Best detective mystery books according to redditors
We found 174 Reddit comments discussing the best detective mystery books. We ranked the 59 resulting products by number of redditors who mentioned them. Here are the top 20.
We found 174 Reddit comments discussing the best detective mystery books. We ranked the 59 resulting products by number of redditors who mentioned them. Here are the top 20.
One of my absolute favorite novels is Iain Pears' An Instance of the Fingerpost, wherein the narrators of the second, third, and fourth sections each begin by essentially saying, 'the previous speaker lied to you, but now I will tell you the truth...'
"In 1663 Oxford, a servant girl confesses to a murder. But four witnesses--a medical student, the son of a traitor, a cryptographer, and an archivist--each finger a different culprit..." https://www.amazon.com/Instance-Fingerpost-Iain-Pears/dp/0425167720
If your MIL is coming to visit, it probably
wouldwouldn't hurt to have something like this casually laying around.Edit: on phone, mistakes happen
The Meaning of Night by Michael Cox.
Best Served Cold by Joe Abercrombie.
https://www.amazon.com/Murder-Your-Mother-Ellie-Haskell/dp/0553569511
Some fiction to keep it light? Lol
The Meaning of Night
The atmosphere of Bleak House, the sensuous thrill of Perfume, and the mystery of Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell all combine in a story of murder, deceit, love, and revenge in Victorian England.
Not only are there allusions to the books, but the books themselves are full of allusions too...
When the Robert Downey Jr. movie was about to come out I sat down with the three volume annotated Sherlock Holmes and learned more about Victorian/Edwardian culture than I could possibly have wanted to know.
Protip though - The annotations are written from the perspective of Sherlock and Watson being real, so there is a fair amount of tortured logic that can be made sensible by slapping the writer in the head and going "It's only a story!"
http://www.amazon.com/New-Annotated-Sherlock-Holmes-non-slipcased/dp/0393059146/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1330979525&sr=8-3
http://www.amazon.com/New-Annotated-Sherlock-Holmes-Non-slipcased/dp/0393059154/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1330979525&sr=8-4
http://www.amazon.com/New-Annotated-Sherlock-Holmes-Baskervilles/dp/039305800X/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1330979525&sr=8-2
Oh, man, I should totally start using those keyword tags. Thanks for the idea! I will now proceed to steal your steampunk mojo using kindle SEO sorcery.
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00NHY8SYG/keywords=steampunk+detective+mystery
I will pay for this secret buy buying your book and reviewing it on my booktube if I ever have the free time to read ever again.
If you like Name of the Rose, you should read An Instance of the Fingerpost by Iain Pears. In fact, I'm going to make that my suggestion, since it's in ebook form.
Like /u/caffarelli, I have several suggestions that would be great, but they're not in ebook format. A lot of academic presses seem to be really averse to putting their books out that way.
"No one can make you feel inferior without your consent" - Eleanor Roosevelt
If I win, I'd like this. I read the first book in the series and it was so good...I need more!
Read it as it was published, as the first readers experienced it. Reading A Study in Scarlet might be the only exception to the rule since it might unfairly turn you away. If you have the time, as others suggested, read them along with an annotated guide
This one is excellent, but there are others.
Just don't read the first few chapters (about characters, dates, places etc) without reading the stories first.
Frankly, that's how I feel about most annotated volumes. I've only found three that don't make me want to rip my hair out and hurl the book into the fireplace.
The Complete Annotated Alice, annotated by Martin Gardner. This annotation is so good that it is almost mandatory for reading Alice. It illuminates nagging questions and helps bring the full experience to life. There are hundreds of jokes that are either cultural or highly technical, and Gardner points them out in such a way that they're hilarious. Highly recommended.
The Annotated Sherlock Holmes, annotated by William S. Baring-Gould. Extremely well done; the discussions about the stories, Victoriana, and the writing process are not only informative, but enthralling. It's exceptional. Later attempts at annotations (specifically those by Leslie S. Klinger) are best avoided. He intrudes upon the stories without adding anything of value. Awful.
The Annotated Carmilla, annotated by D. MacDowell Blue is a very nice annotation that digs down deep into the subtext and the mysteries of the novella. He informs without ever being intrusive. Nicely done.
