Reviewing the Top 50 Mystery Novels

I began my blog by performing some analyses of the novels included on the Crime Writer's Association and the Mystery Writers of America lists of the top mystery novels. I looked into questions as to sex and age of the authors, time of publication, length of the novels and sub-genre of the plots.

CWA list: When written, male versus female, Yank versus Brit.
MWA list: When written, male versus female, Yank versus Brit.

The CWA list favored British authors, the MWA list favored American authors. Both favored male authors.
The above pie charts reflect the individual authors on the lists, not how many books they wrote.

I used the lists as a personal guide to bulk up on my reading of the classics. Now that I have read a sufficient number, I'm setting out on a mission to compose reviews for the top 50 entries from each list. (Fifty-one for CWA due to a tie).

The lists overlap. Using the top 50 from the two lists, there are a total of 76 entries. Four of these are short story collections and the rest are novels. Of these 76, I have read 53, and I plan to read the others as I proceed with the reviews.

Why Read the Classics?

As a jazz-lover, I am a big fan of the be-bop forties and fifties. This must drive modern jazz musicians crazy. They will tell you a lot has happened since. Similarly, it is true that many mystery fans are engaged by the brilliance of the late-greats such as Agatha Christie, Raymond Chandler and Dorothy L. Sayers, sometimes to the exclusion of modern masters who could profit from a few extra sales.

I would argue that the older pieces are better. Why? To continue the above analogy, one reason that old music seems better than the recent output is that the poorer old pieces have been forgotten. Along these lines, the top novels from 150 years of mysteries have had 150 years to accumulate their best. Extending this argument, the list of all-time greats is still growing, but slowly. The 76 entries in a century-and-a-half, works out to be a single choice every two years.

Because of this, I hold two seemingly contradictory opinions: the classics are the best and these are the good old days.

Furthermore, the enduring classics remain relevant for a reason. Ezra Pound once said that "literature is news that stays news." For a classic to endure, it must resonate with a truth that speaks across generations.

Two more reasons to read the classics. The first of these is the classic academic reason: by connecting with the classics a reader can begin to build a better appreciation of the modern.

The final reason is this. A time back, I discovered a New York Times article from 1914 in which many of the best writers of the day picked their favorite short stories. I went out of my way to read all of the selections (forty-nine of them, 500,000 plus words). I assembled them in a three volume set so others could read them without hunting them down.

From this exercise in reading pre-modern literature I learned a lot about the rigors of linear plotting and character development, much more so than I had from reading today's writers: Classics have something to teach modern writers. This is even more true for mysteries. More than other genres, classic mysteries have to be brilliantly plotted.

Review of the #1 Mystery Novel from the CWA List.

Here are the top fifty mystery novels and short story collections from the Crime Writers' Association and the Mystery Writers of America, arranged by author. When a particular mystery appears in the top fifty of both lists, its place in the corresponding list is noted in brackets.

The Top 50 Mysteries as chosen by the Crime Writers' Association (1990), by Author.

