Need some mystery/crime book recommendations

[pezspencer]

It was inevitable. I've read all the books written by my favorite author, Lawrence Block. Anyone have a recommendation? Some of my other favorite authors are Lawrence Sanders, John Grisham, Rex Stout, and Sue Grafton.

[STINGYBRIMSandBOURBON]

Patricia highsmith
ed mcbain
gregory mcdonald

and then try the publisher HARD CASE CRIMES (http://www.hardcasecrime.com/)

[sullivanpm]

Robert B. Parker
There are a lot of Spencer books.

[langod]

Michael Connelly
James Patterson

Of course, if you've never read Raymond Chandler's classic detective novels, you're really missing out.

If you like forensic crime, Patricia Cornwell's earlier stuff is pretty good. (Then she got pretty full of herself and started doing weird things with her characters and writing style.)
Kathy Reichs also writes pretty good forensic crime. (far better than the asinine TV show that's supposedly based on her books)

[ScottS]

Hammett

[langod]

Robert B. Parker
There are a lot of Spencer books.

Except if you were a true fan, you'd know it's "Spenser" -- "with an 'S'" :tongue:

And yes, they're good reads.

[Suzuki]

I like Ian Rankin.

[pezspencer]

Thank you, Gentleman. The B & B community once again pulls through!

[IGNITERS]

ANYTHING by Mickey Splliane....I THE JURY,KISS ME DEADLY...ANYTHING ! They are some of the best books out there!

[gunner6477]

Anything by Nelson DeMille

[Dr. Mike]

I won't tell you to read all of the Agatha Christie mysteries, but I would definitely try "And Then There Were None." Great mystery!

[pezspencer]

I won't tell you to read all of the Agatha Christie mysteries, but I would definitely try "And Then There Were None." Great mystery!

"And Then There Were None/Ten Little Indians" was my absolute favorite Agatha Christie novel. I was disappointed by the 1965 film as they changed the ending.

[sullivanpm]

Except if you were a true fan, you'd know it's "Spenser" -- "with an 'S'" :tongue:

And yes, they're good reads.
Good point
I have never read a Spenser book.
I am working my way through the jesse stone novels now.
Hammet
Spillane
Chandler
and
Rex Stout
All excellent authors

[ant4177]

The Murder of Roger Ackroyd is probably my favourite Agatha Christie but I can't say why without ruining the ending. I highly recommend this if you haven't read it already.

[kestrel]

pezpencer

I recommend P D James's A Taste For Death, in which the murder is commited with a straight razor.

All of P D JAmes is worth reading, as are Sue Grafton and Scott Turrow.

The Brother Cadfael books by Ellis Peters provide a change of pace by placing conventional whodunit stories in a very accurately detailed medieval setting.
Peters also writes modern mysteries and, under the name Edith Pargeter, writes excellent historical novels.

Best Regards

Graham

[TorzJohnson]

I don't usually read in that genre, but two that were enjoyable were "Headhunter" by Michael Slade (a little gruesome and in the "Red Dragon" vein) and "The Death Collectors" by Jack Kerley.

[Governor11201]

Old School

Dashiell Hammett: The Thin Man - The Maltese Falcon - Red Harvest

Jim Thompson: The Killer Inside Me - Pop 1280 - A Swell Looking Babe

Raymond Chandler - The Big Sleep (read this, you'll read all his other Phillip Marlowe's)


New School

Carl Hiassen: Skin Tight - Tourist Season

Lawrence Shames - Florida Straights

Anthony Bourdain - Gone Bamboo

[ScottS]

"The Alienist" by Caleb Carr was a very good read, if you're into that sort of stuff.

[WithTheGrain]

Robert B. Parker
There are a lot of Spencer books.

+1, but I was going to go with the Jesse Stone novels. There are only a handful of them, but they are really great. I have read 1 Spenser so far, I enjoyed it but not as much. Then again, I was starting with Parker's first novel and it is less polished for that reason.

[Bowcephalus]

James Lee Burke's, "Swan Peak" set in Montana. Gritty and profane at times but the guy packs a lot in a paragraph. He definately has a talent painting pictures in the readers mind with the printed word. Excellent in character development. His politics definately come through but this book, the first of his I've read, is a page turner.

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=burke&x=17&y=24

[gunner6477]

"The Alienist" by Caleb Carr was a very good read, if you're into that sort of stuff.

+1 !!!

[jazzman]

I think Michael Connelly is in a class by himself. Daniel Silva's Gabriel Allon series, which is more espionage than police procedural, can't be beat. Lee Child's Reacher series, about a former MP major roaming the world to deliver ass whuppins, is lots of fun, especially the more recent books. And if you try to read all of the Ed McBain books, you'll be entertained for life.

[tim8557]

James Patterson and his Alex Cross series

[Conrad]

I recommend Philip Kerr's books.

[geordie]

Benjamin Black, aka John Banville. Top notch. OR IS IT? Hmm. A mystery.

