Alexia Gordon

Crime and Speculation

June 25, 2018 Alexia Gordon Uncategorized

I turned in my first round of edits on book four in the Gethsemane Brown series last week. I needed to reset and recharge after I hit “send” to my editor, so I did what many in need of a reality break do. I grabbed my smartphone and navigated to Netflix. Having been immersed in crime fiction, I browsed the streaming service’s myriad offerings for something different. I binge watched Season Two of “Queer Eye,” which reminded me that good people who love others exist. Then I started scrolling through Netflix’s speculative fiction (which I’m defining broadly as sci-fi, fantasy, horror, and paranormal) offerings to find titles to add to my queue. Turns out, “different” wasn’t that different after all. As I browsed Netflix this weekend, I noticed something about the movies that most interested me. While they were billed as speculative fiction, they all contained a strong crime element. Instead of being labeled sci-fi (or horror or paranormal) with a mystery, they could have been labeled crime fiction with a futuristic (or fantastical or paranormal) spin. “Altered Carbon,” “Bright,” “Ascension,” “Hotel Beau Sejour”—all involve a mystery that must be solved and/or a crime that drives the action. Movies “Alien Nation,” “Blade Runner,” and “Minority Report,” series “Twin Peaks” and “Scream,” and novel “The Space Merchants” are other works that combine crime with speculation. Barnes and Noble posted a couple of listicles on their blog about sci-fi crime novels. “5 Genre-Bending Science-Fictional Crime Novels” lists several sci-fi noir mysteries and “10 Fiendishly Clever Sci-Fi Locked Room Mysteries” lists some classic mysteries that just happen to take place on space stations and in space ships. Some crime writers, like John D. MacDonald and Chris Brookmyre, also wrote science fiction. It’s not surprising that crime blends well with speculative fiction. Mystery and intrigue are page-turners and speculative fiction is often set in mysterious worlds. Both genres often involve a protagonist trying to bring order to chaos or solve a puzzle. And the stakes in both genres are often high—life or death, good or evil. What are some of your favorite speculative crime novels and films?

Prize-Worthy

May 4, 2018 Alexia Gordon Uncategorized

Literary award season is in full swing. We’ve had the Leftys, the Agathas, the Edgars, the Ippys. The Anthonys, the Barrys, and many others will be awarded between now and September to honor excellence in crime writing. But is excellence in crime writing the only thing that’s prize-worthy? This week’s question for my fellow Missdemeanors is, if you could invent your own literary, or any other, award, what would it be and to whom would you award it? I’m awarding Agatha “Best Adaptive Use of an Ironing Board” RobinSome mornings lately I feel like there should be a Meerkat Award for successfully coming out of my hidey hole and standing on two feet without collapsing and tumbling over my pack mates. MeCan I nominate myself for the Meerkat Award? TraceeI want to win the Meerkat Award and my focus on qualifying has made it difficult to come up with another suggestion. However…. Wouldn’t it be fun to have awards for best jacket copy? Or author photo (I would definitely keep a young version of myself for decades…..)? Or most deceptive jacket copy? I’m sure there are a few people out there who would like to see an award for book that was panned by reviewers but made multiple best seller lists! Not that these aren’t serious things, but at the same time a bit of potential levity during the presentation ceremonies. MeI like the best jacket copy and most deceptive jacket copy awards. How about an award for most outdated cover photo or photo that looks the least like the author? SusanI love stories about writers who have overcome all sorts of obstacles and rejections and then achieve success. Maybe an award for the most dogged, single-minded, persistent, relentless, determined writer out there. MicheleAt the New England Crime Bake banquet, we now invite anyone attending who has been nominated for, awarded, or received an honor of any nature to join us in a circle of celebration. This is a difficult business and we need to recognize and support one another whenever and wherever we can. I was a finalist in the Malice Domestic first novel contest three times! I kept remembering one of my grandmother’s sayings. “Always a bridesmaid, never a bride.” TraceeI think that’s a lovely idea! RobinI agree with Tracy, Susan, that’s a great idea. And I like that celebration at the Crime Bake. I also think every one of us – and most people but especially writers & artists – should pass around the Meerkat Award. Wrote some words that weren’t on the page before you got there? You win. Smiled and said “hello” to a stranger? You win. Made yourself a cup of coffee without spilling? You win. Thanked someone else for handing you a cup of coffee? You win. AlisonRobin set the bar too high for me with her Meerkat Award. Best. Award. Idea. Ever. I’m awarding it to myself today because I made coffee *and* didn’t spill (plus no pack mates were harmed in the process)! TraceeI totally agree with the Meerkat Award. For me it was all over after that. I may try to find that meerkat show on TV…. we all probably need a little more meerkat in our lives! MeHow about made it until noon before ticking anybody off? Does that win a Meerkat? RobinThat totally wins. Great job! [clumping sounds of meerkat paws applauding] “Clumping” = combination of clapping and thumpingI think meerkats have become my new spirit animal. PaulaI am in the middle of moving us and my parents into a new big old house (1760) and I think there should be an award for all of us for not killing each other yet. TraceePaula, There’s still time 🙂 But with a house that old there is surely a ghost…. blame it on him/her. MePaula– Gold Meerkat What award would you give? Who deserves it? Comment here or post your prize idea on our Facebook page. And May the Fourth be with you.

