The Irresponsible Reader On…Self-Published Crime Fiction

(updated 7/28/23)

From the first moment that people did the strange thing of asking me to talk about their books on my blog, I’ve been impressed by the quality of a lot of what’s been published by authors going out on their own, taking all the risks, shouldering all the responsibility and doing all the work to get their words, their dreams, their blood, sweat, and tears. This should be celebrated—it’s definitely appreciated, as we’re trying to show this week.

In addition to the Q&As and Guest Posts I have this week, I’m also continuing my habit of highlighting the self-published works that I’ve blogged about over the last few years—just a sentence or two.  Hopefully, this’ll be enough to make you click on the link to the full post. Beyond that, it’d be great if I inspired you to add a few of these to your TBR. Also, be sure you check out the other posts over at the SPAAW Hub.

Last, but certainly not least for this week, my apparent specialty: Crime Fiction–vigilantes, police, private eyes, people who have no business at all near a crime…you name it, I love this stuff. This tl;dr list also proves that I was right to break these lists down by genre.

Kind Hearts and Martinets by Pete Adams—a near-to-retirement D. I. with a rag-tag team investigates terror threats, murders, and bike thefts.
Cause and Effect: Vice Plagues the City (my post about it)
Irony in the Soul (my post about it)
Cats, Cannolis and a Curious Kidnapping by Cheryl Denise Bannerman—a mystery writer finds herself the target of a kidnapper and has to employ everything her characters have done to save her own life. Which sounds more dire than this cute novel actually ever achieves. (my post about it)
The City That Barks and Roars by J. T. Bird—Anthropomorphic animals in a 1950s-esque civilization, a pair of detectives hunting for a missing colleague. (my post about it)
Death Stalks Kettle Street by John Bowen—a man with pretty severe OCD is sure that people in his neighborhood are being killed, but the authorities don’t see it–and his turn is coming. (my post about it)
DI Hannah Robbins by Rebecca Bradley—DI Hannah Robbins novels follow Robbins and her team as they solve murders–she’s got a great team and the novels have some of the best hooks around.
The Twisted Web (my post about it)
Kill for Me (my post about it)
Dead Blind by Rebecca Bradley—A Detective adjusting to prosopagnosia (“face blindness”) tries to keep the condition under wraps while leading his team investigating an international organ smuggling ring. Great hook, strong execution. (my post about it)
The Butcher by Nathan Burrows—a darkly comic tale about brothers struggling to keep their farm and butcher shop alive, until they develop a new sausage recipe. (my post about it)
The Shoulders of Giants by Jim Cliff—A rookie P.I. (inspired more by fiction than reality), is on the hunt for a missing college student. (my post about it)
Bad Memory by Jim Cliff—this novella finds Jake Abraham looking into an old closed case and forces it open. (my post about it)
Don’t Get Involved by F J Curlew—a slow burn of a novel about some street kids in Kyiv who find a large amount of drugs and a Scottish teacher in town to help their schools. (my post about it)
Criminal Collective by Russell Day—a collection of short stories and a novella from one of my favorite crime writers. (my post about it)
Jeremy Barnes by Robert Germaux—tired of teaching, Jeremy Barnes becomes a P.I. These books have a very Spenser-vibe to them and are great comfort food.
Hard Court (my post about it)
In the Eye (my post about it)
Small Bytes (my post about it)
Daniel Hays Mysteries by Robert Germaux—Daniel Hays heads the Special Assignment Squad —- a Major Crimes squad set up to help smaller cities in the county around Pittsburgh–hunts down serial killers in these entertaining thrillers.
Small Talk (my post about it)
One by One (my post about it)
DC Smith Investigation by Peter Grainger—I’ve listened to these on audio, but the novels are self-published. Smith is a former DCI who’s voluntarily demoted down to Detective Sergeant so he can actually work cases–in his own idiosyncratic way. There is something indescribably charming about these books, I can see myself re-reading these for years.
An Accidental Death (my post about it)
But For the Grace (my post about it)
