Novels like Mystery in a Small Town
Books Chinese readers most often put in the same booklists as Mystery in a Small Town, best match first.
- 51 The Long Night Dawns: Silent Testimony 长夜将明：无声的证词 [Mind-bending mystery | Case-by-case investigations | Hard-core criminal investigations | High-stakes twists | A tender-hearted police team] The long night looms like a mountain, and mist engulfs the city. When every clue points to the person who seems least likely to be guilty, Leng Hanzhou is forced to make the hardest choice, on the fine line between justice and the law. Because some silent testimony has always been hidden in the darkest depths of human nature. Ningzhou, a prosperous economic 817Reads—Score105Shelves
- 52 Criminal Investigation: The Ghost-Hunting Outsider Trio 刑侦：编外三人组猎鬼 Ensemble cast, mind-bending cases | Every case ties into the main plot | A formidable partnership | No romance | No real ghosts | The Rose Garden is buried beneath countless bones, and a blood-soaked woman’s corpse hangs from an ancient tree. Everyone says ghosts are to blame. But there are no ghosts in this world, and some people’s hearts are more evil than any demon’s. A journalist’s timed video bomb brings together MSA’s most unconventional unofficial team: ✦ Team leader Han Yi: A former crim 62Reads—Score—Shelves
- 53 Fallen from Grace 坠落失格 Psychological suspense | High-IQ battle of wits | The boundary between reality and illusion collapses | Criminal profiling “My name is Chi Xiaochuan. I’m 26 years old, a hyperthymesia patient, and a full-time writer. Years from now, when I write this book, I’ll still remember that rainy night ten years ago. When the creator becomes the one to solve the puzzle, will the words on the page bring salvation, or lead to an even deeper trap? I’m not a profiler. I’m just someone who writes stories. I do 2Reads—Score—Shelves
- 54 Criminal Defense Lawyer 刑辩律师 [Criminal investigation + strong female lawyer lead + mind-bending twists + no romance + nonstop high-stakes action] An accident sends star lawyer Wu Tong’s reputation plummeting from its peak to rock bottom. Cast out of her old firm, she has no choice but to start a little-known law office of her own. Desperate to make a name for herself, Wu Tong decides to take on criminal cases! Her very first case brings down a business tycoon and makes her famous. Business starts pouring into her firm. But 171Reads8.8Score—Shelves
- 55 The Truth Buried by Time 被岁月掩埋的真相 The Truth Buried by Time 4Reads—Score—Shelves
- 56 The Sin City Case Files 罪城迷案录 In gloomy Liuzhou, a sharp-witted “detective” joins forces with a stubborn, diligent doctor. Together, they unravel the clues and solve baffling cases shrouded in mystery. Their pursuit of the truth is like a dance on the edge of an abyss, each step bringing them closer to the dark force lurking in the shadows, a force feared by all. As sparks from their investigations ignite the darkness buried deep within, a storm between good and evil, powerful enough to shake the city's foundations, is alrea 3Reads—Score—Shelves
- 57 Forensic Investigation Case Files 刑侦现场鉴证录 A case-of-the-week detective novel, with each case telling a standalone story. Everyone is the protagonist of their own field. Thick ink-black darkness seeps into every inch of the city, while the stench of the sewers mingles with the rotting miasma of crime, drifting low through deserted streets and alleys. Darkness is a wound that never heals, silently festering in the gaps between buildings. One careless moment, and it can drag a living person into the abyss. As the lights in home after hom 435Reads—Score—Shelves
- 58 Dear Detective (Two-Book Set) 亲爱的推理家(全二册) Dear Detective (Book One): Shen Xisheng, 19, a prodigy detective with perfect looks, perfect observational skills, and perfect deductive ability. Yin Chenxia, 29, a popular novelist with off-the-charts homebody tendencies, off-the-charts aloofness, and detective skills... that are unfathomable. Shen Xisheng has been a devoted superfan of his older half-brother Yin Chenxia since childhood. Hoping to get his brother’s attention, Shen became a fairly well-known detective while attending high school 45Reads9.4Score—Shelves
- 59 The Time-Traveling Crime Casebook 超时空罪案事件簿 To save my critically ill girlfriend, I accidentally activated a mission System. Every time I travel to a crime scene, I take on a completely new identity at random. A female corpse case from the Tang dynasty, a locked-room mystery from the Republican era, an AI murder case... I can trade points for wishes. The stranger the case, the greater the reward. I thought I was a crime-solving genius, until the System’s final message appeared: “Your girlfriend’s illness is actually connected to you...” 1Reads—Score—Shelves
