MYSTERIES, POLICE PROCEDURALS, and THRILLERS

We’re always amazed that there are otherwise brilliant people who say they don’t read mysteries. With the exception of a few literary classics, this is largely time-filling escape literature, and I realize that few folks have the kind of time to fill that we have. But it’s entertaining and often informative about other times, places, and ways of life. So anyway: Who would I recommend? Some of these authors’ individual titles are better than others but I can rarely remember which. Sometimes an author builds up to his or her best work and then tapers off. Try a few.

Humor: The wit and fun of Laurence Block’s Bernie Rhodenbarr and of Marissa Piesman’s Nina Fischman. The first few of Janet Evanovich’s Stephanie Plum books are good slapstick. Neslson Demille’s Paul Brenner thrillers are surprisingly witty. Up County is a good Vietnam story.

“Literary”: Jane Langton’s Homer Kelly, maybe Memorial Hall. My favorite Dorothy Sayers are Gaudy Night & The Nine Taylors. I enjoy the rare book trade scene in John Dunning’s Cliff Janeway books. Some Robert Crais stuff is good, and I like Colin Dexter, except for the last Inspector Morse book, in which he kills Morse off. Mystery writers should not be allowed to kill their protagonists.

Classics: Most of those listed above, and throw in Ross MacDonald’s Lew Archer and Bill Pronzini’s “Nameless” detective as late "Phillip Marlowes." I love Rex Stout’s Nero Wolfe mysteries, but they're an acquired taste. Except for the first one or two, they’re all good and much the same formula for 50 years. Accept his misogyny, orchids, and gourmandizing, and enjoy his classy office, ratiocination, and Archy Goodwin.

Lately: We've discovered two excellent series of British/Scots police procedurals by Christopher Hill and Ian Rankin. I’ve liked Alafair Burke (Jamie Lea Burke’s daughter) good courtroom scenes; Donna Leon’s Venice atmosphere; We both like Lisa Scottaline’s Philadelphia law office stories; Alexander McCall-Smith’s Sunday Afternoon Philosophy Club, Kate Wilhelm’s Barbara Holloway defense lawyer novels. Stuart Kaminsky’s Abe Lieberman is always kind and wise. Michael Connolly’s Harry Bosch, William Tapley’s Brady Coyne, and Gerry Boyle’s Maine newspaper reporter.

I like female detectives just fine. Authors Marcia Muller, Sue Grafton, Karen Krajewski, and Linda Barnes are all okay. Sunny Randall is a surprising good Robert Parker character. I object when any of them takes foolish chances. “I know I shouldn’t go into this spooky pitch black Mafia headquarters warehouse alone, unarmed, and without even a flashlight, but what the heck, I’m a character in a book.” N enjoys the friend and family sidelights continuity in some of these series. I find it can get in the way. No doubt a man/woman thing.

Other pet writing peeves: 1) No appetite, to indicate minor stress. As a hearty eater, I find this deeply offensive. 2) An idea “at the back of my mind” (obviously “the” idea which solves everything). Does this happen in life? I have inspirations, but they don’t prefigure themselves annoyingly for days. 3) Any messing with time. All mysteries should be linear. 4) Visits to the mind of the villain (who always thinks in italics!) I just skip these. 5) Prologues. I skip them too. Just tell the story! 6) Too much drinking 7) Dumb stuff, like assuming you know who a phone call is from. 8) Too much angst. We all do angst; it's the human condition. Just tell the story. -- Such a fuss budget. I should write my own.

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FAVORITE MYSTERIES and THRILLERS

Some of the mystery writers we/I like. We’ve read and enjoyed lots of other authors, but these stand out. Often the earlier books in a series are the better, but sometimes not the first. Codes: (h) humor; (v) violence, (w) good writing, (t) thriller, (n) primarily N; (r) primarily R;

Author -- Character(s) -- codes -- Setting

CLASSICS
Chandler, Raymond – Phillip Marlowe (pi) -- (r) – CA
Sayers, Dorothy – Peter Whimsey, Harriet Vane – (w) (h) - GB
Stout, Rex – Nero Wolfe, Archie Goodwin (pi) – NYC
Tey, Josephine – (w) - GB

