34. What's the difference between mystery, thriller, and suspense?

Because sub genres are confusing and they all say "mystery/thriller" which is more confusing

If you scroll down to see my new releases or top hits, there are a lot of Mystery/Thriller books. We discussed why mystery books are so popular a few weeks ago, but what the heck is the difference between a mystery and a thriller?

I don’t read mystery/thriller books very often, although I recently had a thriller week! Between writing about mystery/thriller books and reading them, it made me curious: what is a mystery and what is a thriller and how are they differentiated? Why do we have differentiations within the genre?

Mystery

These are the traditional ones, where we follow a detective as they solve or attempt to solve a crime. We walk alongside the detective as they discover clues. They are typically not directly connected to the crime. Think Agatha Christie and Sherlock Holmes. Mysteries are often slower, as well. We have time to follow the character, time to put the pieces together.

Thriller

A thriller takes our mystery and adds danger. The person we follow doesn’t have to be a detective, but they usually have some sort of knowledge. They are often in danger or have personal connections to the crime. We usually follow the character in action. Interestingly, these are the most often selected for movie or TV deals out of this genre. Think of the TV show Dexter. These are often darker than mysteries and have more action, more movement.

Suspense

This sub genre is more rare. In this one, the reader knows more than the person we follow. We can see the dominoes begin to fall, and we wait in suspense for the character to put the puzzle together. Since we know more than the character, these books often have multiple points of view. Think of some of Liane Moriarty’s books - The Perfect Husband, for example.

Now lets mix them together

A lot of the time, we see a mix of these sub genres in one book, but especially in a series. Some of the bestselling series have over 30 books that follow the same character. It might start as a traditional mystery, but then something might happen directly to our main character, making it a thriller. Once we are so many books in, we have additional characters - maybe the 25th book has multiple points of view. At first, this made me more confused, but after thinking about it, it is an opportunity for a mystery author to play within the genre and try new things. A way for them to keep their excitement for writing.

Why label “mystery/thriller”?

I mentioned earlier that books labeled thriller get the most movie deals, and that’s because they are most often picked up by readers. We gravitate to the word thriller. Is it more - for lack of a better word - thrilling than mystery? It emphasizes action. You can feel the echoes of the feeling that it gives you, making you excited, and making you pick it up. So, many use the duo-label of mystery/thriller.

For my research, I read two wonderful articles on Book Riot and Crime Reads, but I also fell back on my personal experience.

What do you think? Is there a way you categorize the differences?

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You know the drill! Let’s dive in. (affiliate links!)

1. The Grandest Game by Jennifer Lynn Barnes (YA/Romance/Mystery): July 30, 2024

2. The Wedding People by Alison Espach (Fiction): July 30, 2024

3. Horses: A Galloping History of Humanity by Timothy C Winegard (Natural History): July 30, 2024

   1. note: I had to as a certified horse girl

4. Our Wicked Histories by Amy Goldsmith (Horror/Thriller): July 30, 2024

Books I’ve compiled from mainly the NYT Bestsellers List, but also the B&N Top 100 and Amazon Bestsellers in no particular order. I’ve decided to simply add the books I haven’t before, since I’ve caught up to the new additions. If you’re curious, last week’s post can be found here.

1. The Black Bird Oracle by Deborah Harkness (Fantasy)

2. The Au Pair Affair by Tessa Bailey (Romance)

3. Never Lie by Frieda McFadden (Thriller)

As promised, let’s talk about Elsie Silver!

via amazon.com

Kind of random, but I love her website? So unique and pretty. Also, Elsie is just adorable. She lives in Canada, just outside of Vancouver, with her husband, son, and dogs. She’s also just like us - an avid romance reader since before she was supposed to and then some.

Her romances are all small town centric. Her most popular series, Chestnut Springs, is about a family of cowboys. I love it. I also love her heroines. She writes the books she would enjoy reading, which includes the Chestnut Springs series, the Gold Rush Ranch series, and has begun her Rose Hill series with Wild Love. I have yet to read the Gold Rush Ranch series, but it is on my list! Her books are fun, fast paced romances, but they all deal with real life problems that many of us can relate to and her heroines aren’t quiet.

Outside of writing, Elsie loves to cook, travel, and have quiet morning reading sessions. She’s adorable. I’d recommend visiting her website if you are a fan (and check out “the goods” tab!). You can also find her on Instagram.

Just a reminder to submit any books you think others will love on the R&R page or to my email: thesundayreads@gmail.com!

1. The Ex Vows by Jessica Joyce (Romance)

   1. SO GOOD !!!! GO READ IT!!!

That’s all for today. Much love

Izzy