Virtually any other annotaiton should be avoided. The various attempts to annotate The Wind in the Willows, for instance, are so horrendous that I threw them away. That is the worst insult I can give a book.
I have been super obsessed with Agatha Christie this summer! Here are three of my favorite novels so far:
The Secret Adversary: Really smart dialogue and the characters are just so refreshingly original. Tuppence is such a unique female detective. I like her a lot. There are so many twists in the plot that will keep you guessing. The book is very fun to read. I finished it in two days!
​
The Poirot mystery series is really fun to read because it is both intriguing and humorous. I enjoy the dynamics between Hastings and Poirot. The dialogue is really witty and the plot is fascinating. I just finished the first two books in the series both are great reads. Hope you enjoy them!
The Murder on the Links, The Mysterious Affair at Styles
You might enjoy the annotated collection:
http://www.amazon.com/Annotated-Sherlock-Holmes-Fifty-Six-Complete/dp/0517502917/
Here are all the local Amazon links I could find:
amazon.co.uk
amazon.ca
amazon.com.au
amazon.in
amazon.com.mx
amazon.de
amazon.it
amazon.es
amazon.com.br
amazon.nl
Beep bloop. I'm a bot to convert Amazon ebook links to local Amazon sites.
I currently look here: amazon.com, amazon.co.uk, amazon.ca, amazon.com.au, amazon.in, amazon.com.mx, amazon.de, amazon.it, amazon.es, amazon.com.br, amazon.nl, if you would like your local version of Amazon adding please contact my creator.
Not Victorian-based, but it's set in the 17th century, and I think it would satisfy: An Instance of the Fingerpost by Iain Pears.
They are pricier and not at all portable, but the Annotated three-volume set is my favorite:
https://www.amazon.com/New-Annotated-Sherlock-Holmes-Complete/dp/0393059162/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1509829992&sr=1-2&keywords=sherlock+holmes+annotated
and
https://www.amazon.com/New-Annotated-Sherlock-Holmes-Slipcased/dp/039305800X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1509829992&sr=1-1&keywords=sherlock+holmes+annotated
If you don't mind a little humor in your mystery, J. A. Lang's Chef Maurice stories are fun. (And the first one is free on Kindle.)
I think it's a rather easy word to spell. It stands out as a sore thumb to me incorrect now. If it was bad spelling you would authors and publishers would surely know how to spell it. https://www.amazon.co.uk/Adventure-Flying-Blue-Pidgeon-Professionals-ebook/dp/B01MYUKNQP
An Instance of the Fingerpost
Next best guesses:
https://www.amazon.com/Death-Whitewater-Church-Inishowen-Mystery-ebook/dp/B07DZ1WHP3/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_product_top?ie=UTF8
***
https://www.amazon.com/Apothecary-Melchior-Mystery-Olafs-Church/dp/0720618444/ref=sr_1_48?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1536006365&sr=1-48&keywords=church
https://www.amazon.com/Actuary-Rural-English-Mystery-Calculated-ebook/dp/B00XQTQV00/
https://www.amazon.com/Against-Gods-Remarkable-Story-Risk/dp/0471295639/
A Monstrous Regiment of Women. I recently listened to The Beekeeper's Apprentice as an audiobook on a road trip, which is the first book by Laurie King to feature Mary Russell. I thought it was so fantastic and I've been dying to read the others in the series since then. I'm on a huge Sherlock kick and the writing and style of the book are great. It puts a new twist on old characters and I really like it. Also, having a highly intelligent female protagonist is awesome. Reviews of the book have mentioned that the romance in the book is sparse - something which appeals to me. I don't want it to overwhelm the book, but sometimes it's nice to have a little bit in there. Additionally, the character development in the first book was astounding. I usually hate long pages about characters, but in the first book, it was interesting, well written, and never seemed to drag on or get very boring. Granted, this may be due in large part to the narrator of the book being amazing. But still. Reviews, again, state that the character development in this book is just as awesome - especially when relationships are thoroughly examined. I loved the entire plot of the first book and would love to read more in the series.
I'm currently reading Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman. I just finished reading Divergent by Veronica Roth and next on my list is Insurgent, again by Veronica Roth and the second book in the Divergent series.
So it goes.
Problem Solved