The Puzzle Doctor
@puzzledoctor.bsky.social
Avid mystery fiction book blogger at classicmystery.blog - rediscoverer of Brian Flynn
Time to head north of the border for death by tractor in The Knapdale Murders by @djsellersauthor.bsky.social #Mystery #Scotland #Tractor #BookTwitter classicmystery.blog/2026/07/31/t...
The Knapdale Murders (2026) by Daniel Sellers
Knapdale is a remote town on the west coast of Scotland and has been plagued with… well, malicious mischief, although given that it includes (thankfully non-fatal) cat poisoning, that might be unde…
classicmystery.blog
Out today - the excellent The Woman Who Wasn't There by @whusseyauthor.bsky.social from @zaffrebooks.bsky.social . One of the cleverest mystery/thrillers that I've read for ages. #mystery #BookSky classicmystery.blog/2026/07/23/t...
The Woman Who Wasn’t There (2026) by Willaim Hussey
Marian Lane is the best selling author of a series of cosy mysteries, but she is determined to end the series, to the horror of her fans and, given the plans for the final book, her agent as well. …
classicmystery.blog
Get your pre-orders in now for one of the best books that I've read in ages - which, to be fair, I say about everything @mwcraven.bsky.social writes... #BookSky #TeamTilly #Mystery classicmystery.blog/2026/07/20/t...
The Killer’s Mark (2026) by M W Craven
Washington Poe is enjoying something of a quiet life. He has quite the National Crime Agency and set up as a private detective – well, a “Gumshoe For Hire”, according to the sign on the door – with…
classicmystery.blog
Get your pre-orders in now for one of the best books that I've read in ages - which, to be fair, I say about everything @MWCravenUK writes... #BookSky #TeamTilly #Mystery classicmystery.blog/2026/07/20/t...
The Killer’s Mark (2026) by M W Craven
Washington Poe is enjoying something of a quiet life. He has quite the National Crime Agency and set up as a private detective – well, a “Gumshoe For Hire”, according to the sign on the door – with…
classicmystery.blog
Out now from blog-favourite Catherine Ryan Howard, the excellent Buyer Beware #BookSky #Mystery #Thriller classicmystery.blog/2026/07/17/b...
Buyer Beware (2026) by Catherine Ryan Howard
1 Delaney Row is a house with a history. Stories abound locally about dark incidents in the house’s past, but when Ellie moves into the house with just a small suitcase and a small handful of cash,…
classicmystery.blog
New on the blog - classic crime on the ocean wave with Crime De Luxe by Elizabeth Gill, available from @deanstpress.bsky.social #ClassicCrime #BookSky classicmystery.blog/2026/07/15/c...
Crime De Luxe (1933) by Elizabeth Gill
Acclaimed artist and sometime sleuth Benvenuto Brown is heading to New York City aboard the luxury cruise liner Atlanta, his thoughts focused on his upcoming art exhibition. Not on murder, obviousl…
classicmystery.blog
Thank you for this lovely review, @puzzledoctor.bsky.social. Perhaps a handy write-up for older readers who think they might enjoy my humble efforts. It's nice to read a positive review that nonetheless includes the phrase "blindingly obvious".
The Puzzle Doctor@puzzledoctor.bsky.social · 4w agoOut now - Montgomery Bonbon is back in the latest mystery by @misterabk.bsky.social #BookSky #Mystery #NotJustForKids classicmystery.blog/2026/07/07/s...
Out now - Montgomery Bonbon is back in the latest mystery by @misterabk.bsky.social #BookSky #Mystery #NotJustForKids classicmystery.blog/2026/07/07/s...
Scandal On The Stage (2026) by Alasdair Beckett-King
The Godrick Theatre is one of the most impressive buildings in Widdlington, and it is about to put on The Thistlebridge Conundrum, a mystery play staged by the Widdlington Amateur Dramatic Group. D…
classicmystery.blog
New review - the first of twenty-seven Masters & Green mysteries by Douglas Clark, but it's not an auspicious start... #Mystery #BookReview #BookSky classicmystery.blog/2026/07/05/n...
Nobody’s Perfect (1969) by Douglas Clark
Adam Huth, the chairman of Barugt Pharmaceutical, is dead in this office, a victim of an overdose of drugs. Enter DCI Masters and Inspector Green of Scotland Yard, and it soon becomes apparent that…
classicmystery.blog
New review - shortlisted for Theakston's Old Peculiar Book Of The Year - it's Beautiful Ugly by @alicefeeney.com #BookSky #Mystery #Weird classicmystery.blog/2026/06/21/b...
