grasslands of Arizona, and all are inspired by the southwestern authors we have selected as our favorites.
David Mapstone is a failed PhD academic who comes home to Phoenix, Arizona, where an old friend with the sheriffās department takes pity and finds him a job solving cold cases. It turns out heās good at it, but he is less successful in coping with the urban sprawl that has nearly obliterated the best parts of his hometown. In Concrete Desert, the first in Taltonās series, Mapstone reconnects with an old flame when she asks him to solve the mystery of her missing sister. While doing so, he stumbles on an eerie connection with an unsolved mystery from forty years earlier. We especially liked this book and the whole series because of the authorās skillful depiction of the old and the new, and the best and the worst, of a city in the process of gobbling up an American desert.Ā
At loose ends, David Mapstone gets an assignment from a friend in the sheriff's office - go through the old "unsolved" files and clear them out one way or another. David doesn't expect to find any connection to the present or anything personal in any of these ancient cases. But when an old girlfriend turns up at his door asking him to help find her missing sister and the sister is later found murdered. David is atonished to see that her killing so closely parallels a 40-year-old case that it cannot be a coincidence.
Deserts are inherently mysterious places. This likely explains why so many good mystery novels have been set in them. We spent better than forty years doing field work in the American Southwest, and we have found mystery novels based in this region among the very best. All good mystery novels must have strong plots and memorable characters, but to us an equally important component is setting. Jane is a botanist with expertise in the use of plant evidence in solving murder cases. Carl is a vertebrate zoologist and conservation biologist. Upon retirement we began writing mysteries. Some are set in the desert grasslands of Arizona, and all are inspired by the southwestern authors we have selected as our favorites.
Bill Gastner is the sort of detective youād expect to find working the mean streets of an inner city: a rumpled overweight insomniac addicted to coffee and cigarettes. Instead his beat is the Chihuahan Desert of a fictitious county on the border between New and Old Mexico. In Heartshot, Undersheriff Gastner must solve multiple murders related to the illegal drug trade, including the loss of a fellow officer. The killer turns out to be somebody nearly as surprising and dangerous as the place where Gastner finds him. In his first book in the Posadas County series, author Havill skillfully brings to life both the rewards and challenges of life in a harsh yet beautiful place, where the people of two cultures are trying to figure out ways to live with one another.
First book in the Posadas County Mystery Series When a series of crimes disrupts the tranquil community in Posadas County, New Mexico, a group of small-town cops will have to fight for their lives to keep the county safe Posadas County, New Mexico, has very few mean streets and no city-slick cop shop. But it has an earnest, elected County Sheriff and his aging Undersheriff-William C. Gastner. Pushing sixty, widower Bill has no other life than in law enforcement-and doesn't want one, even if he's being nudged gently toward retirement. Then big time trouble strikes. A car full of teens,ā¦
A Duke with rigid opinions, a Lady whose beliefs conflict with his, a long disputed parcel of land, a conniving neighbour, a desperate collaboration, a failure of trust, a love found despite it all.
Alexander Cavendish, Duke of Ravensworth, returned from war to find that his father and brother hadā¦
Deserts are inherently mysterious places. This likely explains why so many good mystery novels have been set in them. We spent better than forty years doing field work in the American Southwest, and we have found mystery novels based in this region among the very best. All good mystery novels must have strong plots and memorable characters, but to us an equally important component is setting. Jane is a botanist with expertise in the use of plant evidence in solving murder cases. Carl is a vertebrate zoologist and conservation biologist. Upon retirement we began writing mysteries. Some are set in the desert grasslands of Arizona, and all are inspired by the southwestern authors we have selected as our favorites.
On the surface at least, Santa Fe is an artsy place full of elegant and sophisticated people. Private investigator Joshua Croft is none of these things, but he does know his way around town. His partner Rita Mondragon is older and wiser and better connected than Joshua. Sheās also rather mysterious. Together they solve cases that either have baffled the local police or were of no particular interest to them. In Wall of Glass, the first in the series, a jewelry theft followed quickly by two seemingly unrelated murders draw the pair into the dark world of contraband art and artifacts. We particularly like this series for the complex and nuanced relationship between the two protagonists, and for the ways in which the author captures both the physical and cultural environment of one of Americaās oldest cities.Ā
In the first book of a āpromisingā Southwestern mystery series, a Santa Fe PIās search for a stolen necklace leads to drugs, pornography, and murder (The New York Times Book Review). Ā As an associate at Santa Feās Mondragon Detective Agency, Joshua Croft has heard a lot of strange proposals. But nothing stranger than when a cowboy comes in and asks him to help fence a stolen $100,000 necklace. Thinking he has a deal with Croft, the cowboy leaves as mysteriously as he arrived. The next day he turns up dead, riddled with bullets, and the insurance company that already settledā¦
I have been fascinated with peopleās minds since probably my second psychology class in college. It was when I heard a professor say that all creatives were crazy. I argued that one with her. You donāt have to be creative to be crazy; trust me on this, I was right. Yes, many gifted people are borderline, and there really are savants in this world, but I truly believe they are rare. So, I have studied and been up close and personal with people who have psychological issues. Iāve also met some fascinating people who have managed to become successful. Others, not so much.