Cold Winds Blow

May 3, 2018 Alexia Gordon Uncategorized

They (the mysterious “they” who is always telling you what you should or shouldn’t do) say you shouldn’t write about the weather. I’m ignoring that advice. Weather impacts our moods in real life. A warm, sunny Spring day brings smiles to our faces. A cold, gray, wet winter’s day induces groans and sadness. The heavy, humid air just before a thunderstorm makes us tense and uneasy. Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) is a clinical condition where cold, dark weather brings on depression often severe enough to warrant treatment. And weather certainly presents obstacles we must overcome. Floods, tornadoes, hurricanes, high winds, hail, snow—all as potentially dangerous as an armed intruder or an angry ex. Weather can, and should, act in fiction they same way it acts in real life. “It’s a dark and stormy night” may not be the world’s best opening sentence but weather can be used to significant effect in stories. Weather can set tone, provide foreshadowing, or reflect characters’ moods. “The Fall of the House of Usher” wouldn’t read the same if set on a warm and sunny day. Charlotte Bronte uses weather to foreshadow Jane Eyre’s experiences and as a metaphor for her moods and emotions. Weather can also be a character. From torrential rains to blizzards to tornadoes, weather events play the role of antagonist in “man versus nature” stories. Make a bad situation—being chased by a man with a gun—worse for the protagonist by adding some weather—being chased by a man with a gun in fog as thick as cotton batting. What’s your favorite literary weather disaster? What kind of weather event would you throw in your protagonist’s path? Comment here or blow on over to Facebook to join the discussion.

And the Winners Are…

May 1, 2018 Alexia Gordon Uncategorized

The 2017 Agatha Award Winners
Best Contemporary Novel
**Glass Houses: A Chief Inspector Gamache Novel by Louise Penny (Minotaur Books) Best Historical Novel
**In Farleigh Field by Rhys Bowen (Lake Union Publishing)
Best First Novel
**Hollywood Homicide: A Detective by Day Mystery by Kellye Garrett (Midnight Ink)
Best Nonfiction
**From Holmes to Sherlock: The Story of the Men and Women who Created an Icon by Mattias Boström (Mysterious Press)
Best Short Story
**“The Library Ghost of Tanglewood Inn” by Gigi Pandian (Henery Press)
Best Children’s/Young Adult
**Sydney Mackenzie Knocks ‘Em Dead by Cindy Callaghan (Aladdin)
Winners of the 2018 Edgar Allan Poe Awards BEST NOVELBluebird, Bluebird by Attica Locke (Hachette Book Group – Little, Brown & Co./Mulholland Books)

BEST FIRST NOVEL BY AN AMERICAN AUTHOR
She Rides Shotgun by Jordan Harper (HarperCollins – Ecco) BEST PAPERBACK ORIGINAL
The Unseeing by Anna Mazzola (Sourcebooks – Sourcebooks Landmark)

BEST FACT CRIMEKillers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI by David Grann (Penguin Random House – Doubleday)

BEST CRITICAL/BIOGRAPHICAL
Chester B. Himes: A Biography by Lawrence P. Jackson (W.W. Norton & Company)

BEST SHORT STORY“Spring Break” – New Haven Noir by John Crowley (Akashic Books)

