Jon St. Denis

Jon St. Denis (pseudonym for J. Sydney Jones) is a former journalist in Europe, filing stories from Austria, Italy, France, Greece, and Ireland. Formerly a college professor in California, St. Denis writes compelling historical mysteries with thriller and international espionage elements.

St. Denis's new novel is Killer Art.

Recently I asked the author about what he was reading. St. Denis's reply:

I am spending the summer months in Hong Kong as usual and while here I always try to fill in some of my many blank spots in Chinese history and culture. This summer I am finally digging into a book I have long been looking forward to reading, Imperial Twilight: The Opium War and the End of China’s Last Golden Age, by Stephen R. Platt.

This is a great read, filled with a legion of characters on the British, American, and Chinese sides of what became a deciding event in the creation of modern China.

At the time, the end of the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, China was the fourth-largest empire in world history, a respected and wealthy land under the Qing (the ‘Q’ is pronounced like ‘ch’) dynasty. However, by the early nineteenth century, that Empire was slowly in decline, ultimately becoming the final Chinese dynasty.

Contact with the West hastened that decline, which was capped off by the Opium Wars with the British Empire between 1839 and 1842, in which the British Empire shamefully forced the sale of the drug, opium, on China. Defeat in this war led to China’s century of shame and humiliation that ultimately helped lead, in turn, to the rise of the Chinese Communist Party and the firm conviction by China and the Chinese that they would never be humiliated like that again.

And I promise that Platt’s book is nowhere as dry as this brief description.

But it’s not all historical reading for me. I have come late to the work of John Grisham. Better late than never. Currently reading The Chamber. A fine writer, but got to admit a bit of a rankle. Why the hell can’t these lawyer chaps stay in their own lane? They are already making a good living with the law. Now they come to cut into the literary pie as well?

But I forgive him.

Visit Jon St. Denis's website.

The Page 69 Test: Killer Art.

--Marshal Zeringue

Rachel Peterson

Rachel Peterson graduated from Miami University of Ohio with a degree in English and creative writing. Born and raised in Ohio, she started her career in advertising before spending nearly a decade in New York City as a marketing executive for technology companies. An avid traveler, Peterson now splits her time between Manhattan and the Midwest, where she lives with her husband, Ken; their dog, Olive; and horse, Hope.

Her new novel is Killing Sadie.

Recently I asked Peterson about what she was reading. The author's reply:

I love to vary my reading between commercial and literary fiction, as well as a healthy dose of historical nonfiction. My only rule as a thriller author is that I avoid reading the genre while in the middle of writing one! During writing breaks, I jump right into the massive thriller stack that has no doubt been accumulating. A few of my latest reads (and yes, these brilliant non-thrillers were read while working on a new manuscript … more on that soon!) include:

Kin by Tayari Jones: This story truly swept me away, and the deep female friendship at the heart of it felt as real and urgent today as it did within the mid-century setting of the novel. I love being transported by historical fiction, and this novel delivered in spades! I finished it when I was halfway through a flight from New York and I spent the last half of the flight just staring out the window thinking about it. It’s such a joy when a book can offer that kind of emotional investment.

Into the Blue by Emma Brodie: Okay, this one qualifies as the book I have been aggressively telling every single one of my friends to read! I haven’t picked up a romance book in a long time, although I love the genre, and this was a fabulous and gut-wrenching reentry within such a vast world! Seriously, I woke up early at 5am to finish it, sneaking downstairs to avoid waking my husband and dog. These are the kinds of books I remember five years later!

The Gales of November: The Untold Story of the Edmund Fitzgerald by John U. Bacon: As a Midwesterner who grew up on the shores of the Great Lakes, the wreck of the Edmund Fitzerald was something I was always vaguely aware of, but honestly, I spent my entire childhood believing it happened centuries ago (nope! 1975). I’m a serious history nerd, and within that is a very specific, obscure interest in maritime disasters that my friends and family lovingly tolerate. This book is an absolutely fascinating account of the wreck itself and so many other details about the dangers and history of shipping on the Great Lakes.

The Stronghold by Dino Buzzati: This one is next up on my list! My brother-in-law and I share similar taste in books, particularly those that contain magical realism. It really has become a cornerstone of our relationship, which I just love. After I lent him You Dreamed of Empires by Àlvaro Enrigue, he came back to me with The Stronghold. Who knows what our next bookish volley will look like, but these selections always surprise me in the best possible way!

Visit Rachel Peterson's website.

My Book, The Movie: Killing Sadie.

