Crime fiction is a genre I at last feel ready to tackle, having mostly stuck to social realism and fantasy otherwise. So what good works are there? I know of Holmes and Christy. Are these good starter crime fiction? I'm interested in crime fiction with a lot of emphasis on deduction, since I feel my logic is understimulated recently. Thanks!
I don't know a lot about crime fiction, but I've read quite a bit of true crime stuff if that helps. Is there anything in particular you're looking for?
I know it's pretty obvious, but I don't have anything except not to follow real criminals into their lairs for close experience. While most things may inspire writing from personal observation... others are best noted from a significant distance. To sum it up don't follow the baddies and interview them for their life stories. :lol: Humor aside, I've seen a few that manage to pull it off quite well but can't think of any good names off the top of my head. Most of them I've read or watched are quite dated.
I'm not sure I've got the right genre here, but you can look it up and decide. I would suggest anything (preferably in order) in the Alex Cross series. Edit: From the Wiki: Alex Cross is a crime, mystery, and thriller novel series written by James Patterson.
Hah. :eusa_clap The only genuine mystery story I've read is Agatha Christie's And Then There Were None. It's the quintessential whodunit of course, but the elaborate setup made me think that she had to have worked backwards in order to make it all come together. You start with the intended scenario at the end, then write the causes of that end, which are the results of previous causes. If I had to write a crime thriller, that's how I'd do it. It's not a story where you can just pick a setting and wing it.
Oooh, wait, I didn't mean I wanted to write a crime fiction! I just meant I wanted to read one... XD Sorry, now that I look back at my original post I see it might have appeared as though I wanted to write one. I just kind of read pretty actively, which is what I meant by "tackle". Argentwing, I've heard of that one. Is it good? It seems like it could be. : )
Ooooh, crime fiction! Well, it depends what exactly you want to read. There are obviously the typical crime stories à la Sherlock Holmes (A classic!) or legal thrillers like any book by John Grisham - "The Firm", "The Client", "The Pelican Brief" or "A Time to Kill", just to name a few... or if you want really gruesome murders I'd recommend the Rizzoli & Isles series by Tess Gerritsen (The Surgeon... Gerritsen has a problem, let me tell you!). Then there is of course the Wallander series by Henning Mankell or the Stieg Larsson trilogy. And last but definitely not least - FITZEK! Seriously, look up Sebastian Fitzek. He's one of the best. His books always keep me on the edge of my seat and the murderer always surprises me... I could go on and on... I hope I could help you at least a little bit! Have fun!
Do go on and on if you want to. :3 I'm thinking I want to go back to this thread later for inspiration on. Thanks for the tips! And thanks for recommending Fitzek. I might try to read that in German, as I do know some German.
An amazing author is Linwood Barclay. He's crime/thriller but he has intriguing story lines and you find it impossible to put his books down. Recommend him completely.
Just watch the movie Pulp Fiction if you want to get a good beat on crime from the point of view of criminals.
Larsson bored me. It was all about Salander... Check out some Raymond Chandler, his Marlowe stories are good (Farewell, my lovely or The long goodbye for instance). Marlowe was more of a detective, I'm not sure how well this fits into your description of 'crime fiction'... If you would like to try 'True Crime', there is an awesome book called 'Evil Relations' by David Smith and Carol Ann Lee, about the Moor Murders. Also another good one would be 'The Irish scissor sisters' by Mick McCaffrey. This is more And if you love a good 'plot twist', you should check True Story by Michael Finkel. I think they made a movie of it... I think, not sure right now...
Thanks Isaac and Michael. : ) And thanks Benway. I'm not particularly looking into movies right now but if I do in the future I'll be sure to try and remember that. ^_^
If it's Mystery Crime fiction you're after, read Ann Cleeves, Colin Dexter (maybe), P. D. James, Caroline Graham (for a good laugh) and M. C. Beaton. Of course, Agatha Christie is a must. I love a good murder mystery!
Speaking of German crime books... there's one in particular that's really fascinating to read. Ever heard of "Glennkill: Ein Schafskrimi" or as it is called in English "Three Bags Full: A Sheep Detective Story"? It's written by the German author Leonie Swann, and yes, it is a sheep detective story. It sounds crazy, I know, but it's an amazing book. One day the sheep find their shepherd dead on the meadow with a spade through his body and want to solve his murder. It's incredible to see how weird humans are from the sheep's point of view and it's hilarious. An easy read and good to kill time.
I don't have a lot of experience with the genre, but I'd definitely recommend the Sherlock Holmes stories. I've read almost all of them at least once and they really are very impressive. There's an inimitable style and sense of fun about all of them, and they make the reader work to understand the mystery without being so confusing. They're great. There's also a short story I read recently called Arson Plus by David Walser. I personally found it tricky to follow but it's part of an ongoing series and it has a similar style to the Sherlock Holmes stories - maybe those would be a good start.
And Then There Were None is the ultimate crime classic. Personally, I'd love to find some good mafia stories, but the only good mafia stories I've ever seen were short films. XD Perhaps it would be best for me to just write my own... or make my own short film. >_> Heh... Heh... Short films...