Luck and Judgement (my post about it)
Persons of Interest (my post about it)
In This Bright Future (my post about it)
The Rags of Time (my post about it)
Time and Tide (my post about it)
A Private Investigation (my post about it)
The Truth (my post about it)
King’s Lake Investigations by Peter Grainger—I’ve listened to these on audio, but the novels are self-published. This series tells what happens after DS Smith leaves Kings Lake, following those he trained and left as they form the backbone of the new Murder Squad. They’re just as good.
Songbird (my post about it)
On Eden Street (my post about it)
Roxanne (my post about it)
Catch & Neutralize by Chris Grams—Members of a vigilante group that takes down criminals who’ve gotten away with crimes against women and children find themselves in a very hairy situation. (my post about it)
Fatal Forgery by Susan Grossey—as 19th Century British Policing begins to take a new shape, a magistrate’s constable investigates a new kind of financial crime. (my post about it)
DoubleBlind by Libby Fischer Hellmann—a PI looks into suspicious deaths following COVID vaccines while dealing with people who think she’s a wife who ran away from a cult. Eventually, she has to stop and figure out what’s going on with her doppelgänger for her own sake. (my post about it)
The Secret of Rosalia Flats by Tim W. Jackson—following the death of his father, a man returns to his Caribbean island childhood home to look into what happened. (my post about it)
Afton Morrison by Brent Jones—the story of a Children’s Librarian with impulses to become a serial killer. No really. It’s twisted. It’s fun. It has some heart, too.
Go Home, Afton (my post about it)
See You Soon, Afton (my post about it)
Nice Try, Afton (my post about it)
Time’s Up, Afton (my post about it)
Harvested by Troy Lambert—a PI starts looking into a rash of dognappings sweeping across Seattle and uncovers something chilling. (my post about it)
Cutthroat Cupcakes by Cate Lawley—I maybe should’ve included this on the Fantasy and UF lists, too. But Lawley describes these as cozy mysteries, so I’ll stick with that. The owner of an artisan candy shop is arrested by magic police for selling cursed items that have been used to kill someone. It’s a rough way to learn that magic exists. She works with the detective to find the actual killer to clear her name. (my post about it)
Cooking for Cannibals by Rich Leder—an Ex-con trying to go straight, a behavioral gerontologist, and a group of senior citizens get into hot water with an experimental drug and competing criminal organizations. (my post about it)
Let There Be Linda by Rich Leder—I can’t sum this up in a sentence or two–a comic crime novel set in L.A. full of interweaving plotlines. (my post about it)
McCall & Company: Workman’s Complication by Rich Leder—a struggling actress takes over her late father’s P.I. Agency (my post about it)
The Lion’s Tail by Luna Miller, Aidan Isherwood (Translator)—a retired physician turns to a new career as a P.I. An early case turns out to be too much for her to tackle on her own and she recruits some help from people in her neighborhood, creating her own Baker Street Irregulars. (my post about it)
San Diego Dead by Mark Nolan—a modern-day privateer and his dog are on the run from a vengeful drug mob. (my post about it)
How the Wired Weep by Ian Patrick—you’re not going to see me say something negative about a Patrick novel, but this one is special. a Gut-wrenching, taught look at a police informant and his detective handler as they try to take down a local drug lord. (my post about it)
The Warrior Series by Ty Patterson—Once upon a time, I think we’d call these books “Men’s Adventure” novels. Former Delta operative (and some friends) now run a covert-ops group.
The Warrior (my post about it)
The Reluctant Warrior (my post about it)
Dead Down East by Carl Schmidt—a part-time PI gets sucked into investigating the death of his state’s governor (my post about it)

If you’re a self-published author that I’ve featured on this blog and I didn’t mention you in this post and should have. I’m sorry (unless you’re this guy). Please drop me a line, and I’ll fix this. I want to keep this regularly updated so I keep talking about Self-Published Authors.

The 2023 Self-Published Authors Appreciation Week Logo was made by Witty and Sarcastic Book Club