Best Mystery Audiobooks

The highest-rated mystery audiobooks scored by reader and listener reviews — gripping whodunits and detective tales perfect for listening.

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Mystery audiobooks have a unique advantage over other formats: the narrator becomes your guide through every red herring, unreliable witness, and shocking reveal. A well-performed mystery keeps you guessing while the voice acting adds layers of suspicion and intrigue that the printed page simply can't. From classic detective fiction to modern psychological whodunits, the audio format elevates the genre.

This list ranks the best mystery audiobooks using our own scoring algorithm, which blends reader and listener review data with rating volume. We selected titles that combine compelling plots with standout audio performances — because a great mystery narrator knows exactly when to pause, whisper, and drop the next bombshell.

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  1. 1
    Sherlock Holmes: The Definitive Collection cover

    Sherlock Holmes: The Definitive Collection

    Sherlock Holmes • Book 1

    by Arthur Conan Doyle, Stephen Fry - introductions

    Narrated by Stephen Fry

    4.96 ABR Score (239.5K ratings)
    ★ 4.51 Goodreads (217.9K) ★ 4.84 Audible (21.6K)
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    Fry's voicing is perfect, but his personal introductions as a devoted Holmes fanatic make this the only way to listen to the complete canon.

  2. 2
    The Running Grave cover

    The Running Grave

    Cormoran Strike • Book 7

    by Robert Galbraith, J.K. Rowling

    Narrated by Robert Glenister

    4.90 ABR Score (119.3K ratings)
    ★ 4.59 Goodreads (113.0K) ★ 4.83 Audible (6.2K)
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    Robert Glenister returns to voice Strike and Robin's most dangerous case yet as they infiltrate a Norfolk cult to rescue a young man trapped by the Universal Humanitarian Church's sinister agenda.

  3. 3
    Resurrection Walk cover

    Resurrection Walk

    The Lincoln Lawyer • Book 7

    by Michael Connelly

    Narrated by Peter Giles, Titus Welliver, Christine Lakin

    4.84 ABR Score (84.5K ratings)
    ★ 4.53 Goodreads (77.5K) ★ 4.81 Audible (6.9K)
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    Mickey Haller takes on impossible innocence cases while Harry Bosch sorts through prison letters, their partnership crackling through multiple narrators.

  4. 4
    Desperation in Death cover

    Desperation in Death

    In Death • Book 55

    by J.D. Robb

    Narrated by Susan Ericksen

    4.84 ABR Score (31.8K ratings)
    ★ 4.57 Goodreads (26.8K) ★ 4.84 Audible (5.0K)
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    Eve discovers a nightmare academy where kidnapped girls are trained as slaves while their spirits are systematically destroyed. Dark subject matter handled with Ericksen's steady, unflinching performance.

  5. 5
    The complete Sherlock Holmes cover

    The complete Sherlock Holmes

    Sherlock Holmes #1-9

    by Arthur Conan Doyle

    Narrated by Simon Vance

    4.81 ABR Score (226.9K ratings)
    ★ 4.51 Goodreads (217.8K) ★ 4.74 Audible (9.0K)
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    Victorian London's greatest detective solves impossible crimes through pure deductive reasoning and careful observation. This complete collection showcases Doyle's genius for puzzle-plotting and the iconic Holmes-Watson partnership across four novels and fifty-six short stories.

  6. 6
    Desert Star cover

    Desert Star

    Renée Ballard • Book 5

    by Michael Connelly

    Narrated by Titus Welliver, Christine Lakin, Peter Giles

    4.80 ABR Score (96.7K ratings)
    ★ 4.47 Goodreads (86.3K) ★ 4.77 Audible (10.4K)
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    Ballard and Bosch pursue the family killer who's haunted Harry for decades in this return to LAPD's Open-Unsolved Unit. Titus Welliver and Christine Lakin anchor the dual narration with familiar authority.

  7. 7
    Portrait in Death cover

    Portrait in Death

    In Death • Book 16

    by J.D. Robb

    Narrated by Susan Ericksen

    4.75 ABR Score (46.4K ratings)
    ★ 4.39 Goodreads (42.3K) ★ 4.83 Audible (4.0K)
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    A killer photographs victims after death, sending professional portraits to the media in this chilling entry where Eve Dallas hunts a murderer obsessed with capturing souls through his lens.

  8. 8
    Survivor in Death cover

    Survivor in Death

    In Death • Book 20

    by J.D. Robb, Nora Roberts

    Narrated by Susan Ericksen

    4.75 ABR Score (40.3K ratings)
    ★ 4.42 Goodreads (35.7K) ★ 4.81 Audible (4.6K)
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    Eve Dallas investigates the military-precision murder of an entire family, but the sole survivor—a traumatized nine-year-old—may be the only witness to an impossible crime.