26    Margery Allingham: The Tiger in the Smoke (1952)
24    Eric Ambler: The Mask of Dimitrios (1939) [17]
34    E. C. Bentley: Trent's Last Case (1913) [33]
41    Anthony Berkeley: The Poisoned Chocolates Case (1929)
16    Francis Iles: Malice Aforethought (1931)
20    John Buchan: The Thirty-Nine Steps (1915) [22]
30    James M. Cain: The Postman Always Rings Twice (1934) [14]
  2    Raymond Chandler: The Big Sleep (1939) [8]
  7    Raymond Chandler: Farewell My Lovely (1940) [21]
15    Raymond Chandler: The Long Goodbye (1953) [13]
47    Raymond Chandler: The Lady in the Lake (1943)
  5    Agatha Christie: The Murder of Roger Ackroyd (1926) [12]
19    Agatha Christie: And Then There Were None (1939) [10]
  8    Wilkie Collins: The Moonstone (1868) [7]
28    Wilkie Collins: The Woman in White (1860) [32]
21    Arthur Conan Doyle: The Collected Sherlock Holmes Short Stories (1892-1927) [1*]
32    Arthur Conan Doyle: The Hound of the Baskervilles (1902) [1*]
25    Edmund Crispin: The Moving Toyshop (1946)
  9    Len Deighton: The IPCRESS File (1962) [4]
36    Colin Dexter: The Dead of Jericho (1981)
40    John Dickson Carr: The Hollow Man (1935)
50    John Dickson Carr: The Devil in Velvet (1951)
  6    Daphne du Maurier: Rebecca (1938) [9]
13    Umberto Eco: The Name of the Rose (1980)  [23]
35    Ian Fleming: From Russia, with Love (1957)
17    Frederick Forsyth: The Day of the Jackal (1971) [20]
46    Graham Greene: Brighton Rock (1938)
10    Dashiell Hammett: The Maltese Falcon (1930) [2]
31    Dashiell Hammett: The Glass Key (1931)
38    Patricia Highsmith: Strangers on a Train (1950)
45    Patricia Highsmith: The Talented Mr. Ripley (1955)
14    Geoffrey Household: Rogue Male (1939)
  3    John le Carré: The Spy Who Came In From the Cold (1963) [6]
33    John le Carré: Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy (1974) [30]
44    Ira Levin: A Kiss Before Dying (1953)
27    Peter Lovesey: The False Inspector Dew (1982)
36    Ed McBain: Cop Hater (1956)
42    Ellis Peters: A Morbid Taste for Bones (1977)
42    Ellis Peters: The Leper of Saint Giles (1981)
23    Edgar Allan Poe: Tales of Mystery & Imagination (1852) [3]
39    Ruth Rendell: A Judgement in Stone (1977)
49    Ruth Rendell: A Demon in My View (1976)
29    Barbara Vine: A Dark-Adapted Eye (1986)
50    Barbara Vine: A Fatal Inversion (1987)
  4    Dorothy L. Sayers: Gaudy Night (1935) [18]
18    Dorothy L. Sayers: The Nine Tailors (1934) [28]
22    Dorothy L. Sayers: Murder Must Advertise (1933)
  1    Josephine Tey: The Daughter of Time (1951) [4]
11    Josephine Tey: The Franchise Affair (1948)
48    Scott Turow: Presumed Innocent (1987) [5]
12    Hillary Waugh: Last Seen Wearing ... (1952)

The Top 50 Mysteries as Chosen by the Mystery Writers of America (1995), by Author.

17    Eric Ambler: A Coffin for Dimitrios (1939) [17]
33    E. C. Bentley: Trent's Last Case (1913) [33]
22    John Buchan: The Thirty-Nine Steps (1915) [20]
14    James M. Cain: The Postman Always Rings Twice (1934) [30]
34    James M. Cain: Double Indemnity (1943)
44    Vera Caspary: Laura (1942)
  8    Raymond Chandler: The Big Sleep (1939) [2]
13    Raymond Chandler: The Long Goodbye (1953) [15]
21    Raymond Chandler: Farewell My Lovely (1940) [7]
10    Agatha Christie: And Then There Were None (1939) [19]
12    Agatha Christie: The Murder of Roger Ackroyd (1926) [5]
19    Agatha Christie: The Witness for the Prosecution (1948)
41    Agatha Christie: Murder on the Orient Express (1934)
  7    Wilkie Collins: The Moonstone (1868) [8]
32    Wilkie Collins: The Woman in White (1860) [28]
  1    Arthur Conan Doyle: The Complete Sherlock Holmes (1887-1927) [21/32]*
35    Martin Cruz Smith: Gorky Park (1981)
43    Len Deighton: The IPCRESS File (1962) [4]
24    Fyodor Dostoyevsky: Crime and Punishment (1866)
  9    Daphne du Maurier: Rebecca (1938) [6]
23    Umberto Eco: The Name of the Rose (1980) [13]
25    Ken Follett: Eye of the Needle (1978)
20    Frederick Forsyth: The Day of the Jackal (1971) [17]
48    Graham Greene: The Third Man (1950)
42    John Grisham: The Firm (1991)
  2    Dashiell Hammett: The Maltese Falcon (1930) [10]
31    Dashiell Hammett: The Thin Man (1934)
39    Dashiell Hammett: Red Harvest (1929)
16    Thomas Harris: The Silence of the Lambs (1988)
27    Thomas Harris: Red Dragon (1981)
50    Mary Higgins Clark: Where Are the Children? (1975)
37    Tony Hillerman: Dance Hall of the Dead (1973)
  6    John le Carré: The Spy Who Came In From the Cold (1963) [3]
30    John le Carré: Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy (1974) [33]
29    Gregory Mcdonald: Fletch (1974)
26    John Mortimer: Rumpole of the Bailey (1978)
  3    Edgar Allan Poe: Tales of Mystery & Imagination (1852) [23]
15    Mario Puzo: The Godfather (1969)
40    Mary Roberts Rinehart: The Circular Staircase (1908)
18    Dorothy L. Sayers: Gaudy Night (1935) [4]
28    Dorothy L. Sayers: The Nine Tailors (1934) [18]
36    Dorothy L. Sayers: Strong Poison (1930)
46    Maj Sjöwall & Per Wahlöö: The Laughing Policeman (1968)
45    Mickey Spillane: I, the Jury (1947)
  4    Josephine Tey: The Daughter of Time (1951) [1]
11    Robert Traver: Anatomy of a Murder (1958)
49    Jim Thompson: The Killer Inside Me (1952)
  5    Scott Turow: Presumed Innocent (1987) [48]
38    Donald E. Westlake: The Hot Rock (1970)
47    Donald E. Westlake: Bank Shot (1972)

