One of the things I enjoy about reading fiction is the experience of figuring things out.
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Many stories have endings we can almost predict. We know the couple will eventually declare their love, the criminal will be found, and the world will somehow be saved.
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But even when we know where a story is headed, we don't know how it will get there. That bit of mystery keeps us reading.
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My favorite stories have endings that aren’t predictable.
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I love books that make me ask questions as I read. Is a character lying, confused, or misinformed? Is a character the villain, or is that just another character’s perception? What really happened? Can I trust what she says? Who is the real hero? What will happen next?
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I like stories that leave puzzle pieces for the reader to fit together. The answers shouldn't be obvious, but they should eventually make perfect sense.
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Two novels I read recently gave me that “wow” experience.
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In Caro Claire Burke’s Yesteryear, a social-media influencer who has built a following around an idealized old-fashioned life suddenly wakes up in 1855. Is it time travel, an elaborate hoax, a reality show—or something else entirely?
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In Charlotte McConaghy’s Wild Dark Shore, a mysterious woman washes ashore on a remote island where a father and his three children are caring for the world’s largest seed bank. She has secrets. So do they.
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Neither book is a conventional mystery novel, but both gave me many mysteries to think about as I read.
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I plan to explore titles by Tim Sullivan, a mystery author recommended to me by a friend.
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Of my own novels, Dell Zero is the most mysterious. The main character, Dell, has grown up in near isolation. The two people who raised her seldom spoke to her, so she taught herself almost everything she knows. When they are suddenly taken away, she is left alone in a society she doesn't understand. She has no identity, no credentials, and no place to belong.
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Like the reader, Dell is constantly trying to figure out what is happening around her. Every discovery raises another question, and every answer reveals that the world is far different from what she first believed.
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I will soon publish a new edition of Dell Zero (new cover, too), and also its sequel, titled The Crossing Ground.
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In the new story, the mystery doesn't end, though Dell understands far more than she once did. She is no longer naïve, uninformed, or drugged, yet every answer uncovers another question.
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In Dell Zero, the main character gains identity. In The Crossing Ground, she finds purpose.
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I’ll have more to tell you about both books very soon.
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Stay tuned for the launch dates and free offers!
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In the book you're reading now, what mysteries keep you turning pages? Send your emails to me carol@carolervin.com.
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