5 Must-Reads for Jessica Jones Fans Suffering from Post-Binge Withdrawal

Jackaby, by William Ritter
In old school New England (circa 19th century, to be precise), young Brit Abigail Rook finds herself apprenticing with R.F. Jackaby, a PI with a penchant for ugly hats and unlocking the other realm. She’s practical but naïve, the perfect sidekick to his daffy Sherlock, especially when Jackaby gets arrested for a murder he pretty much predicted (via banshee, naturally). Fast-paced and fun, this Victorian-inspired, ghoul-filled world will leave you captivated and craving more. Follow it up with the equally enthralling sequel, Beastly Bones.

Lock & Mori, by Heather Petty
A modern-day Sherlock update, Lock & Mori follows the pair of nemeses as they meet and compete to solve a murder in London’s Regent Park. And despite Lock’s one rule to the game—that they must share every clue with each other—Mori’s keeping secrets. While the murder mystery anchors the plot, as with Jessica Jones, the emotional turmoil is just as riveting: both Lock and Mori have their own demons to face, and the firecracker interplay between the two will have fans shipping them for sure. Smart, witty writing with page-turner tendencies.

Black Widow: Forever Red, by Margaret Stohl
No inferiority complex here. The Avengers’ master spy and assassin Natasha Romanoff is as sure-footed and confident as any Marvel man. But young Ava Orlova is just your average Brooklyn teenager – at least on the surface. Deep down, she knows she’s been stifled under S.H.I.E.L.D. protection. The daughter of a long-missing Russian quantum physicist, she was once the subject of ruthless military experiments. She wants to dig into that past and reconnect with the Black Widow, who saved her, and she finally gets her chance after a rash of kidnappings in Eastern Europe that bear the mark of the old mentor’s madness. Can Ava help the Black Widow take down the madman once and for all? Margaret Stohl’s delicious YA update on the Black Widow franchise is packed full of action, drama—and romance, too.

Scarlett Undercover, by Jennifer Latham
Wisecracking teen investigator Scarlett doesn’t quite know what she’s getting into when she takes on the case of a local boy’s suicide—especially when it turns out that “suicide” might just be code for murder. She dives headfirst into a messy world of cults, curses, and curiosities, with darkness lurking just under the surface of the everyday façade—and realizes her own family might have more to do with that darkness than she ever could have predicted. Mystery is a fun element here, but buoyed by a thick emotional layer as Scarlett revisits a religion she’d long abandoned, family secrets, and a deep loss she thought she’d been managing just fine.

Jessica Jones: Alias, Volume 1, by Brian Michael Bendis, Michael Gaydos, and Bill Sienkiewicz
Okay, so maybe this is obvious—but maybe not. But when nothing else will do, turn to the source material. Before the kickass Krysten Ritter brought your favorite PI-with-a-mega-inferiority-complex-despite-how-awesome-she-is to life, she was born of panels. Some screen superhero aficionados may not be well versed in the work that inspires shows like Jessica Jones, which started out as a kickass comic series. So read up on the origin story and drama as it plays out on the page, starting with Alias, Volume 1. Then grab The Pulse. Then rewatch the series and unravel how the adaptation switched things up. Get your binge on big time.