Wednesday, March 25, 2020

Eight top red herrings in contemporary crime literature

Karen Dietrich is the author of The Girl Factory: A Memoir (2013) and several poetry chapbooks. She also plays drums in the indie rock band Essential Machine. Dietrich received a BA in English from University of Pittsburgh and an MFA in poetry from New England College. She has worked as a college professor and high school English teacher.

Her new psychological thriller is Girl at the Edge.

At CrimeReads, Dietrich tagged eight contemporary "books [that] play with the reader’s mind in wonderfully twisted ways, using red herrings masterfully and keeping the reader guessing. And second-guessing." One title on the list:
The Cutting Season by Attica Locke

Caren is caretaker for the grounds of Belle Vie, a former plantation that now provides a setting for high price tag weddings and historical reenactments for school children.

When something (an animal?) digs up a woman’s body, Caren must wonder about the secrets of the place she calls home. Caren’s mother worked at Belle Vie, too, and so Caren grew up on the grounds. She’s familiar with its beauty, but also it’s haunting history. But is there something ugly brewing at Belle Vie? And what about the employee who can’t be accounted for? Locke’s characters are vivid and the pacing pitch perfect. She spins a compelling mystery with plenty of doubts and uncertainty. As Caren is drawn further and further into the dead woman’s story, she begins uncovering things that are perhaps best left buried.
Read about the other entries on the list.

The Cutting Season is among T. Marie Vandelly's top ten suspenseful horror novels featuring housebound terrors and Wil Medearis's seven favorite novels that explore real estate swindles.

--Marshal Zeringue