All the Sinners Bleed

Small town secrets unravel in this intense stand-out mystery-thriller

I could read a hundred books like this one, but Cosby has so many fresh ideas, he doesn’t need to write a series! With the backdrop of a sleepy Southern town stained by the atrocities of slavery and steeped in racism, the county’s first Black sheriff is on the hunt for a serial killer. That would be enough for an ordinary writer, but Cosby’s characters are complete people with families, histories, secrets, crazy exes, and problems beyond what happens on the pages. This is a gritty story with noir elements, but the cleverness of the writing and Cosby’s unique voice elevate this beyond a tightly woven mystery and a fast-paced thriller and bumps it into the realm of literature. Excellent.

If you like audiobooks, the narrator of this one has a beautiful voice. His acting chops did justice to this character-driven narrative.