- 60 Don't Say I Didn't Warn You 别说我没告诉你 I won’t waste words. Let’s get straight to the cases, solved in the freshest, most unconventional ways. The Twelve Detectives will open your eyes. “The Butterfly Case” “The Powdered Face and Vermilion Lips Case” “The Slow-Steamed Case” “The Cicada’s Shedding Case” “The Haunted Old Mansion Case” For anyone who likes detective stories and wants a few laughs... 155Reads8.9Score—Shelves
- 61 Case Files of a Homicide Detective 缉凶笔记 I’m a college student, and fate has entangled me in one bizarre murder case after another! A woman’s corpse sealed in concrete, an unidentified charred body missing its genitals, a deranged killer who feeds on human brains… One brutal, bloody murder after another, and one appalling mastermind after another! Driven by the fire of justice in my heart, I’m caught up in a series of dangerous, thrilling hunts for the killers… 8Reads—Score—Shelves
- 62 The Man in the Case 装在套子里的人 [Horror + Supernatural + Mystery + Adventure + Wild Imagination + Crime-Solving + Yin-Yang and Feng Shui] By a twist of fate, the criminal investigation squad led by Li Wei is paired with their archenemy Ouyang to solve cases. After a series of shocking major crimes, their terrifying ordeals turn the two former enemies into partners who would risk their lives for each other. Just when everyone thinks it is finally over, an even greater nightmare is only beginning... [The Hanger Murders] [A Ghost 1.6kReads8.4Score261Shelves
- 63 Funeral Affairs Master: I Can Solve Cases Too 白事先生：我也会破案 My childhood friend got caught soliciting sex. There’s no problem with me bailing him out, right? But what’s the deal with making a funeral director like me the head of a special investigation team? All I want is to focus on making money, but the appearance of a confession letter completely changed my life, and nearly got me killed (Chapter 164). For personal and professional reasons alike, Chou Wan, I’m going to catch you... This is a traditional detective novel, not a power fantasy. The pacing 36Reads—Score—Shelves
- 64 The Bottomless Cave of West Mountain 西山无底洞 A county Party secretary beloved by the people mysteriously disappears, and a trail of suspicious clues sets off a series of thrilling, convoluted events. With its broad scope and diverse cast, this novel portrays vivid scenes from society and lifelike characters. 10Reads—Score—Shelves
- 65 Di Renjie Investigates: The Serial Murder Case 狄仁杰探案·连环杀人案 Di Renjie Investigates: The Serial Murder Case 4Reads—Score—Shelves
- 66 Chasing Killers in the Dead of Night 暗夜追凶 “Does perfect crime really exist?” Bai Qi nodded confidently. “Of course!” “Then how come I've never heard of it?” Bai Qi gave a disdainful smile. “If you'd heard of it... would it still be a perfect crime?” 2.8kReads8.7Score330Shelves
- 67 Wind in the Dead of Night: Suspects Know They’re in for Trouble When They Meet Me 暗夜有风：嫌疑人遇到我自认倒霉 The world has both light and darkness, and the line between good and evil can be crossed in an instant. What is the line you won't cross? Where does the abyss begin? And who is the prey? Let rookie cop Chu Feng tell you the truth... 4Reads—Score—Shelves
- 68 Justice Never Dies 正义不朽 Criminal Investigation Captain Shen Jingnian vs Judge Nan Xia Qiu [Complete] As long as you keep committing crimes, one day I'll arrest you! We fight for the people, for justice... “I catch the criminals, you uphold justice!” Side by side! Set in a fictional world, with original elements and a side romance. I'd like to revise this, but I really don't know how to write a blurb! 79Reads—Score—Shelves
- 69 Never Turning Back 誓不回头 Also titled: The Ideal Life Is One Where You Can Soar Without Cheats. This is an amusing story with a touch of melancholy. Fresh out of school, Ma Yiming feels lost. “What's a life plan? Adults make plan after plan, but in the end, all they get is a measly paycheck?” His friend Chen Guangxu is just as lost. “...Four of us were sent to intern at the fitness center, and I was the only guy they assigned to sell memberships. I'm a boxing major. What am I doing selling memberships? Damn it, all the 3.7kReads9.1Score400Shelves
- 70 Beyond the Fingerprints 指纹之外 Forensic trace expert Lin Du can read any trace, except the ones that lead to himself. At a corpse-burial site in the mountains, the DNA under the victim’s fingernails is a perfect match for Lin Du’s. His partner, Shen Quan, points a gun at him and asks, “Are you here to solve the case, or destroy the evidence?” Lin Du has no answer. He has forgotten more than just his memories: something has also been implanted in his genes. He has no idea that Shen Quan is quietly clenching his right hand into 15Reads—Score—Shelves
