The Top-50 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

A. C. Baantjer (2007) DeKok and Murder on Blood Mountain.

With the experience of a thirty-eight-year career in law enforcement, Baantjer has created fictional characters of unique personality and depth. His Detective Inspector DeKok is a veteran policeman who has seen it all. In this novel, DeKok investigates "Bloedberg", a neighborhood in the Belgium city of Antwerp, where a man was fished from the river Scheldt.

A. C. Baantjer (2003) Murder in Amsterdam.

Fat Sonja, an Amsterdam prostitute, is the first victim in a series of murders in Europe's sex-business capital. Written by A.C. Baantjer, one of the most popular authors in the Netherlands, this police procedural features some rather unorthodox methods by veteran policeman DeKok. Baantier, himself an Inspector with Amsterdam's police for almost 40 years, knows what he is talking about.

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.

John Dickson Carr (2002) The Hollow Man. (First published 1935)

Three brothers, jailed for bank robbery, fake their deaths and are buried alive. The one with the shovel in his coffin digs his way to freedom, then leaves his brothers in their graves. But they come come back at him. Also published under the title "The Three Coffins", this intricate murder set-up is probably the best novel of the master of classical locked room mysteries.

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.

Richard Condon (2003) The Manchurian Candidate. (Reprint Ed.)

In Condon's 1959 Cold War thriller Sgt. Raymond Shaw is brainwashed during his captivity in North Korea. He returns to America programmed to assassinate a U.S. presidential nominee. The 1962 movie with Laurence Harvey and Frank Sinatra is considered one of the 100 top thriller movies of all times.

Arthur Conan Doyle (2005) The New Annotated Sherlock Holmes: The Novels. Includes: A Study in Scarlet (1887), The Sign of Four (1889), The Hound of the Baskervilles (1901), The Valley of Fear (1914).

Many illustrations, some from the novels' original appearances. A must-have for any serious mystery fan.

Daphne Du Maurier (1997) Rebecca. (First published in 1938)

The narrator, a young and shy woman, meets wealthy widow, Maxim de Winter, and falls in love with him. On his grand English estate, Manderley, she is immediately haunted by the powerful presence of the former mistress of Manderley, Maxim's flamboyant late wife Rebecca. This story of emotional horror and evil is classic masterpiece.

Tess Gerritsen (2004) Body Double. [Large Print]

Pathologist Maura Isles and Detective Jane Rizzoli investigate a killer who has been murdering pregnant women for years. The complex plot has a nail-biting finale.

Friedrich Glauser (2008) The Chinaman (First published in 1938)

When the body of James Farny is found lying atop the grave of the recently deceased wife the doctor assumes suicide. Studer suspects murder and he slowly, but meticulously, puzzles out the relationships and motives behind the crime. Glauser's forth Sergeant Studer mystery is nothing for fans of fast-paced thrillers - but if you want something beyond today's stereotypes, it is a great read.

In cooperation with Amazon.com

< Page 9 >