Further notes: Why the top 50? I've read three-quarters of them and only half of the top 100 lists. I have found the lists to be more hit and miss for numbers 51 to 100. In previous blog entries I discussed the novels at the exclusion of the short stories. It seemed problematic to consider publication date of a collection of short stories, or complete collections in describing aspects of a writer's career. Here, I will include the short story collections.

*The CWA list has the complete short stories of Sherlock Holmes as one entry and Hound of the Baskervilles as another. The MWA has the complete Sherlock Holmes as a single entry. These were counted as overlapping.

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Martin Hill Ortiz is the author of Never Kill A Friend, Ransom Note Press.

Never Kill A Friend, Ransom Note Press

Never Kill A Friend is available for purchase in hard cover format and as an ebook.
The story follows Shelley Krieg, an African-American detective for the Washington DC Metro PD as she tries to undo a wrong which sent an innocent teenager to prison.

Hard cover: Amazon US
Kindle: Amazon US
Hard cover: Amazon UK
Kindle: Amazon UK
Barnes and Noble 

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What are the Best Mystery Novels of the Past 25 Years?

Over 25 years have passed since 1990 when the Crime Writers' Association of Britain compiled their list of the 100 Best Mystery Novels. It has been 20 years since the Mystery Writers of America undertook a similar effort. These lists, which included several entries that are short story collections, have been commented on and analyzed in past posts.

The lists.
Analyses.

This post presents the question: What novels of recent years are worthy to be included on a list of the best mystery novels? Combined, the 1990 and 1995 lists contained 156 novels spanning approximately 130 years. Therefore, it seems reasonable to add at least one novel for each year. How to narrow down a list to 26 entries? 

Below are the main competitors. I have unfairly included only one novel per author and even with this limitation the number swells rapidly to over fifty. 

One of the greater points of contention is why I chose a particular volume to represent an author's work. I did have a method, albeit a flawed one. I looked for the highest ratings on Goodreads among the top vote-getters for a particular author. Other times, I included the first in a series because that work defined them.

I tried to keep this list impersonal. I have read approximately half of these and could not judge those I did not read, and I did include several which were popular, but not my favorites.

Automatic Inclusions:

• The Firm by John Grisham (1991)
•  Devil in a Blue Dress by Walter Moseley (1990)

These two are the sole mysteries on the MWA list that were published too late to be considered for the CWA list.

The Juggernauts.

Often when a book is too successful, it invites scorn. Other times it is worthy of every sale.
(This list, along with the others, is alphabetical by author)

• The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown (2002)
• Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn (2012)
• Millennium series (The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. . .) by Stieg Larssen (2005-2007)
• The Lovely Bones by Alice Sebold (2002)
• Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón (2001) Although lesser known than the above choices, this is the second best-selling novel in the history of Spain, after Don Quixote, and one of the top 90 best-selling books (not just novels) of all time.

People's Choice.

Other quality works that were immensely popular or are representative of best-selling authors.

• The Alienist by Caleb Carr (1994)
• Worth Dying For by Lee Child (2010)
• Tell No One by Harlan Coben (2001)
• All That Remains by Patricia Cornwell (1992)
• The Cold Moon by Jeffery Deaver  (2006)
• One for the Money by Janet Evanovich (1994)
• In the Woods by Tana French (2007)
• Girl on a Train by Paula Hawkins (2015)
• Kiss The Girls by James Patterson (1995)
• The Cabinet of Curiosities by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child (2002)
• Buried Prey by John Sandford (2011)
• The #1 Ladies Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith (1998)

Other Acknowledged Masters.

My intent for this group is to include representative works from others who are acknowledged as the best in the field. Some of these could qualify as people's choice above while others peaked below the bestseller lists.