- 71 A Crumbling Start: Watching the Tao of Liang Kun, Summoning Spirits to Solve Cases 天崩开局，看靓坤道，招魂破案 [The heroine has it rough early on, but later becomes everyone’s darling. The male leads have very different personalities: there are goofy ones, scheming ones, and aloof ones. There may be several male leads, but the story mainly follows the heroine using her own wit to solve cases. Romance is just an appetizer. Small and major cases keep coming, and the body count keeps rising. The main early storyline centers on a twisted vampire and serial killer, with the story primarily made up of standalo —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 72 Di Renjie Investigates: The Bloody Ledger of White Horse Temple 狄仁杰探案·白马寺血账 Di Renjie Investigates: The Blood Ledger of White Horse Temple 1Reads—Score—Shelves
- 73 I Can Tell You’re Lying 看得出来，你在说谎 [Female-oriented] [Mystery + Crime Investigation + Microexpressions + Subtle Gestures] The truth lies in microexpressions; secrets are revealed by the smallest gestures. When facing Feng Xi, not a single subtle expression can escape her sharp, almond-shaped eyes. When facing Liang Yize, not a single suspicious gesture can escape his alluring, peach-blossom eyes. When the windows to the soul belong to these two, they become walking lie detectors. No matter what kind of suspects they face, their e 42Reads8.5Score—Shelves
- 74 The Binjiang Normal University Student Murder Case: An Investigation Diary 滨江师大女生碎尸悬案调查手记 I, Xun Lu, am an ordinary mystery writer. A friend recommended me for a screenwriting job. The upcoming New Year's Day in 2018 would mark twenty years since the unsolved dismemberment of a female student at Binjiang Normal University. I planned to use the case as the basis for a story about a psychic girl solving a murder and dismemberment case. I would call it The Psychic Cold Case. To find inspiration, screenwriter Xun Lu, investor Xiao Hao, consultant Lao Ma, cameraman Jin Ming, leading man N 242Reads8.1Score—Shelves
- 75 Don’t Leave Me in a Hell on Earth Without You 别把我丢在没有你的人间炼狱 Don't leave me in a living hell without you. —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 76 Paranormal Investigation Bureau: Heretic 诡事调查局：异端 [Supernatural + Suspense + Mystery + Urban + Two Male Leads + No System + No Female Lead + Healing Each Other] Pingcheng. An ancient city with more than two thousand years of history and culture. It’s impossible for a city this old to have no strange happenings at all. And where there are strange happenings, someone has to solve the mysteries. I met him because of a bizarre case. A corpse starved down to skin and bones, a young woman whose soul has been sucked out, spontaneous combustion for no 663Reads8.5Score107Shelves
- 77 Professor Cobra's Formula for Solving Crimes 眼镜蛇教授之破案公式 He solves a four-stage Rubik's Cube by hand, and everything can be quantified. The truth behind a crime = ∑(clues × logic) + the human factor Over two days and one night, he works remotely, using a Rubik's Cube to unravel the mystery and formulas to deduce what people are thinking. While everyone else hunts for the killer, he calmly calculates the one “ε” that cannot be eliminated. “Give me five minutes.” He says it into the phone, then scrambles the Rubik's Cube in his hand. Hardcore crime-solv 3Reads—Score—Shelves
- 78 The Violet Murder Shroud 紫色凶罩 A woman is found in a cornfield, impaled through the body by a steel bar. Was it revenge, a crime of passion, or torture? Read closely and examine every detail to find the answer. Otherwise, you won’t know the truth until the very end! 220Reads—Score—Shelves
- 79 Tales of Evil 恶谭 [Mind-Bending Mystery + Episodic Cases + Crime + Criminal Investigation + Jaw-Dropping Twists + Partners in the Field + Comedy] “When a person’s heart is filled with darkness, evil takes root there. The guilty are not those who commit crimes, but those who create the darkness.” A desperate call for help in the early hours of the morning came from a dead person’s phone number. A news report about a murder in a village claimed the Wolf God might be responsible! In Liangcheng, men kept turning up w 32Reads—Score—Shelves
