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PRINT EDITION NOW AVAILABLE: Mystery Readers Journal: Fairs, Fêtes, & Festivals in Mysteries (42:1)

Mystery Readers Journal: Fairs, Fêtes, & Festivals in Mysteries (42:1) is now available in print. 

Purchase the Print issue here.

This issue is also available as a PDF. 

Fairs, Fêtes, & Festivals in Mysteries

Volume 42, No. 1, Spring 2026

Buy this print edition! Also available as a downloadable PDF.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
ARTICLES

• May Day, Maypoles, and Morris Dancing Mysteries (and a Recipe for Maypole Chocolate Cake) by Janet Rudolph

• The Fête of Mortals—The Trigger for Crime by Alan Cassady-Bishop

• Graham Greene: The Man for a White Elephant Stall by Moira Redmond

AUTHOR! AUTHOR!

• The Welsh Have a Word for It… by Cathy Ace

• Murder Can’t Stop de Carnival—or Writing About It! by Ashley-Ruth M. Bernier

• Spectacles, Sangria, and Selkies by Rowan Dillon

• Celebrating Crime on the Page, with the Food Lovers’ Village Mysteries by Leslie Budewitz

• There is Nothing Better Than a Fair or Festival by Nancy Coco

• Searching for Carnevale by Yves Fey

• Faire at a Fire Station Sparks a Mystery Plot by Nancy Lynn Jarvis

• Summer Festivals Are Hot in a Wintry City by Janice MacDonald

• Why I Set My Murder Mystery at an English Literary Festival by Mark McCrumb

• World’s Fairs as Bookends to a Mystery Series by Frances McNamara

• Asian Festivals & Fairs by Larry and Rosemary Mild

• It Takes a Village Fair: Setting the Stage for Murder by Paula Munier

• Murder Under the Bunting: Festivals as Crime Scenes by Neil S. Plakcy

• Round and Round: Why We Can’t Resist a Carousel by Bernard O’Keefe

• Murder Midst the Bunting by Ann Sutton

• Mardi Gras State of Mind by Martha Reed

• Come Taste My Wine: The Balmetto Festival in Borgofranco d’Ivrea by D.R. Ransdell

• What’s Fair About It? by Nancy Wikarski

• Comic Cons Make Murder Mysteries More Fun! by Melissa Westemeier

COLUMNS

• Mystery in Retrospect: Reviews by Lesa Holstine and Aubrey Nye Hamilton

• Children’s Hour: Fairs, Fêtes, & Festivals in Mysteries by Gay Toltl Kinman

• Real Crime at Fêtes and Festivals by Cathy Pickens

• Crime Seen: Fun—and Fear—at the Fair by Kate Derie

• From the Editor’s Desk by Janet Rudolph

ITW THRILLER AWARDS 2026

The International Thriller Writers announced the 2026 Thriller Awards last night at ThrillerFest. 

Best Standalone Novel: Cross My Heart, by Megan Collins (Atria)

Best Series Novel: The Big Empty, by Robert Crais (Putnam)

Best First Novel: Party of Liars, by Kelsey Cox (Minotaur)
 
Best Audiobook: The White Crow, by Michael Robotham; narrated by Katy Sobey (Simon & Schuster)

Best Young Adult Novel: The Silenced, by Diana Rodriguez Wallach (Delacorte Press)

Best Short Story: “The Violent Season,” by Jessica Van Dessel (Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine, July/August 2025)

There were also Special Recognitions announced during the ThrillerFest Awards Banquet:

2026 ThrillerMaster, Lisa Scottoline
2026 ThrillerMaster, Harlan Coben
2026 Silver Bullet Award, Douglas Preston
2026 Spotlight Guest, Rachel Howzell Hall
2026 Spotlight Guest, Luis Alberto Urrea
2026 Thriller Legend, Barbara Peters
2026 ThrillerFan, Jordon Moblo
2026 Thriller Volunteer of the Year, James L'Etoile

HT: The Rap Sheet. Thanks, Jeff!

ANTHONY AWARD NOMINATIONS: BOUCHERCON 2026

Congratulations to the Anthony Award nominees! 

Voting will take place at Bouchercon in Calgary. Winners will be announced on October 24, 2026.

