Recommendations based on Exit Musicby Ian Rankin

* statistically, based on millions of data-points provided by fellow humans

  1. The Naming of the Dead

    by Ian Rankin
    A detective investigates a serial killer during the G8 summit in Edinburgh, Scotland.

    An underlying thread throughout the book is that of familial relationships; the book opens with Detective Inspector John Rebus attending the funeral of his brother Michael, who has died suddenly from ... (Wikipedia)

  2. Black and Blue

    by Ian Rankin
    Detective John Rebus investigates a mysterious death while navigating the police politics of Edinburgh.

    Detective Inspector John Rebus is working on four cases at once trying to catch a killer he suspects of being the infamous Bible John . He has to do it while under an internal inquiry led by a man he ... (Wikipedia)

  3. The Falls

    by Ian Rankin
    An Edinburgh detective's investigation of a serial killer, with a personal connection.

    A student vanishes in Edinburgh and her wealthy family of bankers ensure Detective Inspector John Rebus is under pressure to find her. A carved wooden doll in a coffin found near her East Lothian ... (Wikipedia)

  4. The Keeper of Lost Causes

    by Jussi Adler-Olsen
    A police detective investigates a mysterious disappearance, uncovering a sinister conspiracy.

    Carl Mørck is demoted to Department Q, the cold case unit, after a raid goes wrong. One case, a suspected suicide, piques his interest. His investigations suggest that the woman, a rising politician, ... (Wikipedia)

  5. Cold Granite

    by Stuart MacBride
    Detective Logan McRae investigates the abduction and murder of young boys in Aberdeen, Scotland.

    It is Logan McRae's first week back after being on sick leave for a year; courtesy of Angus Robertson (The Mastrick Monster) who carved him up with a knife. Someone is kidnapping children, murdering ... (Wikipedia)

  6. When Will There Be Good News?

    by Kate Atkinson
    A gripping mystery that intertwines the lives of three individuals, each with their own secrets and tragedies, leading to a shocking conclusion.

    In her crime novel When Will There Be Good News?, featuring recurring character Jackson Brodie, Kate Atkinson begins with several seemingly unrelated storylines that slowly resolve into a whole. The ... (Wikipedia)

  7. The Blackhouse

    by Peter May
    A murder mystery set in a remote Scottish island, delving into a dark past.

    A brutal killing takes place on the Isle of Lewis, Scotland: a land of harsh beauty and inhabitants of deep-rooted faith. A MURDER Detective Inspector Fin Macleod is sent from Edinburgh to ... (Goodreads)

  8. Afterwards

    by Rosamund Lupton
    A mother investigates her daughter's death from beyond the grave, uncovering secrets and protecting her family.

    There is a fire and they are in there. They are in there... Black smoke stains a summer blue sky. A school is on fire. And one mother, Grace, sees the smoke and rush. She knows her teenage daughter ... (Goodreads)

  9. Dead Water

    by Ann Cleeves
    A body is found in a small community on the Shetland Islands, and detective Jimmy Perez must unravel the secrets of the tight-knit community to solve the murder.

    Ann Cleeves returns to her critically acclaimed Shetland Island series with this stunning mystery featuring Inspector Jimmy Perez, who readers will remember from Raven Black, White Nights, Red Bones, ... (Barnes & Noble)

  10. The Wrong Side of Goodbye

    by Michael Connelly
    A retired detective is hired to investigate a mysterious case, uncovering secrets from the past.

    This novel finds semi-retired Harry Bosch alternating between two investigations. As a private detective he is summoned by billionaire industrialist Whitney Vance. The elderly, never-married Vance ... (Wikipedia)

  11. The Murder Room

    by P.D. James
    A group of true crime enthusiasts gather in a museum to discuss notorious murders, but soon find themselves investigating a real-life killing.

    The Dupayne Museum is an eclectic collection of English memorabilia from the period between World War I and World War II. The murder room of the title refers to a room displaying relics of murders ... (Wikipedia)

  12. Silent Voices

    by Ann Cleeves
    A murder investigation in a small town uncovers secrets and lies, leading to unexpected twists and turns.

    From Ann Cleeves—,New York Times, bestselling and award-winning author of the, Vera, and, Shetland,series, both of which are hit TV shows—comes, Silent Voices,., ,“Ann Cleeves is one of my favorite ... (Barnes & Noble)

  13. Christine Falls

    by Benjamin Black
    A Dublin pathologist uncovers a dark conspiracy while investigating the death of a young woman.

    In the debut crime novel from the Booker-winning author, a Dublin pathologist follows the corpse of a mysterious woman into the heart of a conspiracy among the city’s high Catholic society It’s not ... (Goodreads)

  14. Thin Air

    by Ann Cleeves
    A gripping murder mystery set in the remote and unforgiving landscape of the Shetland Islands.

    A group of old university friends leave the bright lights of London and travel to Unst, Shetland's most northerly island, to celebrate the marriage of one of their friends to a Shetlander. But late ... (Goodreads)

  15. Dissolution

    by C.J. Sansom
    A lawyer in Tudor England investigates a suspicious death, uncovering a vast conspiracy.