- 80 Testimony of Memory 记忆证言 Memory Testimony follows Lin Shouxi, a medium who can read the “marks of death” left on personal effects and use them to solve cold cases. Together with Su Rui, a brilliant scientist, and Chen Tao, a hacker, he forms a special team and infiltrates the black market in memories to take on the multinational organization known as the Archive, which seeks to collect and sell human memories. Each case is a forgotten life, and every time he touches a memory, his own begins to fade. When the truth behin 4Reads—Score—Shelves
- 81 A Flower in the Dust, Blooming Toward the Sun 尘埃里的花，向阳而生 This story follows Shi Xiaoying, beginning at eighteen when she elopes for love. It traces her marriage through sweetness, betrayal, and endurance, culminating in her awakening. Woven through the story are her children’s perspectives and the kindness of those who watch from the sidelines. It portrays a woman struggling between betrayal and perseverance before finally breaking free and embracing a new life. Exploring responsibility and self-worth in love and marriage, it reveals the resilience th 2Reads—Score—Shelves
- 82 The Bill for Time 时间的帐单 Set in a modern city, this story focuses on the clashes and eventual reconciliation between two generations of the Jiang family over their views on love and marriage, painting a realistic picture of contemporary society: elders rush their children into romance and marriage, while the younger generation prefers to take things slowly. The two generations struggle with love, marriage, and life choices, then look back on their lives, ultimately finding acceptance and insight in middle age. Everyone —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 83 Detective Chinatown: The Bangkok Serial Murders 唐人街探案·曼谷连环杀人案 Chinatown Detective: The Bangkok Serial Murders 42Reads—Score—Shelves
- 84 He Is the Killer 他是凶手 He was an outstanding police officer. How did he become a murderer? Was he framed, or does he have a split personality? If he is the culprit, why did he become an undercover agent? When someone has nowhere left to turn, will they break their oath? When someone is trapped in a dead end, how can they redeem themselves? The cruelty of the truth often exceeds all imagination. No one can escape the fate Heaven has dealt them. 11.6kReads9.0Score988Shelves
- 85 Fifteen Years Hunting a Killer: The Restaurant Family Massacre 追凶十五年：饭店灭门惨案 Fifteen years ago, the family of the owner of the Xinxin Restaurant in Linhai City was massacred, and the restaurant burned to ashes overnight. Was it a vendetta or a random crime? Over the next fifteen years, three generations of detectives, young and old, tirelessly passed the investigation from one to the next, peeling back layer after layer until they finally found the killer. 167Reads6.5Score—Shelves
- 86 Witness to Death 死亡见证 The rating has only just opened, so take it as a rough guide. [Criminal Investigation Team Captain × Psychology Expert] [Cool, Quiet, and Reserved × Playful Little Brat] People say Captain Shang Shixu is so serious that everyone around him keeps their distance. But what is this they're seeing? Is that a pretty young woman beside the aloof boss everyone avoids? And is she hugging his waist? What is happening to the world? Their meeting, the cases that keep coming one after another... The Cowherd 620Reads8.1Score101Shelves
- 87 The Neighbors on Either Side of Xingyao 星遥的左右隔壁 Shen Song Xingyao is a girl whose name carries the story of her parents' unusual relationship. She grew up in a unique family arrangement, with her parents living in apartments next door to each other. Her father, Shen Yizhou, is a carefree, laid-back editor, while her mother, Song Qingru, is a meticulous, rational accountant. They never had a marriage in the traditional sense, yet through an unspoken understanding few outsiders could comprehend, they raised their daughter together. From her inn 1Reads—Score—Shelves
- 88 My Wife Cheated, So I Switched to My Homemade Chili Oil 妻子出轨，我换成了自研辣椒油 My Wife Cheated, So I Replaced the Chili Oil with My Own Homemade Recipe —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 89 My Life, Named After You 我的生命，以你为名 A miserable criminal investigation team leader stops Lin Xian, who's reexamining a crime scene. “The autopsy report is ready. Want to take a look?” Lin Xian doesn't even look up. “No, just tell me.” “Yao Xi did the autopsy.” The report is snatched away at once. “Go stand somewhere else. You're blocking the light.” “???” Talk about a double standard! One night, Yao Xi gets a call. “Want to investigate a scene together?” “No.” Yao Xi is about to hang up. “Lin Xian is there too.” “See you in two mi 164Reads8.1Score—Shelves
