The Top-50 Crime Novels of All Time

1-10 | 11-20 | 21-30 | 31-40 | 41-50

Georges Simenon (2003) Dirty Snow. (First published in 1950)

Set in occupied France during WWII, Simenon's bleak masterpiece is a dispassionate description of human cruelty. No other writer has achieved the psychological intensity of Simenon. “What many regard as the finest of all noir novels…"--Tim Rutten, The Los Angeles Times

Jim Thompson (1991) The Killer Inside Me.

Probably the most chilling and believable first-person story of a criminally warped mind I have ever encountered. (Stanley Kubrick)

Robert Traver (2005) Anatomy of a Murder. (First published in 1958)

Traver's book tells a story of deceit and murder that ends in a sensational trial. Army Lt. Manion has obviously killed tavern owner Barney Quil, the man who allegedly raped his wife. A cunning prosecutor and a determined defense attorney are battling out the convoluted case, with a surprising end. Also a classic Otto Preminger film.

Edgar Wallace (2001) Dark Eyes Of London. (First published in 1924)

Inspector Holt and his valet Sunny are relaxing in Monte Carlo when they are called back to Scotland Yard. Mr. Gordon Stuart has been found drowned in suspicious circumstances. The investigation leads Holt into a string of exciting adventures and romance. From the creator of King Kong.

John Buchan (1994) The Four Adventures of Richard Hannay: The Thirty-Nine Steps / Greenmantle / Mr. Standfast / The Three Hostages.

From the father of spy fiction, who was, as recently revealed, the head of the British domestic intelligence agency, MI-5. First published in 1915, the Thirty-Nine Steps is the story of an ordinary fellow who gets caught up in a dramatic and dangerous plot. The book was made into a popular thriller by Alfred Hitchcock.

Ann Cleeves (2007) Raven Black.

Detective Inspector Jimmy Perez investigates the murder of teenage Catherine Ross, found strangled on a snowy hillside at the remote Scottish Shetland Islands. Scottish Novel Noir.

Patricia Cornwell (1994) Body Farm.

When it was written in the mid-nineties the Body Farm was a shocking and authentical glimpse into the work of a forensic lab. It hasn't lost its morbid fascination.

Jean-Jacques Fiechter (1998) A Masterpiece of Revenge.

If you like the high art scene this thriller is for you. In Fiechter's masterpiece of revenge, Charles Vermeille, a world-renowned art appraiser is receiving photographs of his beloved only son. The subtle threats of the anonymous sender quickly turn the elegant world of this civilized man into a diabolic nightmare. The fast-paced, wicked plot has more twists and turns than a Swiss mountain road.

John Grisham (1996) The Rainmaker.

The Rainmaker is about a rooky lawyer named Rudy Baylor who just graduated from law school. Not as fast as "The Firm", but much funnier. Grisham's cynical portrayal of big firm lawyers is an excellent look into the real world of law. Also an excellent film by Francis Ford Coppola.

John Grisham (2004) The Last Juror.

More than a courtroom drama, the Last Juror is the portrait of a small town in Mississippi and its people - including the renegade Padgitt family who is terrorizing the region. Willie Traynor, a long-haired college dropout, launches a crusade in the local newspaper to bring a murderer from the Padgitt family to justice.

In cooperation with Amazon.com

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