# Need Mystery Recommendations **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 6, 2009, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-mystery-recommendations/505494 "2009-08-06T02:25:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2009, 5:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-mystery-recommendations/505494/21 "2009-08-07T05:26:44Z")
> [@choie](#): > > Ah, but what if you can’t decide? What if you want something in-between? Something with wit, grit, elegance, eccentrics and a window into a historical era? Somehow combining the tough guy genre with the old school genius detective genre _and_ the “lives of the wealthy families” motif? Then go no further than Rex Stout’s Nero Wolfe mysteries. The best all-round, IMO. Terrific first-person narrative by wise-cracking, somewhat tough guy with a heart of gold Archie Goodwin, who’s the “leg man” / assistant / dogsbody to super-genius, super-sized, quasi-agoraphobe Nero Wolfe. Wonderfully picturesque eye into mid-20th century New York, when men wore hats and women wore gloves. But most of all it’s the interplay between snarky ladies’ man Archie and erudite misanthrope orchidophile gourmand Wolfe. Yes, go with Wolfe and Archie. Likely the best American mysteries of all. (Note that the first is not the best, they actually get better later in the series. But the first is still damn good) If you like historical fact mixed in with a mystery, try the SPQR series by John Maddox Roberts. ---
**Author:** ![h.sapiens](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e0b2c6/32.png) [@h.sapiens](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/h.sapiens)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2009, 12:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-mystery-recommendations/505494/22 "2009-08-07T12:38:14Z")
Along with many of those that have been mentioned already, I enjoy Lindsay Davis’s Marcus Didius Falco mysteries, a series of hard-boiled detective stories set in ancient Rome. Great detail and enough humor to keep them from being too heavy. ---
**Author:** ![Damfino](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Damfino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Damfino)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2009, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-mystery-recommendations/505494/23 "2009-08-07T13:12:54Z")
I recommend Colin Dexter’s Inspector Morse series. These are set in Oxford. Morse is a very likable character, with his share of human frailties (including an over-fondness for drink and of letting his sergeant pay for it), a sharp eye for grammatical errors, and an absolutely brilliant mind. He often makes wild assumptions and strays from the solution several times before reaching an always satisfactory conclusion. His partnership with Sergeant Lewis is amongst the best in detective fiction IMO. ---
**Author:** ![salinqmind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3ec8ea/32.png) [@salinqmind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/salinqmind)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2009, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-mystery-recommendations/505494/24 "2009-08-07T19:40:11Z")
YES, I love Inspector Morse by Colin Dexter! I don’t agree he’s a likable character, though! A right bastard, he can be, and a sharp tongue! But if you like him, Reginald Hill has a long series about a pair of Yorkshire coppers, the ‘fat man’ Andy Dalziel and his partner Pascoe. My favorite that comes to mind is “Bones and Silence”. Not only are they engrossing procedurals, but the fat man can be astonishingly witty, and you will laugh! And Elizabeth George has written any of a number of doorstops about an English Lord who was born to the manor but became a police detective - and HIS partner, Barbara, his frumpy dumpy total opposite. Very good depictions of current day life in England. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Peyote\_Coyote](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/5f8ce5/32.png) [@The\_Peyote\_Coyote](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Peyote_Coyote)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2009, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-mystery-recommendations/505494/25 "2009-08-07T19:43:36Z")
