100 Books Like Seasoned with Murder

Unwed, broke, and over thirty, Mississippi native Sarah Booth Delaney may live on the family plantation, but take it from me; she’s no Scarlett O’Hara. And if the not-so-Southern Belle didn’t already have enough to contend with, she’s being haunted by the wise-cracking ghost of her great-great-grandmother’s nanny, who never misses an opportunity to remind her of the mess her life has become.

I burst out laughing when the irreverent ghost scolded Sarah Booth, saying her biological clock was ticking and she better start birthing babies before her eggs got too old and dried up! If you’re like me and love a sassy ghost poking fun at an unladylike sleuth, then this is the book for you.

Another in-depth examination of the topic, this book focuses on the fifty-five years following the Revolutionary War, exploring the swift and sweeping changes in American society during this early Federal period and how they influenced the daily lives of planters’ wives. Clinton drew on hundreds of memoirs, diaries, and women’s letters to explore the issue of gender in antebellum Southern culture. This book makes a good follow up to Spruill’s work on the lives of Southern colonial era women.

What a wonderful, moral-rich, non-preachy, feel-good, tapped several of the big societal issues (adultery, death, divorce, pride, bullying, regret, work vs. family; you get the point), without ever once making me squirm with too many religious overtones, or want to run off to confess my improprieties. As a flower child at heart, I loved the continual nuances of people and growth compared to good soil and water, seasons, and blooms. This book was beautifully done.

When the matriarch of a loving family is diagnosed with cancer and determined to live out her days without treatment, there are twists and turns of reality that make this book a must-read. I too, nearly chose the path of non-treatment and this book resonates.

Well done, Julie Cantrell!

In far too many stories, Dissociative Identity Disorder is positioned as the antagonist of the story, which results in hideously inaccurate, stigmatizing portrayals.

I was utterly captivated by the way Matthew McKay (a clinical psychologist) did not allow us to flinch from the very real challenges Margaret faced as a result of living with DID, while also highlighting the profound strength that flowed into her life via her alters.

I couldn’t put this book down. It was instrumental in showing me how a portrayal could be both brutally honest and authentically faithful, while avoiding the many pitfalls in which so many portrayals seem to bottom out. 

Ellie and I live in the same town and met when a mystery reading group that I was a member of read her book and then she spoke to us.

This particular book is part of her cozy Bakeshop Mystery series set in Ashland, Oregon and is totally fun to read – and not just for someone who lives here and can identify with the shops in town that are in the book.

The writing is light, airy, and enjoyable, and the mystery was fun to read, especially since it strayed a bit from town and was involved in a murder on a cruise ship.

I was immediately pulled into a world of deception, greed, and murder.

Despite being traumatized, the main character stays strong. Her description of the luxury cruise ship made me feel as if I were onboard, too. The dark twists and turns throughout this novel, along with the gaslighting of the protagonist, were intense enough that I couldn’t stop reading.

Like the heroine in the story, I was determined to unravel the truth and decide who could be trusted and who might be a cold-blooded killer. For me, this wild ride was exhilarating. But it could be a few years before I consider booking my own cruise.

Alice Carlisle is an intellectual property attorney trainee in London about to secure full-time employment at her firm. But when the head of the department is suspended (the circumstances of which are revealed throughout the story), HR informs Alice that there will be a hiring freeze. Needing money, she takes on a temporary job at her local pub and her boyfriend’s ex moves in to help with the rent. Ouch! I felt so bad for Alice—to work so hard at something and then have it fall apart through no fault of her own. This is a smart, page-turning, relatable read that I devoured in an afternoon, and I loved the message that sometimes a detour takes you right where you need to be.

I love everything Sara Shepard does.

The story kicks off with Emma, a kind-hearted foster kid, discovering she has an identical twin sister named Sutton, who was adopted by a wealthy family. When Emma agrees to meet Sutton, she's shocked to learn that Sutton has mysteriously disappeared, and she's expected to step into Sutton’s life until she returns. What starts as a simple case of mistaken identity quickly spirals into a compelling mystery as Emma immerses herself in Sutton’s world, uncovering secrets and lies at every turn.

What really draws me to this book is its layered storytelling. As Emma digs deeper into the life of her sister, she encounters the dangerous game that Sutton and her friends played—a game all about deceit and cruel pranks. Shepard masterfully intertwines the suspense of the investigation with the drama of high school life, making each character’s motives murky and adding to the… show more.

I really enjoy stories told from multiple points of view. Everyone has a possible motive, and this kept me feeling uncertain who to trust.

The Guest List made me feel like I was in Ireland, experiencing the surface luxuries of a destination wedding while shivering from the eternal cold and bleak weather. It’s fun to feel like you’re there, like you're making new friends and living through the mayhem as the mystery unfolds.

RL Stine's Switched isn't just a switching places story, it's a switching bodies story. And in this Fear Street installment, one of them is a killer. Yeah, it's intense. Nicole is a super normal teenager with pretty regular problems, like a boyfriend who can't get his act together and homework she can't manage, but a trip to the woods changes all of that. Next thing you know, people start to die. 

Things really take some strange twists and turns so you're in for a wild ride with this one. This is classic Stine and just a fun read, if your idea of fun is being shocked, confused and frightened with every page. What a great time!