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IF YOU COULD READ MY MIND: Two of the novels reviewed here are brilliant examples of where sci-fi today is taking us; and there are two detective mysteries that similarly show the broad range of the genre

If You Could Read My Mind: Today we review three brilliantly rendered mysteries, each deserving of our attention for different reasons. And the fourth novel is a hilarious but pithy satire set in medieval times—but all about today.

IF YOU COULD READ MY MIND: The four novels today include fine examples of historical fiction, and of how crime fiction today can blend both actual cases in history, and/or humor to great effect. Enjoy!

If You Could Read My Mind: Today, we have novels that excel in worldbuilding—whether it be the past, or a sci-fi near-future—and two that bring us humor while operating within the genre of crime fiction.

if You Could Read My Mind: The four novels today take us around the world, and beyond

If You Could Read My Mind: Four riveting novels feature in today’s #IYCRMM.

If You Could Read My Mind: The four novels today deal with social conduct and mores with a light touch, even when the subject matter is the extinction of the species via murder, male mid-life crisis, suicide, and AI. To the authors’ credit, these four are wonderfully rendered comedies.

If You Could Read My Mind: Two novels today, ‘The Echo Chamber’ and ‘Little Siberia,’ are humorous and playful. ‘The Sweetness of Water’ is a dramatic depiction of post-Civil War and ‘The Plot’ is about literary fraud and the consequences paid.

IF YOU COULD READ MY MIND: A multi-awarded French novel gets its English translation, and three distinct, diverse types of crime fiction

IF YOU COULD READ MY MIND: An interesting meditation on physical loss and impermanence, and three varying versions of the American Dream, imbibing the Past, the Present, and the Future. These are the four novels reviewed here.

IF YOU COULD READ MY MIND: European Crime Fiction takes the spotlight via the debut novel of a Swedish author, a French graphic novel, and one set in the UK. And we have a sci-fi alt-history tale set in Germany 1945.

IF YOU COULD READ MY MIND: From the Hamptons to upstate New York, to London or the nearby outskirts

IF YOU COULD READ MY MIND: The four novels today are a mixed bag of delights.

IF YOU COULD READ MY MIND: Today, we have books that “play” in the world of words, dictionaries, and libraries. And there are two novels from Japanese authors, from opposite ends of the writing spectrum.

Here are four fine novels with women in the lead role. One is a fine example of contemporary crime fiction, and one is a double helix narrative set in today’s London and the late 18th century. The third novel deals with dissociative identity disorder, while the fourth is a stirring account of forbidden love and friendship between two women in the 17th century.

The four novels today come from all points of the globe. From India to the UK, and from North America to South Korea. What unites these four novels, is the impeccable quality of the writing, no matter how different their genres are.

With these four novels, our intrepid quartet of authors dig into the past or speculate on the future in order to create insightful commentary on what we’re like as members of the human race.

BOOK REVIEWS: Four titles that redefine how one should read comedy.