BEST JUVENILEVanished! By James Ponti (Simon & Schuster – Aladdin)

BEST YOUNG ADULT
Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds (Simon & Schuster – Atheneum Books for Young Readers)

BEST TELEVISION EPISODE TELEPLAY“Somebody to Love” – Fargo, Teleplay by Noah Hawley (FX Networks/MGM)

ROBERT L. FISH MEMORIAL AWARD“The Queen of Secrets” – New Haven Noir by Lisa D. Gray (Akashic Books)

GRAND MASTERJane Langton
William Link
Peter Lovesey

RAVEN AWARDKristopher Zgorski, BOLO Books
The Raven Bookstore, Lawrence Kansas

ELLERY QUEEN AWARD
Robert Pépin

* * * * * *THE SIMON & SCHUSTER MARY HIGGINS CLARK AWARD
The Widow’s House by Carol Goodman (HarperCollins – William Morrow Paperbacks)

Homicide, Life in the Classroom

March 16, 2018 Alexia Gordon Uncategorized

Took a break from writing to attend a session of my local police department’s Citizens’ Police Academy. I enrolled in the Academy this past Fall but I missed a couple of sessions so I came back to the Spring Academy for a make up class. The night’s topics were investigations and motor vehicle crashes. First, we learned about accident investigations, everything from who investigates (a multi-community team of specially trained investigators), to the prerequisites required to become a crash investigator (certification as a lead homicide investigator, an evidence technician, an accident reconstructor, a drone pilot, and more), to how to determine how fast a vehicle had been moving right before it wrapped itself around a tree (it involves measuring skid marks and knowing the road’s coefficient of friction). Then we learned what it takes to be a detective (as opposed to a patrol officer) in this town. Short answer: training and experience. (Police in this town train a lot.) We learned when patrol officers call in detectives and the types of cases detectives usually handle. We learned the best way to get your luxury vehicle stolen (leave it parked in your driveway with the key fob in it and the doors unlocked) and the best way to get your house burglarized (leave the door unlocked). We learned what crimes gangs find prefer to selling drugs on street corners (stealing unlocked cars and breaking into unlocked houses). We learned why detectives don’t work hard on car theft cases (they’re almost impossible to prosecute—juvenile defendants not caught in the act who create reasonable doubt by claiming their buddy gave them a ride and they didn’t know the car was stolen). Then the detective walked us through a few of his cases. Yes, I took notes for future reference. The Citizens’ Police Academy is a great resource for writers in addition to being a great way to get to know your local law enforcement professionals. Best of all, it’s free. If your community offers one, I recommend you enroll. But be warned, if you attend, you’ll never be able to watch another cop show without saying, “That’s not how police really work.” And stop leaving your key fob in your unlocked car. Seriously.

I Have a Question

March 16, 2018 Alexia Gordon Uncategorized

Book clubs seem more popular than ever. Focused on a variety of themes and genres, there are as many different types of clubs as there are different books. One thing common to all clubs, members talk about. Plots, characters, broader issues raised by the story—all serve as fuel for discussion. Authors may connect with readers by visiting clubs in person or virtually and sometimes facilitate discussion by providing discussion questions. Today, some of the Missdemeanors offer questions for book clubs. Tracee1. Agnes lost her husband and changed jobs, taking on what many would consider a higher pressure position. What do you think about her decisions and her manner of dealing with loss and family and search for personal identity? 2. Julien Vallotton is clearly romantically interested in Agnes, yet she resists. Do you think there is such a thing as an ‘appropriate’ or ‘necessary’ time to mourn the loss of a spouse or partner before taking the next romantic steps? Have you witnessed a situation where the threat of external judgment prevented the bereaved from enjoying the next years of their life? Susan1. Maggie Dove’s new client believes her sister is evil. Have you ever met anyone you believed to be evil? 2. As Maggie Dove begins investigating, she has to go through old high school year books and she’s surprised to see how some of the people she knows have changed. How have you changed since high school (beyond the wrinkles)? Alison1. Abish has returned home to a state, and religion, she left thinking she’d never return. Now, she’s trying to reconnect with her family and navigate as an outsider in an insider community. How well do you think she gets along with a dominant outlook that differs from her own? 2. The first murder Abish encounters has hallmarks of a deadly ritual supported–in theory–by Brigham Young and other early LDS Church leaders. It has long been forgotten by most, but offers an interesting example of how communities handle dark parts of their own history. Do you think there are any societies that have dealt particularly well or particularly badly with this universal problem of processing ugliness in their own shared past (whether it be slavery, racism, sexism, violence, antisemitism, ethnic cleansing, pogroms . . .)? Is there a good template for handling these issues? Michele1. Sabrina Salter’s gut told her that she and Henry should not take on an eleventh villa, but Henry was insistent and Sabrina relented. How do you know when to follow your gut instinct and not yield to the judgment of others or when to back down?. 2.Sabrina tells Henry at the end of the book, “I’m going back to Boston to meet the grandmother I’ve never seen before it’s too late.” What advice would you offer Sabrina about meeting a grandmother who has chosen to ignore her existence? Alexia1.In Killing in C Sharp, Gethsemane has to work with someone she despises, someone who once libeled a friend of hers, in order to save people she cares about. How would you handle having to work with someone you disliked? 2. Maja’s relatives got away with her murder. She dealt with the injustice by coming back as a ghost and taking vengeance on not just her relatives, but anyone who reminded her of them. How would you deal with being a victim of injustice? What questions have you discussed in your book club? Or what questions would you like to discuss if you belonged to a book club? What questions would you offer to readers of your books? Share in the comments or join the discussion on Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/missdemeanorsbooks/

