Jen and Tina love writing prompts. This month’s photo of a surveillance camera takes Tina to rebels living in a dystopian autocracy and Jen to a down-on-her-luck security guard.

Carol writes: Special Operations Executive wireless operator Marie survived being locked in a shed after a blind landing in the French countryside. After a week of secret radio transmissions to London, she is tasked with retrieving a package in the alleys of Montmartre, an action outside her purview. With a package of TNT strapped to her waist, Marie must navigate across Paris without the Germans spotting her. Will she meet her contact at the train station, then get back to her secret flat in a nearby small town?

Lida looks at Spencer Quinn’s Mrs. Planksy’s Revenge. Lida writes: I love the premise–that’s what drew me to this book. Loretta’s determination and grit were admirable, but the novel wasn’t quite what I had hoped it would be.

Carol writes: I’ve compiled a list of some of my favorite authors writing mysteries and thrillers set in the period of World War 1 through World War 2. It encompasses a wide range of mysteries—traditional murder mysteries, spy thrillers, and suspenseful stories filled with secrets. Happy Reading!

Sleuths and Sidekicks is honored to host award-winning writer Jane Cleland on The Inside Scoop.

Lida loves humor in her mysteries. She chooses her books carefully and looks for ones which make her laugh, as well as having a complex plot and great characters. This month, Jen, Carol, and Tina are sharing some of their favorite reads of the last twelve months that they think Lida would love, too. If you love humor in your mysteries, we think you’ll love them, too.

Lida looks at Cheryl Head’s Time’s Undoing through a writer’s eye. Lida writes: The story is told in first person, present tense, using dual points of view and two different time periods: 1929 and 2019 in Birmingham, Alabama. Not an easy task for any writer, and through it, all the author skillfully makes the reader feel very much in the moment. 

Carol writes: Beecher White lives a quiet life working at the National Archives in Washington D.C. doing a job he loves—researching and protecting the nation's secrets. When his junior-high crush shows up looking for help finding the father she never knew, memories of his first kiss overwhelm his common sense. Beecher tries to impress Clementine by taking her into the SCIF where the President of the United States reads sensitive documents. There, he accidentally uncovers a 200-year-old secret from George Washington's presidency. As the dominoes begin to fall, Beecher and Clementine find themselves trapped in a conspiracy and running for their lives. The Inner Circle (Culper Ring #1), by Brad Meltzer, is a page-turner.