--Marshal Zeringue

Arvind Ethan David

Arvind Ethan David has written seven graphic novels, including most recently his adaptation of Raymond Chandler’s Trouble Is My Business and the Bram Stoker Award–nominated Darkness Visible with Mike Carey. David has also written multiple hit audio originals, including the science fiction anthology series Earworms, The Crimes of Dorian Gray, and the nonfiction audiobook Douglas Adams: The Ends of the Earth.

In theatre, David’s plays include The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy and Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency, both based on the novels by Douglas Adams, and he received an Olivier nomination for his family musical The Boy With Wings, based on Lenny Henry’s children’s book. He also contributed additional material for David Baddiel and Erran Baron Cohen’s musical The Infidel and was a lead producer of the Grammy and Tony Award–winning Broadway musical Jagged Little Pill.

David has written and produced extensively in television, including Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency for Netflix, Anansi Boys for Amazon, and the Asian Academy Award winner The Garden of Evening Mists for HBO.

The Great Game is his debut prose novel.

Recently I asked the author about what he was reading. David's reply:

I tend to read three or four things at once, a mix of fiction and non-fiction, and consume some as audiobooks and others as print.

At the moment, like everybody else, I’m reading The Odyssey, but I’m simultaneously inhaling two different translations. I’m reading the print edition of Emily Wilson’s version whilst listening to Daniel Mendelsohn’s. The combination is so instructive. Wilson’s iambic pentameter is urgent, terse, resonant, modern, powerful, and really drives the story forward. Mendelsohn’s more prosaic rendition lacks music (unusually for him, as he is a usually graceful writer), but he makes up for it with enormous precision and detail that gives you the full context and meaning of every line. The fact that I’m reading both means it’s somewhat slow going, and I may not get to the film for another week or two!

I’m also reading the nonfiction book The Lost Girls of Autism, a roundup of all the research that is largely now showing us that we have massively underestimated undiagnosed and untreated girls and women with autism for many decades. It’s sobering and revealing on how heuristic bias (and a little sexism) can retard scientific research, urgent, and educational on what autism even is and more generally about how our brains work, and I’m learning more about my own neurotypical (as far as I know) brain by reading it.

Finally, just today I finished Percival Everett’s James, his bravura retelling of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn from the perspective of Jim/James, the enslaved man and Huck’s friend and companion. It was a book I’ve been wanting to read since it came out, but I was warned there were some thematic and formal overlaps with The Great Game, so, fearing the anxiety of influence, I couldn’t even look at it until my book was done and published. It was totally worth the wait: an extraordinarily audacious, funny, heartbreaking, revealing, insightful, and clever book.

Visit Arvind Ethan David's website.

Q&A with Arvind Ethan David.

--Marshal Zeringue

Allison Montclair / Alan Gordon

Allison Montclair (AKA Alan Gordon) is the author of the Sparks and Bainbridge mysteries, beginning with The Right Sort of Man, the American Library Association Reading List Council's Best Mystery of 2019. Under her real name, she has written more mystery novels and a damn good werewolf book, as well as short stories in many genres in magazines and anthologies. She is also an award-winning librettist and lyricist with several musicals to her credit that have been performed or workshopped across the USA. She currently lives in New York City where she also practiced as a criminal defense attorney.

Montclair's latest novel is Fire Must Burn.

Recently I asked the author about what he was reading. Gordon's reply:

I had the honor and privilege of conducting the Guest of Honor interview at the recent Malice Domestic Conference with Jim Huang, who has been involved in just about every aspect of the mystery world as a publisher, reviewer, bookstore owner, and conference organizer. I had used to prepare two of the compilations he had put together, drawing upon the collected knowledge of America's mystery bookstore owners, and am now actually going through them in their entirety.

100 Favorite Mysteries of the Century is a fantastically useful list of the classics, starting with Conan Doyle's The Hound of the Baskervilles and finishing with Reginald Hill's On Beulah Height. Like all lists, it reminds me of how much I still need to read in my chosen genre. (I recently checked off Block's When the Sacred Ginmill Closes. Beautifully written and evocative of the time and place, troublesome in some of its attitudes.) They Died In Vain is a fun follow-up of mysteries that the booksellers consider unjustly overlooked, or have fallen by the wayside with the passage of time. Between them, I have my work cut out for me -- but that's what they're for.

Visit Alan Gordon's website.

The Page 69 Test: An Excellent Thing in a Woman.

Q&A with Allison Montclair.

My Book, The Movie: An Excellent Thing in a Woman.