    Henry VIII has ordered the dissolution of the monasteries and England is full of informers. At the monastery of Scarnsea, events have spiralled out of control with the murder of Commissioner Robin ... (Goodreads)

  16. Murder Is Easy

    by Agatha Christie
    Amateur sleuth investigates a series of suspicious deaths in a small village.

    Upon his return to England after his overseas job in the police, Luke Fitzwilliam shares a London-bound train carriage with Lavinia Pinkerton. She talks with him about her reason to travel to ... (Wikipedia)

  17. Blackberry Wine

    by Joanne Harris
    An exploration of the power of memory and imagination, as a man seeks to recreate his childhood.

    Writer Jay Mackintosh is suffering from writer's block. Having reached his artistic zenith with the award-winning 'Jackapple Joe', a novel published 10 years ago, he has failed to duplicate his ... (Wikipedia)

  18. Killing Floor

    by Lee Child
    An ex-military cop is thrust into a dangerous criminal underworld to solve the murder of a woman.

    Jack Reacher gets off a Greyhound bus in the town of Margrave, Georgia , because he remembers his brother mentioning that a blues musician named Blind Blake had died there. Much to his surprise, ... (Wikipedia)

  19. The Private Patient

    by P.D. James
    A gripping crime-mystery of murder and secrets, set in a rural English village.

    Commander Adam Dalgliesh and his team are called in to investigate a murder at a private nursing home for rich patients being treated by the famous plastic surgeon George Chandler-Powell. A welcome ... (Goodreads)

  20. The Lighthouse

    by P.D. James
    A murder mystery set on a secluded island, where the characters' secrets and pasts are slowly revealed.

    Adam Dalgliesh is brought in to investigate the mysterious death of a famous writer on a remote and inaccessible island off the Cornish coast. Combe Island is a discreet retreat operated by a private ... (Wikipedia)

  21. Written in Bone

    by Simon Beckett
    An archaeological mystery about a body found in a shallow grave and the secrets it reveals.

    ' I took the skull from its evidence bag and gently set it on the stainless steel table. 'Tell me who you are...' Forensic anthropologist Dr David Hunter should be at home in London with the woman he ... (Goodreads)

  22. The Player of Games

    by Iain M. Banks
    A game-player embarks on a journey to win a tournament in a distant world, uncovering secrets along the way.

    The Culture - a humanoid/machine symbiotic society - has thrown up many great Game Players. One of the best is Jernau Morat Gurgeh, Player of Games, master of every board, computer and strategy. ... (Goodreads)

  23. The Chemistry of Death

    by Simon Beckett
    A forensic scientist returns to his hometown to escape his past, but is drawn into a murder investigation.

    Forensics expert David Hunter is recovering from a shattering tragedy three years earlier. While he is working in an isolated Norfolk village as a doctor, a woman's mutilated corpse is discovered. ... (Wikipedia)

  24. Against a Dark Background

    by Iain M. Banks
    A journey of self-discovery as a female mercenary embarks on a quest to find an ancient weapon.

    The main protagonist is Lady Sharrow, a former military pilot and antiquities thief. She lives on Golter, a planet orbiting a star in an isolated planetary system with no nearby galaxies . A cult ... (Wikipedia)

  25. The Sculptress

    by Minette Walters
    An investigative journalist unravels a mystery of a vigilante killer in search of justice.

    In prison, they call her the Sculptress for the strange figurines she carves - symbols of the day she hacked her mother and sister to pieces and reassembled them in a blood-drenched jigsaw. Sullen ... (Goodreads)

  26. War Brides

    by Helen Bryan
    A tale of three young women in WWII England, their struggles, and the strength of their love.

    An international bestseller with over one million readers., With war threatening to spread from Europe to England, the sleepy village of Crowmarsh Priors settles into a new sort of normal: Evacuees ... (Barnes & Noble)

  27. The Tenderness of Wolves

    by Stef Penney
    In 1867 Canada, a woman sets out to find her missing son and becomes embroiled in a murder investigation.

    Structurally, The Tenderness of Wolves is divided into four parts: “Disappearance”, “The Fields of Heaven”, “The Winter Partners”, and “The Sickness of Long Thinking”. The novel opens with the ... (Wikipedia)

  28. Mistress of the Art of Death

    by Ariana Franklin
    In medieval Cambridge, a female doctor investigates a series of child murders. A thrilling historical mystery with a strong female lead.

    A chilling, mesmerizing novel that combines the best of modern forensic thrillers with the detail and drama of historical fiction. In medieval Cambridge, England, four children have been murdered. ... (Goodreads)

  29. The Name of the Rose

    by Umberto Eco
    A Franciscan friar investigates a series of murders in a medieval monastery, uncovering a sinister plot.

    In 1327, Franciscan friar William of Baskerville and Adso of Melk , a Benedictine novice travelling under his protection, arrive at a Benedictine monastery in Northern Italy to attend a theological ... (Wikipedia)

  30. The Neon Rain

    by James Lee Burke
    A detective's search for justice in a crime-ridden city, uncovering long-buried truths.

    While fishing on a back country bayou New Orleans Police Department officer Dave Robicheaux finds a body. Robicheaux, once a U.S. Army infantry lieutenant who fought in the Vietnam War , , becomes ... (Wikipedia)