Canadian thrillers and mysteries you need to check out

If you are looking for some books will take you on an adrenaline-inducing adventure, then be sure to check out these great Canadian thrillers.

Wherever She Goes by K.L. Armstrong

Wherever She Goes is a thriller about a woman, Aubrey Finch, who sees a child being abducted. But when no one reports a kidnapping, no one believes Aubrey. Aubrey, a single mother surrounded by whispers about her past and the state of her mental well-being, decides to take matters into her own hands and solve the crime herself.

A Dance of Cranes by Steve Burrows

Inspector Domenic Jejeune returns home to Canada to learn that his brother, Damian, has disappeared during his whooping cranes research trip in Buffalo National Park. Meanwhile, Jejeune's estranged girlfriend Lindy is abducted in Europe. Jejeune heads to the wilderness to find his brother and sergeant Danny Maik works to track down Lindy, leading them both into dangerous territory.

Though the Heavens Fall by Anne Emery

Though the Heavens Fall is the latest instalment in Anne Emery's popular Collins-Burke mystery series. The book takes place in Belfast of 1995, as the Irish Republican Army calls for a ceasefire to the violence that has ripped through the city, which lures Collins and Burke to town.

A Deadly Divide by Ausma Zehanat Khan

In A Deadly Divide, the fifth book in Ausma Zehanat Khan's Getty and Khattak mystery series, Esa Khattak and Rachel Getty are sent to Quebec, where a community is reeling in the aftermath of a mass shooting at a mosque. Fuelling tensions is the arrest of a young Muslim man who was reported to be assisting the wounded, while a priest found holding a weapon was let go.

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A couple of Canadian mystery novels which uncover bigger secrets

Investigators in Canadian mystery novels often discover that once they tug at one thread, they may find a whole host of things unravelled that they hadn’t bargained for. Here are a couple of Canadian mystery novels which uncover bigger secrets than originally thought.

Cold Skies by Thomas King

There aren’t too many Canadian authors whose work is immediately recognizable, but Thomas King is one of them. In this latest instalment of the series following a retired California cop, we find the uniquely named Thumps Dreadful Water seeking the quiet life in a small town called Chinook.

The origins of the character’s name are form Canadian-Indian tradition, which is a calling card of King himself who, as well as writing thrilling mystery novels, is an advocate for many indigenous people in North America.

In Cold Skies, Thumps’s quest for peace proves futile as the local sheriff, learning of his investigative past, asks for his help in finding the truth behind the sudden discovery of a body. With town set to host a major water conference, the sheriff wants it wrapped up quickly but what Thumps comes to realise is that there may be a connection between the body and the delegates who will soon come flooding into the town. Has he uncovered something much bigger than he could have imagined and what are the secretive forces at play here?

Still Water by Amy Stuart

High River is more than a town – it's a haven for women who want to get away from their troubled pasts. That’s where Sally and her young son were last seen before they suddenly disappear. Clare is the investigator charged with tracking her down, but when she travels to High River looking for answers, she only finds more questions.

Sally’s disappearance isn’t the only tightly-wound secret Clare must unravel as she faces a host of characters who aren’t what they initially appear to be.

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Two must-read gritty crime novels

Canadians have a well-cultivated image for being nice, and their public persona certainly backs up that assumption by the world. However, when it comes to crime fiction, Canadian writers can get down and gritty like the best of them. Here are two must-read gritty Canadian crime novels.

Needles by William Deverell

First published in 1979, this was a book very much ahead of its time. It features a lawyer Foster Cobb who is investigating an Asian drug boss who is operating on the streets of Vancouver. However, Cobb himself is locked in a heroin habit he is struggling to shake. While try to bring down the drug trade in the city, he finds himself getting deeper into a seedy underworld of prostitution, murder and drugs.

This gritty novel is a thrilling, tightly-wound mystery which features gut-punching twists and jaw-dropping revelations.

Helpless by Barbara Gowdy

Even in its conception, this is a daring book. Gowdy takes an unconventional approach to crime-writing by telling a story from multiple points of view and challenging the reader to examine their preconceptions. It firstly looks at life through the eyes of a paedophile called Ron who is saving a nine-year-old while battling his own inner-demons. Gowdy also tells the story through the eyes of the girl, whose own life is further complicated by her mother’s relationship with her boyfriend.

What is Ron saving the girl from and how can she put her trust in such a man. A challenging and fearless story plays out in the hands of a master of her craft in this often uncomfortable but utterly compelling novel.

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