Announcing the May Tag

[Anita]

I was surprised at the level of enthusiasm for the tag this month because I thought it had stiff competition.

The tag for next month is:

crime

Please share your reading plans and recommendations below.

Remember, for the regular monthly reads, the book can be shelved as "crime" on Goodreads, or be a book that is not yet shelved that way but you feel should be.

One way to find books to read for this tag is to please visit:

https://www.goodreads.com/shelf/show/...

We encourage people to link to additional lists below if they find them.

Happy Reading!!!

[Jen]

Not too surprised at this one though I was on the fence on if family might beat it. I'm good with this tag, I have a few on my TBR that will fit. I'll probably start with my Trim book since Sue picked a number that does fit the tag, so I'll be kicking it off with Only the Innocent by Rachel Abbott

[Karin]

Please note that there is a large range of books with this tag! Catch Me If You Can: The True Story of a Real Fake has been shelved this 250 times and is not violent, plus it's about the man who later helped make it much more difficult to do things such as cheque fraud. He was a con artist who did a lot more than just cheque fraud.

[Lyn]

I was hoping for family, but crime works!

[Robin P]

I think I mentioned during the voting period that there are MANY book titles starting with Murder, The Mystery of, or The Case of, that almost certainly have the tag of Crime.

And yes, there are books with themes of financial shenanigans, heists, and even pirates that could work, in case you're not a fan of typical mysteries.

[Heather Reads Books]

Ehhhh I was also kind of hoping for family, but crime has a lot of good titles. I am thinking of trying to read Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI because I like David Grann and it would fit the other theme that seems to be emerging for May, which is to read books I already own.

And of course, the Star Wars May the Fourth reading post is now live! Check it out in Footnotes if you're interested. ;)

[Theresa]

YIPPEE! My favorite genre of all. I have no shortage of options and in fact will have a great deal of trouble narrowing things down.

I am also signing on to May the Fourth, Heather.

I also want to add as others have said - Crime isn't just detective stories, whodunits, cozies. Pretty much any book that has a crime in it, even if that crime is in the background, will have tags for CRIME. In every genre too, even literary fiction.

[Theresa]

Oh and a suggestion to check out the Edgar Awards website and it's 2 categories of nominations for non-fiction. You will find a lot of interesting books - lately many about Edgar Alan Poe. A few years ago several Hitchcock and his films books were nominated.

[Booknblues]

I was leaning toward family, but I read plenty of mysteries, so it will be no problem finding something to read.

I will try to do what I've done so far this year and read a variety of different types of books about crime.

[Joanne]

Most of the Bruno, Chief of Police- are marked crime, and they are a lot of fun. A little romance, some mystery and of course that sweetheart Bruno!

[Jen K]

I will be reading 2 Edgar nominees to start the month, Crook Manifesto and The Golden Gate.

Some of my favorite cozies are marked Crime, Mrs Pollifax and Dr Siri Paiboun, so I intend to catch up with them as well.

[LibraryCin]

I've got tons for this!

[Booknblues]

Jen K wrote: "I will be reading 2 Edgar nominees to start the month, Crook Manifesto and The Golden Gate.

Some of my favorite cozies are marked Crime, Mrs Pollifax and Dr Siri Pa..."

I might join you on one of those. I'm trying to finish my Edgars this month, but not sure if I will manage.

[Theresa]

Booknblues wrote: "Jen K wrote: "I will be reading 2 Edgar nominees to start the month, Crook Manifesto and The Golden Gate.

Some of my favorite cozies are marked Crime, Mrs Pollifax ..."

I have The Golden Gate sitting here too.

[Anita]

Theresa wrote: "Oh and a suggestion to check out the Edgar Awards website and it's 2 categories of nominations for non-fiction. You will find a lot of interesting books - lately many about Edgar Alan Poe. A few ye..."

I was also leaning toward family (but I don't get a vote), and I checked out the Edgar awards and found some reads I'm excited about that were readily available at the library.

[Amy]

The golden gate is crime? I might read that.

[Jen K]

Yes! Buddy read for The Golden Gate.

[Booknblues]

Anita wrote: "Theresa wrote: "Oh and a suggestion to check out the Edgar Awards website and it's 2 categories of nominations for non-fiction. You will find a lot of interesting books - lately many about Edgar Al..."

Which ones were you interested in? The group that has been reading the Edgars has read quite a few.

[Amy]

Done! That will be really fun!

[Anita]

Booknblues wrote: "Anita wrote: "Theresa wrote: "Oh and a suggestion to check out the Edgar Awards website and it's 2 categories of nominations for non-fiction. You will find a lot of interesting books - lately many ..."

Was thinking about Tell Me Everything by Erika Krouse - - it's one of the Best Fact Crime winners. It's a combination of memoir and true crime - - both genres I like a lot.

Another book on my radar (and a much earlier Edgar winner) is Homicide by David Simon. I just watched The Wire this year, and being from Baltimore, it's definitely of interest.

Do you have any fiction recommendations I should be considering?

