Recs if you like The Maltese Falcon...
1001 Books to Read Before You Die
Based on the list/book published in 2006, general editor Peter Boxall.
The Art of Engaged Reading: Fiction Companion
You've built up your skills as an engaged reader - now it's time to start reaping the benefits! Every book on this list was chosen because it's genuinely enjoyable AND hiding something underneath the surface worth finding. The goal isn't to find the "right" answer, but to trust your own instincts as a reader and see where that takes you. Start in your favorite genre - it makes close reading feel like a game, not homework. Happy Reading Boundlings!!
TIME’s 100 Best Mystery and Thriller Books
TIME’s list of “the most gripping, twist-filled, satisfying, and influential mystery and thriller books” running all the way back to the 1800s
Public Domain Day 2026 (USA)
A list of written works entering the Public Domain in the United States on January 1st, 2026! Go find a copy and get thee reading!
Standard Ebooks Offerings!
I'm not affiliated with them in any way, but I talk about Standard Ebooks a TON. I wanted to make a list of some of the most popular offerings they have available to read. Their full library of over 1300 books is 100% FREE and from the US Public Domain. From Kobo to Kindle, they have a format that'll work for however you want to read, even PDFs! Save a few bucks (or library holds) here: https://standardebooks.org/
Books set in the Bay Area
Fiction, memoirs, and nonfiction set in (or at least partially!) the San Francisco Bay Area.
Iconic Hardboiled Detective Fiction/Noir
A list featuring classic hardboiled detective capers—largely cynical novels (and a few story collections) hailing primarily from the 20’s-50’s, populated by quick thinking and hard drinking detectives, femme fatales, gangsters, murders, and periodic guns fights; where coffee is served late at night, and there is almost always an abundance of cigarette smoke…
Books that Feel Like a Good Heist Movie
recently gotten really obsessed with heists/heist movies (if anyone can find anything that scratches the same itch “The Sting” does I would be forever grateful) and I’m trying to collect books with similar feels/themes. very very open to suggestions.
California Dreamin'
I know there are already several lists with a California theme, but I am hoping this acts as a syllabus of sorts for books that deal with the core myth, history, violence, dream, and contradiction of California. Suggestions are welcome!
classic mysteries to read on a stormy night
we have crime! we have thunderstorms! we have quicksand! we have romance sub plots! we have old timey investigators! we have some sexism and racism that definitely needs to be addressed by modern audiences…
Overdue Podcast readalong
Keeping up with the 700+ books featured on Overdue since 2013
How to Read Literature Like a Professor: List
The Primary Works section of the Reading List of Thomas C. Foster's How to Read Literature Like a Professor
Backlisted
Books that were featured on an episode of Backlisted.
Haycraft-Queen Cornerstones
Called "the definitive library of mystery fiction". Howard Haycraft originally published the list in 1941 in Murder for Pleasure. It was updated and broadened by Ellery Queen. This is the final revision, including books from 1748 to 1952.
These books are historically significant because of their influence on the development of crime fiction, however books from these times often contain bigoted and otherwise offensive content.
I haven't read them all, or even a high percentage. I'm trying to keep track of how many on this list I read.
I could only find a Spanish language version of A Case to Answer by Edgar Lustgarten.
mysteries and detectives, nancy drew approved
Tiny Bookshop books
A list of books you can recommend to customers in the game "Tiny Bookshop". I know there are other lists dedicated to this, but my intent here is to keep this list updated as much as I can (List created on September 2026, still updating)
