THE DEVIL'S TEETH by Susan Casey

Possibly the best nonfiction book you'll ever read. The Devil's Teeth has a subtitle that describes the book as "A True Story of Obsession and Survival Among America's Great White Sharks", but this book is not a mere travelogue. It is as finely paced and dramatic as any work of suspense. Check out the opening paragraph:

"The killing took place at dawn and as usual it was a decapitation, accomplished by a single vicious swipe. Blood geysered into the air, creating a vivid slick that stood out on the water like the work of a violent abstract painter. Five hundred yards away, outside of a lighthouse on the island's highest peak, a man watched through a telescope. First he noticed the frenzy of gulls, bird gestalt that signaled trouble. And then he saw the blood. Grabbing his radio, he turned and began to run."

I dare you to put down the book after an opening like that. The Devil's Teeth transports the reader to the surreal landscape of the Farallon Islands, less than thirty miles off the coast of San Francisco, where biologists Peter Pyle and Scot Anderson study great white sharks. Savage birds, sea lions, great white sharks and killer whales populate the pages of this book and dominate an environment on the islands that would have given HP Lovecraft nightmares.

The history of the islands is almost as bizarre as its inhabitants, but the truly compelling stories in this book are the tales of the commitment, sacrifice and obsession of the men and women who risk their lives to study the world's most dangerous animal in its natural environment. The descriptions of the great whites are so vivid you find yourself checking your toes and nervously glancing around your bedroom to make sure the tide hasn't come in while you were reading.

Casey's courage in her pursuit of the story, no matter the cost, is an adventure in itself. I wouldn't recommend reading this book in the bathtub, but it's a must-read anywhere else.

CHINAMAN'S CHANCE by Ross Thomas

Ross Thomas is one of the masters of crime fiction that sometimes gets overlooked when readers are discussing their favorite authors. After his death in 1995 some of his books went out of print, but now they have been republished in trade paperback format. If you haven't read Thomas, pick up Chinaman's Chance, one of the smartest, smoothest reads there is, a book so finely crafted it bears reading twice.

Chinaman's Chance features Artie Wu and his partner Quincy Durant, not quite rogues but definitely con artists. They share a history in the spy game that has given the pair their own moral compass that never seems to waver (even though it confounds everyone around them). You'll wish you were as smart as these characters, and even the supporting cast is fully three-dimensional and perfectly drawn.

Ross Thomas created a space that was classic but contemporary, somewhere between Ross MacDonald and The Sting. Read this book and mark my words: you'll be recommending it to someone else before you've even reached the last page.

SOUTHTOWN by Rick Riordan

Southtown is the fifth book in Rick Riordan's award-winning series about San Antonio private investigator Tres Navarre, but the books can be read in any order. (In my case I read The Last King Of Texas first, which happened to be his sixth book. Each one is a blast and they all stand alone, but if you're starting from scratch grab Big Red Tequila.) Thanks to Ray Hengst at Remember The Alibi for reminding me about this unread gem in what is arguably the best PI series being written today.

Southtown is notable for several reasons, but what's truly remarkable is Riordan's confidence in changing POV. He switches seamlessly from first person to third as the perspective changes from one chapter to the next, and the effect is extraordinary. By the end of this book you have tremendous empathy for all the characters, even the bad guys, which is all too rare in suspense novels.

What blew me away were the chapters written from the perspective of Sam Barrera, an aging ex-FBI agent suffering from early Alzheimer's. Rather than reduce Barrera's condition to a two-dimensional liability, Riordan infuses his descriptions with humor, attitude, and flashes of self-awareness that let us see the man that once was, trapped inside a mind that he can no longer trust. These chapters make the character incredibly sympathetic and the disease all the more terrifying.

These books are smart, funny, and so deftly plotted that you'll wonder if even the author knew what was going to happen next. No wonder Riordan has won the Edgar, Anthony and Shamus. Tres Navarre is my kind of PI.

DOPE by Sara Gran

Dope was recommended by the folks at The Mystery Bookstore in LA, a crew that knows the genre inside and out. This is classic noir from a female perspective, as hard-boiled as Chandler or Hammett with a voice that is both seductive and smart.

The novel explores the underground heroin scene in New York around 1950. The sense of time and place is pitch-perfect, from the smell of the seedy back rooms, the clothes, the cars, the hairstyles, and of course the dialogue. The voice of the narrator pulls you in immediately, and you hang on every word.

But the best part of this book is the twist at the end, followed by another twist, followed by yet another. You won't see them coming and when they do, you'll find your knuckles have turned white from gripping the book so hard. This book will stay with you. Check it out.

THE CLEANUP by Sean Doolittle

The Cleanup is one of the most impressive books I've read in a long, long time. I met Sean at Bouchercon in Alaska. He's a disarmingly nice, thoughtful guy, tall with big hands. The women at the bar described him as hot, though my overriding impression was that Sean could break me in half if he wanted to. A mutual friend and fellow writer, Mark Haskell Smith, had suggested I track Sean down and say hello. Afterwards I bought his book and devoured it on the plane ride home.

The Cleanup is wholly original but has echoes of both Michael Connelly and Elmore Leonard, two disparate voices that blend seamlessly in this novel of lost faith and the terrible price of redemption. I can't think of another crime writer who can create characters so real and textured without compromising the pacing. This book flies and becomes more gut wrenching with every turn of the page, yet the characters seem so real you have an almost visceral reaction to their plight. Crimespree Magazine called it their favorite of last year and I can see why. Doolittle kicks ass. I strongly recommend Dirt and Raindogs as well.