The Top 30 TV Murder Mysteries For October & November

A Crime-Solving Nun, A Classic Reboot Of A Famous Detective Show And Some Of The Hottest Sex You’ll Ever See In A Murder Mystery

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Lynley, Image Courtesy Of Britbox

The Top 30 TV Murder Mysteries For October & November

Autumn is by far the perfect season for murder. Crispy leaves, darker skies with cooler nights, and with Halloween just around the corner — that’s the consummate curl-up-with-a-good-mystery atmosphere!

I’ve got your Top 30 right here. You’ll note some classics have slipped off this list (Sherlock, Poirot, Twin Peaks, Murder, She Wrote) to make way for new releases. I even dropped some tried-and-true favorites like Vera and True Detective for the sake of adding brand new shows I think you’ll like. Some fantastic shows have returned with strong seasons, and there are some newer debut mysteries, including a hot one that really took my breath away!

If you’re a paid subscriber, I’ve organized all of the paywalled Top 30 editions into a special section on the OMITI website — just head to the homepage at onlymurdersintheinbox.com and scroll down to the bottom under The Top 30 — where you have access to almost two hundred show recommendations! Thank you so much for your support. You’re helping me feed kitties, put my twins through college, and pay off our moving expenses since the L.A. Fires. I appreciate you so much, I’m giving you a hug right now!

So, 2025 has been a tricky (and stressful) year so far, so if you’re looking to save money and aren’t sure who deserves your subscription right now, there are two I recommend. The network that arguably has the best new mysteries currently streaming is PBS. As I mentioned in the last Top 30, I can’t encourage you enough to subscribe or renew your PBS Passport — the much-anticipated new Maigret airs Sunday, October 5th, and they have dozens of good mysteries in their catalog I recommend! My second favorite would be Britbox, especially if you haven’t had a membership in a while, there’s a lot to catch up on, as you’ll see below.

As always, I’ve personally vetted every television series on this list. Always know I’ll give you a heads up if anything is over the top. If it’s excessively violent or disturbing (those rarely make the list, honestly), or has a Does The Dog Die? type vibe to it or has a lot of sex or sexual situations (see #2 on this list). So without further ado, here it is — OMITI’s compilation of the Top 30 mystery series currently streaming for October and November on all major platforms.

*This list has been updated from the July & August Top 30 edition of Only Murders In The Inbox. For even more show recommendations, see previous Top 30 editions.

Image Courtesy of BBC

30. Dirk Gently - Britbox

(One Season, 4 episodes total, 60-120 minutes each, 2010-2012 original series) At only four episodes long, Dirk Gently is the perfect weekend binge and is an especially good match for fans of Psych. Stephen Mangan plays the lead, a quirky, bumbling detective who believes in the interconnectedness of all things, and is dependent on his old college friend, Richard MacDuff (Darren Boyd) as his sounding board. A nice surprise is Jason Watkins as Inspector Gilks from McDonald & Dobbs, another show I recommend! Dirk Gently is goofy with a little sci-fi sprinkled in, and depends heavily on snappy dialogue and comedic timing, which it does well. You can see why the U.S. went on to create its own. Its American version, Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency, debuted on BBC America in 2016 with Samuel Barnett and Elijah Wood in the lead roles. (P.S. the cat in the pilot episode is fine — just know I’d never suggest a cozy mystery where the cat didn’t live!)

Image Courtesy of PBS

29. Patience - PBS

(One Season, 6 episodes total, 46 minutes each) Patience is a neurodivergent girl who works in police records at the Yorkshire Police Department. When Detective Inspector Bea Metcalf realizes Patience is a huge asset, and is not only thorough but also insightful, with quite a bit in common with Metcalf’s own son, she hires her to assist in murder investigations. This is a different from many mysteries I’ve seen on PBS, to the credit of director Maarten Moerkerke and writer Matt Baker. It’s not cozy, and some scenes might bother viewers, so don’t expect Monk; but do expect a well-written, captivating mystery series.

Image Courtesy Of PBS

28. The Marlow Murder Club - PBS

(Two seasons, 46 minutes each, 16 episodes total) This brand new mystery series is based on the Robert Thoroughgood novel (a 2023 Edgar Award nominee). Thoroughgood is best known in television as the creator of the hit mystery franchise Death In Paradise. In the quaint town of Marlow, a retired archaeologist, Judith Potts, believes that a brutal murder has occurred; when the police refuse to listen her, she decides to investigate with her two new, unlikely friends. If you’re in the U.K., The Marlow Murder Club is airing now on U&Drama, and PBS here in the States. Catch up on this show before its third season, which is in production right now with a premiere slated for early 2026.

Image Courtesy of Paramount+

27. School Spirits - Paramount+

(Two seasons, 50 minute long episodes, 16 episodes total) One of the smartest moves Paramount made in its early days of securing originals for its streaming platform was greenlighting School Spirits. The young adult series gave Paramount a boost outside of its action movie film franchises and Star Trek catalogue for that much-coveted 18-24 demographic; Netflix later picked it up, widening its audience. In this whodunit, Maddie is a teenager who’s trying to solve her own murder. She’s stuck at her high school with every teen who’s ever died at Split River High, which turns out to be quite a few! If you liked Christopher Pike mystery novels growing up, you will love this. Check out more teen mysteries in this earlier edition of OMITI below.

High School Can Be Murder

Image Courtesy of Britbox

26. Lynley - Britbox

(One season, 90 minutes each, 4 episodes total) This detective show is based on the Inspector Lynley novels by Elizabeth George. DI Thomas Lynley (Leo Suter) is a posh Oxford grad and DS Barbara Havers (Sofia Barclay) is a street-smart cop who are an unlikely police detective duo (not unlike the pair of investigators McDonald & Dobbs) whose partnership gets off to a rocky start. The first two episodes are stronger than the latter half, but it’s sure to have a promising second season. All episodes are currently streaming.

The first five recommendations will always be free. However, the rest of this list is for paid subscribers only. If you’re a paid subscriber, thanks for supporting me! If you’d like to join OMITI, click the link to subscribe or upgrade to a paid subscription below. You may cancel at any time.