- 90 Breaking Through the Waves 破浪 She was once a happy daughter, cherished by her parents. But her mother died young, and her father, an undercover agent, was brutally murdered. Still a child, she had to hide her identity and live with her grandmother on a remote island. Her unusual life made her keep her distance from others, but her inborn talent and desire for revenge set her on the path to becoming a police officer. He was a born star, but had no interest in business and refused to inherit his parents’ vast fortune, joining 285Reads8.8Score100Shelves
- 91 Detective Chinatown: The Thai Beauty Serial Murders 唐人街探案·泰国小姐连环被杀案 Chinatown Detective: The Serial Murders of the Thai Beauties 33Reads—Score—Shelves
- 92 At 21, I Worked Every Kind of Odd Job at the Bottom of Society 21岁，我打遍了底层的各种零工 For four years, I've been trying to cure an incurable illness by working odd jobs. [A slice-of-life story, light comedy, nothing too dark, personal growth, and a comeback. Give it a try...] Everyone cries at some point in their twenties. I'm no exception. What about you? Have you found a job? How is it going? At an age when our ambitions reach for the sky, I want to be the master of my own life. If I work fast enough, even the capitalists can't keep up with me! In the bustling city, everyone in 9Reads—Score—Shelves
- 93 Captain, I Kind of Want to Be Your Mom 队长，我有亿点想当你妈 A sharp-tongued, fatherly, tough-guy captain vs. a meticulous policewoman who isn't good at Chinese. A criminal investigation novel with sound logic, deductions, and a romance plot. [Mystery and deduction + Two strong leads + Mutual salvation + Suitable even for the timid] A series of articles titled "Demons Running Amok Beneath the Sunshine" seems to have predicted several major cases that have recently occurred. But after the reporter disappeared in a psychiatric hospital, they vanished withou 501Reads8.7Score103Shelves
- 94 The Silent Battlefield Between Mother-in-Law and Daughter-in-Law 婆媳没有硝烟的战场 The conflict between Lin Xiao and her mother-in-law, Zhang Cuilan, keeps escalating. Then Lin Xiao undergoes a dramatic transformation, becoming independent and self-reliant. She lives life on her own terms and rewrites her future, until the road ahead finally opens up... 3Reads—Score—Shelves
- 95 Ten Days to the End: The Dark Selection 十日终焉：黑暗筛选 The Ten Days of Ultimate Doom: The Dark Selection 4Reads—Score—Shelves
- 96 Those Carefree Days of Youth 那晃晃悠悠的青春 Campus supernatural mysteries + mental disorders + crime-solving! How much can childhood trauma affect a person? What causes psychological problems? An intern's fall from a building, a baby murder by human traffickers, a murder at a hot-spring inn, a body sunk in a river, the bones of a girl buried fifteen years ago discovered beneath the school's banyan tree, and a woman's corpse hanging in an unfinished building, reeking of decay... Behind each case lurk the ugliest, darkest sides of human nat 3Reads8.3Score—Shelves
- 97 The Storm Is Coming 狂澜将至 [Anti-Corruption + Battle of Wits] A bizarre car accident in a university town seems like a random occurrence, but it leads to a shocking case in Dongjiang Province. When criminal investigator Lin Xiao gets unwittingly drawn into it, he discovers that the clues eerily overlap with those surrounding his father's fatal car crash, which was ruled an “accident.” When Lin Xiao uncovers the first crack in the case, a criminal syndicate led by Sun Yaowei comes to light. On the surface, the “Young Maste 1Reads—Score—Shelves
- 98 The Mysterious Pry Marks 神秘的撬痕 31Reads—Score—Shelves
- 99 The Major Crimes Unit Has No Room for Slackers 重案组不养闲人 Although Gu Yuling dropped out of the journalism department at Bincheng University a long time ago, legends about her still linger there. When her college roommate died under mysterious circumstances, she quit without a second thought and applied to the Criminal Police Academy. Not only did she get in, she ranked first in every subject and graduated early, becoming the first person in the academy’s history to do so. Those who know her have pretty much just one thing to say about her: she’s a for 465Reads6.5Score104Shelves
- 100 The Lady Detectives' Casebook: A Brilliant Woman Cracks a Shocking Case 女探们的手札：蛾眉智破惊天局 [Female top scholar detective + imperial consort detective + poet detective] [No male lead] [Revenge + political intrigue + life among the common folk + historical legend] In the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period, war rages across the land, while the Shu court clings to a corner of the realm. Huang Chonggu, a woman from Linqiong, has two ambitions: first, to travel across mountains and rivers and roam the world; second, to become an official. But Lady Huarui, Xu Xindeng, insists that she so 9Reads—Score—Shelves