𝗕𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗛𝗮𝗿𝗱𝗰𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗡𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹 

Crooks by Lou Berney 

King of Ashes by S.A. Cosby 

The Black Wolf by Louise Penny 

Death of an Ex by Delia Pitts 

All This Could Be Yours by Hank Phillippi Ryan 

𝗕𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗙𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝗡𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹 

Whiskey Business by Adrian Andover 

Mask of the Deer Woman by Laurie L. Dove 

The Retirement Plan by Sue Hincenbergs 

Voices of the Elysian Fields by Michael Rigg 

History Lessons by Zoe B. Wallbrook 

Julie Chan is Dead by Liann Zhang 

𝗕𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗣𝗮𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗡𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹 

Tricks of Fortune by Lina Chern 

Edge by Tracy Clark 

Crimson Thaw by Bruce Robert Coffin 

River of Lies by James L'Etoile 

This Violent Heart by Heather Levy 

𝗕𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗖𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗿𝗲𝗻'𝘀/𝗬𝗔 𝗡𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹 

Well-Behaved Children Seldom Make History by Chris Chan 

Miles in Time by Lee Matthew Goldberg 

The Scammer by Tiffany D. Jackson 

Death in the Cards by Mia P. Manansala 

Risky Pursuit by Nancy G. West 

𝗕𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗖𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹/𝗡𝗼𝗻-𝗙𝗶𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 

Vacations Can Be Murder: A True Crime Lover's Travel Guide to New England by Dawn M. Barclay 

L.A. Coroner: Thomas Noguchi and Death in Hollywood by Anne Soon Choi 

Murderland: Crime and Bloodlust in the Time of Serial Killers by Caroline Fraser 

The Secret History of the Rape Kit: A True Crime Story by Pagan Kennedy 

Bone Valley: A True Story of Injustice and Redemption in the Heart of Florida by Gilbert King 

𝗕𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗔𝗻𝘁𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗴𝘆/𝗖𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 

Whatever Kills the Pain by C.W. Blackwell 

Blood On the Bayou: Case Closed edited by Don Bruns 

Crime Ink: Iconic: An Anthology of Crime Fiction Inspired by Queer Icons edited by John Copenhaver & Salem West 

On Fire and Under Water: A Climate Change Crime Fiction Anthology edited by Curtis Ippolito Hollywood Kills edited by Adam Meyer & Alan Orloff 

𝗕𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗦𝗵𝗼𝗿𝘁 𝗦𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 

"Six-Armed Robbery" by Ashley-Ruth M. Bernier 

"AITA for Using My Husband's Hobby to Teach Him a Lesson" by Mindy Carlson 

"Hollywood Prometheus" by Christa Faust 

"Brotherly Love" by Cheryl A. Head 

"Finding Jimmy Baldwin" by Cheryl A. Head 

"The Skies Are Red" by Richie Narvaez

MOTHER'S DAY MYSTERIES // MOTHER'S DAY CRIME FICTION

Mother's Day: So many Mothers in Mysteries. The following is a sampling with emphasis on the Mother's Day Holiday. If I listed all the mysteries and crime fiction with famous and infamous mothers, the list would be way too long. This is an updated list, so let me know if I've missed any titles or authors.

MOTHER'S DAY MYSTERIES

Death by Windmill by Jennifer S. Alderson

The Whispers by Ashley Audrain
Angel at Troublesome Creek by Mignon F. Ballard
The Mother's Day Mystery by Peter Bartram

Mother's Day by Frankie Bow 
Mother's Day by Abigail Burdese

Mother's Day Mayhem by Lynn Cahoon 
How to Murder Your Mother-in-Law, Mum's the Word by Dorothy Cannell

Mother's Day Murder by Wensley Clarkson

A Holiday Sampler by Christine E. Collier
Finlay Donovan is Killing It by Elle Cosimano
A Catered Mother's Day by Isis Crawford 
A Darkly Hidden Truth by Donna Fletcher Crow

Motherhood is Murder (Short Stories) by Mary Daheim, Carolyn Hart, Shirley Rousseau Murphy and Jane Isenberg
The Mother's Day Mishap by Kathi Daley
Murder Can Upset Your Mother by Selma Eichler

Mother's Day by T. J. Emerson

A Mother's Day Murder by Dee Ernst
Bon Bon Voyage by Nancy Fairbanks
Good Bad Girl by Alice Feeney

Botched Butterscotch by Amanda Flower
Murder for Mother: Short Story collection, edited by Martin S. Greenberg
Murder Superior by Jane Haddam
A Gift for Mother's Day by K.C. Hardy
The Mother’s Day Murder by Lee Harris
"Pull my Paw"(short story) by Sue Ann Jaffarian

Mother's Day Murder by Tonya Kappes
Mother's Day: A Short Story by Renée Knight  (short story)
Every Day is Mother's Day by Hilary Mantel (not exactly a mystery, but a good read) 
Mother’s Day by Patricia MacDonald

Mother's Day Out by Karen MacInerney
The Night Olivia Fell by Christina McDonald

Mother's Day by Dennis McDougal
Mother’s Day Murder by Leslie Meier
Mother's Day by Joshua Quittner & Michelle Siatalla
Mom, Apple Pie & Murder: A collection of New Mysteries for Mother’s Day, edited by Nancy Pickard

Mother's Day, Muffins, and Murder by Sara Rosett

A Mother's Day Murder by Genevieve Scholl
The London Monster by D. Scott

Mother’s Day by Joshua Quittner and Michelle Slatalla
Comfort Me by Debbie Viguie
Mother's Day by Ron Vincent

True Crime: 

The Mother's Day Murder by Wensley Clarkson

Any titles/authors missing?

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