Rules Were Made to be…Followed

March 13, 2018 Alexia Gordon Uncategorized

I did a bad thing today. I liked a Tweet that was part of a contest without first reading the contest rules. In my defense, the rules Tweet showed up in my Twitter feed several Tweets after the one I liked and the one I liked was a commentary, not an actual contest entry, but still… Contests have rules for reasons. Prizes are awarded for specific things. No participation trophies are handed out, so there’s no point entering your love poem in a horror screenplay contest. It will be rejected without consideration and the contest judges will send bad vibes your way. Those judges are another reason to follow the rules. Judges for many contests are volunteers with lots of other, non-contest related, responsibilities: day jobs, children’s soccer tournaments, dinner with the in-laws, manuscript revisions. They’re donating precious time so don’t waste it. 70,000 words take a long time to read. Don’t annoy the judges by trying to force them to read 90,000. They won’t. They’ll consign your tome to the “not worth a glance” pile and they’ll jinx you by wishing all your pens run out of ink in the middle of climactic scenes and your laptop’s caps lock key gets stuck in the “on” position. Finally, following the rules gives the people who might represent you or publish you or invite you to give a speech at a dinner in your honor some idea of how easy (or how nightmarish) you might be to work with. No one likes an arrogant jerk who thinks the rules don’t apply to them or that exceptions should be made for them because they’re that special. (Really. We don’t like you.) And someone who can’t (won’t) comprehend even basic rules? Let’s be honest. Don’t we wonder how some people manage to cross the street without someone holding their hand? Don’t we groan and wonder if poking olive forks into our eyes would be less painful than explaining things to them “one more time”? Read the rules, understand them (they’re less complicated than the new tax law), follow them. Don’t submit your 100,000 word, free-verse rom-com screenplay to a contest seeking a 60,000-80,000 word mystery novel. Submit what’s being asked for and give yourself a fair shot at the contract/cash prize/trophy. Have you ever judged a contest where entrants ignored the rules? How’d you deal with the non-compliant entries?