I recommend these from a variety of styles: \*The Murder of Roger Acroyd \*by Agatha Christie (\*Death on the Nile \*is also very good IMO) \*The Maltese Falcon \*by Dashiell Hammett \*Cat of Nine Tails \*by Ellery Queen. (One of the first novels to deal with serial killers and still one of the best, IMO, despite having a major character who’s phonier than a three-dollar bill.) \*Point Deception \*by Marcia Muller \*Trent’s Last Case \*by E.C. Benson \*No Defense \*by Kate Wilhelm \*The Little Sister \*by Raymond Chandler (The critics are quite probably right – _The Long Goodbye_ is Chandler’s best novel – but in this one Marlowe has to deal with a bevy of _femme fatales_, and the ending offers a beautiful example of the moral ambiguity that is such a feature of _noir.)_ \*An Unsuitable Job for a Woman \*by P.D. James (how I wish she would write more Cordelia Gray novels) \*Silent Joe \*by T. Jefferson Parker (one of the best crime/mystery writers today, even if the MWA were tripping their balls off in awarding the Edgar to a mediocrity like _California Girl_) \*The Zebra-Striped Hearst \*by Ross McDonald \*The Moonstone \*by Wilkie Collins is one of the first, if not the first, detective novels, and, IMO, it is still one of the best. Dick Francis is just an excellent author. I’ve read about 15 of his novels and have liked them all. I will also re-emphasize that, with the exception of _California Girl_, Parker is one of the best authors around today. When it comes to series, I second Marcia Muller’s Sharon McCone novels. The vast majority of them are quite good, and McCone is one of the most likeable detectives out there. Some of Martha Grimes’s Richard Jury/Melrose Plant novels are quite good, but beginning with _The Old Contempibles_, the series went south in a big way. I would not read any of these novels written after \*The Old Silent \*with the exception of _The Lamorna Wink_. Kate Wilhelm’s Barbara Holloway novels are exceptional. I cannot recommend highly enough Michael Slade’s series of novels about the RCMP’s Special X division. Be warned, though, these novels can also be considered horror novels, and the blood-letting gets quite graphic at times When it comes to hard-boiled fiction, James M. Cain seems to be forgotten today, but he wrote some classics. When it comes to Sherlock Holmes, I highly recommend \*The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes \*and _The Return of Sherlock Holmes_. At least half the stories in each book are classics, and nearly all are worth reading. \*The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes \*contains “Silver Blaze,” which is of my favorite short stories and a work I regard as perfect for its genre. When it comes to the novels, \*The Hound of the Baskervilles \*is the only one really worth a damn. ---
**Author:** ![Markxxx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5daacb/32.png) [@Markxxx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Markxxx)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2009, 8:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-mystery-recommendations/505494/26 "2009-08-07T20:56:12Z")
I second Janet Evanovich, at least up to and including book 9. They are light reading and are quite funny. I don’t know if they’re true mysteries as much as plots with a lot of twists in them. “High Five,” “Three To Get Deadly,” and “Seven Up,” are the books that have the most mystey going for them. Joanne Fluke writes mysteries and the heroine is a person who runs a cookie shop, so she puts recipies in them. If you like to cook deserrts you’ll like these. As with Evanovich, Fluke’s writing style is light and they are easy reads, (for like if you’re on a plane). Though I do admit Fluke can be a bit “Pollyana” for some people. But the action is fast so you can easily buzz over those parts. Though not really a mystery a great and I mean great book I read is _Rebecca_. Daphne du Maurier creates one of the greatest literary villians of all time in Mrs Danvers. It’s worth the read. ---
**Author:** ![rocking\_chair](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rocking_chair/32/2918_2.png) [@rocking\_chair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rocking_chair)\ **Post date:** [August 7, 2009, 10:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-mystery-recommendations/505494/27 "2009-08-07T22:28:08Z")
for a truly odd read try carl hiaasen they are so very fun and wacky. for a really interesting main character try carol o’connell’s mallory series. go into the future with j.d.robbs’ “in death” series. ---
**Author:** ![Ruby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/13edae/32.png) [@Ruby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ruby)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2009, 2:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-mystery-recommendations/505494/28 "2009-08-08T02:35:17Z")
> [@Markxxx](#): > > Though not really a mystery a great and I mean great book I read is _Rebecca_. Daphne du Maurier creates one of the greatest literary villians of all time in Mrs Danvers. > > It’s worth the read. I had totally forgotten about Daphne du Maurier. Rebecca was one of my favorite books in my youth. ---