  9. 9
    The Wrong Side of Goodbye cover

    The Wrong Side of Goodbye

    Harry Bosch • Book 19

    by Michael Connelly

    Narrated by Titus Welliver

    4.72 ABR Score (101.8K ratings)
    ★ 4.34 Goodreads (80.3K) ★ 4.71 Audible (21.5K)
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    Private investigator Bosch hunts for an aging billionaire's potential heir while moonlighting with a small police force, and Welliver's weathered voice perfectly captures the detective's dual loyalties.

  10. 10
    Reunion in Death cover

    Reunion in Death

    In Death • Book 14

    by J.D. Robb

    Narrated by Susan Ericksen

    4.72 ABR Score (36.7K ratings)
    ★ 4.38 Goodreads (32.6K) ★ 4.81 Audible (4.1K)
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    A birthday party becomes a murder scene when a mysterious woman with emerald eyes poisons the guest of honor, launching Eve Dallas into a case that resurrects dangerous ghosts from her past.

  11. 11
    Innocent in Death cover

    Innocent in Death

    In Death • Book 24

    by J.D. Robb

    Narrated by Susan Ericksen

    4.70 ABR Score (37.8K ratings)
    ★ 4.4 Goodreads (34.6K) ★ 4.8 Audible (3.2K)
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    A history teacher dies from poisoned coffee while Eve investigates and Roarke reconnects with a dangerous ex-lover. Susan Ericksen captures the domestic tension between Eve and Roarke alongside the methodical police procedural elements.

  12. 12
    Brotherhood in Death cover

    Brotherhood in Death

    In Death • Book 42

    by J.D. Robb

    Narrated by Susan Ericksen

    4.70 ABR Score (37.2K ratings)
    ★ 4.41 Goodreads (30.5K) ★ 4.75 Audible (6.6K)
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    Dennis Mira discovers his cousin secretly plans to sell their family brownstone, then wakes up with a head injury and his cousin missing. Susan Ericksen guides listeners through Eve's investigation with her trademark steady intensity.

  13. 13
    Seduction in Death cover

    Seduction in Death

    In Death • Book 13

    by J.D. Robb

    Narrated by Susan Ericksen

    4.69 ABR Score (37.7K ratings)
    ★ 4.35 Goodreads (33.7K) ★ 4.8 Audible (4.0K)
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    Eve Dallas tracks a killer using rare date-rape drugs worth a quarter million dollars to murder women after elaborate romantic setups.

  14. 14
    Origin in Death cover

    Origin in Death

    In Death • Book 21

    by J.D. Robb, Nora Roberts

    Narrated by Susan Ericksen

    4.69 ABR Score (35.3K ratings)
    ★ 4.39 Goodreads (31.9K) ★ 4.79 Audible (3.4K)
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    Eve Dallas investigates the murder of a pioneering plastic surgeon in 2059 New York, uncovering a conspiracy involving illegal human experimentation. Susan Ericksen's sharp delivery fits the futuristic police procedural perfectly.

  15. 15
    And Then There Were None cover

    And Then There Were None

    by Agatha Christie

    Narrated by Dan Stevens

    4.68 ABR Score (1.7M ratings)
    ★ 4.27 Goodreads (1.6M) ★ 4.63 Audible (20.5K)
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    Ten strangers trapped on a remote island face methodical murder based on a sinister nursery rhyme in this perfectly paced psychological thriller.

  16. 16
    The Longmire Defense cover

    The Longmire Defense

    Walt Longmire • Book 19

    by Craig Johnson

    Narrated by George Guidall

    4.68 ABR Score (12.8K ratings)
    ★ 4.54 Goodreads (11.0K) ★ 4.8 Audible (1.8K)
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    Fresh from confronting his past and questioning justice itself, Walt faces an unprecedented crime scene in Wyoming's countryside that challenges everything he believes about law enforcement.

  17. 17
    Random in Death cover

    Random in Death

    In Death • Book 58

    by J.D. Robb

    Narrated by Susan Ericksen

    4.68 ABR Score (29.6K ratings)
    ★ 4.46 Goodreads (27.1K) ★ 4.78 Audible (2.4K)
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    A killer uses a small, silent weapon to murder seemingly random victims, including a young woman at a concert hoping to meet her musical hero. Ericksen's veteran performance captures both the chaos of mass violence and Dallas's methodical hunt for patterns.

