Miss maud silver, created by british writer patricia wentworth, was a detective who appeared for the first. Much to her surprise, the one man she had hoped to forget, the enigmatic and compelling nicholas brisbane is among her fathers houseguests, and he is not. And not only are these books by a female author, they are some of the best mystery books in the genre, period, regardless. Note that the following list is limited to the authors who remained actively writing in the last 50 years. These fantastic crime stories and thriller novels that will have you on the edge of your seat til the very last page. The best female detectives in fiction written by women. This is not surprising as we have previously discussed at great length that crime fiction and mystery is increasingly a womans game see our overview of the 25 top female crime writers of the. What comes below is a list of some of the most notable female crime writers which have laid the foundation for the genre of crime, mystery, and suspense. The best female detectives in fiction written by women theres nothing like a good mystery novel when the need for a bit of pageturning escapism arises. In other words, any woman involved with investigating and solving a. Detective work is often mistakenly attributed to the old boys club. The mysteries are always intriguing and sinister without being scary. Lists of authors list of mystery writers list of thriller authors list of female detective characters detective fiction.
In 1972, the prolific thriller writer was named the grand master of the mystery writers of america. From miss marple to kinsey millhone, the pages of mystery fiction are packed with brilliant lady sleuths. There is no female detective we love more than agatha christies miss jane marple. She bears a lot of similarities with agatha christies jane. Anne holts top 10 female detectives books the guardian. Recommendations of cozy mystery authors for new cozy mystery readers. Watson, max davine, stuart woods, and the girl who kicked the hornets nest all male author. Armchair detectives, mysteries, and thrillers are all acceptable genres. Poe started off writing short mystery stories, eventually to become the father of this genre. Emilie richards, a truth for a truth a ministry is murder mystery this book isnt precisely a clerical mystery in that the amateur sleuth is the wife of the minister and so, i began reading with less than enthusiasm. In compiling this updated version of our female detective list, our definition of detective is wideranging. Now the police detective kusanagi suspects a woman called yasuko for the murder. Elderly and inconspicuous with a bewildered demeanor, she thwarted the expectations of not only criminals and crimestoppers, but of readers toousing her wits and wiles to solve some of christies most perplexing mysteries.
Gods and beasts and three other novels by denise mina this female detective is a bit different to the others on this list in. A crime novel from the point of view of a female detective is much more than just a difference of chromosomes. If you love mysteries and tale of the ol west, then this is one for you. The series will make more sense if you read them in order. These authors will captivate your imagination with. Popular female detective mysteries books goodreads. The mystery authors page is useful if you know the name of a series e. Discover the best bookstore onlineshop over 6 million books and 4. See more ideas about female detective, novels, books. His plot includes all the basics that you would need to get indulged into a mystery novel. These are the best mystery authors that go beyond simply writing a fun mystery and really elevate or add to the mystery genre in some way. See more ideas about world literature, author and mystery. James is a bit of a departure on this list her books, featuring scotland yard detective adam dalgliesh, err a little more towards the thriller and away from the cozy mystery genre.
Follow along with actressturneddetective dayna anderson as she attempts to. A crime novel from the point of view of a female detective is much more than just a. Many of these authors may also overlap with authors of crime fiction, mystery fiction, or thriller fiction. Both heroine and detective, amateur and professional, sister fidelma never fails to captivate the reader. Dedicated to those of us who love british mystery books, tv shows and movies. Jul 16, 2019 explore tabbyvillefares board female detective and mystery novel.
The recurring sleuths below are just a few of our favorites. Best female crimemysterythriller writers 1089 books. It would be helpful if the name of the detective was also mentioned beside the book title. The 8 books by women authors that changed our lives though james patterson might be the one getting 17book deals for millions, some of. From stories of inspiring female sleuths to hardboiled detective novels, these are the kind of books that inspire bingereading. The 30 best female detectives and amateur sleuths in mystery fiction.
They are not necessarily the best of their respective series, but they are all very good. So read our list of the best mystery books for women written by female authors. Lauren beukes born 1976 claudia bishop pseudonym for mary stanton born 1947 cara black born 1951 suzanne blanc 19151999 eleanor taylor bland 19442010 enid blyton 18971968 geraldine bonner 18701930 miriam borgenicht 19151992 gail bowen born 1942 rhys bowen pseudonym for janet quinharkin. We aim to showcase the finest authors of books in the mystery genre, whose stories either feature british detectives or the crimes take place within the british isles. Sherlock holmes take up a fair chunk of popculture fiction real.
