Recommendations for intelligent mystery writers?

Question

Someone like P.D. James, who I've read a lot of. I don't like crappy mysteries like Mary Higgins Clark -- they're simply not very well written. Suggestions?

Answer 1

You still can't do much better than the grand dame - Agatha Christie. The more I read her stuff, especially her short stories, the more impressed I am with how tightly constructed and well thought out her work is. To a lot of folks, it may seem old-fashioned, but if you can look past that, there's real understanding of human motivations, and a lot of sly humor. My Yahoo! Answers nickname is a tribute to her story, "The Harlequin Tea Set."

Answer 2

The Body of Evidence series by Christopher Golden - A college freshman becomes a pathology assistant. She is smart and intuitive. How Chris was able to channel a 19-year-old girl so well, I'll never know. This series is amazing. If you like the autopsies of CSI, the twists of Law & Order, and the wit of House, you'll love these books. There are ten novels in this series. Read them. Read them in order. Start with Body Bags.

Answer 3

Deborah Crombie
Elizabeth George
Peter Robinson
Anthea Fraser

These are all British mysteries which are my personal favorites.

Answer 4

I like jd robb (eve dallas series)
and johnathon kellermans alex delaware series!
Tony hillerman
patricia cornwell (scarpetta series)
janet evenovich (plumb series)
sue grafton (alphebet series)

these are all some great authors with some very good books behind them!!!!!!!!!

Answer 5

Definitely try Agatha Christie. Katherine Forrest is another of my favorites, but her main character is a lesbian. If that bothers you, her books are probably not for you.

Answer 6

I think you should read Edgar Allan Poe, one of the best in history.

Answer 7

i could admit that there do exist wise liberals. I surely have a chum who went to the same college as I did and his substantial changed into electric powered engineering even as mine changed into math. he's slightly older than i'm. He effectively carried out BSEE -- it truly is particularly an accomplishment i ought to say. And a million semester later I carried out my bachelor degree in math. yet then he could no longer take care of graduate college. in a roundabout way he dropped out of graduate college even as he tried to do draw close's. yet in evaluation I effectively carried out draw close's with flying colors too. He were given very angered and jealous because of this. And now i'm a doctoral pupil, yet he nonetheless can't get a grip in graduate college. It only proves that all and sundry who has bachelor degree, isn't sure to achieve success in draw close's degree and all and sundry who has draw close's degree isn't sure to achieve success in doctoral. yet when i'm able to attend to to end the doctoral, I surely have incredibly shown my case that I incredibly a lot beat all odds. He voted Obama, I voted Romney. He knows that and he's a facebook chum. yet one difficulty he in no way can do is go previous the bachelor degree for certain despite the indisputable fact that the unlucky area is that he changed into nonetheless waiting to detect a interest with BSEE and that i stay unemployed. on the instantaneous after ending contact of BSEE he changed into employed in a federal company named US Patent and Trademark workplace for $65k an 365 days. That changed into in mid 2008. despite the indisputable fact that, I surely have in easy words discovered unemployment and in no way something else. contained in the 5 years which have exceeded on account that we both gained bachelor degree he has revamped 350,000 funds as a lot as now and that i have made 0. I surely have taken some EE classes in my undergrad study which include electric powered circuits, platforms and alerts, and administration platforms. those 3 classes were taken by ability of him too. platforms and alerts hardship-free as EE 220, turned right into a route the position I gained B+, yet he gained C+ -- it changed into the same top professor. So I defeated him in his personal substantial too, as a lot because the point I took. yet in a roundabout way he nonetheless gained interest and that i could not. And even with such historic past of being properly knowledgeable with BSEE, he thinks republicans are racists. It appalls me that someone who has such tutorial skills, holds such questioning

Answer 8

Anything by Dorothy L. Sayers
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_b/102-8419519-6532901?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=dorothy+sayers&Go.x=0&Go.y=0&Go=Go
Masako Togawa
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0679418628/sr=8-10/qid=1154554226/ref=sr_1_10/102-8419519-6532901?ie=UTF8
Anne Holt
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0446578029/sr=1-1/qid=1154554321/ref=pd_bbs_1/102-8419519-6532901?ie=UTF8&s=books
Ruth Rendell
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_b/102-8419519-6532901?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=ruth+rendell&Go.x=0&Go.y=0&Go=Go
Joan Aiken
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_b/102-8419519-6532901?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=joan+aiken&Go.x=0&Go.y=0&Go=Go
Ake Edwardson
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0670037664/sr=1-1/qid=1154554393/ref=pd_bbs_1/102-8419519-6532901?ie=UTF8&s=books
Henning Mankell
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_b/102-8419519-6532901?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=henning+mankell&Go.x=0&Go.y=0&Go=Go
Muriel Spark
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0811214389/sr=1-4/qid=1154554579/ref=sr_1_4/102-8419519-6532901?ie=UTF8&s=books

And I agree with those who mentioned Agatha Christie - she definetely wrote some intelligent novels!