Beautiful Ugly (2025) by Alice Feeney
It should have been the best day of his life. After years as a writer, Grady Green has finally hit the big time, his latest book being on the New York Times Bestseller list. But the night he receiv…
classicmystery.blog
If you like dark but gripping serial killer thrillers with strong leads, then you could do a lot worse than this from @samhollandbooks.bsky.social #Mystery #Thriller #BookTwitter classicmystery.blog/2026/06/17/t...
The Killer In Room Five (2026) by Sam Holland
Hollowpines, a psychiatric hospital with a long history and Joe Sinclair, an inmate, has a story to tell. In his sleep, he saw someone being brutally murdered in a park – a murder that actually too…
classicmystery.blog
Two lovely treats in my letterbox today, courtesy of @britishlibrary.bsky.social and @mwcraven.bsky.social. Much appreciated - now which to read first...
New review - Killer On The Moors by Priscilla Masters from @joffebooks.bsky.social - possibly the best 6.5p that I've ever spent #BookSky #mystery classicmystery.blog/2026/06/13/k...
Killer On The Moors aka Winding Up The Serpent (1995) by Priscilla Masters
It took quite some time before anyone realised that Marilyn Smith was dead. Not popular at her workplace, the local doctor’s surgery, nobody seemed to care when she didn’t show up. It was only the …
classicmystery.blog
My 1900th review - and while it's a good read, it's a shame my old buddy Captain Obvious, popped in to help celebrate... #BookSky #Mystery #CaptainObvious classicmystery.blog/2026/06/07/d...
Death In The Morning (1970) by Margaret Yorke
Dr Patrick Grant, an Oxford don, is visiting his sisterin the village of Winterswick, and his curious mind turns to the Ludlow family. Living in a grand country house at the end of the village, the…
classicmystery.blog
Out now from @headlinepg - Solitary Agents by @davegoodman.bsky.social #Mystery #Espionage #Spies #BookSky classicmystery.blog/2026/06/06/s...
Today on the blog - an obscure-ish Green Penguin, but probably not worth going out of your way to find a copy... #mystery #greenpenguin #BookSky classicmystery.blog/2026/06/03/d...
Dishonoured Bones (1954) by John Trench
On the island of Albany of the coast of Dorset, much digging is going on. The island thrives on their quarry, others intend to exploit the oil buried under the land and Martin Cotterill, archaeolog…
classicmystery.blog
Out now - the 150th (ish) title in the @britishlibrary.bsky.social Crime Classics range. The Unicorn Murders by Carter Dickson #BookSky #ImpossibleCrime #mystery classicmystery.blog/2026/05/30/t...
The Unicorn Murders (1935) by Carter Dickson
Flamande is a legendary French thief, determined to get his hands on the mysterious “unicorn”, being carried by the diplomat Sir George Ramsden on a flight from France to Britain. Gasquet, the head…
classicmystery.blog
Arrest the Bishop? by Winifred Peck #FreetillFriday on Kindle this week! 😊 The author came from the brilliant Knox family. Her brothers included a Punch editor, an Enigma codebreaker, and a mystery writer. Intro by Crime Fiction expert, Martin Edwards! Links below 👇
Out early next month - Murder By Design by Lee Goldberg #BookSky #Mystery classicmystery.blog/2026/05/11/m...
Murder By Design (2026) by Lee Goldberg
Caroline Crowley died when falling down some stairs in a mall. She tripped on a broken step, fell down and impaled herself on some rebar. An accident, but Edison Bixby is hired to establish if the …
classicmystery.blog
It’s not just established authors like @mwcraven.bsky.social or @michaeljecksauthor.bsky.social get targeted with spam emails… #Mystery #BookSky #AIslop classicmystery.blog/2026/05/10/a...
A Case Of Mistaken Identity Or Three…
Dear Agatha Wow. I’ve just read Hallowe’en Party and it blew me away. The intricate way it linked the twin themes of apple bobbing and child murder was so exciting that I wanted to get in touch wit…
classicmystery.blog
Book Four in the Holmes On The Range series by Steve Hockensmith - the fabulous The Crack aint The Lens #Mystery #SherlockHolmes #BookSky classicmystery.blog/2026/05/04/t...
