Featured Mystery Author

Richard Castle

Richard Castle's first novel, In a Hail of Bullets, published while he was still in college, received the Nom DePlume Society's prestigious Tom Straw Award for Mystery Literature. Castle currently lives in Manhattan with his daughter and mother. Scroll down the page to see some of his favorite mystery books.

Richard Castle
Book Cover Image. Title: Frozen Heat (Nikki Heat Series #4), Author: Richard Castle
Book Cover Image. Title: Heat Wave (Nikki Heat Series #1), Author: Richard Castle
Book Cover Image. Title: A Brewing Storm: A Derrick Storm Short, Author: Richard Castle
Book Cover Image. Title: Richard Castle's Deadly Storm, Author: Brian Michael Bendis
Book Cover Image. Title: The Murders in the Rue Morgue: The Dupin Tales, Author: Edgar Allan Poe

The Murders in the Rue Morgue

Edgar Allan Poe

Though there had been investigators before in fiction, this Edgar Allan Poe short story pretty much invented the modern detective genre. I'm especially enamored with the plot device of a so-called "amateur" offering his services to the police.
Buy Now

Book Cover Image. Title: The Secret of the Old Clock (Nancy Drew Series #1), Author: Carolyn Keene

The Secret of the Old Clock (Nancy Drew Series #1)

Carolyn Keene

This keen little mystery not only introduced Nancy Drew to an adoring fan base, but it also empowered millions of girls to realize that they were just as smart, if not smarter, than boys. For the record, Nancy is my second favorite female detective.
Buy Now

Book Cover Image. Title: The Big Sleep, Author: Raymond Chandler

The Big Sleep

Raymond Chandler

Philip Marlowe, my favorite dime store detective! I love this one for its pulp, purple prose, and endless plot twists. But most of all, I love it for Marlowe. I love that guy.
Buy Now

Book Cover Image. Title: Fer-de-Lance (Nero Wolfe Series), Author: Rex Stout

Fer-de-Lance (Nero Wolfe Series)

Rex Stout

I'm a huge Nero Wolfe fan and love all the books. Nero's such a bold character for a P.I.- a larger than life personality with expensive tastes and a love of unusual words, a man who rarely leaves his brownstone and solves mysteries while tending his orchids. It's a recipe for awesome, and Fer-De-Lance is one the best.
Buy Now

Book Cover Image. Title: Murder on the Orient Express (Hercule Poirot Series), Author: Agatha Christie

Murder on the Orient Express (Hercule Poirot Series)

Agatha Christie

This is the novel that mystery writers both love and love to hate. The sheer audacity of the story and the solution, and the fact that Christie pulls it off, is its own kind of genius.
Buy Now

Book Cover Image. Title: The Thin Man, Author: Dashiell Hammett

The Thin Man

Dashiell Hammett

As much as I love "The Maltese Falcon", my favorite Hammett will always be "The Thin Man." Ah, to live in Nick and Nora Charles' world, where there is no mystery that can't be solved with a little witty banter and copious amounts of alcohol.
Buy Now

Book Cover Image. Title: The Mike Hammer Collection: Volume I, Author: Mickey Spillane

The Mike Hammer Collection

Mickey Spillane

With its uncompromising portrait of a ruthless hero, I, the Jury exploded past all the polite fiction I'd been reading as a teen. Its politically incorrect, rough and raw depiction of sex, violence and action hit me like sucker punch to the gut.
Buy Now