It’s the penultimate episode of Review Season before the 2022 tour launches, and we explore some stories that narrowly missed the podium. After each year of the show, we walk you back through the stories we’ve covered in a year, ranking them based on what we’d recommend to mystery fans, following our almighty ‘Criteria’, lest our hearts fail us. If you want to hear each review without the accoutrements, follow the links below to get them on our Podcast:

6th Place: The Lamplighters by Emma Stonex
One of Flex’s personal favourites for the year, the consequences of our genre are laid bare in this envelopingly mysterious historical reimagining.

5th Place: The Thursday Murder Club by Richard Osman
A delightfully accessible romp with the titular gang of retirees as they investigate a death on their own doorstep. It’s easy to see how it managed to hold such long tenure on the bestseller lists.

4th Place: The Tokyo Zodiac Murders by Soji Shimada
A novel so forward thinking that it’s often mistakenly attributed to the movement that still marches to its drum decades later. This Japanese classic delights and disturbs.