MYSTERY VERSUS SUSPENSE

By

Nancy Mehl

I started my career writing mysteries. After the release of several mysteries, an editor asked me to change a mystery proposal into a suspense proposal. My Amish mystery morphed into Mennonite suspense. That first book was titled SIMPLE SECRETS. From there five more novels followed. From time to time, I’m asked to explain the difference between mystery and suspense. In my opinion, the line separating the two genres is much thinner than most readers believe.

 Mystery has a simple definition. Something happens and no one knows why it happened or who did it. The main character, who can be a professional or an amateur, must find the answer through a series of clues. In other words, a mystery is a puzzle. The solution must be solved through the clues the writer inserts in the story. And the reader should have a chance to solve the mystery. Mystery readers don’t like ambiguous clues that lead nowhere or don’t make sense. They are trying to solve the problem along with our fictional sleuth.

So, what is suspense? Just like in a mystery, something happens and a solution must be found. However, in suspense the reader may actually know “who” and even “why” from the very beginning. Think “Die Hard.” In the beginning of the movie, we knew who the bad guys were and what they were trying to achieve. Our hero’s job was to stop it. One other aspect of suspense is that the solution will come through an event, not a clue. So the hero must use his wits to overcome evil, but usually the evil is known.

However, sometimes suspense crosses the mystery line. Think of a suspenseful book or movie that saves a surprise for the end. The reader may know “what” the hero is fighting, but the real bad guy may turn out to be someone the hero considered a friend. Someone the reader or viewer doesn’t expect. There weren’t any clues to follow so the surprise is just a…surprise. Although still technically called suspense, something hidden until the end is actually one of the aspects of mystery.

Although I write suspense, there is always a healthy dose of mystery in my novels. I love to combine the two, and I’m blessed to have publishers that allow it.

Speaking of suspense, I want to announce my newest novel, GATHERING SHADOWS. It releases in April and is the first book in my new Finding Sanctuary series. I’m really excited about this novel. Here’s a synopsis:

Wynter Evans, despite her current position as a promising young reporter for a television station in St. Louis, Missouri, has never gotten over the disappearance of her brother nine years ago. But when she stumbles across a photograph of a boy with an eerie resemblance to her missing brother during an assignment to investigate unusual places in the state, she can't pass up the chance to find out what may have happened. Under the cover of research for her job, she sets out for the place where the photograph was taken: the primarily Mennonite town of Sanctuary.

Upon her arrival, she meets Rueben King, the town's handsome young mayor, and together they begin to uncover long-held secrets that could not only tear the small town apart but also change everything Wynter believes about her own life. As the truth of her family's past hides in the shadows, it soon becomes clear someone will stop at nothing to keep the answers she's searching for hidden forever--even if the cost is Wynter's very life.

And here’s a look at the cover of GATHERING SHADOWS.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I know April is several months away, but if you’d like to win a copy of GATHERING SHADOWS when it comes out, leave a message, along with your email address, and I’ll pick a winner on Friday.