The Page 69 Test: Fire Must Burn.

--Marshal Zeringue

Rosanne Limoncelli

Rosanne Limoncelli is a writer and filmmaker living in Brooklyn. . Her short fiction has appeared in Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine, Suspense Magazine, and Noir Nation, and her short films have been screened in festivals around the world. Limoncelli also writes plays, screenplays, poetry, games, mysteries, and science fiction and has taught writing and filmmaking for more than three decades at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts.

Her new novel is Death at King's Cross: A Four Queens of Crime Mystery.

Recently I asked the author about what she was reading. Limoncelli's reply:

When I’m writing a new project, I usually keep my reading to books that will inspire me or keep me in the mood for what I am writing. But I will also take a break and read something completely different. Here are four books I recently read.

The Anatomy of Exile by Zeeva Bukai is a gorgeously written book about a young man and woman from two very different immigrant families growing up in Brooklyn in the 1970’s. It’s told from the mother’s point of view and focuses on her struggle to keep her family together. The beauty of this book is in the writing and the way that the mother’s understanding of the world grows through the love she has for her daughter as she learns what is important in life.

The Dutch House (2019) by Ann Patchett was a book I’d been wanting to read for a while and it pulled me in quickly. The story is about a family that grows up in a strange mansion, and the family dynamics of the brother and sister, their relationship with their father and the world around them, told from the point of view of the brother. The story spans five decades and the way Patchett tells the story through time, and through the experiences of the main characters is fascinating, funny, and heartbreaking all at once. I read it and then listened to the amazing Tom Hanks audio book, both brilliant experiences.

Unfinished Portrait by Agatha Christie writing as Mary Westmacott. This fascinating tale of a woman’s life that is so close to Agatha Christie’s own life that it must be read by any Christie fans who love her autobiography. I’d read all the Christie novels, except the Westmacott books, but once I read this one, immediately scarfed up the rest of them. Christie’s writing is at its best in these non-mysteries.

In keeping with my current need for an Agatha Christie mood, I recently reread The Clocks from 1963. Christie is best known for her murder mysteries, and this is a Hercule Poirot gem. Many of Christie's books written during and after WWII are at least part spy thriller and this one is one of the best. A typist is sent to private home for a job, is instructed to let herself in, but instead of the client she was supposed to meet, she finds a dead body and is then suspected of the crime. The Cold War details, the twisty and satisfying clues, and Hercule Poirot’s inimitable self, make this a fun read.

Visit Rosanne Limoncelli's website.

My Book, The Movie: The Four Queens of Crime.

The Page 69 Test: The Four Queens of Crime.

Q&A with Rosanne Limoncelli.

--Marshal Zeringue

Linda Kass

Linda Kass began her career as a magazine journalist and correspondent for regional and national publications. Along with her forthcoming novel, World News from Waverley High (September 2026), she is the author of three previous works of historical fiction: Tasa’s Song (2016), A Ritchie Boy (2020), and Bessie (2023). A longtime civic leader, she is the founder and owner of Gramercy Books, an independent bookstore in Central Ohio. Kass lives in Columbus with her husband, Frank; they have four children, six grandchildren, and a labradoodle named Wally.

Recently I asked the author about what she was reading. Kass's reply:

A Pair of Aces is one of those rare novels that is co-authored, and seamlessly so. Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray have come together for the third time (The Personal Librarian and The First Ladies) to write this tale of two trailblazing women on opposite sides of the law—a prosecutor and a madam—who team up to bring down notorious mob boss Lucky Luciano in 1930s New York. Eunice Carter is the assistant district attorney for the City of New York and Manhattan’s first Black female prosecutor. Polly Adler, a Russian Jewish immigrant, has worked long and hard to build up her high- class brothel business, her client list filled with well-known names. As Lucky infiltrates the prostitution network and puts Polly’s girls in danger, an unlikely alliance develops between two women that launches the most sensational trial New York has ever seen. While these women are both historic figures and Eunice was part of the team to bring down Luciano, the alliance at the heart of A Pair of Aces was imagined. I love reimagining true history in fiction, something I’ve done in my work.