[kongjie]

Someone else mentioned P.D. James. I've enjoyed a couple of her Dalgliesh novels, much better than the television adaptations.

[billybadger]

If you like PD James, you may also like Elizabeth George.

Something slightly different are the books by Henning Mankell, set in Sweden.

Peter Robinson is another very good British author (of which there are plenty :tongue_sm)

[TimmyBoston]

I've been a huge fan of Jonathan Kellerman for years.

[ScottS]

Lets not forget standards like Conan Doyle

[langod]

If you like to mix your Sci-Fi with your detective novels, try Issac Asimov's R. Daneel Olivaw detective novels:
The Caves of Steel,
The Naked Sun,
The Robots of Dawn.

All very good.

[krawlx]

My Name is Red by Orhan Pamuk.

The plot centers around a murder in Istanbul in the 16th (or maybe 15th?) century as Renaissance ideas come into conflict with Islam. The delivery is a bit odd as each chapter is told from the perspective of a different character within the story. I can't remember a book I enjoyed more.

[kestrel]

pez

It just occurred to me; for something really different in the mystery line you might want to check out G K Chesterton's Father Brown stories, and his novel The Man Who Was Thursday.

Fascinating stuff.

Graham

[kwk285]

Ridley Pearson and the Boldt series of books.

Jeffrey Deaver. Anything he writes

[pezspencer]

Hmmm...looks like I'll be in shape for the next couple of years!

[1969Fatboy]

Harlan Coben and Lisa Gardner

[behrendprof]

Can't believe Dorothy Sayers and the incredible Lord Peter Death Bredon Wimsey have not yet made the list. The mystery entitled "The Nine Tailors" has been described as one of the best in the English language and Murder Must Advertise is another excellent Wimsey case.

Note - these are positioned in 20's and 30's England so there is a definite style/tone. I think they are great but not everyone's cup of tea...

[mr00jimbo]

Clockers, by Richard Price. One of the best books I've ever read. About drug dealers and coppers.

[Zach V.]

Try Elmore Leonard for a change of pace.

[Mr-Scruffy]

Patricia D. Cornwell has some good stuff.

[kestrel]

Can't believe Dorothy Sayers and the incredible Lord Peter Death Bredon Wimsey have not yet made the list. The mystery entitled "The Nine Tailors" has been described as one of the best in the English language and Murder Must Advertise is another excellent Wimsey case.

Note - these are positioned in 20's and 30's England so there is a definite style/tone. I think they are great but not everyone's cup of tea...

Quite right. Sayers was a wonderful mystery writer, and The Nine Tailors is arguably the best of the Peter Wimlsey novels. Others in that series include Busman's Honeymoon and Clouds Of Witness. All are worth reading.

My favourite Sayers mystery is The Documents In The Case; a story of murder by poison told in the form of correspondence exchanged between the characters. It is a really excellent novel.

Best Regards

Graham

[jon619]

Check out John Connolly's books as well... murder / mystery combined with a touch of the occult... good page turners.

[Not A Nice Person]

I tend toward the caper/crime end of the mystery spectrum, so some of my favorite authors there are Elmore Leonard, Carl Hiassen, Tommy Dorsey, and Robert Crais.

For something so gritty it makes Mickey Spillane look like a big ol' wussy girl, check out Andrew Vachss. :thumbup1:

NANP™

[professorchaos]

Anything by James Lee Burke or Dennis Lehane. If you are looking for something to keep you up late laughing, you cannot do better than early Carl Hiaason.

[Bowcephalus]

Just finished "Swan Peak" on the front porch this morning......The guy puts you on the scene in your mind..You hear the wind, smell the rain, anticipate the violence..Great character development...I swear I don't know how he keeps all those little subtle details in order.......

[ECOSSE]

Another vote for Ian Rankin. Start at the first Rebus novel and work your way through. Great stuff.

[DeaconKC]

Two recommendations for just great books, The Chase by Clive Cussler, set in 1906 about the hunt for a bank robber, and Tom Clancy's Without Remorse, about a Navy SEAL going "off the reservation". Both are one more chapter, then bed, books.

[scottb]

anything by james lee burke or dennis lehane. If you are looking for something to keep you up late laughing, you cannot do better than early carl hiaason.

+1

[chris456]

Lets not forget standards like Conan Doyle

I just wanted to quote this for emphasis. Love the Sherlock Holmes collection.

I also second Dennis Lehane

And I would like to add Lee Child to the mix. I think Jack Reacher is a great character.

[auk1124]

I have a love/hate thing with the Lee Child "Reacher" books. Love the whole modern take on the spaghetti western loner concept, but I swear half the time when I read them I think Lee Child is just poking fun at us Yanks.

[velvetgoldmine]

Anything by Michael Dibdin (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michael_Dibdin). The Aurelio Zen stories are incomparable, and you'll be sorry when you get to the last one.