• Agatha Raisin and the Quiche of Death by MC Beaton (1992)
• The Glass Rainbow by James Lee Burke (2010)
• Loves Music, Loves to Dance by Mary Higgins Clark (1992)
• The Black Echo by Michael Connelly (1992)
• The Chatham School Affair by Thomas H. Cook (1996)
• L.A. Confidential by James Ellroy (1990)
• M is for Malice by Sue Grafton (1996)
• Miss Smilla’s Feeling for Snow by Peter Høeg (1992)
• Shutter Island by Dennis Lehane (2003)
• The Last Detective by Peter Lovesey (1991)
• No Country for Old Men by Cormac McCarthy (2005)
• The Redbreast by Jo Nesbø, Don Bartlett (2000)
• The Judas Child by Carol O'Connell  (1998)
• 1974 by David Peace (1999)
• Right As Rain by George Pelecanos (2001)
• A Trick of the Light by Louise Penny (2011)
• Clock Watchers by Richard Price (1992)
• A Simple Plan by Scott Smith (1993)
• The Secret History by Donna Tartt (1992)
• Affinity by Sarah Waters  (1999)

Masters in the Later Parts of their Careers.

Although most of these authors were included on the MWA and CWA lists, they continued to put out memorable works.

• The Cat Who Came to Breakfast by Lilian Jackson Braun (1994)
• To the Hilt by Dick Francis (1996)
• The Private Patient by P.D. James (2008)
• The Constant Gardener by John le Carré (2000)
• Get Shorty by Elmore Leonard (1990)
• Body Work by Sara Paretsky (2010)
• Night Passage by Robert B Parker (1997)
• Anna's Book by Barbara Vine (1993)

 

Mixed-Genre.

• The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon (2003)
• Dead Until Dark by Charlaine Harris (2001)
• The City and the City by China Mieville (2009)
• Naked In Death by JD Robb (1995)

If Non-Fiction is Considered.

• Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil: A Savannah Story by John Berendt (1994)
• And the Sea Will Tell by Vincent Bugliosi (1991)
• The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson (2003)
• Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets by David Simon (1991)

MWJ

The Mystery Writers of Japan did update their list of best Western mystery novels in 2012. Below are the choices that were published after the 1990 cut-off of the CWA list. Many of these are already listed above.

• The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown  (2003)
• The Chatham School Affair by Thomas H. Cook  (1996)
• The Bone Collector by Jeffery Deaver  (1997)
• The Cold Moon by Jeffery Deaver  (2006)
• White Jazz by James Ellroy (1992)
• Point of Impact  by Stephen Hunter  (1993)
• Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro  (2005)
• Millennium series by Stieg Larsson  (2005-2007)
• Boy's Life by Robert R. McCammon  (1991)
• The Judas Child by Carol O'Connell  (1998)
• The Big Blowdown  by George Pelecanos (1996)
• Flicker  by Theodore Roszak (1991)
• A Simple Plan by Scott Smith (1993)
• Child 44 by Tom Rob Smith (2008)
• Fingersmith by Sarah Waters (2002)
• Affinity by Sarah Waters  (1999)
• A Cool Breeze on the Underground by Don Winslow (1991)
• The Power of the Dog by Don Winslow (2005)

If you do consider two or more entries from worthy authors (as did MWJ), this combination of lists could grow into 100 mystery novels in the past 26 years.

A Predator's Game, now available, Rook's Page Publishing.

A Predator's Game is available in soft-cover and ebook editions through Amazon and other online retailers.
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Nikola Tesla, Arthur Conan Doyle and Dr. Henry H. Holmes are all characters in my thriller, A Predator's Game.

Back page blurb of A Predator's Game.

Manhattan, 1896.

When the author Arthur Conan Doyle meets Nikola Tesla he finds a tall, thin genius with a photographic memory and a keen eye, and recognizes in the eccentric inventor the embodiment of his creation, Sherlock. Together, they team up to take on an "evil Holmes." Multi-murderer Dr. Henry H. Holmes has escaped execution and is unleashing a reign of terror upon the metropolis. Set in the late nineteenth century in a world of modern marvels, danger and invention, Conan Doyle and Tesla engage the madman in a deadly game of wits.

Martin Hill Ortiz, also writing under the name, Martin Hill, is the author of A Predatory Mind. Its sequel, set in 1890s Manhattan and titled A Predator's Game, will be available from Rook's Page Publishing, March 30, 2016. It features Nikola Tesla as detective.

His recent mystery, Never Kill A Friend, is available from Ransom Note Press. His epic poem, Two Mistakes, recently won second place in the Margaret Reid/Tom Howard Poetry Competition. He can be contacted at mdhillortiz@gmail.com.

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The Combined CWA/MWA List with Word Counts.

As described in other posts, this is the Crime Writers' Association of Britain (1990) and the Mystery Writers of America's (1995) combined list of the top mystery novels. Presented for reference. Ordered by word count. For the final entries, the word count is unknown.

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