Mystery Novels for Every Zodiac Sign
You’ve probably seen all those quizzes on social media: What ice cream flavor does your zodiac sign like? Where would your zodiac sign go on vacation? What D&D character class would your zodiac sign fall into?
We’ve got a new one for all you stargazers and horoscopers: What mystery novel should you read based on your sign? Do the fates call for you to read an edge-of-your-seat thriller, a chilly locked-room tale, or a comforting cozy?
This list is strictly in good fun, gentle readers, and not at all scientific, so do not despair or enrage yourself if your preferred mystery reading does not match up with what we’ve recommended for your sign. Use this list as you see fit: while you’re brainstorming your next read, as a checklist of new books for the TBR pile, or as a source of amusement or bemusement.
Aries (March 21-April 19) ♈️
Powerful, forceful, not afraid to get into an argument or to barge in with guns blazing, the Ram is a hot-tempered and hot-headed fire sign: the sign most likely to be written up as the “bad cop”. If there’s action and excitement, with lots of car chases and leaping from building to building, Aries will want to be front and center. For the Rams among you, may we suggest a fast-paced spy thriller.
When his trusted informant inside the opposition becomes embroiled in a murder, Collins finds himself drawn deep into the conflict. His budding romance with Almaisa–and his loyalties–are upended; in an instant, he’s caught in the crosswinds of a revolution. Drawing on all his skills as a spymaster, he sets out to learn the truth behind the Arab Spring, win Almaisa’s love, and uncover the murky border where Bahrain’s secrets end and America’s begin.
Taurus (April 20-May 20) ♉️
Taurus loves routine, familiarity, and stability, and can be set in its ways (but in a good way). Loyalty is also an important trait. If Taurus is your sign, chances are you’re the kind of reader who loves the tried-and-true favorites: the authors and series that keep readers coming back for more. The Bull also loves something that’s comfortable and indulgent. So a book from a long-running and well-loved series will be right for you.
Hamish has to use all of his contacts and every ounce of his Highland guile to find the robber and protect the village.
Gemini (May 21-June 20) ♊️
Make it a double! Geminis are fun-loving, curious, and witty. They love to find things out, but not in a scary, creepy way (Scorpios, we are looking at you…). Dour, dull, and depressing books will not do for the Twins; instead, a Gemini will probably appreciate a mystery novel with lots of wit and wisecracks. A cozy mystery with lots of tasty recipes or interesting crafting tips will also be a good choice for you if this is your sign.
Food anthropologist Miriam Quinones-Smith’s move from New York to Coral Shores, Miami, puts her academic career on hold to stay at home with her young son.Adding to her funk is an opinionated mother-in-law and a husband rekindling a friendship with his ex. Gracias to her best friend, Alma, she gets a short-term job as a Caribbean cooking expert on a Spanish-language morning TV show.But when the newly minted star attends a Women’s Club luncheon, a socialite sitting at her table suddenly falls face-first into the chicken salad, never to nibble again.
When a second woman dies soon after, suspicions coalesce around a controversial Cuban herbalist, Dr. Fuentes–especially after the morning show’s host collapses while interviewing him.Detective Pullman is not happy to find Miriam at every turn. After he catches her breaking into the doctor’s apothecary, he enlists her help as eyes and ears to the places he can’t access, namely the Spanish-speaking community and thetawnyCoral Shoressocial scene.
As the ingredients to the deadly scheme begin blending together, Miriam is on the verge of learning how and why the women died. But her snooping may turn out to be a recipe for her own murder.
Cancer (June 21-July 22) ♋️
Born under the sign of the Crab they may be, Cancers are NOT crabby people. Rather, Cancer appreciates things that make them feel safe and comfortable, and self-care is a high priority. The season of the Crab coincides with the start of beach-reading season, and beaches and oceans are perfect habitats for crabs. Therefore, we say that a summery cozy would be a good addition to the TBR pile.
Leo (July 23-August 22) ♌️
If the zodiac signs were authors, Leos would absolutely live it up at bookstore signing parties. They are flashy, dramatic, egotistical, and LOVE being the center of attention. And if they were detectives, the moment of the Grand Reveal in the drawing room would be their favorite part of the case. For you Lions, we recommend picking out a mystery that’s full of shocking secrets, backstabbing lies, and glue-your-eyebrows-to-your-hairline scandals.