  18. 18
    Devoted in Death cover

    Devoted in Death

    In Death • Book 41

    by J.D. Robb

    Narrated by Susan Ericksen

    4.68 ABR Score (30.5K ratings)
    ★ 4.41 Goodreads (24.9K) ★ 4.75 Audible (5.6K)
    More about this pick

    Dallas hunts a killer couple carving hearts into their victims while traveling cross-country on a murder spree. Susan Ericksen continues her stellar work as the voice of this long-running futuristic police procedural.

  19. 19
    Born in Death cover

    Born in Death

    In Death • Book 23

    by J.D. Robb, Nora Roberts

    Narrated by Susan Ericksen

    4.68 ABR Score (35.4K ratings)
    ★ 4.38 Goodreads (32.2K) ★ 4.79 Audible (3.2K)
    More about this pick

    Two young lovers from the same accounting firm are brutally murdered, while Eve juggles the case with planning a baby shower. Susan Ericksen's narration balances the procedural elements with the series' character relationships.

  20. 20
    Visions in Death cover

    Visions in Death

    In Death • Book 19

    by J.D. Robb

    Narrated by Susan Ericksen

    4.68 ABR Score (34.8K ratings)
    ★ 4.39 Goodreads (31.4K) ★ 4.78 Audible (3.4K)
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    Eve Dallas hunts a killer who poses victims like prayers and removes their eyes with surgical precision in Central Park's humid summer darkness.

  21. 21
    Judgment in Death cover

    Judgment in Death

    In Death • Book 11

    by J.D. Robb

    Narrated by Susan Ericksen

    4.67 ABR Score (45.0K ratings)
    ★ 4.37 Goodreads (41.3K) ★ 4.77 Audible (3.6K)
    More about this pick

    Eve Dallas investigates the brutal murder of a cop in an uptown strip club, uncovering corruption that reaches deep into the police force. Susan Ericksen brings intensity to Robb's gritty procedural.

  22. 22
    Divided in Death cover

    Divided in Death

    In Death • Book 18

    by J.D. Robb, Nora Roberts

    Narrated by Susan Ericksen

    4.66 ABR Score (36.3K ratings)
    ★ 4.36 Goodreads (33.0K) ★ 4.78 Audible (3.3K)
    More about this pick

    When security specialist Reva Ewing becomes the prime suspect in her cheating husband's murder, Lieutenant Eve Dallas must prove her innocence while navigating corporate espionage and personal betrayal.

  23. 23
    Creation in Death cover

    Creation in Death

    In Death • Book 25

    by J.D. Robb

    Narrated by Susan Ericksen

    4.66 ABR Score (33.2K ratings)
    ★ 4.4 Goodreads (30.2K) ★ 4.77 Audible (3.0K)
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    Eve Dallas faces her most chilling case when a killer from nine years past returns to New York with the same twisted signature and refined methods.

  24. 24
    Echoes in Death cover

    Echoes in Death

    In Death • Book 44

    by J.D. Robb

    Narrated by Susan Ericksen

    4.66 ABR Score (35.2K ratings)
    ★ 4.43 Goodreads (27.8K) ★ 4.7 Audible (7.4K)
    More about this pick

    When Eve Dallas finds a naked, bloodied woman stumbling into traffic, the case leads to a killer who leaves couples barely alive to remember their terror. Susan Ericksen captures Eve's relentless drive and the victims' fragile recovery.

  25. 25
    Murder on the Orient Express cover

    Murder on the Orient Express

    A Hercule Poirot Mystery • Book 10

    by Agatha Christie

    Narrated by Dan Stevens

    4.66 ABR Score (755.1K ratings)
    ★ 4.2 Goodreads (741.3K) ★ 4.68 Audible (13.8K)
    More about this pick

    Hercule Poirot faces his most confounding case when a passenger is murdered aboard a snowbound luxury train. Stevens's crisp delivery suits Christie's methodical plotting perfectly.

Want something more specific? Browse mystery audiobooks by narrator, runtime, or popularity to find your next gripping listen.

How We Rank Audiobooks

Rankings are driven by listener ratings and review counts from Audible and Goodreads. Books with high ratings across a large number of listeners rank higher — a 4.5 with 50,000 ratings says more than a 4.8 with 200.

Unlike most book lists, we weight audiobook-specific factors: narrator performance, production quality, and how well a story translates to audio. A great book with a poor narration isn't a great audiobook.

We don't accept paid placements or prioritize new releases. These rankings reflect what listeners actually enjoy, not what's being promoted.

Rankings update periodically as new ratings come in and new titles are added to the collection.

Read our full ranking methodology →