While I write historical fiction, I read broadly. I admire how tightly Michael Connelly writes his crime novels, and how darn prolific he is. I believe I first watched all seven seasons of Bosch before I read my first Connelly book. The Proving Ground was the recent selection of my personal book club and I happily dug in. The narrator in this Lincoln Lawyer series explains the “proving ground” is that sacred space directly in front of the jury where attorneys must prove their case, and it is exactly where Mickey Haller intimately connects with his jurors. (Mickey conducts most of his legal business from the backseat of his chauffeur-driven Lincoln, whether it’s a Town Car or Navigator, and that’s why he’s called the Lincoln Lawyer.) In this timely and riveting legal thriller, Haller’s client is a grieving mother suing a tech giant over her daughter's murder, allegedly incited by an unregulated AI chatbot, a topic that could be in today’s headlines with its focus on corporate negligence, adolescent loneliness, and AI ethics. Haller’s argument contends the AI company’s chatbot told a teenage boy that it was okay for him to kill his ex-girlfriend for her disloyalty. The story is meticulously researched and compulsively readable, carrying Connelly’s blend of gritty investigation, intense courtroom cross-examinations, and sharp legal tactics.

Whistler by Ann Patchett begins with a surprise encounter. Daphne is strolling with her husband Jonathan at the Metropolitan Museum only to run into the stepfather she hasn’t seen for forty years, a book editor named Eddie Triplett. The reader soon finds out that Daphne and Eddie were nearly killed in a car accident when Daphne was nine. This is a story of love, loss, memory, family, and kindness. As with several Patchett tales, our view of the present is more deeply considered by shining a luminous light on the past. And we also experience intense human connection and all that is good and right, even despite the childhood muddle that came long before. Some of the elements of the story may be inspired by her life, given that Ann, like Daphne, had three fathers and a childhood that was itinerant.

Visit Linda Kass's website.

Writers Read: Linda Kass (June 2026).

--Marshal Zeringue

Elizabeth H. Winthrop

Elizabeth Hartley Winthrop was born and raised in New York City. She earned her B.A. from Harvard University and her M.F.A. in fiction from the UC Irvine, where she was the recipient of the Schaeffer Writing Fellowship. She is the author of the novels Fireworks, December, The Why of Things, and The Mercy Seat. She lives in Massachusetts with her husband and daughter and is Associate Professor of English/Creative Writing at Endicott College.

Winthrop's new novel is Conviction.

Recently I asked the author about what she was reading. Her reply:

I always have two books going at one, one of which I read, and one of which I listen to while running or driving. Right now I am listening to John of John, by Douglas Stuart, although I plan to get a hard copy as soon as can; it is one of those books that I know I will come back to over and over again in an attempt to savor and understand the artistry and architecture. If I were reading it in hardcover, I can imagine making all sorts of notes in the margins, marking gorgeous or strikingly original turns of phrase, noting the lengthy passages of dialogue Stuart is able to sustain, tracing the trajectories of characters and relationships. The novel is a quiet, intimate, and ultimately stunning study of personality and place, driven propulsively forward by the inner conflict of its characters. I haven’t been this blown away by a book in some time.

At the same time, I am reading The Singer’s Gun, by Emily St. John Mandel. I came to Mandel’s work by way of her 2014 novel Station Eleven, which I deeply admire and have taught several times at the college where I teach. What I love most about Mandel’s writing is the wild imagination and the confidence it exudes. Mandel is not tentative; what she says, goes. She is willing to take risks, to bounce around in time, to make connections between characters (and books) that might, in another writer’s hands, seem far-fetched, but which Mandel can pull off perfectly. Unlike Stuart, Mandel’s books are driven by mystery and action (though her characters are also fully realized!)- but mystery that is subtle enough to require the reader’s participation in unravelling, which this reader finds deeply satisfying.

Visit Elizabeth H. Winthrop's website.

My Book, The Movie: Conviction.

--Marshal Zeringue

Kathleen Barber

Kathleen Barber is the author of Truth Be Told, which was adapted by Reese Witherspoon's Hello Sunshine as a series on AppleTV+, Follow Me, and Both Things Are True. A certified book coach and former attorney, she lives in Washington, DC, with her family.

Amayah Shaienne is a lifestyle content creator and student at the University of Alabama who quickly grew a following during Bama Rush. To date, she has garnered a following of nearly 200K across TikTok and Instagram and has her audience obsessed with all parts of her college life. She is excited to continue bringing her loyal followers along as she attends key college moments such as sorority rush, football games, and more.

Barber and Shaienne's new novel is Sisterhood Above All.

Recently I asked Barber about what she was reading. The author's reply:

I am anxiously awaiting my copy of two books I cannot wait to read:

You First by Caroline Kepnes, which is a prequel to You, one of my favorite books of all-time. Joe Goldberg is my favorite fictional psychopath and I love Caroline’s sharp writing style, so I’m eager to read this one!

