Book Week 30
What is it about crime fiction that captures our attention? Whodunit, legal thrillers, courtroom drama, detective fiction, spy novels and psychological thrillers. They entertain and enlighten, amuse and thrill, make us think and makes us blink, say 'hmm!' or 'I didn't see that coming!" They are bold and cunning, timid and mysterious. They hide the crime and make us work for it. Or put it out there for all to see and we watch as the detective tries to put it together.
There is a difference of opinion between the British Crime Writers Association and the Mystery Writers of America on which books rank in the top 100 as of 1995. I think it's time for an updated list. Who do they agree upon?
Dashiell Hammett: The Maltese Falcon (1930)
Edgar Allan Poe: Tales of Mystery & Imagination (1852)
Josephine Tey: The Daughter of Time (1951)
Scott Turow: Presumed Innocent (1987)
John le Carré: The Spy Who Came In From the Cold (1963)
Wilkie Collins: The Moonstone (1868)
Raymond Chandler: The Big Sleep (1939)
Daphne du Maurier: Rebecca (1938)
Agatha Christie: And Then There Were None (1939)
Robert Traver: Anatomy of a Murder (1958)2
Agatha Christie: The Murder of Roger Ackroyd (1926)
Raymond Chandler: The Long Goodbye (1953)
James M. Cain: The Postman Always Rings Twice (1934)
Eric Ambler: A Coffin for Dimitrios (1939)
Dorothy L. Sayers: Gaudy Night (1935)
Frederick Forsyth: The Day of the Jackal (1971)
Raymond Chandler: Farewell My Lovely (1940)
John Buchan: The Thirty-Nine Steps (1915)
Umberto Eco: The Name of the Rose (1980)
Dorothy L. Sayers: The Nine Tailors (1934)
John Le Carré: Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy (1974)
Dashiell Hammett: The Thin Man (1934)
Wilkie Collins: The Woman in White (1860)
E. C. Bentley: Trent's Last Case (1913)
Martin Cruz Smith: Gorky Park (1981)
Dorothy L. Sayers: Strong Poison (1930)
Dashiell Hammett: Red Harvest (1929)
Len Deighton: The IPCRESS File (1962)
Graham Greene: The Third Man (1950)
Tony Hillerman: A Thief of Time (1989)
Geoffrey Household: Rogue Male (1939)
Dorothy L. Sayers: Murder Must Advertise (1933)
Raymond Chandler: The Lady in the Lake (1943)
Peter Lovesey: Wobble to Death (1970)
Graham Greene: Brighton Rock (1938)
Patricia Highsmith: The Talented Mr. Ripley (1955)
Edmund Crispin: The Moving Toyshop (1946)
Hillary Waugh: Last Seen Wearing ... (1952)
Ian Fleming: From Russia, with Love (1957)
Margaret Millar: Beast in View (1955)
Michael Gilbert: Smallbone Deceased (1950)
Josephine Tey: The Franchise Affair (1948)
Dashiell Hammett: The Glass Key (1931)
Ruth Rendell: Judgement in Stone (1977)
John Dickson Carr: The Three Coffins (1935)
Ellis Peters: A Morbid Taste for Bones (1977)
Check out the links to find out more about the books and you may just find discover a new to you author or two.
And for tv mystery fans of Castle
I've pre-ordered my copy from amazon!
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Link to your reviews:
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Link to your reviews:
I read Richard Castle's "Heat Wave" and posted my review on my blog.
ReplyDeleteYou can get a copy from the library.
I didn't think my library had it, but I went and checked, and now I have a hold on it. Yay!
ReplyDeleteCarolyn - I'm one of those who likes to keep books. Good review. I'm looking forward to reading it.
ReplyDeleteJean - Yeah! Glad you found a copy.
I like keeping books, too, but our house is too full!
ReplyDeleteAnnie Kate
If you enjoy the TV episodes Richard Castle will not disappoint you in this novel. Funny and quirky.
ReplyDeleteI think locked-room mysteries are my favorite kind. Thanks for the links!
ReplyDeleteI love the mystery list - I'll have to request some of these from the library. Right now I am reading books for our upcoming school year & I need to add in something for myself. Thanks.
ReplyDelete