[Booknblues]

Anita wrote: "Do you have any fiction recommendations I should be considering?..."

I enjoyed Harlem Shuffle much more than I was expecting to and you might appreciate it.

I also just read The Madwomen of Paris which was fascinating.

You might like The Gardens of the Dead as it is quite cerebral. It is the second of the series but really can be viewed as a stand alone.

For nonfiction, I'm considering The Fishermen and the Dragon: Fear, Greed, and a Fight for Justice on the Gulf Coast or A Fever in the Heartland: The Ku Klux Klan's Plot to Take Over America, and the Woman Who Stopped Them. I don't think either of those has appeal to you, but they might.

If you liked The Wire, you might consider watching Treme. It is set in New Orleans. I liked it better and loved the music. There is one character who is a chef and many big named chefs make guest appearances. But of course, I'm not from either Baltimore or New Orleans.

[Anita]

Thank you for all the great selections! I am actually in the middle of Fever in the Heartland now. I didn’t even think about it fitting the tag. I will check out those other ideas. I feel I may own one of them already.

[Theresa]

One of the nice things about the Edgars in recent years is that many books are not Crime as it is in a typical mystery, whodunit, cozy, thriller, or espionage novel. Take 2023 Edgar winner Clark and Division which is more historical fiction about Chicago and the relocation of Japanese Americans and immigrants from the internment camps. Yes, there's a crime but its background, a framework to tell a story of a specific time. I highly recommend it.

Of those I've read for the Edgars this year, All the Sinners Bleed is by far the best - brilliant in fact - but it's not for those who don't like detective stories and it has a lot of violence. Ditto on the author's Razorblade Tears. But for those who like crime fiction for the crime, read them both.

I still want to read from this year's nominees The Last Russian Doll - I'm not sure how purely crime fiction it is. Hopefully I'll find time in May to read it and find out.

[NancyJ]

I was hoping for family, but I know a couple of them have crime tags too. This is the first time in a while though when I don’t have books for every letter for BWF. Thank goodness for my teammates who do!
I don’t want to load up on series books or procedural, so I’m looking for more standalones and great novels. Also thank you to Diana for finding me some less obvious choices for books with the crime tag for me. She added 100 books to the listopia too! Check it out

https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/2...

[NancyJ]

Suggestions: (I think they all work for bwf)

The Connellys of County Down
The River We Remember
The Widows of Malabar Hill
Maisie Dobbs
The Life We Bury
Nothing More Dangerous (southern)
Cat O' Nine Tales: And Other Stories -( short stories )
In the Woods
Big Lies in a Small Town

May possibilities:
The Art Thief: A True Story of Love, Crime, and a Dangerous Obsession
Saving Emma or others by Esken
North Woods
The Housemaid or others by McFadden
The Mistress of Bhatia House
A Man
The Last Days of Night
The Last House on the Street
The Nature of Fragile Things
Children of Time (for space, sci-fi)
Long Bright River
All the Ugly and Wonderful Things or The Reckless Oath We Made
Others
An Elderly Lady Is Up to No Good
Death at La Fenice
Something by Coben, or Robb/roberts

I’ve had these on my tbr a long time, but I’m not sure:
Empire of Pain: The Secret History of the Sackler Dynasty
The Name of the Rose

Has anyone read these yet?
The Maiden - women’s prize list
Murder Your Employer: The McMasters Guide to Homicide
Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone

[Robin P]

NancyJ wrote: "Suggestions: (I think they all work for bwf)
Has anyone read these yet?
The Maiden - women’s prize list
Murder Your Employer: The McMasters Guide to Homicide
Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone


Maisie Dobbs and Everyone on This Train Is a Suspect are amusing, making fun of the genre while having an actual mystery.

[Holly R W]

Nancy, I can endorse that Long Bright River is a good book. I think you'll like it.

I may be reading Knife: Meditations After an Attempted Murder by Salman Rushdie. Originally, I wasn't sure about this tag, but it's very eclectic.

[Sallys]

I'm going to read The Moonstone. I've been having trouble picking it up but now I have an incentive.

[NancyJ]

Holly R W wrote: "Nancy, I can endorse that Long Bright River is a good book. I think you'll like it.

I may be reading Knife: Meditations After an Attempted Murder by Salman Rushdie..."

Oh yes! I just saw him talk about it on 60 minutes. They did a really powerful thing in the interview. He told us how long the attack went on, and they sat there in silence for the exact amount of time. I think it was only 27 seconds, but it felt like a very very long time, as I was imagining it happening. I knew he was attacked but I somehow didn’t know that it took place at the Chautauqua Institute (south of where I live). It gave me chills. I’ve been a speaker there, and I don’t think I ever noticed security. It’s in a rambling rural area and I can’t imagine how long it took to get to a hospital.

[annapi]

For those who haven't yet read it, and those hoping family would be the tag, Born a Crime: Stories From a South African Childhood would be a good fit too.

[NancyJ]

I haven’t read anything by Harlan Coben. Does anyone recommend a good book to start with for me?