What a Bunch of Characters

March 8, 2018 Alexia Gordon Uncategorized

Meet the nominees for the 2018 Best First Novel Agatha Award. Ever wonder which character they most enjoy writing? Join the conversation to find out! Who is your favorite character to write and why? Micki Browning:This is a bit like asking a parent to choose a favorite child. I certainly like spending time with my protagonist, Mer Cavallo. She’s wicked smart, which means I have to stretch to keep up with her. She’s someone I’d like to have as a friend—and dive buddy. But sometimes I want a little more levity than Mer provides, and that means it’s time for Captain Leroy Penninichols. I love his Southernisms. If he had to describe someone as small, he’d bust out with “Well, she ain’t bigger than a bar of soap after a hard day’s washing.” His gruff exterior hides a tender heart and he dotes on his wife. He always cheers for the underdog, and took Mer under his wing when she first arrived in the Keys. They constantly banter, and one day Mer asked how his wife put up with him. In typical Leroy fashion, he responded, “There’s a lid to fit every skillet.” Leroy reminds Mer (and me) that there’s always another way to look at life. V.M. Burns:I love writing about my protagonist’s grandmother, Nana Jo and the sleuthing seniors. Nana Jo and ‘the girls’ are older and less inhibited than Samantha. They take martial arts classes, hang out at the bar, and enjoy spending time at the casino. They are honest, funny, and courageous. Each one has a zest for life which I find refreshing. Samantha is cautious and reserved, but Nana Jo and the girls are helping her see that life can be exciting and unpredictable, which is something I often have to remind myself. Kellye Garrett:I love writing all my characters for different reasons. One because she talks only using acronyms. Another because he never uses apostrophes. My main character, Dayna, because she has the exact same sense of humor as I have. However, my favorite character to write is Dayna’s best friend/roomie Sienna. Sienna is determined to set a Guinness World Record for only wearing red and says whatever she wants, whenever she wants. My fave exchange is from when Dayna and Sienna are trying to tail a suspect:“We should take turns following her so she’s not suspicious. Whatever we do, we don’t want to get burned,” Sienna said.“What the fudge does that mean?” I asked.“No idea, but it can’t be good. STDs. Forest fires. Freshly baked cookies. Burning is never a good thing.” Laura Oles:While my protagonist, Jamie Rush, has been wonderful to write, I have to say that her partner, Cookie Hinojosa, has been the most fun. His charisma and sense of humor play so well off her deadpan demeanor. His love for Hawaiian shirts is second only to his loyalty to Jamie and their crew. I tend to hear his voice first in my head, and his words come easily. Cookie seems to be a reader favorite, and if I’m being honest, he’s at the top of my list with Jamie. Kathleen Valenti:I have a feeling that the answer to “Who is your favorite character to write” is supposed to be my protagonist. After all, Maggie O’Malley is the hero of not only my debut novel, Protocol, but the entire series from Henery Press. But if I’m honest, the answer has to be Constantine, Maggie’s best friend.A goofy cutup with a fondness for Lucky Charms and Star Trek memorabilia, Constantine does more than act as a sidekick or play comic relief to Maggie’s straight-man routine. He’s a complex character who brings his own story and his own personality, with all of its attendant strengths and foibles, to the page. Like Maggie, Constantine is smart, loyal, and funny. However, Constantine’s funniness, his predilection for gallows humor, and his knee-jerk reaction to cover discomfort with wit, is at the very core of his personality. He’s fun to write, and because he’s handsome and sweet, he’s fun to imagine as the perfect BFF or life partner. I’ll always love Maggie, but when it comes to writing dialogue, Constantine has my heart. And my pen. Surprised? Which of their characters do you most love to read? Let us know in the comments or over on Facebook. https://www.facebook.com/missdemeanorsbooks Bios: A retired police captain, Micki Browning writes the Mer Cavallo Mystery series set in the Florida Keys. In addition to the Agatha nomination for Best First Novel, Adrift has won both the Daphne du Maurier and the Royal Palm Literary Awards. Beached, her second novel, launched January 2018. Micki’s work has appeared in dive magazines, anthologies, mystery magazines, and textbooks. She lives in South Florida with her partner in crime and a vast array of scuba equipment she uses for “research.” Learn more about Micki at MickiBrowning.com. V.M. (Valerie) Burns was born in Northwestern Indiana and spent many years in Southwestern Michigan on the Lake Michigan shoreline. She is a lover of dogs, British historic cozies, and scones with clotted cream. After many years in the Midwest she went in search of milder winters and currently lives in Eastern Tennessee with her poodles. Receiving the Agatha nomination for Best First Novel has been a dream come true. Valerie is a member of Mystery Writers of America, International Thriller Writers, and a lifetime member of Sisters in Crime. Readers can learn more by visiting her website at vmburns.com. Kellye Garrett writes the Detective by Day mysteries about a semi-famous, mega-broke black actress who takes on the deadliest role of her life: Homicide Detective. The first, Hollywood Homicide, was recently nominated for Agatha, Lefty, and Barry awards. The second, Hollywood Ending, will be released on August 8, 2018 from Midnight Ink. Prior to writing novels, Kellye spent eight years working in Hollywood, including a stint writing for the TV drama Cold Case. The New Jersey native now works for a leading media company in New York City and serves on the national Board of Directors for Sisters in Crime. You can learn more about her at KellyeGarrett.com and ChicksontheCase.com. Laura Oles is a photo industry journalist who spent twenty years covering tech and trends before turning to crime fiction. She served as a columnist for numerous photography magazines and publications. Laura’s short stories have appeared in several anthologies, including Murder on Wheels, which won the Silver Falchion Award in 2016. Her debut mystery, Daughters of Bad Men, is a Claymore Award Finalist and an Agatha nominee for Best First Novel. She is also a Writers’ League of Texas Award Finalist. Laura is a member of Austin Mystery Writers, Sisters in Crime and Writers’ League of Texas. Laura lives on the edge of the Texas Hill Country with her husband, daughter and twin sons. Visit her online at lauraoles.com. Kathleen Valenti is the author of the Maggie O’Malley mystery series. The series’ first book, Agatha- and Lefty-nominated Protocol, introduces us to Maggie, a pharmaceutical researcher with a new job, a used phone, and a deadly problem. The series’ second book, 39 Winks, releases May 22. When Kathleen isn’t writing page-turning mysteries that combine humor and suspense, she works as a nationally award-winning advertising copywriter. She lives in Oregon with her family where she pretends to enjoy running. Learn more at www.kathleenvalenti.com.

