The Top-100 Crime Novels of All Time

1-10 | 11-20 | 21-30 | 31-40 | 41-50 | 51-60 | 61-70 | 71-80 | 81-90 | 91-100

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.

Robert Bloch (1991) Psycho.

Psycho all came from Robert Bloch's book (Alfred Hitchcock). The novel, originally published in 1959, describes the events surrounding the profoundly disturbed motel proprietor Norman Bates.

Lee Child (2006) Killing Floor (Jack Reacher Series, No. 1)

Child's ex-military policeman, Jack Reacher, finds himself arrested for murder in the tiny town of Margrave, Georgia. But soon he is out and hunting down a gang of vicious criminals who have spun a network of conspiracy to cover up their scheme of counterfeiting. Child's brisk dialogs, economic prose, three-dimensional characters and fast pace make a terrific read.

Tom Clancy (2002) The Sum of All Fears.

The trademark of Tom Clancy's series of Jack Ryan action thrillers is the accurate description of military hardware and procedure. But there is more than a dramatic story line and nail-biting tension: Clancy has a deep understanding of international political conflicts and he is able to realistically paint fundamental human responses to extreme danger and unbarable pressure.

Wilkie Collins (2009) The Moonstone. (First published in 1868)

Like no other, this classical masterpiece of a mystery novel captures 19th century characters and atmosphere. "The first and greatest of English detective novels." (T. S. Eliot)

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.

Fyodor Dostoevsky (1984) Crime and Punishment.

Dostoevsky's rendering of the student Raskolnikov in 18th-century Russia is a true classic. In a process of moral decline, the impoverished intellectual robs and kills his pawnbroker. As he is hunted down for his crime Dostoevsky tells a surprisingly fast-paced story, full of moral dilemmas and psychological thrill. A masterpiece.

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.

Friedrich Glauser (2006) Fever (First published in 1937)

In his third Sergeant Studer mystery, Glauser spins a surreal tale that takes the reader from Paris to Switzerland and Morocco. Studer investigates the deaths of two elderly women in Bern and Basel. Both are killed by gas leaks, both once married to the same man. Written in a unique matter-of-fact style, this European cult classic reveals the fine line between sanity and madness.

In cooperation with Amazon.com

< Page 5 >