Andrews, Russell – Justin Westwood (pol chief) – Long Is.
Balducci, David – (t) (r)
Bannister, Jo - England
Barnes, Linda – Carlotta Carlyle (pi) - Boston
Barr, Nevada – Anna Pigeon (park ranger) – (r) - National Parks
Benjamin, Carol Lea – Rachel Alenander (pi, dogs), Dashiell (dog) - NYC
Block, Laurence – Bernie Rhodenbarr (book store), Carolyn Kaiser - (h) - NYC
Block, Laurence – Matt Scudder (pi) – NYC
Boyle, Gerry – (reporter), (girlfriend social worker) – Maine
Buchanan, Edna – Britt Montero (reporter) - Miami
Buffa, D.W. – Joseph Antonelli (defense lawyer) – (w) – Portland, Or.
Burke, Alafair – (prosecuter) (w) – NY, Portland, Or.
Burke, Jamie Lee – Dave Robicheux (cop) – (v) (r) – LA
Cannell, Stephen J – Shane Scully (det III) - LA and others (t)
Cleary, Jon – Scobie Malone (cop) – (r) – NSW, Aust.
Coben, Harlan – (t)
Connelly, Michael - Harry Bosch (hom. det., then pi) - (cop, pi) – SF
Cornwell, Patricia – Kay Scarpetta (medical examiner) – (r) - VA
Craig, Philip – JW Jackson (retired cop) – Martha’s Vinyard
Crais, Robert – Elvis Cole (pi)- (w) – LA
Crombie, Deborah
Deaver, Jeffery - Kathryn Dance (det) - CA - and others
DeMille, Nelson – Paul Brenner (Army CID) (h) (t)
Deutermann, P. T. – (t) (r)
Dexter, Colin – Inspector Morse (cop) – (h) (r) – Oxford
Dunning, John – Cliff Janeway (ret. police det., used books) - Denver
Eidson, Bill – Jack Merchant, Sara Ballard (marine repo) - Boston
Eisler, Barry – John Rain (hit man) (t) (v) (r) - Japan
Elkins, Aaron – Gideon Oliver (anthro prof)
Evanovich, Janet – Stephanie Plum (bail bonds) - (h) - Trenton
Francis, Dick – (horses; hero always badly injured) – (n) – GB
Gardner, Lisa – Bobby Dodge (cop) - Boston
George, Elizabeth – Lindley, St. James, Haver (cops) – (n) – GB
Goldsborough, Robert – Nero Wolfe (pi) (continued) – NYC
Gruber, Michael - (w)
Grafton, Sue – Kinsey Milhone (pi) – CA
Grippando, James -
Haddom, Jane - Gregor Demarkian (ret FBI) - Philadelphia
Hamilton, Steve – Alex McNight (ex-cop, pi) - MICH
Harvey, Michael - Michael Kelly (pi) - CHICAGO - The Chicago Way, The Fifth Floor
Hill, Reginald - Dalziel/Pasco (pol dets)(h)(w) - Yorkshire
Hillerman, Tony – Lt. Joe Leaphorn, Officer Jim Chee (Navaho cops) – (r) – NM
Hunter, Stephen - Bob Lee Swagger, marine sniper (t)(v)(r)
Iles, Greg – (t) – New Orleans
Jance, J.A. – (n)
Kaminsky, Stuart – Lt. Abe Lieberman (Jewish cop; kind) – Chicago
Kellerman, Jonathan – Alex Delaware (psychologist) – CA
Kellerman, Susan – (n)
Kelly, Jim – Philip Dryden (reporter) – Ely, England
King, Jonathan – Max Freeman (pi) – FL
King, Laurie R. – Kate Martinelli (police det) – SF
Krajewski, Karen – V.U. Warshawski (pi) - Chicago
Kronenwetter, Michael. - Hank Berlin (non-hardboiled pi) – sm. town Wisc.
Langton, Jane – Homer Kelly (prof) (w) (h) – Boston
Lawson, Mike - Joe DeMarco (lawyer, fixer) (t)(v)(r) - D.C.
Leon, Donna – Commissario Guido Brunetti (cop) – (r) – Venice
Lippman, Laura – Tess Monaghan (pi) - Baltimore
Loomis, Jon - Frank Coffin (Det)(h) - P'town (atmosphere)
Lovesy, Peter – Det. Peter Diamond - Bath, England
Macdonald, Ross – Lew Archer (pi) – CA
Marron, Margaret – Deborah Knott (Judge) (n) – N.C.
Mathews, Francine – Merry Folger (Det Sgt)
Mayer, Archer – Detective/Special Agent Joe Gunther (cop) – Vermont
McBain, Ed – Matthew Hope (lawyer) - FL
McCall-Smith, Alexander – Isabel Dalhousie (philosopher) (h) (w) - Edinburgh
McCrumb, Sharon – Sheriff Spenser Arrowood (cop) – (r) - TN
McDonald, John D. – Travis McGee (pi), Meyer (economist) - (v) (r) - FL
McInery, Ralph – Father Dowling (priest) – (r) (h) - Chicago
Muller, Marcia – Sharon McCone (pi) – SF
O’Shaughnessy, Perri (pseud) – Nina Reilly (lawyer) -- CA
Parker, Robert – Chief Jesse Stone (cop) – MA
Parker, Robert – Spenser (pi) – Boston
Parker, Robert – Sunny Randall (pi) - Boston
Parker, T. Jefferson - (police det.) – San Diego
Penny, Louise - Inspector Gamache - Quebec
Piesman, Marissa – Nina Fischman (lawyer, Jewish) – (h) very funny - NYC
Pronzini, Bill – “Nameless” (pi) – SF
Rankin, Ian - DI John Rebus, DS Siobhan Clarke - Edinburgh
Reichs, Kathy – Dr. Temperence Brennan (foren. anthro.) – (r) – NC
Robinson, Peter – Alan Banks (Chief Insp.) - Yorkshire
Rozan, SJ - Lydia Chin, Bill Smith (PI) (w) - NYC
Saulnier, Beth – Ms. Alex Bernier (reporter) -- Cornell
Scottoline, Lisa – Ms. Bennie Rosato (lawyer); also Mary DiNunzio – Philadelphia
Slaughter, Karin – Sara Linton (MD), Jeffrey Tolliver (cop) - Georgia
Tallis, Frank - Dr. Max Liebermann, Det, Oscar Reinhardt - Vienna
Smith, Frank - DCI Paget, DS Tregalles - small city UK
Smith, Martin Cruz – Arkady (cop) – (r) - Russia
Tapley, William – Brady Coyne (lawyer) - Boston
Tracy, P.J (mother/daughter) – Leo Magozzi, Grace (cops, computers) - Minneapolis
White, Randy Wayne – Doc (marine biologist) (v) (r) - FL
White, Stephen – Alan Gregory (psychologist) – Boulder, CO
Wilhelm, Kate – Barbara Holloway (lawyer) - Oregon

Feb 2010