**Author:** ![Siege](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dbc845/32.png) [@Siege](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siege)\ **Post date:** [August 8, 2009, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-mystery-recommendations/505494/29 "2009-08-08T13:13:24Z")
Are there any other fans of Elizabeth Peters or Margaret Frazer out there? Elizabeth Peters writes about Amelia Peabody-Emerson, as the series progresses, her family. They’re archaeologists working in Egypt aroun 1900, although the series has covered about 25 years and has now gone through World War I. The problem is, Amelia and company have a habit of coming across recently dead bodies. I thoroughly enjoy the books. They can be a little over the top, but they come complete with a Master Criminal and they’re good, fun, light-weight reads. I think the series works better if you start with the first one _Crocodile on the Sandbank_, but I could be wrong. _The Last Camel Died At Noon_ was also a particularly good one, if memory serves, but if the melodrama implied by the title puts you off, the series is not for you. Margaret Frazer has a couple of heroes, Dame Frevisse, a cloistered nun and great niece (?) of Geoffrey Chaucer and Joliffe, an actor. These stories are set in England in the 1400s and touch on some of the politics and culture of the time. [Ms. Frazer’s website](http://www.margaretfrazer.com/) does a better job of explaining the way she gives you a sense of place than I can and I think she succeeds. I’d especially recommend her to fans of Brother Cadfael. I’m a glutton for mysteries, although I prefer lighter-weight ones. As you may have gathered, I’m a fan of Brother Cadfael, and I think I’ve read and enjoyed every mystery Dick Francis has written, including the recent ones with his son. My parents subscribed to the Mystery Lovers Book Club and got me hooked on them, starting with Hugh Pentecost who’s become very dated, I think. Nero Wolfe and Archie Goodwin remain old friends and, while Agatha Christie’s Hercule Poirot gets a little pretentious for me, I’ll take Miss Marple any time and _The Murder of Roger Ackroyd_ is one of the best. I’ve also been known to have a crush on Lord Peter Wimsey. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2009, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-mystery-recommendations/505494/30 "2009-08-09T00:43:26Z")
> [@Ruby](#): > > I had totally forgotten about Daphne du Maurier. Rebecca was one of my favorite books in my youth. On the recommendation of my sister, it’s the only du Maurier I’ve ever read - but it’s very, very good. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2009, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-mystery-recommendations/505494/31 "2009-08-09T00:51:26Z")
Just posted this in the dystopian-novel thread, too, but it fits here too: _Fatherland_ by Robert Harris is an alternative-history mystery, set in 1964. Nazi Germany has conquered Europe and severely worn down the Soviet Union, and is engaged in a cold war with the U.S. Hitler is about to have his first summit meeting in Berlin with President Joseph Kennedy when an SS criminal investigator begins looking into the mysterious deaths of senior Nazi Party officials. A very good, very chilling novel. ---
**Author:** ![wonky](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wonky/32/393_2.png) [@wonky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wonky)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2009, 12:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-mystery-recommendations/505494/32 "2009-08-09T00:53:43Z")
I like Elizabeth Peters and Margaret Frazer, Siege. And Peters when she writes as Barbara Michaels, too. ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2009, 12:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-mystery-recommendations/505494/33 "2009-08-09T00:56:08Z")
It’s non-fiction (which is icing on the cake for me), but check out The Suspicions of Mr. Whicher. Very engaging book. Good mystery. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2009, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-mystery-recommendations/505494/34 "2009-08-09T02:24:49Z")
> [@Ruby](#): > > I had totally forgotten about Daphne du Maurier. Rebecca was one of my favorite books in my youth. > [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > On the recommendation of my sister, it’s the only du Maurier I’ve ever read - but it’s very, very good. An excellent Alfred Hitchcock film, too. Winner of the Best Picture Oscar for 1940. ---
**Author:** ![Savannah](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b3f665/32.png) [@Savannah](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Savannah)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2009, 6:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-mystery-recommendations/505494/35 "2009-08-09T06:24:54Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > Just posted this in the dystopian-novel thread, too, but it fits here too: > > _Fatherland_ by Robert Harris is an alternative-history mystery, set in 1964. Just came across this book recommended in another thread on another board. I think I’ve read it three times now, and if it stands up to re-reading, it’s pretty damned good. It’s good. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-mystery-recommendations/505494.md?page=1)