Bailey’s in bed with her commitment-challenged lover K.C. when she gets a frantic call from her high-maintenance boss at Gloss magazine. Grabbing coffee and a cab outside her Greenwich Village apartment-the consolation prize in her divorce settlement-Bailey reluctantly heads uptown. At Cat Jones’s Upper East Side town house, she finds something that seriously clashes with the chic decor: the dead body of the family’s live-in nanny. As Bailey-unofficially-delves into the murdered girl’s past, she finds no shortage of A-list suspects. But when a startling discovery suggests that Cat may have been the intended victim, Bailey is suddenly up to her bed head in a high-profile investigation that’s perfect fodder for a tabloid headline: Is someone trying to kill the editors of women’s magazines?
With the spotlight on New York’s glitzy media world, Bailey interviews back-stabbing editors, straying husbands, and one sexy, six-feet-two psychologist who could make her decide to kick K.C. to the curb. Sporting her pair of red slingbacks and armed with the investigative skills she’s honed as a true crime reporter, she sets out on a search that takes her from Manhattan’s exclusive Carnegie Hill area-the nanny heartland of America-to the ritzy weekend estates of Pennsylvania and Connecticut.
Bailey will need all her street smarts and some lightning-fast detective work to catch a killer who could end up deleting her name from the masthead for good. A novel that marks the debut of a sexy and wickedly entertaining new mystery series, If Looks Could Kill introduces a heroine whose blend of wry humor and gutsiness will win over readers everywhere
Virgo (August 23-September 22) ♍️
All right, kids, take your seats and get out your pencils, because class is in session. Virgos are busy, detail-oriented people, inclined to be perfectionists. Think of them as the PTA parents/guardians of the zodiac, which is only fitting because Virgo season kicks off just as school is starting back up in a lot of places. For you, may we suggest an academic-leaning mystery with lots of details to keep a close eye on.
The tranquility is shattered by a woman’s terrified scream. Security guards take charge immediately, instructing everyone inside to stay put until the threat is identified and contained. While they wait for the all-clear, four strangers, who’d happened to sit at the same table, pass the time in conversation and friendships are struck. Each has his or her own reasons for being in the reading room that morning–it just happens that one is a murderer.
Libra (September 23-October 22) ♎️
Libras are balanced, even-tempered sort of people, trying to make sure everyone gets along all right. If things get rowdy in the drawing room as the detective does the Great Reveal, they’ll be the ones saying, “Now, settle down, everyone, and who would like some more tea?” (Just make sure that no one’s slipped something into the teapot, if you catch our drift.) A story that is not too dark but not too light should keep your scales on the level.
There’s been a sensational murder at historic Castle Kinloch, a gothic fantasy of grey granite on a remote island in the Highlands of Scotland. Literary superstar Brett Saffron Presley has been found dead–under bizarre circumstances–in the castle tower’s book-lined study. Years ago, Presley purchased the castle as a showpiece for his brand and to lure paying guests with a taste for writerly glamour. Now it seems, the castle has done him in…or, possibly, one of the castle’s guests has. Detective Chief Inspector Euan McIntosh, a local with no love for literary Americans, finds himself with the unenviable task of extracting statements from three American lady novelists.
The prime suspects are Kat de Noir, a slinky erotica writer; Cassie Pringle, a Southern mom of six juggling multiple cozy mystery series; and Emma Endicott, a New England blue blood and author of critically acclaimed historical fiction. The women claim to be best friends writing a book together, but the authors’ stories about how they know Brett Saffron Presley don’t quite line up, and the detective is getting increasingly suspicious.Why did the authors really come to Castle Kinloch? And what really happened the night of the great Kinloch ceilidh, when Brett Saffron Presley skipped the folk dancing for a rendezvous with death?
Scorpio (October 23-November 22) ♏️
If ever there was a sign that was perfect for mystery fiction, it’s Scorpio. (Granted, your humble scribe is a Scorpio, so she is a tad biased on the subject.) They’re highly secretive and inquisitive. On the surface, they seem mild-mannered, but if you cross them, out comes the stinger. They can find out everyone else’s business but keep their own strictly under wraps. If this is your sign, get your pincers on a psychological drama or locked-room mystery.
Confess the crimes, survive the tropes.
