What crime/mystery books do you like?

how about Mark Billingham and Lynda La Plante

What about Dennis Lehane?

It isn't really my favourite genre but I do occasionally like to read some.

ruth rendel - insp wexford

anne perry - victorian london
barbara nadel - modern istanbul

Hello tilly!

My favourites: the Wallander books (Mankell), the Rebus books, Dorothy Sayers, Margery Allingham, PD James.

Oh and I love the Michael Innes books with Inspector Appleby. Totally unbelievable and enjoyable.

Has anyone read Frances Fyfield? Read good reviews but can't seem to find the books in the library. End of Rebus, end of Wallander. What to do!?

tilly - it is two men who work in a 'peculiar crimes unit' - stories mostly set just after the war, but often as flashback. Quite quirky, and the mysteries are bizarre but its all carried along by the great characterisation.

I think the First One is 'Full Dark House'. Worth reading a few reviews on Amazon or C.Fowler's blog to get a feel of the tone of them.

C J Sansom's historical crime thrillers (Dissolution, Sovereign, Revelation and Dark Fire) are fantastic and I normally run a mile from historical novels. His character Matthew Shardlake is so compelling.

I also second Peter Robinson.

Wow, lots of great recommendations, can I aslo second Donna Leon, and also Michael Dibden's Aurelio Zen series, also set in Italy. V good, sadly think they are making a TV series, so read it before that starts!

the Christopher Fowler 'Bryant and May' series is good, - a bit different and quite funny. Probably best to read the first in the series first though (after that the order doesn't matter so much)

James Lee Burke has written a lot of books centred on Montana and Texas. I've just read one so far after hearing him recommended by Simon Mayo and found the language beautiful and much more of an absorbing read than Kathy Reichs. I like her character but she reads like a twitter site to me.

Elizabeth Peters - both the Peabody ones (mad Egyptological mysteries/adventures set in late 18/early 19 century; and the Vicky Bliss ones (20th century museum curator).

Also David Roberts - set in 1930s with outbreak of war looming in the background.

And when you want something undemanding, anything by MC Beaton.

John Dickson Carr / Carter Dickson was good

A bit different, but I love the US novelist Susan Isaacs. Kind of crime but not exactly!

Try Lee Child or if you like CSI you could give Kathy Reichs a go.Her main character is a forensic anthropologist.

Phil Rickman - The Merrily Watkins books are all great (there are about 8, I think). Plus he has written others that are good too.

Reginald Hill's non-Dalziel/Pascoe mysteries are also excellent.

Second Stephen Booth - his Peak District books are great. Really, really good.

The Simon Serrailler books by Susan Hill are very engrossing too.

Guess my favourite literary genre?

Earthy, it really wasn't that hard at the time, there was a lovely independent crime fiction bookshop in Covent Garden which had regular events. I think I arrived before one one day and she was resting on their sofa. Sadly the bookshop (Crime in Store) is long gone.

Frank Tallis and Ariana Franklin, as well as CJ Sansom, for historical stuff.

I really like The Ladies' Detective Agency books for lightweight reading but I wouldn't say that they are crime/mystery really. They are much more about tea and cake!

I've read a couple of the Railway Detective ones and they are just about okay but didn't really grip me.

Whatver you do, stay away from the Elizabeth and Darcy Mysteries - unbelievably bad!

I quite like the ones where Oscar Wilde solves crimes though.

I take it you've read all the 'proper old stuff' such as Wilkie Collins and Conan Doyle?

Mo Hayder - but totally gory and will mess with your head.

Ooh elkie I am impressed! Do try the Deryn Lake books, I would say in order if you can as the story and characters develop through the series.
I've just realised CJ Sansom has a new book out just in time for my week long break in the country .

Ann Cleeves - especially the Shetland series (starts with Raven Black). She's very good at describing the sense of place and the ubdercurrents in communities.
She has another series of novels where the protagonist is a woman detective - Vera Stanhope. These books are being made into a series by ITV at the moment.

I've not read Deryn Lake but I have some of her books and I've met her a few times (she's quite a character). I read her previous historical sagas (not mystery) under the name Dinah Lampitt

Dazmum, I love Deryn Lake, I've nebver met anyone else who has read them.

I also love Anne Perry, and can read them over and over, they are on my comfort read list!

People have recommended lots of good ones: of those mentioned, I like John Harvey, Peter Robinson, Mark Billingham, Sara Paretsky, Sue Grafton, Liz Evans.

Also Linda Barnes, Marcia Muller, Lawrence Block's Matt Scudder series runs to about 16 books. Zoe Sharp. Lauren Henderson, Walter Mosley.

Scandinavian series - old but good and reprinted recently, the Martin Beck books by Maj Sjowall and Per Wahloo, with intros by lots of modern crime writers. Henning Mankell and Karin Fossum.

www.reviewingtheevidence.com has reviews of new crime fiction books coming out but goes back to about 2002. There's also a website called eurocrime. Both were set up by crime loving friends of mine.