This book didnāt start out in the usual way. That in itself grabbed my attention. Itās a thriller, so I expect the first paragraph at least to pull me in. It didnāt grab me the way most do; it slowly sucked me in until I found myself not wanting to put it down.
The two main characters seemed to be at odds. One wanting to help and one refusing to speak. I donāt understand not trying to find answers that keep me silent. It must be the curiosity that kept me reading. Because the woman could speak. At least she could at one time. Either it was something traumatic, or it was just plain stubbornness. Or was I missing the entire point? Always an option.Ā
"An unforgettableāand Hollywood-boundānew thriller... A mix of Hitchcockian suspense, Agatha Christie plotting, and Greek tragedy." āEntertainment Weekly
The Silent Patient is a shocking psychological thriller of a womanās act of violence against her husbandāand of the therapist obsessed with uncovering her motive.
Alicia Berensonās life is seemingly perfect. A famous painter married to an in-demand fashion photographer, she lives in a grand house with big windows overlooking a park in one of Londonās most desirable areas. One evening her husband Gabriel returns home late from a fashion shoot, and Alicia shoots him fiveā¦
I grew up on farms, and have experienced the undercurrents that exist in small villages, which is why I like crime novels with rural settings. I worked as a couple counsellor for a while, which taught me that no fictional character can quite equal the real quirks and inconsistencies of real peopleābut I love those books which get close. Charles Dickens probably does it best! In my own novels I try to achieve something approaching this, in characters who break away from stereotypes and behave unpredictably. I like to think I manage to be witty sometimes, tooāI really love humour, especially when itās wordplay or subtly ironic.
Another murder mystery set in a small peaceful communityāthis time near San Francisco. It is the first featuring Kate Martinelli as the detective, who is new to the job. I found the characters totally credible and appealing, and the theme of portrait painting as a way of revealing the depths of someoneās personality was powerfully well done. It stayed with me long after I finished, and is wonderfully original. Laurie R. King is very prolific, and I find the quality of her work quite variable. But when sheās good, sheās fantastic.
THE EDGAR AWARD-WINNING NOVEL THE FIRST KATE MARTINELLI MYSTERY
In Laurie R. King's Grave Talent, the unthinkable has happened in a small community outside of San Francisco. A series of shocking murders has occurred, the victims far too innocent and defenseless. For lesbian Detective Kate Martinelli, just promoted to Homicide and paired with a seasoned cop who's less than thrilled to be handed a green partner, it's a difficult case that just keeps getting harder.
Then the police receive what appears to be a case-breaking lead: it seems that one of the residents of this odd colony is Vaun Adams,ā¦
The Duke's Christmas Redemption
by
Arietta Richmond,
A Duke who has rejected love, a Lady who dreams of a love match, an arranged marriage, a house full of secrets, a most unneighborly neighbor, a plot to destroy reputations, an unexpected love that redeems it all.
Lady Charlotte Wyndham, given in an arranged marriage to a man sheā¦
As an Anishinaabe writer, my award-winning/nominated books, Murder on the Red River andGirl Gone Missing, feature Cash Blackbear; a young, Native woman, who solves crimes for the county sheriff. Oprah Magazine 2020 listed me as a Native American Author to read. I received Minnesota's 2020 McKnight Distinguished Artist Award. My script, Say Their Names, had a staged reading with Out of Hand Theater, Atlanta, 2021. Vazquez and I received the Loftās 2017 Spoken Word Immersion Fellowship for work with incarcerated women. I have been a friend, colleague, and peer with the authors recommended. We might currently be a small crew writing but we are a mighty, award-winning crew.
Linda Rodriquez, Cherokee, is the second Native American woman I met who writes crime. Before we even met in person she was supportive of my ambition to write in this genre. She not only encouraged me to keep writing but to also join Sisters In Crime, the organization founded to support women mystery/crime writers. Every Last Secret is the #1 book in Rodriquezās Skeet Bannion series. "Skeet" Bannion fled the stress of being the highest-ranking woman in the Kansas City Police Department, and moved to a small town to work on the local college police force. She thinks she has run away from stress until she needs to track down a killer while dealing with a vulnerable teen and the return of her ex-husband and her ailing father. So much for small town stress relief!
