Book Riot's Read Harder Challenge discussion

Use this space to discuss books you're reading or that might fit the 3rd Read Harder task.

Greetings! Our rec post for this task is up now. https://bookriot.com/2019/12/06/myste...

Thus Was Adonis Murdered by Sarah Caudwell

Or reread a favorite: Venus in Copper by Lindsey Davis

Or take Book Riot's suggestion of Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead by Olga Tokarczuk.

I just finished The Widows of Malabar Hill by Sujata Massey, which would work for this task. I really enjoyed it!

Moriarty is my pick. People might like Sunburn too. I thought it was good fun.

Bonnie G. wrote: "Moriarty is my pick. People might like Sunburn too. I thought it was good fun."

I loved Moriarty! I completely forgot about that book, would fully support this recommendation!

Other suggestions:

Murder on the Orient Express
The Sittaford Mystery
The Murder of Roger Ackroyd
Death Comes to Pemberley

They all count if we only consider victims of murder, and only count murders that take place within the book!

I've not read it, so only know the blurb, but would The Hate U Give work for this prompt?

Rachael wrote: "Bonnie G. wrote: "Moriarty is my pick. People might like Sunburn too. I thought it was good fun."

I loved Moriarty! I completely forgot about that book, would fully..."

The Hate You Give is not a murder mystery. The cops are the killers, the only question is justification (and its not much of a question.) Its a good book though.

Bonnie G. wrote: "Rachael wrote: "Bonnie G. wrote: "Moriarty is my pick. People might like Sunburn too. I thought it was good fun."

I loved Moriarty! I completely forgot about that b..."

I had a brain fart, I decided the prompt was about books where murder victims were male, which was not the prompt at all!

Rachael wrote: "Bonnie G. wrote: "Rachael wrote: "Bonnie G. wrote: "Moriarty is my pick. People might like Sunburn too. I thought it was good fun."

I loved Moriarty! I completely f..."
Haha. Next year.

The Staunch Awards seem to be almost tailor made for this prompt. They say it's awarded to thrillers, but when I look some of the books up, they're tagged as mysteries too. So depending on how liberal you want to be in applying your prompts, their short list might help.
I'm going with If I Die Tonight by Alison Gaylin

Thanks for bringing the Staunch Award to my attention! Here’s a link that describes the award: http://staunchbookprize.com/about-2/

The Western Wind sounds great!

I thought of another rec I have for this prompt: The Unquiet Dead by Ausma Zehanat Khan.

The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie

Just wanted to point out that it is a mystery, not necessarily a murder mystery. Kidnappings, financial crime etc. can also be mysteries. I'm probably going to do a medical thriller.

Thinking about reading Heaven, My Home or The Other Americans for this task.

Just finished reading Deck the Hounds here the murder victims are all males. This is one of my favorite series and I wanted to give copies of this as gifts but needed to read for possible triggers. These are NOT grisly murder mysteries by any means and I love Rosenfelt's wit and sarcasm. This also contains a pun in the title and is a seasonal read...

Judging by the blurb, the newest Erica Donato Mystery, Brooklyn Legacies, has a male victim

It's hard to know who the victims are going to be in a mystery one hasn't read yet, and this is not the type of genre where I would want to know what happens before reading it.

I'm planning to read Unpunished, a posthumously-published mystery novel by Charlotte Perkins Gilman (best known for writing Herland and The Yellow Wallpaper). All I know about it is that the story begins with the discovery of the body of a man who has been shot, stabbed, bludgeoned, strangled, and poisoned.

Thinking about One of Us Is Lying - described as The Breakfast Club meets Gossip Girl.

For anyone seeking a cozy, I believe Death by Dumpling by Vivien Chien would work for this task, as would Murder in an Irish Village by Carlene O'Connor.

Rachel wrote: "The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie"

I adored this entire series...if you haven't heard it on audio-you're in for a treat! Jane Entwhistle (sp?) I believe and she's incredible!

If you like Scandinavian mysteries and bleak snowy desolation, The Return of the Dancing Master by Henning Mankell (not part of the Wallander series) is kicked off by the death of a retired policeman. I really enjoyed it.

I’m thinking about Jane Harper’s “The Dry,” for this one

A lot of Golden Age mysteries fit this prompt. As well as the Agatha Christies suggested, The Man in the Queue by Josephine Tey or Strong Poison by Dorothy L Sayers should fit.

Some of Carola Dunn's Daisy Dalrymple mysteries would fit this and be a double dip for task 7

Some of the Sue Grafton ABC books have male victims, if you are new to the series than you can try book 1 or 3 for this prompt:
A is for Alibi
C is for Corpse

A few that I’ve already read (& so I’m sure of the victim)
-Brutal Telling by Louis Penny
-The Better Sister by Alafair Burke
-The Witch Elm by Tana French

Another classic with a male victim is An Unsuitable Job for a Woman by PD James.

Just finished with Scrublands by Chris Hammer and realized I should have saved it for 2020. Modern day Australia, many dead bodies, none of them female.

