One of my favourite things to do, as a lover of crime & thriller fiction, is to make lists of my favorite detectives, serial killers, must-read books and more. Today, I’m treating you to the list of some of my favorite Amateur Sleuths!
Now, the concept of an Amateur Sleuth is not a new one – we all know that. Probably the most famous Amateur Detective or Sleuth style character is Miss Marple, of Christie-fame. Throughout books and cinematic versions, Miss Marple is typically characterised as an elderly, overly nosey ‘spinster’, who acts as an amateur consulting detective – and sometimes a nuisance. Her first ever appearance was a short story, published in 1927 and now she’s a pillar of the crime-solving community.
Speaking of slightly elderly crime consultants, this list would be amiss without Edie – the main character from AK Benedict’s A Christmas Murder Jigsaw. In the book, Edie is an enigmatologist (a crossword writer, for the national newspapers) with a small cult-following. But some unwanted attention comes in the form of some cryptic clues shared with Edie directly, with a note from a serial killer promising more dead bodies and more riddles for her to solve. Edie’s nephew happens to be a police officer, so throughout the book we’re treated to this brilliant back-and-forth banter between the two who have to work together to solve the case.
If you are a bit of a wordsmith, I recommend Martha Thornhill, from Susie Dent’s Guilty By Definition. Martha is the senior editor of the Clarendon English Dictionary in Oxford – a lexicographer for the ages. However, things start to come apart at the seams when an anonymous letter is delivered to her, hinting at secrets and lies from the past. When more letters arrive, Martha leads her team of wicked word nerds to pull apart the complex clues within them, getting darker and darker as they do. This book would be ideal for an Amateur Sleuth in the making, any crime fans, or any word-puzzlers out there.
Keeping with the theme of octogenarians solving crimes, I can’t forget to mention the love and attention that cold-case crime-solving team The Thursday Murder Club (and its subsequent series) is getting… For those who have been living under a rock, The Thursday Murder Club follows a group of pensioners who set about solving mysteries – in the first instance, in a retirement home. For fans of a cosy cuppa, and gentle crime!
The most modern representation of an Amateur Sleuth has to be the ‘podcast thriller’ trope, with investigative true crime podcast hosts springing up left, right and center. The Girls Who Disappeared by Claire Douglas and 17 Years Later by JP Pomare are fantastic books with this trope.
by TandemBookDoctor
2 Comments
I joined a cozy murder mystery book club at the beginning of the month, and I’ve really been enjoying it! (One element of a cozy murder mystery is an amateur sleuth.)
I’d add The Cat Who… series to your list as a famous/classic amateur sleuth series. And then some other good examples I’ve read in the last year or two are Benjamin Stevenson’s “Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone” and its sequel “Everyone on This Train Is a Suspect”; Richard Osman’s new book “We Solve Murders”; and Elise Bryant’s “It’s Elementary.”
Check out Scorched Grace by Margot Douaihy