Sydney Rye Mystery Books In Order

Publication Order of The Sydney Rye Mysteries Books

Sydney Rye is the main character in a series of mystery books written by an American author of thriller suspense, romance and thriller & mysteries, Emily Kimelman. Emily began her Sydney Rye Mysteries in 2011 when Unleashed, the first book in the series was published. The series features a strong heroine and her rescue dog named Blue. The series is recommended for 18+ readers who find glory in some violence and don’t mind some scene of sex and dirty language and above all a rollicking good mystery.

Unleashed

When the series kicks off, we are introduced to a character named Joy Humbolt who later changes the name to Sydney Rye. She is the kind of person who does not like people telling her what she is supposed to do and it’s no surprise that she was just fired from her last job. When she buys a dog walking business from Charlene Miller in Manhattan east side, it seems to be the perfect fit for her: minimal contact with people and quiet environment.

But soon one of her clients winds up dead, and Charlene vanishes in the thin air. Rumors say that Charlene was having an affair with the dead man and everyone assumes that Joy must know where the woman disappeared to. Joy soon starts investigating crime, first out of curiosity and secondly out of anger when a second murder occurs and starts getting threatening messages.

When the police investigator Mulberry is assigned to the murder case, Joy finds her kindred spirit- cynical and too fond of the human race. As they dig deeper into the secrets of the Manhattan’s elite society, they not only get close enough to the killer but also to the point of no return. One final murder sends Joy bolting over the edge, and her only last resort is to become Sydney Rye.

Unleashed is the perfect example of “the making of the heroine” narrative for Sydney Rye who is at first named Joy. This is the story of how she gets her life messed up and become the person she was destined to become. It kicks off when she breaks up with her boyfriend and also gets fired from her job, and neither of these events is much of a loss to her except for the income. She is not into her job, and her boyfriend doesn’t seem to care at all.

A bartender who hates people telling her what to do and can’t even hide it is in for a very short career. Joy isn’t very joyful- she has a knack for getting herself into trouble starting with screaming at her boss and her last customer. She may hate people but she needs work, and since she just adopted a big dog, her friend suggests that she start a dog walking business.

Despite what the television might show, not many dog walkers find dead bodies and in real life, those who do probably try and forget it as fast as possible. On the other hand, Joy can’t resist the urge of getting involved especially when she has seen a dead body before. She hasn’t met the dead man before but has seen his photo in the house of one of her dogs. The man is one of her employers, and it’s a coincidence that the cops can’t let go and neither can Joy especially when she ends up being a possible suspect to a confidante of the widow.

As mysterious coincidences pile up, Joy pokes her nose into the business of everyone who might offer pieces of a clue to the puzzle. She shouldn’t, and she also knows that she shouldn’t but at the same time can’t stop herself from deeper into the mystery and the dark tunnels of New York City.
She thought that discovering a dead body was shock enough, but she doesn’t know how crazy or how deep or how tragic thing can get even before she has had enough. But then it’s too far late for her to get out of her mess.

Emily Kimelman does a beautiful job of creating her fantastic character, and a character-driven plot. Joy can be seen as a woman noisier than the dogs she walks. She also has a keen disregard for most of the social rules that govern human behavior. Not that she is quirky, but she doesn’t like people except for much chosen few. She also has a conspiracy theorist dream- it turns out that in her life almost everything seems connected even if it does not start out that way. Even more interesting, the detective who starts investigating Joy ends up being her ally. Neither of them can resist the urge of pursuing the murder case regardless of how dangerous or how often they are discouraged.

Death in the Dark

Death in the dark is the book two in the bestselling and award-winning Sydney RYE Mystery series. The book in Sydney Rye Mystery book picks up where the first book in the series left off. When the fugitive Sydney accepts her new identity as a Private investigator, she must learn to control her powerful emotions and also her out of control dog.

With the aid of an expert trainer, she discovers to fight with both her mind and her body. But when the child of her close friend is murdered Rye turns away from her trainer seeking justice. Her strong temper and evil intentions lead her trap that will require her to use all her newly acquired skills if she is to survive.

In Death in the Dark, Emily Kimelman moves her heroine from the dull life in New York through some puzzling murder mysteries that will see her travel to South America and England. Sydney is a complex character, and Emily does an excellent job of evolving her character. Additionally, the supporting cast adds a lot to the main plot especially Mulberry who is in all the books in the series. Sydney owns a large dog who offers her companion and also saves her life a couple of times in the series. The main theme of the series is how a person just like Sydney can overcome adversity and become strong and independent.