Alastor and Mila have masterminded a week of games, trope-fueled riddles, and maybe a jump scare or two–the perfect cover for Mila to plot a murder of her own. But when a guest turns up dead–and it’s not the murder she planned–Mila finds herself trapped in a different narrative altogether.
One by one, you’ll lose your turn.
With a storm isolating the island, and the body count rising, Mila must outwit a killer who knows literally every trick in the book.
Until only one of us remains . . .
Sagittarius (November 23-December 22) ♐️
Archers love to learn things, and traveling and wandering, whether to different places or to different times, are second nature to them. Opinionated and extroverted, Sagittarius is also not shy about sharing their opinions on anything and everything; they’ll be the ones holding forth at every party on their thoughts on the latest true-crime podcast or the current bestseller lists.
Put an arrow in your bow for a historical or travel-themed mystery.
But train travel brings new dangers as well, with England’s first death by train recorded on the very first day of railway operations in 1830. Twenty-five years later, England’s first train murder occurs, paralyzing London with the unthinkable when a gentleman is stabbed to death in a safely locked first-class passenger compartment.
In the next compartment, the brilliant opium-eater Thomas De Quincey and his quick-witted daughter, Emily, discover the homicide in a most gruesome manner. Key witnesses and also resourceful sleuths, they join forces with their allies in Scotland Yard, Detective Ryan and his partner-in-training, Becker, to pursue the killer back into the fogbound streets of London, where other baffling murders occur. Ultimately, De Quincey must confront two ruthless adversaries: this terrifying enemy, and his own opium addiction which endangers his life and his tormented soul.
Capricorn (December 23-January 19) ♑️
Capricorns, please take it as a compliment when we say that you’re a bunch of stubborn goats. Capricorns are known for ambition, perseverance, and not being afraid of hard work. They take the long view and look at the big picture, and they’re likely to do a better job than the rest of us on keeping New Year’s resolutions. If there is a book on their TBR pile, they will see it through to the end; a DNF (Did Not Finish) is not in their vocabulary.
The tales included cover a range of styles, highlighting the diversity of subjects and forms comprising the genre we call mystery fiction. Featuring a mixture of household names, masters of the short form, and newcomers to the field, the collection offers a variety that promises something for every reader. And it’s all capped off by a vintage story from the first half of the previous century, sourced directly from the rare book room at the Mysterious Bookshop, the oldest mystery fiction specialty store in the world.
Aquarius (January 20-February 18) ♒️
Creative and quirky, Aquarians like to march to the beat of their own drum. They’re not particularly known for being team players, and they don’t really enjoy having others tell them what to do; if they were detectives, they’d be more likely to be the eccentric consulting detective rather than the world-weary head of the homicide squad. Nero Wolfe, Sherlock Holmes, and Hercule Poirot would likely be a kindred spirit to an Aquarius.
Now, plagued by a series of mysterious barn burnings and a psychotic killer on the loose, a once-sleepy upstate New York town has suddenly become a bubbling hot compote of danger and intrigue. Does the blood-hungry murderer lurk among Charly’s quirky, epicurean clientele? Worse yet, do the police intend to put the case on the back burner? Add to the mix one chubby French chef with a dangerous craving to solve the crime, rumors of mob ties, age-old vendettas, and a melange of motives that make almost everyone a suspect. Stir the pot vigorously and heat to serve…
Pisces: (February 23-March 20) ♓️
Like the fish floating in the great starry sea, Pisces lives in a dream world. Here, it’s hard to tell where reality ends and fantasy begins, and vice versa. Pisceans will love a mystery that blurs the lines between what is real and what is imaginary. A mystery that also crosses over with other genres, like fantasy, science fiction, or magical realism, might also be a good pick for all of you Fishy folk.
Maria’s vat is one of seven, each one holding the clone of a crew member of the starship Dormire, each clone waiting for its previous incarnation to die so it can awaken. And Maria isn’t the only one to die recently. . .
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Erin Roll is a freelance writer, editor, and proofreader. Her favorite genres to read are mystery, science fiction, and fantasy, and her TBR pile is likely to be visible on Google Maps. Before becoming an editor, Erin worked as a journalist and photographer, and she has won far too many awards from the New Jersey Press Association. Erin lives at the top floor of a haunted house in Montclair, NJ. She enjoys reading (of course), writing, hiking, kayaking, music, and video games.