This content contains affiliate links. When you buy through these links, we may earn an affiliate commission.
I’m a bit surprised that there isn’t a sports mystery subgenre the way there is in the romance genre. I mean, I would totally read about a coach who is an amateur sleuth on the side, an athlete at the Olympics aiming for gold and to solve a murder, a beloved sports reporter who is a secret spy, a team owner also running an entire criminal organization… I could go on forever, and that’s before I throw in a blend of sports mystery/romance ideas! But I won’t tease you with plot ideas. Instead, I have three murder mystery books you can read now, ranging from suspense to thriller, each focusing on a different sport: cycling, ultra running, and gymnastics!
Runner 13 by Amy McCulloch
Amy McCulloch takes readers into the world of ultra running!
Runner 13 is a multiple POV thriller set in an ultramarathon in the Sahara Desert where runners are specifically invited to try and not only finish, but survive. Boones has been organizing these events for years, but no one knows much about him, except his daughter Stella, who knows he puts these events on because he’s sadistic. While she’s estranged from her father and not invited, her fiancé is, and she uses the opportunity to go along as an event photographer. Also at the event is Adrienne Wendell, Stella’s fiancé’s ex-wife, who quit professional running after accusing a coach of assault before his death, a death she thought had to be tied to a hit-and-run that her child luckily survived. But she can’t turn down this invitation because it comes with the promise of answers as to who was behind the hit-and-run. Tensions are already high, there are plenty of secrets being held, everything about the environment and race is extreme, and there just might be a killer to contend with.
The Black Jersey by Jorge Zepeda Patterson, Achy Obejas (Translator)
Jorge Zepeda Patterson takes readers into the Tour de France!
The Black Jersey feels like Agatha Christie met a sports memoir. Marc Moreau is a professional French cyclist competing on a cycling team at the Tour de France that is being led by American cyclist Steve Panata. Thanks to a past suicide that might have been a cover for murder, and accidents that seem too coincidental happening during the 23-day race, Marc is tapped by investigators to do some sleuthing since he has a military background. Between the high stakes of the race, his mechanic girlfriend pressuring him to stop assisting Steve and race for himself, and the investigation, Marc had better focus on who is behind these attacks if he wants the team to finish in one piece…
You Will Know Me by Megan Abbott
Megan Abbott takes readers into the world of gymnastics!
You Will Know Me focuses on a small gymnastics community with the Knoxx family— who have sacrificed everything for their teen daughter Devon, who they believe is a prodigy gymnast—at the center. The tension before a huge competition is already high for Olympic hopefuls, especially when entire families’ lives revolve around one member’s goal, but things really crank up after a hit-and-run murder starts to unravel the members of the community…
Unusual Suspects
Sign up to Unusual Suspects to receive news and recommendations for mystery/thriller readers.
Browse the books recommended in Unusual Suspects’ previous newsletters on this shelf and see upcoming 2025 releases. Check out this Unusual Suspects Pinterest board and get Tailored Book Recommendations! Until next time, come talk books with me on Bluesky, Goodreads, Litsy, and Multitudes Contained.
If a mystery fan forwarded this newsletter to you or you read it on bookriot.com and you’d like to get it right in your inbox, you can sign up here.