Fifteen of the best mystery books of all time

Andy Minshew is an author and book reviewer who explores the intersections between queerness, faith, and neurodivergence in fiction and nonfiction.

At Book Riot he tagged fifteen of "the best mystery books of all time that have defined the genre in meaningful ways." One title on the list:

Summer of the Big Bachi (Mas Arai #1) by Naomi Hirahara

This thoughtful and character-driven novel is the first in the Edgar-Award winning Mas Arai mystery series. Gardener and widower Mas Arai is visited by a stranger who, like him, is a survivor of the Hiroshima bombing. The bombing and racism towards Japanese American immigrants brings back traumatic memories for Mas. But when the stranger is found dead, Mas must unravel a murder connected to secrets that he himself has fought to keep hidden.

Read about another mystery on the list.

Summer of the Big Bachi is among Alex Kenna's five top modern LA noir titles by women writers.

--Marshal Zeringue