Half-Cherokee Marquitta "Skeet" Bannion thought she was leaving her troubles behind when she fled the stress of being the highest ranking woman in the Kansas City Police Department. Moving to a small town to be chief of the campus police force, she builds a life outside of police work. She might even begin a new relationship with the amiable Brewster police chief. All of this is threatened when the student editor of the college newspaper is found murdered on campus. Skeet must track down the killer, following trails that lead to some of the most powerful people in the university.ā¦
Hi, my name is Laurie Buchanan, and I'm addicted to dogs. I was nicknamed "Dr. Doolittle" at seven, and the moniker has stuck. Why? Because I have a way with all animals, but dogs in particular. I've been owned by dogs (not the other way around) since elementary schoolāfrom Irish wolfhounds to Scottish Terriers and everything in betweenāPoodles, Collies, Dalmatians, and mixed breeds. Not only do I enjoy reading books that feature K9 characters, but I also write themāThe Sean McPherson crime thriller series. I do my best plotting during my daily six-mile walk with my four-legged companion, Henry, a not-so-standard Standard Poodle.
The motley crew of dogsāHarlow, Noodle, Buster, Sky, and Thorāsteal the show. And while theyāre all terrific in their own ways, Noodle, with all of his drool, is my favorite. He reminds me of a wonderful bib-laden Newfoundland companion I had the joy of sharing life with for many years.
I was captivated by the suspense and well-developed characters. Laced with humor,Ā Playing DeadĀ is a well-plotted perfectly-paced mystery that, with carefully laid breadcrumbs that donāt give anything away, saves the big reveal for the very end. It's well worth the wait!
Molly Madison is back to solve another doggone difficult murder in her California community in this mystery from the author of A Deadly Bone to Pick. Ā Molly Madison has barely had a moment to catch her breath after moving to the sleepy beach town she now calls home. But as a former PI, she canāt help but notice the odd chemistry between members of Playtime Academy on the first day she and her loyal Saint Bernadoodle, Noodle, and golden retriever, Harlow, visit. When a trainerās body is found on-site, Molly knows itās her duty to put her ex-police skills toā¦
My mother grew up in Germany during World War Two and her family (or what was left of it) settled in the Soviet Zone that eventually became East Germany. She managed to get out in 1953 by sneaking across the border with a weekend pass, but other members of the family remained. This history has been close to my heart as a result and is what inspired me to write my novel, The House of One Thousand Eyes. I had to do a lot of research to evoke an authentic setting for my novel. This reading list comes from my research of, and fascination with, that time in history.
This is a police procedural set in the 1970s in East Berlin. The author successfully evokes an atmosphere of paranoia and suspicion, as the main character, a female detective, must try to solve the murder of a young girl who seems to have been killed fleeing from West to East Germany (not the usual direction). The feeling that everyone is watching, everyone is a potential informer, everything is potentially corrupt, corresponds to all the research I did on East Germany. Plus, itās a great story thatās hard to put down.
In the shadow of the Berlin Wall, murder is never an open-and-shut case . . .
The award-winning, critically acclaimed Cold War crime thriller set in East Berlin - perfect for fans of Tom Rob Smith, Phillip Kerr and Joseph Kanon. ____________________________________
East Berlin, 1975 - When Oberleutnant Karin Muller is called to investigate a teenage girl's body at the foot of the Wall, she imagines she's seen it all before. But when she arrives she realises this is a death like no other. It seems the girl was trying to escape - but from the West.
This book follows the journey of a writer in search of wisdom as he narrates encounters with 12 distinguished American men over 80, including Paul Volcker, the former head of the Federal Reserve, and Denton Cooley, the worldās most famous heart surgeon.
In these and other intimate conversations, the bookā¦
Even though I have not lived in the Midwest for fifty years, I remain a Midwesterner. It is in how I speak (adding an ārā to wash), what I like to eat (Cincinnati chili), and explains my favorite smell (the inside of a barn). Both as a reader and writer, I want to know where the story is āfrom.ā What does this place look like? Smell like? What is the cadence of the charactersā speech? All this translates into an immersive experience and that is something I look for both in a book I pick up and in one I write.
Hazel Micaellef, 62, a police officer in a small town in Ontario, is divorced, overweight, has back problems, and drinks too much. I am from a small town and divorced. Liquor is not my vice. I am, however, completely at home in the fictional and slightly seedy Port Dumas where locals have long memories. When human bones are found on land that formerly housed orphans, many of the townās ugly secrets bubble up.The plot is complex and the setting immersive. I would not necessarily want to live in a place like Port Dumasā¦but I have.
The new novel in this acclaimed series is brilliantly paced, addictively suspensefulāthe author's best yet. Hazel Micallef (played by Susan Sarandon in the recent film of the series' debut, The Calling) has become one of crime writing's most memorable detectives. The Night Bell moves between the past and the present in Port Dundas, Ontario, as two mysteries converge. A discovery of the bones of murdered children is made on land that was once a county foster home. Now it's being developed as a brand new subdivision whose first residents are already railing against broken promises and corruption. But when threeā¦