Man of My Dreams by Olivia Worley, which is about a romance writer who encounters her fictional hero … but things go dark. I recently read Olivia’s So Happy Together—about a woman who will do anything to secure the man she thinks is perfect for her—in one sitting, and it was so delightfully unhinged that I can’t wait for Man of My Dreams.

Additionally, I recently finished Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke, which was as good as everyone says it is—I’m eagerly awaiting my book club meeting about it to chat it out with my friends!

Visit Kathleen Barber's website.

The Page 69 Test: Follow Me.

Writers Read: Kathleen Barber (March 2020).

12 Yoga Questions with Kathleen Barber.

The Page 69 Test: Both Things Are True.

My Book, The Movie: Both Things Are True.

Q&A with Kathleen Barber.

Writers Read: Kathleen Barber (September 2025).

My Book, The Movie: Sisterhood Above All.

The Page 69 Test: Sisterhood Above All.

--Marshal Zeringue

Jackie McMahon

Jackie McMahon writes murder mysteries with history, twists, and perhaps a romance (or two). She currently resides in Florida with her two cats, and in her free time, she enjoys reading, traveling, and sharing obscure historical facts she has recently learned.

McMahon's new novel is The Cloak and Dagger Club, the first in a new historical mystery series.

Recently I asked the author about what she was reading. McMahon's reply:

I recently read An Ordinary Sort of Evil by Kelley Armstrong, the latest installment in the Rip Through Time mystery series. This series follows Mallory Atkinson, a modern-day homicide detective, who finds herself transported back in time to Victorian-era Edinburgh. In the body of a housemaid, she helps her employer, medical examiner Dr. Duncan Gray, solve murders. Mallory’s evolution in the series has been interesting as she finds her footing in the 1800s. What I particularly love about these books is the vibrant cast of side characters. (Major Hugh and Isla fan here!) The series has two very lovable, will-they-won't-they romances at its heart as well.

One of my favorite reads of the year so far was a NetGalley ARC, The Oxford Guide to Scandal and Lies by Kate Westbury. It is the first in a new historical mystery series set at 1950s Oxford University. I love a good romantically involved sleuthing duo (as anyone who has read my book can probably tell), and I'm eager to see more of the slow-burn between students-turned-spying-partners Ginevra and Sidney. This book follows Gin and Sidney when they're recruited by MI5 to investigate a murder at Oxford and a potential connection to a Soviet spy. I was left guessing until the very end and am eager to see what will happen in the second installment!

Finally, I have to shout out Death Was Not on the Guest List by Jenni L. Walsh. This is a stand-alone historical mystery set in Jazz Age Chicago. I instantly knew I wanted to read this when I discovered it was about Ginevra King and Edith Cummings, two real-life socialites who allegedly inspired the characters of Daisy Buchanan and Jordan Baker, respectively, in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby. I loved Gatsby in high school, but had no idea it was partially inspired by two real women. Combine that with a closed circle Christie-style mystery, and I was hooked.

Visit Jackie McMahon's website.

--Marshal Zeringue

Rachel León

Rachel León is a writer, editor, and social worker, who has worked in child welfare for nearly two decades. She serves as Managing Director for Chicago Review of Books, and is the author of the novel, How We See the Gray.

Recently I asked the author about what she was reading. León's reply:

I’m always reading multiple books, often in different genres. Right now, my fiction pick is Yasmin Zaher’s novel, The Coin, about a young Palestinian woman living in New York who gets involved in a scheme selling Birkin bags. Everyone in my writing group is working on novels, and we realized a while back that it would be more helpful to read each other’s entire manuscripts rather than just a chapter or two here and there. But novel writing takes a long time, so we began the practice of reading published novels together and discussing them. We don't exactly have a set reason for picking the books, though typically it’s something one of us has wanted to read. The Coin was my suggestion, as it had been recommended in a writing class I took a year or so ago.

My nonfiction book right now is Guest Privileges: Queer Lives and Finding Home in the Middle East by Gaar Adams, which recently won a Lambda Literary Award. This book was actually a gift from the author at an event I did for How We See the Gray. Gaar Adams lives in London, but was in the States to receive his award, and is from Wisconsin, and stopped in Madison where I was doing a reading. We had a lovely conversation after the event, and he gifted me the book. I’m not far, but let’s just say it’s clear why it won an award, which it certainly deserves.

Visit Rachel León's website.

Q&A with Rachel León.

--Marshal Zeringue