The Crack In The Lens (2009) by Steve Hockensmith – a re-read
“All emotions, and that one particularly, were abhorrent to his cold, precise but admirably balanced mind… Grit in a sensitive instrument, or a crack in one of his own high-power lenses…
classicmystery.blog
'...one of the most enjoyable books that I’ve read in an age... ' Thank you @puzzledoctor.bsky.social for a glowing review of A THIEF'S REVENGE, out now in hardback and ebook. @canelobooks.bsky.social @belllomaxmoreton.bsky.social
The Puzzle Doctor@puzzledoctor.bsky.social · 3mo agoOut tomorrow from @canelobooks.bsky.social and @dougskelton.bsky.social - it's the end of the road for Jonas Flynt - but what is waiting for him there? classicmystery.blog/2026/04/29/a...
Out tomorrow from @canelobooks.bsky.social and @dougskelton.bsky.social - it's the end of the road for Jonas Flynt - but what is waiting for him there? classicmystery.blog/2026/04/29/a...
A Thief’s Revenge (2026) by Douglas Skelton
Six years ago, Jonas Flynt left London for the West Indies to rescue his stepmother, but the journey ended in tragedy. For the past six years, he has been captaining a ship, hunting down people who…
classicmystery.blog
Thinking about AI controversies in writing, and all the cautionary instructions to not use em-dashes, or semicolons, or short sentences, so that readers don’t think your book is AI-generated, and… well, first of all, get knotted with that rubbish.
Some classic crime on the blog today, from a writer better known for another character and by another name… #mystery #classiccrime #BookSky classicmystery.blog/2026/04/26/b...
Beware The Curves (1956) by A A Fair
Los Angeles, and private investigators Bertha Cool and Donald Lam have a new client. John Ansel is a writer – apparently – who wants them to track down someone who he once met six years ago in Pari…
classicmystery.blog
Out this Thursday - the outstanding A Deadly Episode by @anthonyhorowitz.com from @penguinrandomhouse.bsky.social - a masterclass in how to write a whodunnit and how to still fool someone who's read far too many mysteries like me... #BookSky #Mystery classicmystery.blog/2026/04/20/a...
A Deadly Episode (2026) by Anthony Horowitz
The Word Is Murder was the first true-crime book that acclaimed author Anthony Horowitz wrote, documenting the investigation by Daniel Hawthorne into the murder of a woman who had organised her own…
classicmystery.blog
This week's forgotten book is one of Brian Flynn's Anthony Bathurst mysteries, reprinted by Dean Street Press. A blackmailer, the accused killer, a hanging judge, and a jaw-dropping plot twist. #FFB 📚⚡️ 📚💙 happinessisabook.com/fridays-forg...
Friday’s Forgotten Book: The Padded Door by Brian Flynn
Brian Flynn (1885-1958) is another of those forgotten authors from the first part of the 20th century whose work has been resurrected after diligent effort on the part of a few people. It doesn’t h…
happinessisabook.com
Death Walks by the River (1959) by Vicars Bell crossexaminingcrime.com/2026/04/12/d... #BookSky from my blogging buddy Kate
Death Walks by the River (1959) by Vicars Bell
ne of Bell’s books for my Patreon supporters, Death and the Night Watches (1955). Vicars Bell (1904-1988) is not a pseudonym as I had initially assumed, and Vicars had career in teaching alongside …
crossexaminingcrime.com
Out now - the latest historical epic from friend of the blog and Morris dancer extraordinaire @michaeljecksauthor.bsky.social @boldwoodbooks.bsky.social #BookSky #Historical #HundredYearsWar classicmystery.blog/2026/04/12/t...
Treaty Of Blood (2026) by Michael Jecks
Berenger Fripper thought that returning to England and taking holy orders would be the peace that he needed after his experiences on the battlefields of France, but realising that such peace is now…
classicmystery.blog
New review of an old book - The Dead Can Tell by Helen Reilly #BookSky #Mystery classicmystery.blog/2026/04/09/t...
The Dead Can Tell (1940) by Helen Reilly
Cristie Lansing had two problems. Firstly, she couldn’t spell her forename, but her main problem was the fact that she had been madly in love with Steven Hazard for the best part of her adult life …
classicmystery.blog