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Jamie Canavés is the Tailored Book Recommendations coordinator and Unusual Suspects mystery newsletter writer–in case you’re wondering what you do with a Liberal Arts degree. She’s never met a beach she didn’t like, always says yes to dessert, loves ‘80s nostalgia, all forms of entertainment, and can hold a conversation using only gifs. You can definitely talk books with her on Litsy and Goodreads. Depending on social media’s stability maybe also Twitter and Bluesky.
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I recently watched Black Doves (Netflix) and Mr. & Mr. Smith (Prime) and loved both series. While I excitedly await their next seasons, I thought I’d recommend books to read if you also enjoyed the shows—and if you’ve yet to watch them, here’s your nudge to!
Black Doves is a British spy thriller starring Keira Knightley (Pirates of the Caribbean, Pride & Prejudice), Ben Whishaw (Paddington Bear), and Sarah Lancashire (Julia, Happy Valley) in which Knightley’s character works for a secret organization that takes jobs from the highest bidder.
Okay, that’s the zero reveals summary if you don’t want any reveals skip the next bit: she’s married to a government official and reports back everything she learns from him to the organization. But when the man she’s having an affair with is murdered, Knightley, her family, and all her secrets are in danger (Trailer).
Mr. & Mrs. Smith is a secret agent domestic thriller starring Maya Erskine (Plus One, Pen15) and Donald Glover (Atlanta, Community), with a slew of wonderful guest appearances! Erskine and Glover play the Jane and John Smith characters who are strangers put together by a mysterious organization to live as a married couple and complete assignments sent their way (kill, interrogate, deliver a package, etc.). Their new job leads to them always being in danger while questioning if they really are the right fit for this job. So far as I can tell it has mostly nothing in common with the same-titled film. (Trailer)
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My favorite thing about both shows was the balance of focusing on (unraveling) character relationships while having action, thrills, twists, and suspense, which is what I kept in mind overall when selecting the books below.
There are a bunch of specific details each book has that are spoilers, so you’ll know them when you see them,