After reading your recommendations for some fantastic detectives, underrated crime books and books that would work well on the big screen, we had an inkling that there were a few fans of certain authors in our midst. Discover the greatest female detectives of all time. May 31, 2018 these are the best mystery authors that go beyond simply writing a fun mystery and really elevate or add to the mystery genre in some way. Prolific author of mystery novels featuring lawyer detective arthur g. Well, the reigning queen of the genre, mary higgins clark, has sold more than 100 million books in the u.
Prolific author of mystery novels featuring lawyerdetective arthur g. A mans dead body is found and identified thereafter. Top 10 female detectives in fiction books the guardian. With a new bbc series out in 2015, theres a reason that this is the best mystery by a female author.
A very informative and valuable listing of crime and mystery fiction titles including some well known authors and more importantly some authors who deserve to be better known e. Silver is a retired governess who started to practice as private detective. From sandra brown to sara blaedel, we publish the best mystery books of all time from female mystery writers. Cornwell is known for her series of crime novels about medical examiner dr. Jack reacher, but it has momentarily failed you who the author is, or youre simply interested in learning about new authors you want to start catching up to. The mystery genre has long benefited from the solid womans footprint in the genre, both on the character side and the author side and many of these female detectives are repeat investigators.
The best female detective books hachette book group. So grab a coffee, sit down, and find your next best read, especially if you are in the mood for something of a female perspective to the prose. These are the authors i think have gone beyond simply writing a fun mystery and have really. Mystery books with old churches and abbeys as their settings. Miss maud silver, created by british writer patricia wentworth, was a detective who appeared for the first time in the 1928 novel grey mask. The 10 best thrillers and crime writing by women best. Please add any books written by females that fall into the crimemysterythriller genres score a books total score is based on multiple factors, including the number of people who have voted for it and how highly those voters ranked the book.
As we have noted before, mystery and crime fiction is largely a female game and plots surrounding female protagonists are also among some of the most popular characters. Her books are tightlywoven, fiendishly plotted and dense. Each of these is the first novel in one of the great british police detective series. I will tell more of it a bit later, you just hold on for seconds.
Do you like your romance novels with a touch of mystery and suspense, or your crime novels with a hint of romance. Like with so many mystery series, i think the city is. And if you know of any flashlight worthy series that would work well on this list, let flashlight worthy know and theyll let me know. Nov, 20 mystery sequels is a participant in the amazon services llc associates program and as an amazon associate, mystery sequels earns from qualifying purchases. Jan 21, 2015 11 female mystery writers to start reading now, because these suspenseful stories are too good to miss. What comes below is a compilation of some of the most notable and sought after mystery, crime fiction and thriller books released in the last 3 months featuring female lead. Top 7 bestselling mystery and thriller books featuring. Five favorite british mystery series by women writers. Jul 18, 2019 this is another story about an amateur female detective set in the 1920s. My new mystery novel, the last place you look, centres on female.
A highly respected tough cop on the streets of new york, she was also a. Her biography and bibliography may be found at the golden age of detection web site. Created by one of our favorite underrated mystery writers, tish. Apr 10, 2018 both heroine and detective, amateur and professional, sister fidelma never fails to captivate the reader.
Christie is the worlds bestselling author, and this is her bestselling title out of her 80some books. Turn a page with these arresting authors janet evanovich, tess gerritsen and louise penny just how popular are murder mysteries. Silette a french detectivecumphilosopher and author of detection. When her 4yearold daughter informs her a sick man is in their yard, honor gillette rushes out to help him. This is another story about an amateur female detective set in the 1920s. Dixon 18921982 jane adams born 1960 carolina garciaaguilera. The best female detectives in fiction written by women penguin. While in reallife america some 35 percent of killings go unsolved, in fiction land you close the book with a thump, satisfied that through grit and guile, the.
Fresh from a sixmonth sojourn in italy, lady julia returns home to sussex to find her fathers estate crowded with family and friends. Megan abbott born 1971 christine adamo born 1965 deborah adams. Charlaine harris is the author of the aurora teagarden series of 8 books. The devotion of suspect x is one of the best japanese crime mystery novels ever written in japan. The mystery genre has long benefited from the solid womans footprint in the genre, both on the character side and the author side and many of these female. The works of female mystery authors is so abundant and high quality that its a difficult task to develop a list of mustreads from the classics. Fbi agentsfemale police officersundercover spellcasterswomen prosecutorsfemale hackersand amateur sleuths of all varieties.