Reader Seeks Unattached Book

January 26, 2018 Alexia Gordon Uncategorized

My local library is hosting “Blind Date with a Book” in honor of Valentine’s Day. The librarians put books inside gift bags so readers can’t see the title. (I’ve seen other libraries gift wrap the books.) They write a brief, cryptic description on the outside of the bag; readers choose a mystery book based on the description. I decided to try my luck and selected a bag based on the description: “Cambridge, Warm Beer and Hot Jazz, Jewelry Theft, Art Forgery”. The book inside turned out to be The Grantchester Mysteries: Sidney Chambers and the Shadow of Death.Instead of asking the Missdemeanors a question this week, I gave them a challenge: Set up a book for a blind date–write a personals ad. Think of literary Tinder or eHarmony or old-school newspaper Lonely Hearts column. Can you guess the books from the descriptions? (No peeking at the answers, listed at the end of the post) TraceeMan wishes to meet woman who will ignore the recent brutal murder of his wife. Would prefer gal with house in decent neighborhood, but is willing to fund cheap hotels. Young daughter part of the deal, but she’s quiet and will give up riding shotgun and take the backseat. Must love tattoos, have no side deals with current prison inmates, and know how to follow life-and-death orders without question.BTW….. this is an amazing book. SusanForty-two year-old Englishman looking for gentle companion to be his second wife. Offers a beautiful mansion in Cornwall, called Manderley. No need to worry about housekeeping, which is handled by a very capable woman. Prefers that candidate not like boating. MicheleFormer television meteorologist who no longer wears make-up, no family to drag you to on Christmas, really it was an accident with my husband, great relationship with my dog, seeks middle age guy who likes booze, islands, asks no questions, tells no lies, and doesn’t squirm when an occasional body shows up. RobinSingle white male seeks companion for dinner. Likes: Italian wine, stimulating conversation. Dislikes: boredom. Fascinate me with your story and I’ll tell you anything. CateSexy, 30s, homebody seeks same for candlelight dinners in. Must love red wine and cuddling up to old movies. Ability to play chess a plus. Handiness a definite plus. Ability to spend hours–weeks, years even–indoors an absolute plus.) AlisonTall, rugged self-starter seeking companionship in Wyoming. No strings attached. Wanderlust and love of coffee a plus. Please bring your own toothbrush. AlexiaSeeking companion to attend gathering on private island. Join eight other guests for food, drink, swimming. Housekeeping services available. Must enjoy gramophone recordings, poetry, and solving riddles. Weather may be inclement. Plan accordingly. Choose your date. Guess the title. Tell us in the comments or over on Facebook. Answers listed below. Tracee: She Rides Shotgun by Jordan HarperSusan: Rebecca by Daphne DuMaurierMichele: No Virgin Island by Michele DorseyRobin: Silence of The Lambs by Thomas HarrisCate: The Woman In The Window by A.J. FinnAlison: The Midnight Line by Lee ChildAlexia: And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie