List of the best detectives (books of the 21st century). The best Russian and foreign detective books: a list. Detectives: a list of the best authors

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

Masters of the crime genre love to keep their readers intrigued by releasing multiple parts of the same story. Many detective publications have been filmed, thus receiving worldwide recognition from the public.

The author of the crime genre must have extreme ingenuity and logic, because plotting requires thinking through many aspects and subtleties. In this article, we will consider the best works from the most popular domestic and foreign authors.

Detectives: books. List of the best contemporary stories

Yu Nesbe - "Police"

This Norwegian author is able to create a truly exciting work that will not leave indifferent any lover of pulp fiction. This novel is Yu's best work to date according to Norwegian critics. In his stories, Nesbe sharply condemns the existing foundations of society and human essence.

A criminal is a person who is led by circumstances to commit a crime. It is this position that the author adheres to when creating the plots of his detective stories. The protagonist of the novel has quiteincomprehensible image and dynamic character. You can easily make friends with him, but at the same time you want to teach him a lesson and show him how to behave.

At the center of the novel is Detective Hole, a man who abuses alcohol, not ashamed to do so even in the workplace. Feeling his impunity, he humiliates his wards and neglects the performance of official powers. All his achievements in solving cases are purely intuitive. The hero almost died in the previous part of the book, so this time he decides to leave the service. Six months later, the corpses of police officers began to appear one after another at the crime scenes that were solved thanks to Hole. The detective does not want to return to his former activities and prefers to continue lecturing at the local academy. However, Hole soon realizes that he must solve the crime, because he could be the next victim.

The work tops the Norwegian list of the best detectives. Nesbe's books keep the reader in suspense until the very end, which makes the writer's work very much in demand.

Joel Dicker - The Truth About the Harry Quebert Affair

The author of this book just turned 28 years old. Despite his young age, Joel has achieved tremendous success in today's writing industry. His books are sold in millions of copies and easily become bestsellers. The story has been translated into over 35 languages and won 8 awards.

This book is really worth itnote. The novel tells about the writer Marcus, who came to see his friend, driven into a creative crisis, the American writer Harry, who is in search of inspiration and new plots for his future works. In Harry's garden, the remains of a little ten-year-old girl who disappeared without a trace more than 30 years ago are found. In the purse with which she was buried, a manuscript of one of the most famous novelists of that time was found. Naturally, all suspicions fall on Harry, who admitted that he and the girl had a romantic relationship. Marcus, wanting to somehow help his friend, begins his own investigation of this crime. The novel tops the list of the best detective stories (books of the 21st century).

Kate Atkinson - Crimes of the Past

The novel tells the story of a missing girl who disappeared literally in a matter of minutes from her father's garden. In another family, another girl was found murdered in the evening of the same day. None of the relatives understand why the child was killed, and even in such a cruel way. Two different families, but one grief. What connects them? This question was decided to find an answer by a private detective-loser, who still does not manage to develop his ingenuity and begin to solve crimes. But for the parents of children, he is the last chance to find out the truth and achieve justice. The further events of the book show that Jackson is not as hopeless as everyone thought he was before, because it was he who managed to understand what kind of event in the life of families connectsall happened in one puzzle.

The novel has an exciting dynamic plot. He was added to the list of the best detectives. Atkinson's books have been rated by Stephen King himself, the guru of the crime genre.

Nikolai Svechin - Warsaw Secrets

Svechin is one of the most successful authors in the Russian detective genre. At one time he was vehemently compared with Akunin, but thanks to critics, he managed to prove that his work is unique and worthy of praise. All of his criminal works have historical overtones, which is why reading them becomes doubly interesting. The protagonist of the novel Warsaw Secrets is the nobleman Lykov, who is practically incompetent in his teaching activities, does not know a single foreign language, and this very often lets him down. In the novel, he tries to get to the bottom of the truth about the murder of Russian officers in Warsaw. Svechin's works are the best Russian detectives. The books listed below in the article have made the author a world famous writer.

Jesse Kellerman - Heat

The title of the book fully justifies the general atmosphere of the work. The action takes place in modern Los Angeles, which is subject to an earthquake. One of the office workers, Gloria, wants to go to her workplace and check if her boss's collection of figurines is still intact. Entering the reception, she discovers a mass of incoming messages on the answering machine and begins to listen to them. The chief called, and judging by the tone of his voice, heis in danger. But what exactly happened to him is unclear. From short and broken messages, she only understands that he is somewhere in Mexico, where she decided to go.

What works today have an impressive rating? Detectives. Books, the list of which can be continued indefinitely, convey the author's thought much deeper than numerous film adaptations. After all, there is no limit to human fantasy.

Detectives of the book. List of the best works of Rex Stout

Stout is a cult crime writer who began writing in the first half of the 20th century. To this day, his books remain among the most sought after in the world. Wolfe and Goodwin, who are known to all, are the heroes of Rex's novels. However, in addition to them, the author's arsenal has more than fifty books of a criminal nature. We list the most interesting and exciting of them:

• Red Thread (1939).
• The Broken Vase (1941).
• Bad for Business (1940).
• "Prize for Princes (1914) - headed the rating, which described the best foreign detectives (books), a list of which can always be found in any library.
• The Big Legend (1916).

Books by authors from CIS countries

Alexandra Marinina is a popular author of exciting detective novels, which are not inferior to eminent Western creations with their twisted and interesting plot. The writer's works literally fly off the shelves of bookstores in the first month of sales. Marinina is one of the most successful women in Russia who write detective stories.history.

