Spring is in full swing here in Brooklyn! And while we are taking in the blossoms, lush new leaves, and warming temperatures as much as we can, we’re finding ourselves eagerly awaiting those hot sunny days where the beach (and the beach reads) beckons. There’s nothing better than diving into a really good mystery novel with the ocean as your soundtrack, so we thought we’d share the books we’d highly recommend adding to your summer-read lists—all of which have a little (or a lot) of mystery packed into their plots.

With that, take care and happy reading!

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The Last Songbird by Daniel Weizmann

Adam Zantz is a failed songwriter and Lyft driver whose life is upended when his friend and client, musical icon Annie Linden, disappears. As he investigates, Adam starts to question how well he knew Annie—if at all. A poignant and twisty thriller that will keep you guessing for the whole ride!

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Mr. Breakfast by Jonathan Carroll

Graham Patterson’s life is falling apart, so he decides to hit the road. On his journey he gets a tattoo, a decision sets off a string of events that change his life forever. Newly gifted with the ability to see alternate versions of his future, he must choose: does he stay on his current path, or change course in a quest for love or fame and risk it all?

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Relentless Melt by Jeremy P. Bushnell

Stranger Things meets the Golden Age of Detective fiction in a rollicking supernatural detective thriller. The year is 1909 and Artie Quick is a young sales assistant at Filene’s who moonlights as an amateur detective by night, and hopes to solve a series of violent abductions on Boston Common. A wild, weird, and darkly satiric gem of a novel.

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U Up? by Catie Disabato

Eve is your standard L.A. millennial: chronically online and constantly texting her best friend, Ezra…and her friend, Miggy, who’s been dead for a year. When Ezra goes missing on the anniversary of Miggy’s death, Eve frantically starts investigating. She scours social media for clues and spirals as ghosts—real and metaphorical—continue to haunt her.

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The Strange Inheritance of Leah Fern by Rita Zoey Chin

When 6-year-old Leah is abandoned by her beautiful magician mother, she longs for her eventual return. On her 21st birthday, Leah receives an inheritance from someone she doesn’t even know, and finds herself launched onto a journey of magical discovery—one that promises to uncover the truth behind her mother’s disappearance. A luminous story of a lonely young woman’s quest for answers.

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The Poison Machine by Robert J. Lloyd

The thrilling and addictive sequel to The Bloodless Boy finds Harry Hunt in 1679 Paris, a city bedeviled by conspiracies and intrigue, in search of a spy who has inside intel of a plot to kill the Queen of England. A nail-biting and brilliant historical thriller you won’t want to put down.

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Just Thieves by Gregory Galloway

Rick and Frank are accomplished thieves who work for a mysterious handler. On a routine job they’re tasked with taking a seemingly worthless trophy, and things start to go haywire. A twisty and twisted modern noir that explores the working lives of unforgettable crooks and the hidden forces that rule (and ruin) their lives.