What to Read Next Based on Your Most Recent Netflix Binge

Like the Discovery miniseries focused on the Unabomber, we know who committed the crimes in American Fire right away. Instead of focusing on “whodunnit,” this true crime book by Monica Hesse focuses on how the criminals were caught and why they committed their crimes. This focus on the investigation and motive may appeal to fans of Manhunt, and there is no blood in the book for those who are typically squeamish about true crime.

Imagine the gang from Stranger Things all grown up and (gasp!) living their separate lives. That’s what you’ll get in Meddling Kids, a dark and supernatural novel from Edgar Cantero about a group of old friends who dubbed themselves the “Blyton Summer Detective Club” back in 1977. Now in 1990, the gang’s back together, and the story that ensues is very Stranger Things meets Scooby Doo.

Can’t get enough royal drama? Try The Heretic Queen by Michelle Moran, a historical fiction novel set in ancient Egypt. The story features Nefertari, the niece of former Egyptian queen Nefertiti and the last remaining member of her now-cast-aside royal family. Like the Netflix series about Queen Elizabeth II, plotlines of power and passion abound.

Love the dark, WTF episodes of Black Mirror? Try Children of the New World by Alexander Weinstein, a collection of speculative short stories rife with over-dependence on technology in a near-future world. Virtual reality? Check. Creepy implants? Check. Manufactured people? You bet. If you’ve seen it in Black Mirror, you can read a similarly terrifying story in Children of the New World.

This book pairing is so obvious I didn’t even want to recommend it at first, but on the off-chance you haven’t read Americanah by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie yet, there’s no time like the present. In this modern classic, Ifemelu emigrates from Nigeria to the US, where she starts a blog titled Raceteenth or Various Observations About American Blacks (Those Formerly Known as Negroes) by a Non-American Black.

If teenagers dealing with serious tragedy amid everyday high school problems is your thing, The Sky is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson offers plenty of opportunities for tears without forgetting to make you laugh. After Bailey dies, her twin sister Lennie must move on without her sister but also without her best friend. Yes, there are some tired YA tropes in here (unnecessary love triangle? yup), but Nelson’s prose is so beautiful, you won’t mind.

If the true story of Steven Avery gave you the feels (wherever those feels fell on the spectrum of angry to sad to frustrated), you must read Just Mercy by Bryan Stevenson. This semi-autobiographical nonfiction book addresses various aspects of the criminal justice system with a special focus on the story of Walter McMillian, a wrongfully convicted man on death row in Alabama in the 1980s and 1990s.