McBAIN, ED – hardboiled….realistic police procedures….streetwise jargon with a splash of humor mixed in….try Long Time, No See  (87^th precinct mystery series) or one of these authors:

 

            Marric, J.J. – Gideon’s Drive (Scotland Yard)

            Wambaugh, Joseph – The Choirboys (LAPD)

            Mahoney, Dan – Detective First Grade (NYPD)

            Dee, Ed – 14 Peck Slip (NYPD)

            Connelly, Michael – Black Echo  (LAPD)

 

 

Parker, Robert B. – hardboiled P.I….has a “code of honor” that he lives by….try A Savage Place (Spencer) or ….

 

            Crais, Robert – Indigo Slam (Elvis Cole)

            Cannell, Stephen J. – Hollywood Tough (Shane Scully)

            Estleman, Loren D. – General Murders (Amos Walker)

            Pronzini, Bill –Bones (Nameless)

 

 

Kaminsky, Stuart M. – for a humorous mystery….many plot twists & turns….details of a social, historic or cultural nature….start with To Catch a Spy, or:

 

                Baxt, George – William Powell and Myrna Loy Murder Case

Block, Lawrence – The Burglar Who Liked To Quote Kipling

 

 

Grimes, Martha – English cozy…memorable characters….leisurely paced….police procedures….start with The Old Fox Deceiv’d…or try:

 

            James, P. D. – Devices and Desires

            Sayers, Dorothy L. – Nine Tailors

            George, Elizabeth – A Great Deliverance

            Fyfield, Frances – A Question of Guilt

            Crombie, Deborah –A Share in Death

            Perry, Anne – A Breach of Promise

 

 

Francis, Dick – likeable heroes….backdrop of horse racing…helping others….in physical danger….overcoming their own doubts & fears….try Reflex or Break In….or these:

 

            Llewellyn, Sam – Blood Orange (nautical backgrounds)

            Hammond, Gerald – Dog in the Dark  (dog breeder)

            Francome, John – Inside Track (horse racing world)

            Ehrman, Kit – Dead Man’s Touch (horse racing)

 

 

Hillerman, Tony - Native American traditions....rich in character, geography & culture….little outright violence….try A Thief of Time , or one of these authors:

 

            Coel, Margaret –The Eagle Catcher

            Thurlo, Aimee – Blackening Song

            Anaya, Rudolfo A. – Zia Summer

 

 

Lawyer Detectives – past & present….need to do some detecting to save their clients in court, try ….

 

            Woods, Sara – Though I Know She Lies   (Anthony Maitland)

            Gardner, Erle Stanley – The Case of the Singing Skirt (Perry Mason)

            Martini, Steve – Compelling Evidence (Paul Madriani)

            Tapply, William G. – Follow the Sharks (Brady Coyne)

 

 

Classic Mysteries – setting the bar for all to follow…..

 

            Christie, Agatha  - The Mysterious Affair at Styles (Hercule Poirot)

            Stout, Rex – Please Pass the Quilt (Nero Wolfe)

            Doyle, Sir Arthur Conan – Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (Sherlock Holmes)

            Sayers, Dorothy – The Nine Tailors (Lord Peter Wimsey)

            Chandler, Raymond – The Big Sleep (Philip Marlowe)

            Hammett, Dashiell – Woman in the Dark (Sam Spade)

 

 

 

 

 

For additional suggestions: Niebuhr, Gary Warren – Make Mine a Mystery: a reader’s guide to mystery and detective fiction. REF/Z/5917/D5/N54/2003.

 

 

April 2008