Boris Akunin is a cult author of the Russian detective genre. His series of books about the adventures of Fandorin has been read by over 5,000,000 people worldwide. Thanks to this, his works were included in the rating of "The Best Russian Detectives" Books, the list of which is quite impressive, never cease to amaze and fascinate their readers.

Natalia Perfilova is the author of action-packed novels and historical works, who skillfully weaves detective elements into the storyline. Her books are quite popular in the post-Soviet space.

Simona Vilar is a Ukrainian author of detective novels for women. The elements of her work will be discussed in more detail later in our article.

Rating of authors of psychological detective stories

• John Le Caret. His works occupy a leading place in the rating of "Psychological Detectives". Books (the list of the best authors is impressive) are sold in huge numbers.
• James Elroy.
• Alexandra Marinina.
• Polina Dashkova.
• Agatha Christie.

Popular stories of the 21st century

Sarah Waters - Fine Work

The scene of the novel is foggy and cold London. In the center of the plot is the girl Susan, whose parents died when she was a few months old. The girl is brought up by a certain Miss Saxby, a child trafficker. Despite this, Susan is happy with her life and tries to appreciate what she has. One fine day, the girl receives the task of deceiving the rich heir to the throne.

In the articles section, we describe the best detectives - books, the list of which is not so long. After reading them, you will definitely not be disappointed.

Andrews Taylor - "The Edgar Allan Poe Mystery"

The book was published in 2010. The story is told from the perspective of the school teacher Thomas, who meets Edgar. It was after this meeting that the teacher's life changed dramatically.

Cormack McCarthy - No Country for Old Men

This novel by a rather famous American classic has become popular among fans of stories with an interesting plot. After all, the book is rightfully included in the top, which covers the best foreign detectives (books), the list of which is very diverse.

Popular works that have been filmed

Dennis Lehane - The Secret River. The film received positive reviews from film critics, which is quite rare for film adaptations. The film will definitely appeal to fans of action-packed American TV series and action movies.

• Thomas Harris - Hannibal (2001).
• Thomas Harris - Hannibal 2 (2006).
• Retner Brett - "Red Dragon".
• Thomas Harris - The Silence of the Lambs (1990). As you can see, the author takes three places of honor in this list, because his creations are cult examples of the world detective novel. It is not for nothing that his works topped the list of the best detectives many times. The books of this writer were published in many languages.
• Flynn Gillian - Before I Go To Sleep (2002).

Bestwriters of detective fiction

• Agatha Christie.
• Thomas Harris is an author whose works are known all over the world, because they were filmed and achieved resounding success at the box office. Even today, based on the books of Thomas, they make remakes and TV shows.
• Boris Akunin.
• Sarah Waters.

• Kate Atkinson is the author of more than fifty detective novels for women, which not only tell about love stories, but also drag the reader into a whirlwind of strange events and mysterious investigations. Her works have topped the list of the best detectives many times. Books in this genre are in high demand.
• Truman Capote is the famous American author of detective novels, who became famous throughout the world thanks to extraordinary and exciting plots that take the reader into the abyss of tangled events that subsequently have an unexpected denouement.

Detective books about love

• Simone Vilar - "The Witch". These are four books that have a sharp plot and at the same time elements of a love story that any girl will love.
• Simone Vilar - "Secret Castle".
• Sandra May - Melodies of Spring.
• Linda Medl - Whisper of Flowers.
• Doris Mortman - True Colors. The work is included in the authoritative rating "The Best Detectives". Books, the list of which is very impressive, are regularly updated with new interesting stories.
• Ray Morgan - Paradise Vacation.
• Karin Monk - "Your tender word".
• Karine Monk –"Prisoner".
• Eva Modigliani - The Heiress.
• Eva Modigliani - "The woman of his life."

Dan Brown Detectives

Dan Brown is one of the most popular contemporary authors. Fans of his books are looking forward to a new story about the adventures of Robert Langdon, a specialist in the symbolism of the ancient world.

Practically all of his existing novels have been filmed or are in the process of being made into a film. All of Brown's stories have a powerful backstory that will be of interest to any reader. Agree, who will not be interested in the old legends about the Freemasons and the Illuminati? Below is a list of several of Dan's most successful books along with a brief description of their storyline:

• "Angels and Demons" (2000). Despite the fact that this work was released back in 2003, it was filmed as the second part of the story about Robert Langdon. It describes the secrets of two of the greatest secret orders - Freemasons and the Illuminati - who opposed the Vatican in the Middle Ages. In the middle of the Vatican, they find a dead scientist, on whose chest a strange symbol is burned. Robert Langdon is invited to deal with the secret signs that accompanied this crime. As it turned out, the legend may well turn out to be a reality, and the Catholic Church is in real danger, because the Pope suddenly dies. But by his own death? And who needed to kill the main man of the Vatican?



• "The Da Vinci Code" (2003). It was on this book that the firstadaptation of Dan's work. In the work, Robert Langdon is looking for a secret code that should be hidden in one of the works of the great Leonardo da Vinci. The book is filled with interesting information about Christian shrines, and the story is not without the murders of people who could know about the location of the lost code.
• The Lost Symbol (2009).
• "Inferno" (2013).

Exciting detective stories for kids

There are many authors who aim to create detective books for children and teenagers. Of course, such works have a twisted investigative plot without any elements of cruelty. Best Russian detectives (books), list for kids:

1. Sergey Task - "The Secret of the Red Cat".
2. Nikolai Trublaini - Columbus.
3. Anatoly Rybakov - Dirk.

The above children's books are more like adventure novels, but they have elements of investigations, which is why they are classified as Russian children's detective literature.