Eliza wrote: "Thinking about One of Us Is Lying - described as The Breakfast Club meets Gossip Girl."

That's a great book and would totally work for this category!

Does anyone know if any of Agatha Christie's Hercule Poirot-books or if any of Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes-books work?
Generally speaking I'm not a big fan of mystery books but I've enjoyed the two Hercule Poirot-books I've read.

The Hound of the Baskervilles works if you only count victims of murder...there are some women in the story who would count as victims in other ways. That's true of many Agatha Christie books as well; even when the murder victims are male, the women tend to be victims of other crimes or abusive relationships or whatnot.

Ilana wrote: "I’m thinking about Jane Harper’s “The Dry,” for this one"

This is a good one! Her 3rd book, The Lost Man, also features a male victim and you don't have to have read the first two to enjoy it.

Another good mystery with a male victim is the Magpie Murders

Jackie wrote: "The Hound of the Baskervilles works if you only count victims of murder...there are some women in the story who would count as victims in other ways. That's true of many Agatha Christie..."

Ah I see, thanks! Then I think I will skip it for this category, as it doesn't explicitly state murder victims I'm taking the broader approach to victims.

I just read The Shape Shifter. It was a good mystery, and had much to say about Native America. I also read Curiosity Killed the Cat Sitter who's victim is male, I think... They're both light mysteries, but pretty fun.

I finished Miracle Creek last week and one of the victims is male, not sure if it qualifies but it’s a very good mystery book.

A few other suggestions:
Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
Snow Falling on Cedars --> I've read this one, it's a masterpiece
And there's always good ol' Sherlock Holmes.

I binge listened to "Where Shadows Dance" by C.S. Harris yesterday while getting some work done. Three of the four victims were male and there was no sexual component to the woman's murder. Pure political intrigue surrounding Britain, France, and the former colonies. This will also work for #7. I may also use "The Sentence is Death" for this one.

Jamie wrote: "Rachel wrote: "The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie"

I adored this entire series...if you haven't heard it on audio-you're in for a treat! Jane Entwhistle (sp?) I believe and she..."

I agree on all counts!

Jamie wrote: "Rachel wrote: "The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie"

I adored this entire series...if you haven't heard it on audio-you're in for a treat! Jane Entwhistle (sp?) I believe and she..."

Loved the first two! Can someone list off all of the books in the series that would apply?

I read “Death in Sicily” by Andrea Camilleri, which consists of his first three Inspector Montalbano novels. In the first, the victim is a politically powerful man and in the third (the Snack Thief”) the victims are an old man and a Tunisian spy, also male.

I wanted to recommend Borrowed Time by Tracy Clarkfor people looking for a book for this category. It is the second book in a great private investigator series. I am 3/4 through, and so far none of the victims have been women (there are verbal threats /violence directed at the PI, who is a woman, though, FYI). There are references to things that happened in the first book, but it would work fine as a standalone (I don't think any of the victims in the first book were women either, but I read it early last year, so I don't remember all the details).

Katie wrote: "Loved the first two! Can someone list off all of the books in the series that would apply?"

I've read them all and I believe the following (most of them, actually) do not have female victims:
#1 The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie
#2 The Weed That Strings the Hangman's Bag
#5 Speaking from Among the Bones
#6 The Dead in Their Vaulted Arches
#8 Thrice the Brinded Cat Hath Mew'd
#9 The Grave's a Fine and Private Place

I haven't read it yet but it sounds like The Yiddish Policemen's Union by Michael Chabon would technically fit the bill, is that right?

I am little evangelical about this book (I'm sure my friends are sick of hearing about it) but I would very very highly recommend The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie. It's her first really successful novel and it's a great classic Poirot mystery.

Others of hers that I've read that would also fit this challenge are:
Murder on the Orient Express (Poirot)
Murder at the Vicarage (Miss Marple)

Would The Lost Man by Jane Harper meet criteria for this task? I’m not sure if it is formally classified as a mystery.

I’ve been reading Barbara Ross’s Maine clambake mysteries for a different challenge. The first 3 have one murder each, with male victims. (There are sometimes other deaths, but not murders.)

The first in the series is Clammed Up.

https://www.goodreads.com/series/1029...

Oh, and it’s a stretch, but the family runs a seafood “dining experience” and each book includes recipes, so if you’ve never had food from the NE seaboard they could double dip for the food book about a new cuisine.

Sara Tellman wrote: "Would The Lost Man by Jane Harper meet criteria for this task? I’m not sure if it is formally classified as a mystery."

The Lost Man definitely fits the criteria for this category. The main character isn't a detective, so it's not a traditional detective story, but the question of the circumstances of Cameron Bright's suspicious death unquestionably drives the plot. It's a mystery, and a very good one—my favorite of Harper's novels.

I'm reading The Cat, the Professor and the Poison because I already had it. I've noticed a lot of cozy mysteries fit this prompt too.

Would Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore count for this prompt?

Tell Her No Lies is a male victim, and also a lighter read in general if you need a break from the heaviness!!