This year, I did have a theme for my posts. My theme was authors or books in the sub-genre of police procedurals. At Wikipedia, this is broadly defined as "a subgenre of detective fiction which attempts to convincingly depict the activities of a police force as they investigate crimes."
I was aware that I have a preference for mysteries where the detective is in the police force, but I was surprised to find how many mysteries I own that feature such detectives. And after finishing the Crime Fiction Alphabet I still have a lot left to read.
A is for...The Stately Home Murder: Catherine Aird
B is for Earl Derr Biggers (review of The Chinese Parrot)
C is for Chinatown Beat by Henry Chang
D is for The Dark Winter by David Mark
E is for Except the Dying by Maureen Jennings
F is for A Fatal Grace by Louise Penny
(Review of The Silence of the Rain, set in Brazil. First published 1997 in Portuguese, translated into English by Benjamin Moser in 2002.)
H is for Cynthia Harrod-Eagles (review of Fell Purpose)
I is for Viktor Arnar Ingólfsson
(Review of House of Evidence, set in Iceland. Translated by Andrew Cauthery and Björg Árnadóttir.)
J is for J. Robert Janes (review of Kaleidoscope)
K is for Jim Kelly (review of Death Wore White)
L is for The Last Policeman by Ben H. Winters
M is for Ed McBain (reviews of The Mugger and The Pusher)
N is for Håkan Nesser
(Review of Mind’s Eye. Author is Swedish. Translated by Laurie Thompson.)
O is for Open Season by Archer Mayor
P is for Plots and Errors by Jill McGown
Q is for A Question of Identity by Susan Hill
R is for Roseanna by Maj Sjöwall and Per Wahlöö
S is for Skulduggery by William Marshall
T is for Helene Tursten
(Review of Detective Inspector Huss, set in Sweden. Translated by Stephen T. Murray.)
U is for Unholy Ground by John Brady
V is for ... Seeking Whom He May Devour by Fred Vargas
(compiles A White Arrest, Taming the Alien, and The McDead)
X is for ... The Devotion of Suspect X by Keigo Higashino
Y is for ... The Yard by Alex Grecian
Z is for Aurelio Zen
(Review of Vendetta by Michael Dibdin)
My absolute favorite read of these books was The White Trilogy by Ken Bruen. I loved all three books in the trilogy, but especially Taming the Alien and The McDead.
Plots and Errors by Jill McGown was a re-read but still was another top read in this group. Also The Silence of the Rain by Luiz Alfredo Garcia-Roza.
14 comments:
What a wide selection - well done Tracy! I've read 8 or 9 of them (mostly clustered round the middle of your alphabet for some reason...). Will you do it again in 2014?
Tracy - Thanks for sharing this summing-up. I learned a lot from your participation in the meme, and Moira's right - you've got a terrific variety here.
Moira, I am planning to do it again, assuming Kerri at Mysteries in Paradise hosts the meme again in 2014. Probably won't go for a theme this time though.
Thanks, Margot. It was fun and I look forward to doing it again next year.
I've also read nine of these books, but you've got some other interesting titles here. I was chugging along reading at a good clip, but then life got in the way, and I haven't been able to get back to reading crime fiction.
And I'm right in the middle of the latest Sara Paretsky, Critical Mass, which is excellent, full of feistiness, wit and some science and WWII history.
Yes, Tracy, lots of variety and dedication. Thanks for sharing this list.
Well done for completing, I've read your Bruens and David Mark. A few of the others are unread.......McBain, McGown, Nesser and Garcia-Roza. I think I may have read the Rosanna book in a previous life when I was on top of my reading (depends if it is the 1st in the series)
Kathy, that Paretsky book sounds good. I read some of her earlier books, but now it has been so long I need to start at the beginning again. I am not getting as much reading done lately either. This always seems to happen at the end of the year, like I run out of steam.
Thank you, Prashant. I want to read more by most of these authors.
Thanks, Col. I am sure you will like McBain. And the first ones are short books. Very satisfying. Rosanna is the first book in that series. I had probably read it years ago too... but none of it came back to me as I was reading it.
Congrats on finishing the meme. I enjoyed all your posts.
Thanks, Sarah. It is an effort to keep up with the entire alphabet, but I love lists, and this was a great opportunity to make lots of lists, and revise, and reconsider.
Congrats on finishing such a long meme this year, Tracy. I've read 5 or 6 of these authors, and I hope to get to Ken Bruen soon. I love this wrap up post too.
Thanks, Rebecca. Ken Bruen is one of my favorite authors. Not for everyone, but definitely worth trying.
Post a Comment