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Original poster

Crime novel recommendations- set in certain locations

37 replies

Scout2016 · 21/10/2021 14:30

I am getting my dad some crime novels but he only reads ones set in locations that are personal to him.
So far I have got

  • Ambrose Parry The Way of The Flesh for Edinburgh
  • LJ Ross Holy Island for, well, Holy Island

And I got Cara Hunter Close To Home for Oxford BUT having looked more closely I think this was a mistake as I think it could probably have been set anywhere, I'm not getting any sense of place. So I am after an alternative please.

The other places he likes are
Peak District, Yorkshire Dales, Manchester, East Anglia, Durham, Shetland, Galway, Oxford, Lake District, Hebden Bridge.
I'm not looking to find a book for every area, I could just do with one more please.

OP posts:
Original poster
Scout2016 · 21/10/2021 16:01

@Ulelia oh heck, thanks for the heads up. Might take that back too then. Should have consulted the wisdom of mumsnet before I got carried away.

Thank you everyone, this is very helpful.

OP posts:
snowspider · 21/10/2021 15:49

Sarah Ward has written crime set in the Peak District

Xiaoxiong · 21/10/2021 15:43

Death of an Expert Witness by PD James is set very atmospherically in East Anglia!

Toddlerteaplease · 21/10/2021 15:21

Gaudy night is set in Oxford. As is The late Scholar. Both Peter Whimsy books.

Ulelia · 21/10/2021 15:20

The later LJ Ross books move to Durham. A warning though- the authors you've mentioned are a level above Ross, although I do quite like them they're not well written at all. Joy Ellis is also not great, though very cheap on kindle. Try the British Library Crime Classics- some great novels, many of which have fallen out of publication until recently. Many have a really strong sense of place.

SOLINVICTUS · 21/10/2021 15:15

I was just coming to say Vera and Stephen Booth but he beat me to it!
Looking at the type of writing he likes, rather than the location- Stephen Booth, Val Mc, Reginald Hill etc might he like Elizabeth George? He maybe saw the Inspector Lynley series on TV but the books (like Hill's Dalziel and Pascoe books) are much more complex.
Ruth Rendell and PD James imo can't be beaten for writing either.

southlondoner02 · 21/10/2021 15:10

Has he read The Inspector Morse books? They're set in Oxford

GalaPie · 21/10/2021 15:09

Joy Ellis novels are set in the Fens but many of the locations are fictional.

Tailendofsummer · 21/10/2021 15:08

Yes came on to suggest that one. Also know a good one set in NI but that isn't one of his places!

GalaPie · 21/10/2021 15:07

No connection to North Wales? The DCI Ruth Hunt series is set there and she is a newcomer so there's lots of descriptions and explanations of the locations.

Sp1ke3 · 21/10/2021 15:05

What about Norfolk? The Ruth Galloway series is set there.

Original poster
Scout2016 · 21/10/2021 14:44

Missed a big bit of helpful information off sorry. He has already read
Ann Cleeves
Peter Robinson
Stephen Booth
Ian Rankin
Reginald Hill
Ken Bruen
Val McDermid
Kate Atkinson

OP posts: