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The Life of Crime: Detecting the History of Mysteries and their Creators
In the first major history of crime fiction in fifty years, The Life of Crime: Detecting the History of Mysteries and their Creators traces the evolution of the genre from the eighteenth century to the present, offering brand-new perspective on the world’s most popular form of fiction.
Author Martin Edwards is a multi-award-winning crime novelist, the President of the Detection Club, archivist of the Crime Writers’ Association and series consultant to the British Library’s highly successful series of crime classics, and therefore uniquely qualified to write this book. He has been a widely respected genre commentator for more than thirty years, winning the CWA Diamond Dagger for making a significant contribution to crime writing in 2020, when he also compiled and published Howdunit: A Masterclass in Crime Writing by Members of the Detection Club and the novel Mortmain Hall. His critically acclaimed The Golden Age of Murder (Collins Crime Club, 2015) was a landmark study of Detective Fiction between the wars.
The Life of Crime is the result of a lifetime of reading and enjoying all types of crime fiction, old and new, from around the world. In what will surely be regarded as his magnum opus, Martin Edwards has thrown himself undaunted into the breadth and complexity of the genre to write an authoritative – and readable – study of its development and evolution. With crime fiction being read more widely read than ever around the world, and with individual authors increasingly the subject of extensive academic study, his expert distillation of more than two centuries of extraordinary books and authors – from the tales of E.T.A. Hoffmann to the novels of Patricia Cornwell – into one coherent history is an extraordinary feat and makes for compelling reading.
Author Martin Edwards is a multi-award-winning crime novelist, the President of the Detection Club, archivist of the Crime Writers’ Association and series consultant to the British Library’s highly successful series of crime classics, and therefore uniquely qualified to write this book. He has been a widely respected genre commentator for more than thirty years, winning the CWA Diamond Dagger for making a significant contribution to crime writing in 2020, when he also compiled and published Howdunit: A Masterclass in Crime Writing by Members of the Detection Club and the novel Mortmain Hall. His critically acclaimed The Golden Age of Murder (Collins Crime Club, 2015) was a landmark study of Detective Fiction between the wars.
The Life of Crime is the result of a lifetime of reading and enjoying all types of crime fiction, old and new, from around the world. In what will surely be regarded as his magnum opus, Martin Edwards has thrown himself undaunted into the breadth and complexity of the genre to write an authoritative – and readable – study of its development and evolution. With crime fiction being read more widely read than ever around the world, and with individual authors increasingly the subject of extensive academic study, his expert distillation of more than two centuries of extraordinary books and authors – from the tales of E.T.A. Hoffmann to the novels of Patricia Cornwell – into one coherent history is an extraordinary feat and makes for compelling reading.
736 pages, Paperback
First published May 12, 2022
159 people are currently reading
1125 people want to read
About the author
Martin Edwards
357 books806 followersMartin Edwards has been described by Richard Osman as ‘a true master of British crime writing.’ He has published twenty-three novels, which include the eight Lake District Mysteries, one of which was shortlisted for the Theakston’s Prize for best crime novel of the year and four books featuring Rachel Savernake, including the Dagger-nominated Gallows Court and Blackstone Fell, while Gallows Court and Sepulchre Street were shortlisted for the eDunnit award for best crime novel of the year. He is also the author of two multi-award-winning histories of crime fiction, The Life of Crime and The Golden Age of Murder. He has received three Daggers from the Crime Writers’ Association and two Edgars from the Mystery Writers of America and has also been nominated three times for Gold Daggers. In addition to the CWA Diamond Dagger (the highest honour in UK crime writing) he has received four other lifetime achievement awards: for his fiction, short fiction, non-fiction, and scholarship. He is consultant to the British Library’s Crime Classics, a former Chair of the CWA, and since 2015 has been President of the Detection Club.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 103 reviews
April 4, 2023
I am still trying to find the adjectives to describe this book......terrific, wonderful, fantastic et al. I am a devoted fan of the Golden Age of Mystery and most of the history of that genre is contained in this book. I was in heaven and didn't want it to be over.
The author divides this large book into 55 separate chapters dedicated to books/authors of a specific type of mystery writing.......such as The Great Detective; Science of Detection; Locked Rooms; Twists of Fate.; Female Detectives, etc. He provides a short biography of each author and their successes and failures. I was familiar with most of them even if they are pretty much forgotten today but there were several which will send me on a hunting expedition in an attempt to find them. Unfortunately, many are out of print.
The book discusses how mystery books were rather frowned upon early in the 20th century as a "low class" type of writing and how they suddenly gained popularity and why. As the subtitle indicates, they are now one of fiction's favorite genre. If I could give this book more stars, I would! A wonderful history and highly recommended.
The author divides this large book into 55 separate chapters dedicated to books/authors of a specific type of mystery writing.......such as The Great Detective; Science of Detection; Locked Rooms; Twists of Fate.; Female Detectives, etc. He provides a short biography of each author and their successes and failures. I was familiar with most of them even if they are pretty much forgotten today but there were several which will send me on a hunting expedition in an attempt to find them. Unfortunately, many are out of print.
The book discusses how mystery books were rather frowned upon early in the 20th century as a "low class" type of writing and how they suddenly gained popularity and why. As the subtitle indicates, they are now one of fiction's favorite genre. If I could give this book more stars, I would! A wonderful history and highly recommended.
August 31, 2022
The author examines the history of crime fiction from around the world, covering both familiar and more obscure authors. I felt as if I was taking a course in this subject--the book is incredibly well-researched. (I was surprised, however, that when he discussed Michael Connelly he didn't mention his newer series with a female protagonist.) Thanks to Edelweiss and the publisher for the ARC.
October 16, 2022
I checked out this hefty tome from my library thinking, I'll read a few chapters to decide if I want to buy it for my own collection as a reference book. Coming in at just over 600 pages (not counting the very helpful appendices), I had little faith in myself that I would finish this in one attempt. However, it was so fascinating and so well-paced, the chapters flew by. I have a fresh list of titles to seek out from throughout the mystery/crime genre, and I can't wait to start on it. This book has prepared me to read within this genre in a more informed way. This is clearly the culmination of the author's life's work, and his passion shines throughout. Really enjoyable.
February 17, 2023
In his introduction to “The Life of Crime,” Martin Edwards makes clear his intentions for the book. His goal is not to provide an exhaustive encyclopedia of the genre or a survey of the current scene, but rather to capture the evolution of the mystery genre over the years and to show how events in the lives of writers shaped their work. The result is this most readable book that is entertaining and, at the same time, very informative.
The book is loosely chronological but not strictly so. The bulk of the book covers 20th century mystery writing - the Golden Age of detective fiction with its emphasis on plotting and puzzle mysteries and the post-war transition toward an emphasis on psychological manipulation, moral choices and ambiguities, and overall darker themes. Early radio, film, and TV adaptations are covered as well.
Most chapters begin with fascinating vignettes about writers’ life stories, many of which were riddled with tragic upbringings, unstable relationships in adulthood, alcohol abuse, and even criminality. The bulk of the material is on English and American works but there are chapters touching on Dutch, East Asian, African, and Scandinavian crime writing. Some writers warrant their own chapters, such as Conan Doyle, Christie, Hammett, Highsmith, and Rendell, to name a few.
A few chapters toward the end of the book are a bit too thin and confusing, seeming like an exercise in name-dropping, but overall the book was a winner for me. Be forewarned that it is likely to lead you down any number of rabbit holes, as it did for me, and add exponentially to your “to-be-read lists.” My copy came from the library but I’m very tempted to purchase a copy for my personal library to read again and use as a resource.
The book is loosely chronological but not strictly so. The bulk of the book covers 20th century mystery writing - the Golden Age of detective fiction with its emphasis on plotting and puzzle mysteries and the post-war transition toward an emphasis on psychological manipulation, moral choices and ambiguities, and overall darker themes. Early radio, film, and TV adaptations are covered as well.
Most chapters begin with fascinating vignettes about writers’ life stories, many of which were riddled with tragic upbringings, unstable relationships in adulthood, alcohol abuse, and even criminality. The bulk of the material is on English and American works but there are chapters touching on Dutch, East Asian, African, and Scandinavian crime writing. Some writers warrant their own chapters, such as Conan Doyle, Christie, Hammett, Highsmith, and Rendell, to name a few.
A few chapters toward the end of the book are a bit too thin and confusing, seeming like an exercise in name-dropping, but overall the book was a winner for me. Be forewarned that it is likely to lead you down any number of rabbit holes, as it did for me, and add exponentially to your “to-be-read lists.” My copy came from the library but I’m very tempted to purchase a copy for my personal library to read again and use as a resource.
March 16, 2023
At 622 pages of text (including chapter notes) plus a bit over 100 pages in indices and other references, this was a massive undertaking for Martin Edwards, and for its reader. Edwards pours decades of reading and appreciating the mystery novel (mostly; there are some references to shorter works) along with further study and research into this bulky and exhaustive compendium (or as exhaustive as any reference work on a still developing art form can be).
I'm impressed how Edwards keeps the book flowing, his novelist's instincts aiming to entertain as well as inform, through anecdotes and thumbnail sketches of writers who exemplify some aspect of the novel of crime before widening his gaze to discuss other writers who have used, extended and/or revised that aspect. Throughout he is in conversation with the late Julian Symons whose 50+ year old Bloody Murder: From the Detective Story to the Crime Novel, is the last attempt at a comprehensive history of the genre, and whose views often give Edwards something to play off, thus enriching this book.
I'm impressed how Edwards keeps the book flowing, his novelist's instincts aiming to entertain as well as inform, through anecdotes and thumbnail sketches of writers who exemplify some aspect of the novel of crime before widening his gaze to discuss other writers who have used, extended and/or revised that aspect. Throughout he is in conversation with the late Julian Symons whose 50+ year old Bloody Murder: From the Detective Story to the Crime Novel, is the last attempt at a comprehensive history of the genre, and whose views often give Edwards something to play off, thus enriching this book.
September 17, 2022
The only way to improve this would be to make it longer, and I think reading a print book any bigger would bruise my hands. Ridiculously thorough look at mysteries and crime novels from the very beginning to the very recent past. I only saw a couple writers that he missed, and I learned about so many that I am truly excited to find and read.
Edwards goes mainly chronologically, but chooses a theme per chapter and a writer’s story to start each one. Most of those themes are well illustrated (though I wish the “diversity” chapter tried harder), and the stories of both well-known and obscure authors are welcome ways in to each theme: I particularly liked the stories of Sue Grafton, Edgar Wallace, and Erskine Childers.
Note:this is a very nonjudgmental history, which is welcome if you’ve ever read Julian Symons’s earlier overview of the genre. But Edwards cleverly brings in in critical viewpoints (often in the endnotes) to ensure that one doesn’t think overly-highly of lesser books or bad writers. (Yes, I mean Stieg Larsson. But even Stieg is handled fairly and supportively.)
Casual mystery readers would do well to skip the endnotes, and just pick out the chapters they care about. But this really isn’t for casual mystery readers. This is for obsessives with access to a huge circulating library. Hee Hee Hee!
Edwards goes mainly chronologically, but chooses a theme per chapter and a writer’s story to start each one. Most of those themes are well illustrated (though I wish the “diversity” chapter tried harder), and the stories of both well-known and obscure authors are welcome ways in to each theme: I particularly liked the stories of Sue Grafton, Edgar Wallace, and Erskine Childers.
Note:this is a very nonjudgmental history, which is welcome if you’ve ever read Julian Symons’s earlier overview of the genre. But Edwards cleverly brings in in critical viewpoints (often in the endnotes) to ensure that one doesn’t think overly-highly of lesser books or bad writers. (Yes, I mean Stieg Larsson. But even Stieg is handled fairly and supportively.)
Casual mystery readers would do well to skip the endnotes, and just pick out the chapters they care about. But this really isn’t for casual mystery readers. This is for obsessives with access to a huge circulating library. Hee Hee Hee!
May 12, 2023
Encyclopaedia of villainy…
Any reader of vintage crime fiction is likely to be aware of Martin Edwards as the editor of the British Library’s Crime Classics series, including editing many themed anthologies of short stories. He is also a successful crime writer in his own right, and is a past Chair of the Crime Writers’ Association and current President of The Detection Club. He has previously written a short history of vintage crime fiction, The Story of Classic Crime in 100 Books, and a history of the Detection Club, The Golden Age of Murder, which includes short biographies of many of the Golden Age authors who were early members. All of which surely makes him the ideal person to write a new up-to-date history of crime fiction!
This monumental book runs to over 600 pages in hardback plus bibliography and index, and is divided into 55 chapters, each focusing on one aspect or sub-genre of crime fiction or occasionally on the work of a particular outstanding author, like Agatha Christie or PD James. In each chapter he discusses his chosen subject – for example, early detective fiction, recurring rogues like Raffles, crime writers in Hollywood, noir, etc. - putting it into context in the timeline of crime writing and giving plentiful examples of authors and specific novels to point readers in the right direction if they wish to explore further. Each chapter is bite-sized – easily absorbable in one short reading session, and each has copious notes which are well worth reading, since they add both anecdotes and further authors and books to look out for. In general, the book is laid out chronologically, roughly from Edgar Allan Poe to modern crime fiction, though the selection of subjects means there is some overlap in time between chapters. The short chapters make this an ideal dipper.
Indeed, I rarely review a book I haven’t finished unless I’m abandoning it, but I’m making an exception for this one. While I find each chapter interesting, it feels like too much to absorb all at once, so I have been dipping into it when the mood takes me. It may be a long time before I “finish” it on that basis, but I feel I’ve read enough so far to make a fair assessment of the style and level of content.
I have mentioned already the two books Edwards has previously written on aspects of the history of crime fiction. This one differs in three respects: it goes into each aspect in a greater level of detail, it widens out beyond British writers to look at international trends in crime fiction, and it brings the history on far past the Golden Age and post-war period, well into the modern era. My own view is that the three books will appeal to different readers’ preferences: if one simply wants some pointers to vintage crime, then The Story of Classic Crime in 100 Books is excellent and has the advantage of being relatively concise. The Golden Age of Murder is rather more focused on the authors than their novels, so would appeal to readers who enjoy literary biographies. However, if one wants to know more about the entire history of crime writing from its earliest days until now, then this is the one for you! Reading this one eliminates the need to read either of the others, in my opinion, since most of the information in them is incorporated into this.
So far I’ve only read chapters on the earlier period – vintage crime – but I’m looking forward to exploring the chapters on modern British crime fiction and on American and international crime fiction. Spy fiction, domestic suspense, private investigators, comedy, legal mysteries, whodunits, howdunits and whowasdunins – it’s hard to think of a subject that isn’t covered! And the extensive index makes looking something up easy, so once read this will have an afterlife as a great reference book for the crime fiction lover’s shelf. And for anyone daft enough to make the attempt, imagine the fun of a challenge to read every book Edwards mentions….
4½ stars for me, so rounded up.
NB This book was provided for review by the publisher, Collins Crime Club.
www.fictionfanblog.wordpress.com
Any reader of vintage crime fiction is likely to be aware of Martin Edwards as the editor of the British Library’s Crime Classics series, including editing many themed anthologies of short stories. He is also a successful crime writer in his own right, and is a past Chair of the Crime Writers’ Association and current President of The Detection Club. He has previously written a short history of vintage crime fiction, The Story of Classic Crime in 100 Books, and a history of the Detection Club, The Golden Age of Murder, which includes short biographies of many of the Golden Age authors who were early members. All of which surely makes him the ideal person to write a new up-to-date history of crime fiction!
This monumental book runs to over 600 pages in hardback plus bibliography and index, and is divided into 55 chapters, each focusing on one aspect or sub-genre of crime fiction or occasionally on the work of a particular outstanding author, like Agatha Christie or PD James. In each chapter he discusses his chosen subject – for example, early detective fiction, recurring rogues like Raffles, crime writers in Hollywood, noir, etc. - putting it into context in the timeline of crime writing and giving plentiful examples of authors and specific novels to point readers in the right direction if they wish to explore further. Each chapter is bite-sized – easily absorbable in one short reading session, and each has copious notes which are well worth reading, since they add both anecdotes and further authors and books to look out for. In general, the book is laid out chronologically, roughly from Edgar Allan Poe to modern crime fiction, though the selection of subjects means there is some overlap in time between chapters. The short chapters make this an ideal dipper.
Indeed, I rarely review a book I haven’t finished unless I’m abandoning it, but I’m making an exception for this one. While I find each chapter interesting, it feels like too much to absorb all at once, so I have been dipping into it when the mood takes me. It may be a long time before I “finish” it on that basis, but I feel I’ve read enough so far to make a fair assessment of the style and level of content.
I have mentioned already the two books Edwards has previously written on aspects of the history of crime fiction. This one differs in three respects: it goes into each aspect in a greater level of detail, it widens out beyond British writers to look at international trends in crime fiction, and it brings the history on far past the Golden Age and post-war period, well into the modern era. My own view is that the three books will appeal to different readers’ preferences: if one simply wants some pointers to vintage crime, then The Story of Classic Crime in 100 Books is excellent and has the advantage of being relatively concise. The Golden Age of Murder is rather more focused on the authors than their novels, so would appeal to readers who enjoy literary biographies. However, if one wants to know more about the entire history of crime writing from its earliest days until now, then this is the one for you! Reading this one eliminates the need to read either of the others, in my opinion, since most of the information in them is incorporated into this.
So far I’ve only read chapters on the earlier period – vintage crime – but I’m looking forward to exploring the chapters on modern British crime fiction and on American and international crime fiction. Spy fiction, domestic suspense, private investigators, comedy, legal mysteries, whodunits, howdunits and whowasdunins – it’s hard to think of a subject that isn’t covered! And the extensive index makes looking something up easy, so once read this will have an afterlife as a great reference book for the crime fiction lover’s shelf. And for anyone daft enough to make the attempt, imagine the fun of a challenge to read every book Edwards mentions….
4½ stars for me, so rounded up.
NB This book was provided for review by the publisher, Collins Crime Club.
www.fictionfanblog.wordpress.com
December 19, 2022
This is an amazing wide-ranging history of the mystery novel by a mystery novelist and acknowledged expert whose British and male bias and fondness for tabloid biography detracted from my enjoyment. The latter would almost have led me to believe that a successful career as a mystery novelist depends on family tragedy, a fatal fondness for alcohol, and (sometimes) actual criminal tendencies. Claiming that writers' personal lives shed light on their novels, Edwards devotes excessive time to sad and sordid author bios at the expense of the novels. His knowledge of earlier writers is strong. He includes the white writers who gave us non-Caucasian detectives like Charlie Chan and English speaking novelists who set their novels writers in foreign countries. He is less familiar with non-English authors. This means we get Donna Leone but not best selling Italian novelist Andrea Camilleri whose Detective Montalbano books have been translated into English and whose Italian television series is available here. He goes on atlength about films made of English language books but forgets the films French directors like François Truffaut have made from similar books. Award winning Asian and Asian-American mysteries are absent. His short section on African-American writers, limited to only Chester Himes and Walter Mosley, is particularly weak. Our Native American mysteries are not included. While he gives many British and some American women their props, he seems not to have heard of Sisters in Crime or any Black women mystery writers. We get Anglicans, Father Brown, and nods to Catholic converts but rarely a Jewish detective and not a single sleuthing Catholic nun. Perhaps if he had cut out sleazy biographical information there would have been room for Attica Locke, S.A. Cosby, Nalini Singh, and Gigi Pandian, Veronica Black's Sister Joan, Tony Hillerman's Joe Leaphorn and Jim Chee or the bestselling mysteries by Harry Kemelman or Fay Kellerman.
June 21, 2022
I need a physical copy of this.
That is all.
Thanks.
That is all.
Thanks.
June 22, 2022
To be honest, what Martin Edwards doesn't know about crime fiction, really isn't worth knowing! A perfect dip in and out of book covering all crime genres, familiar and not so familiar...
July 21, 2022
Incredibly detailed and with wonderfully interesting notes.
June 20, 2022
I was really excited when this large book arrived, and immediately planned to take it with me to Gladstone’s residential library (so I could read it undisturbed and borrow a book cushion!). Having read Martin’s previous books - The Golden Age of Murder and The Story of Classic Crime in 100 Books, I admit to wondering where this one would go. I need not have been concerned; there are whole new areas of this subject that he has managed to cover in this book. As a confirmed fan of the British Library Crime Classics series (100 and counting), crime fiction mainly set in the past as well as Dean Street Press reprints, I have a reasonable working knowledge of the genre, so I was really pleased to see familiar titles popping up in the text as well as the twenty pages of Select Bibliography. One of the enormous strengths of this book is the notes at the end of each chapter, which not only give relevant information on titles of books and adaptations but also comments about the authors - such as the political relationship between Ruth Rendall and PD James. I must admit to not reading all of these for each chapter - but when I come to use this book for reference as I have the previous two big books, I will no doubt have cause to be grateful for them.
This is a big book to read cover to cover as I did, having over six hundred pages of text, and would be a rewarding book to dip into to research certain topics and authors. It is undoubtedly an ambitious book, which looks at the history of crime fiction from the eighteenth century and the beginnings from the pen of William Godwin and The Adventures of Caleb Williams, which I read in pursuit of a literature MA, through the sensation novels of Wilkie Collins, which includes one of my favourite novels The Woman in White, and the aspects of Dickens’ novels which dealt with crime such as one of the first professional detectives, Inspector Bucket. The Edwardian period is examined, but of course the book really hits its stride with the Golden Age books which provided interwar escapism for so many. The puzzle and gimmick books are mentioned, as well as the complexity of pen names for authors which concealed other professions and actual gender. Here are the beginnings of the Detection Club and the awards it established, much prized among authors of the time. The entire book is shaped by the decision to give a certain amount of background to many of the authors and their often tangled lives, as well as revealing those books which were actually collaborations such as the Dick Francis books.
I particularly enjoyed Martin’s choice of authors who have a chapter of their own, partly because they were the usual suspects such as Agatha Christie, but also because they provided a way into authors I did not know so well, especially the American creators of new styles of detective writing such as Raymond Chandler. The other great ambition of this book is not only to provide a history of British crime fiction, but to expand it across the world. So there are chapters on Dutch crime as well as East Asian detective fiction for example, as well as the American development of the genre. There are passing references and indeed chapters about the transmission of crime fiction, not only in printed form but big and little screen adaptations. Predictably there were tensions of many kinds in transferring novels to films, with arguments about writing the screenplays and so forth. I enjoyed the anecdotes about the famous Inspector Morse adaptations, including how the later novels by Colin Dexter changed to reflect the actors’ strengths.
This book, which also includes Indexes of Titles, Names and Subject, is a magnificent achievement by any standards, building on previous books on the subject such as Bloody Murder by Julian Symons and Martin’s own books. It is comprehensive, yet easy to read in a style that maintained my interest throughout, even though I doubt I will ever be a huge fan of the more obscure and violent American offerings. It is a book that I enjoyed reading from cover to cover, and yet I know it would be enjoyable to dip into and consult for particular projects. I was extremely pleased to have the opportunity to read and review it, and would recommend it to anyone who enjoys crime fiction from the past and the present, from around the world, and in enormous depth.
This is a big book to read cover to cover as I did, having over six hundred pages of text, and would be a rewarding book to dip into to research certain topics and authors. It is undoubtedly an ambitious book, which looks at the history of crime fiction from the eighteenth century and the beginnings from the pen of William Godwin and The Adventures of Caleb Williams, which I read in pursuit of a literature MA, through the sensation novels of Wilkie Collins, which includes one of my favourite novels The Woman in White, and the aspects of Dickens’ novels which dealt with crime such as one of the first professional detectives, Inspector Bucket. The Edwardian period is examined, but of course the book really hits its stride with the Golden Age books which provided interwar escapism for so many. The puzzle and gimmick books are mentioned, as well as the complexity of pen names for authors which concealed other professions and actual gender. Here are the beginnings of the Detection Club and the awards it established, much prized among authors of the time. The entire book is shaped by the decision to give a certain amount of background to many of the authors and their often tangled lives, as well as revealing those books which were actually collaborations such as the Dick Francis books.
I particularly enjoyed Martin’s choice of authors who have a chapter of their own, partly because they were the usual suspects such as Agatha Christie, but also because they provided a way into authors I did not know so well, especially the American creators of new styles of detective writing such as Raymond Chandler. The other great ambition of this book is not only to provide a history of British crime fiction, but to expand it across the world. So there are chapters on Dutch crime as well as East Asian detective fiction for example, as well as the American development of the genre. There are passing references and indeed chapters about the transmission of crime fiction, not only in printed form but big and little screen adaptations. Predictably there were tensions of many kinds in transferring novels to films, with arguments about writing the screenplays and so forth. I enjoyed the anecdotes about the famous Inspector Morse adaptations, including how the later novels by Colin Dexter changed to reflect the actors’ strengths.
This book, which also includes Indexes of Titles, Names and Subject, is a magnificent achievement by any standards, building on previous books on the subject such as Bloody Murder by Julian Symons and Martin’s own books. It is comprehensive, yet easy to read in a style that maintained my interest throughout, even though I doubt I will ever be a huge fan of the more obscure and violent American offerings. It is a book that I enjoyed reading from cover to cover, and yet I know it would be enjoyable to dip into and consult for particular projects. I was extremely pleased to have the opportunity to read and review it, and would recommend it to anyone who enjoys crime fiction from the past and the present, from around the world, and in enormous depth.
January 21, 2023
I have heard and read many of the authors discussed in this book. But there are many more I haven’t heard of, especially the authors of older generations. I’m thinking of trying to find the older books, such as those from the 1940s to 1960s. But I wonder if they are going to be so dated with negative attitudes towards women and racial minorities, that I would feel disgusted instead of mesmerized by them.
July 6, 2022
The Life of Crime from Martin Edwards is that wonderful combination of a book you can enjoy reading as well as one you want to keep around for reference.
I think the main thing that will bring most readers to the book is the reference book aspect. Anyone who reads in any of the genres and subgenres under the broad umbrella covered here will want to know about what influenced their favorite genre or their favorite writer. This book certainly satisfies that desire, in short and engaging chapters that can be read quickly (including the notes, which you don't want to skip, they are often as interesting as the text).
For those who like the reference aspect but intend from the beginning to read the entire book, you will be very happy with how the book is written. The facts are interwoven with wonderful anecdotes all presented in concise chapters. This will reward either standard method for reading such a book. If you want to read it quickly the chapters offer many stopping points so you don't feel like you have to commit to an extremely long chapter if you just want to read for another few minutes. If you want to read this one or two chapters at a time (how I often read collections of short stories or essays) you can fit in a chapter in a relatively brief window of opportunity. By the way, for those who mostly want it for reference, I would suggest at least using this second method to work through the book, you might be surprised just how good this is as a read as well as a reference.
This is as comprehensive as I imagine a single volume can be. Substitutions might have been made, though I am certainly not qualified to say what could have been substituted for what, but simply adding more would have been a little redundant as far as explaining the history and definitely have made the book unwieldy. I think the decisions for inclusion are excellent and answered many of the questions I had and even more I didn't know I had.
In addition to the various styles and genres/subgenres, what most interested me was the inclusion of influence, both into and from the crime fiction. Whether what went into the earliest examples or how recent works have reached into other genres, the reader gets a truly big picture view.
Reading the book itself will probably give you many new titles to read, and likely make you want to reread some you love. If your interest is in reading even more about the authors and genres, the bibliography is a rich source of information. I was happy to even see a couple of theory books, though if theory isn't your thing, don't worry, there aren't many.
While this is ideal for anyone with an interest in crime fiction (broadly speaking), I think it would also be of interest to those who simply enjoy literary history.
Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via NetGalley.
I think the main thing that will bring most readers to the book is the reference book aspect. Anyone who reads in any of the genres and subgenres under the broad umbrella covered here will want to know about what influenced their favorite genre or their favorite writer. This book certainly satisfies that desire, in short and engaging chapters that can be read quickly (including the notes, which you don't want to skip, they are often as interesting as the text).
For those who like the reference aspect but intend from the beginning to read the entire book, you will be very happy with how the book is written. The facts are interwoven with wonderful anecdotes all presented in concise chapters. This will reward either standard method for reading such a book. If you want to read it quickly the chapters offer many stopping points so you don't feel like you have to commit to an extremely long chapter if you just want to read for another few minutes. If you want to read this one or two chapters at a time (how I often read collections of short stories or essays) you can fit in a chapter in a relatively brief window of opportunity. By the way, for those who mostly want it for reference, I would suggest at least using this second method to work through the book, you might be surprised just how good this is as a read as well as a reference.
This is as comprehensive as I imagine a single volume can be. Substitutions might have been made, though I am certainly not qualified to say what could have been substituted for what, but simply adding more would have been a little redundant as far as explaining the history and definitely have made the book unwieldy. I think the decisions for inclusion are excellent and answered many of the questions I had and even more I didn't know I had.
In addition to the various styles and genres/subgenres, what most interested me was the inclusion of influence, both into and from the crime fiction. Whether what went into the earliest examples or how recent works have reached into other genres, the reader gets a truly big picture view.
Reading the book itself will probably give you many new titles to read, and likely make you want to reread some you love. If your interest is in reading even more about the authors and genres, the bibliography is a rich source of information. I was happy to even see a couple of theory books, though if theory isn't your thing, don't worry, there aren't many.
While this is ideal for anyone with an interest in crime fiction (broadly speaking), I think it would also be of interest to those who simply enjoy literary history.
Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via NetGalley.
February 11, 2023
Hooray and hallelujah! Finally! This book has a tremendous amount of fun, interesting, and thoughtful information about the genre. It draws on the history, styles, authors, characters, and milieu represented to tell the story of the crime most foul. It is fairly thorough in its coverage, and one can quibble about certain decisions (2 footnote appearances for Tony Hillerman, really?). Still, Mr. Edwards covers a vast amount of territory, writers, and criticism. In these respects, it is a tour de force. On the other hand, he turns it into a doorstop with the idiotic system of footnoting used. Most of the work included in the footnotes should have been in the main text. This cumbersome process forces the reader to flip back and forth to avail themselves of the information. Perhaps 2-3% of the footnotes belong there. I have a friend who says one should not downgrade a review because of choices like this, but I cannot reward stars when it was such a fight to get through this choice of the author, editor, publisher, or all of them. The material deserves to be read--the reader does not deserve to fight through this roadblock for 55 chapters. Great information--poor execution.
November 10, 2022
The Life of Crime is an amazing and fascinating story of the crime genre. At over 700 pages it is a brick of a book, but the detail and the amount of research that must’ve gone into it make it completely understandable. It starts with the beginnings of the genre and spans until modern times, and includes names both famous and less known. I was a bit worried that it might be a dense read, but as far as nonfiction goes, The Life of Crime is really entertaining, if slightly repetitive at times. I think the best way to read it is to take your time with it - there’s a lot of information and it’s extremely impressive how much work Edwards put into it, so I think taking your time with this book is the perfect way to appreciate it. I’m truly blown away by this read and I loved learning more about one of my favorite genres. Absolutely a must read for crime fiction fans!
December 2, 2022
Ah, this book brought back so many happy reading memories, all the while helping me create a long list of authors whose work I have yet to try.
Read
August 30, 2022I'm not sure what I expected, but this wasn't it. However, I liked what it was. Edwards seems to have unravelled the lives of crime fiction writers, using subgenres -- some of his own devising -- to structure the book. In a collection of miniature biographies, he tells us about the writers who have given and continue to give us crime fiction. I enjoyed it.
February 14, 2023
A history of mystery. Rather encyclopedic and dry as toast to read. Fine if you are doing research but not a page turner.
February 10, 2023
I think the description of this book was not at all what this book was about. Really this book was an extensive listing of crime and true crime books with a short critique. Though there are some books I want to read now, but should know that going into this book.
June 24, 2022
My thanks to both NetGalley and the publisher Harper 360-Collins Crime Club for an advanced copy of this historical study on the mystery genre.
The section entitled Mystery in most bookstores encompasses many different styles and forms. Some books feature puzzles, some books are full of fisticuffs. Some stories take place in noble houses and gardens, some take place place in dive bars and back alleys. There might be a murder that takes place off stage with no mention of violence, some book offer complete autopsies with medical terminology and full viscera. Basically something for everyone. As a mystery fan I love them all from Sherlocks to shamus and everything in between. As does writer, mystery historian and literature consultant Martin Edwards, whose book The Life of Crime: Detecting the History of Mysteries and their Creators is one of the most comprehensive and readable histories of a genre I have ever read. A book that any mystery fan would kill to own.
The book is broken down into almost 60 essays addressing the history of mysterys from the beginning of writing to the modern day. The book is primarily about English authors, though there are numerous mentions of American writers and of course essays on Norwegian Noir and Japanese mysteries. The essays feature biographical sketches of popular and lost writers, cover major works and trends and how they influenced other writers, or have faded away as trends have a habit of doing. Films, television and radio shows are covered, again with a British leaning, but in this day of streaming a lot of shows are mentioned that might be worth adding to the watch que. However it is the books that are mentioned that will make readers smile, all described in a way that the puzzles and story are not ruined, something Mr. Edwards is careful not to do. Read with a pad and paper as many new writers and novels will need to be written down.
The book is never dull or drags, even in some sections of no interest, the reader will keep reading just for the writing, and the interesting facts that the author covers. The book is wonderfully sourced, and the footnotes are just as informative as the text. The work involved is just amazing to contemplate, so many authors, and so many kinds of stories and eras, and with a conversational style that never seems like a lecture, more, oh that sounds great, let me write that down. To read about the lives of authors whose books I've read suddenly makes a lot of their stories clearer and I understand where they were coming from, and why they wrote what they did. One of the most illuminating books on literature of any type that I have read in a long time.
This is the book that other histories of the genre will be compared to. For a fan of mysteries this is a must have book, for reference and for finding lost classics that time was not kind too. A big book that a fan can get lost in and learn so much, and one that will be flipped through for years to come. An achievement I really can't say enough about.
The section entitled Mystery in most bookstores encompasses many different styles and forms. Some books feature puzzles, some books are full of fisticuffs. Some stories take place in noble houses and gardens, some take place place in dive bars and back alleys. There might be a murder that takes place off stage with no mention of violence, some book offer complete autopsies with medical terminology and full viscera. Basically something for everyone. As a mystery fan I love them all from Sherlocks to shamus and everything in between. As does writer, mystery historian and literature consultant Martin Edwards, whose book The Life of Crime: Detecting the History of Mysteries and their Creators is one of the most comprehensive and readable histories of a genre I have ever read. A book that any mystery fan would kill to own.
The book is broken down into almost 60 essays addressing the history of mysterys from the beginning of writing to the modern day. The book is primarily about English authors, though there are numerous mentions of American writers and of course essays on Norwegian Noir and Japanese mysteries. The essays feature biographical sketches of popular and lost writers, cover major works and trends and how they influenced other writers, or have faded away as trends have a habit of doing. Films, television and radio shows are covered, again with a British leaning, but in this day of streaming a lot of shows are mentioned that might be worth adding to the watch que. However it is the books that are mentioned that will make readers smile, all described in a way that the puzzles and story are not ruined, something Mr. Edwards is careful not to do. Read with a pad and paper as many new writers and novels will need to be written down.
The book is never dull or drags, even in some sections of no interest, the reader will keep reading just for the writing, and the interesting facts that the author covers. The book is wonderfully sourced, and the footnotes are just as informative as the text. The work involved is just amazing to contemplate, so many authors, and so many kinds of stories and eras, and with a conversational style that never seems like a lecture, more, oh that sounds great, let me write that down. To read about the lives of authors whose books I've read suddenly makes a lot of their stories clearer and I understand where they were coming from, and why they wrote what they did. One of the most illuminating books on literature of any type that I have read in a long time.
This is the book that other histories of the genre will be compared to. For a fan of mysteries this is a must have book, for reference and for finding lost classics that time was not kind too. A big book that a fan can get lost in and learn so much, and one that will be flipped through for years to come. An achievement I really can't say enough about.
January 15, 2023
The book is an exhaustive history of crime fiction. It’s also exhausting. As with most sweeping books, a lot of interesting subjects are discussed. But most of them are mentioned and then we move on. Quick tip: read the notes as you go. They contain a lot of fascinating information.
January 22, 2024
This is a superb non-fiction book covering the genre of crime fiction. It's incredibly ambitious in its aim, and the breadth of topics it covers is staggering. There are plenty of nuggets of trivia sprinkled around. Edwards does a fine job of avoiding spoilers, yet makes the books he discusses sound interesting enough to seek out.
It was an absolute delight to read this and Edwards is a knowledgeable exponent of the genre's strengths and attractions. Highly recommended.
It was an absolute delight to read this and Edwards is a knowledgeable exponent of the genre's strengths and attractions. Highly recommended.
September 28, 2022
A bit over stuffed with information but if you love a mystery novel, this is going to provide you with a lot of additions to your reading list.
December 24, 2022
Vast compendium of mini-biographies, many of which are not all that clear. It's striking how so many authors are the product of terrible homes, families, alcoholics, etc.
October 27, 2022
Lately I’ve felt few hardcovers are actually worth owning, but there are always exceptions. I’m sure many of us have our collections – all of Agatha Christie or Michael Connelly or Sue Grafton, for example – but Martin Edwards’ new reference book, The Life of Crime, is the exception to the rule. First of all, it’s beautiful. The paper is smooth and creamy; the jacket is simple and elegant; and the endpapers – a collection of classic crime covers – are to die for. But while the cover draws you in, it’s what’s between them that’s the point.
Edwards, in an exhaustive, thorough fashion has documented the crime novel from its inception – he bookmarks William Godwin’s 1795 tome, The Adventures of Caleb Williams. Who among us, other than the erudite Edwards, has read this novel? But he usefully traces it to contemporary and more familiar books, who can trace their origins back to 1795. His list includes John Buchan, Frederick Forsyth and Lee Child as children of this long ago adventure novel.
He continues to trace the crime novel forward. In his chapter on Conan Doyle and Sherlock, he cites one of the most (to me) influential developments in mystery fiction: the creation of the series detective. The series detective is the reason the detective in these novels is often beloved. That long form relationship with the reader cannot be matched.
In a chapter on transition from the golden age to the present (Private Wounds), Edwards says “The depressing truth is that it is exceptionally difficult to be entirely original.” This instance was occasioned by the similarities between Nicholas Blake’s A Penknife in my Heart (1958), and Patricia Highsmith’s Strangers on a Train (1950). Blake had even cited Highsmith as an influence on his own work. The two books are very different, though with a similar premise.
To me the joy and interest of the mystery novel is found right there. It’s a form with certain parameters, but within that form and those parameters, there are endless variations. Martin Edwards is saying nothing radical here (to crime fiction fans, at least), he’s making a case for the longevity, importance, and lasting nature of crime fiction. There’s a reason a book written by Doyle in 1887, A Study in Scarlet, is still being read today.
The careful Edwards follows the threads of mysterious history in many, many directions. Scandinavian crime, Simenon and European crime writing, American police novels, female private eyes, the “Had I But Known” school – he illuminates all of them in this 600 plus page book, heavily footnoted and indexed. You can dip in and out – enjoy a chapter, think about it, put it down, return.
I don’t think it was in his purview to write about crime fiction that’s being read and created at the moment, though he includes authors like Michael Connelly, Val McDermid, Charles Todd and Attica Locke. That will fall to another researcher in the future. He ends his book with a wonderful chapter on P.D. James, a favorite author of mine (and obviously, of Edwards’), whose first Dalgleish novel, Cover Her Face (1962), was a bridge from the golden age of the past to the darker, more psychologically minded present.
And finally, this stuck with me: “More wisdom is contained in the best crime fiction than in philosophy” (Ludwig Wittgenstein). Edwards’ tome, and the wisdom within it, has a permanent place on my bookshelf where I can refer to it again and again, as with any great reference book. Kudos to Mr. Edwards for what I am sure was years of hard work on a genre that he loves.
Edwards, in an exhaustive, thorough fashion has documented the crime novel from its inception – he bookmarks William Godwin’s 1795 tome, The Adventures of Caleb Williams. Who among us, other than the erudite Edwards, has read this novel? But he usefully traces it to contemporary and more familiar books, who can trace their origins back to 1795. His list includes John Buchan, Frederick Forsyth and Lee Child as children of this long ago adventure novel.
He continues to trace the crime novel forward. In his chapter on Conan Doyle and Sherlock, he cites one of the most (to me) influential developments in mystery fiction: the creation of the series detective. The series detective is the reason the detective in these novels is often beloved. That long form relationship with the reader cannot be matched.
In a chapter on transition from the golden age to the present (Private Wounds), Edwards says “The depressing truth is that it is exceptionally difficult to be entirely original.” This instance was occasioned by the similarities between Nicholas Blake’s A Penknife in my Heart (1958), and Patricia Highsmith’s Strangers on a Train (1950). Blake had even cited Highsmith as an influence on his own work. The two books are very different, though with a similar premise.
To me the joy and interest of the mystery novel is found right there. It’s a form with certain parameters, but within that form and those parameters, there are endless variations. Martin Edwards is saying nothing radical here (to crime fiction fans, at least), he’s making a case for the longevity, importance, and lasting nature of crime fiction. There’s a reason a book written by Doyle in 1887, A Study in Scarlet, is still being read today.
The careful Edwards follows the threads of mysterious history in many, many directions. Scandinavian crime, Simenon and European crime writing, American police novels, female private eyes, the “Had I But Known” school – he illuminates all of them in this 600 plus page book, heavily footnoted and indexed. You can dip in and out – enjoy a chapter, think about it, put it down, return.
I don’t think it was in his purview to write about crime fiction that’s being read and created at the moment, though he includes authors like Michael Connelly, Val McDermid, Charles Todd and Attica Locke. That will fall to another researcher in the future. He ends his book with a wonderful chapter on P.D. James, a favorite author of mine (and obviously, of Edwards’), whose first Dalgleish novel, Cover Her Face (1962), was a bridge from the golden age of the past to the darker, more psychologically minded present.
And finally, this stuck with me: “More wisdom is contained in the best crime fiction than in philosophy” (Ludwig Wittgenstein). Edwards’ tome, and the wisdom within it, has a permanent place on my bookshelf where I can refer to it again and again, as with any great reference book. Kudos to Mr. Edwards for what I am sure was years of hard work on a genre that he loves.
September 15, 2022
This is now the best history of crime fiction. Edwards has a huge knowledge of the field. He has excellent critical judgment and a lively writing style.
The book is big, 717 pages. It is arranged roughly chronologically. The early chapters are a good history of the genre. He starts around 1800 with a few precursors. Poe, he agrees, is the true father of crime fiction. It develops with nods to Dickens and Wilkie Collins and then blossoms with Sherlock Holmes.
He tracks the development until the 1920s when the classic age of crime novels arrives. At that point Edwards organizes the story by chapters on important authors, Agatha Christie, Dorothy Sayers, S. S. Van Dine, Raymond Chandler and Patricia Highsmith, among many others, get a chapter.
Edwards uses the author chapters to discuss other authors in a similar vein. The chapter on Georges Simenon give him the opportunity to discuss other notable European crime writers.
Edwards also has many chapters on particular types or themes of crime writing. He has chapters, for example, on the effect of WW1 on crime fiction, on science based stories, on locked room stories, on legal thrillers, on humorous crime writing and on Scandinavian crime stories.
This reads like intelligent commentary, history and analysis. Edwards is just the right level of opinionated. He has enough of his personal takes to prevent from reading like an encyclopedia but he is fair enough to be reliable.
Of course, one of the pleasures of reading this kind of tome is quibbling with the selections made. Edwards definitely has a bias towards English crime writing. There are relatively extensive discussions of many little-known English writers while more significant American writers are not mentioned or only briefly referred to. Robert Parker, Charles Willeford, William Gault and Donald Westlake are examples. How can you have a chapter on humorous crime novels without mentioning Westlake's Dortmunder books? Westlake's Parker series also has to be mentioned in a book like this..
The footnotes to each chapter are wonderful. Edwards uses then as a place to make additional recommendations, add good nuggets and throw in some critical judgments. Don't miss the footnotes.
Edwards is also good on the origin stories of detectives. His discussions of the origins of Sherlock Holmes and Chesterton's Father Brown both included stuff I had never seen before.
A good line. In the early 1950s Kenneth Fearing was a crime novelist of strong leftist tendencies. He had a bad drinking problem. Towards the end of his short life, while he was in tough shape, he was called to testify before the House Unamerican Activities Committee in Washington. Edwards describes what happened. When asked if he was a member of the Communist party, "he mumbled, "Not yet."
This is book is packed with good stuff. My books-I want-to-read list got a substantial boost.
The book is big, 717 pages. It is arranged roughly chronologically. The early chapters are a good history of the genre. He starts around 1800 with a few precursors. Poe, he agrees, is the true father of crime fiction. It develops with nods to Dickens and Wilkie Collins and then blossoms with Sherlock Holmes.
He tracks the development until the 1920s when the classic age of crime novels arrives. At that point Edwards organizes the story by chapters on important authors, Agatha Christie, Dorothy Sayers, S. S. Van Dine, Raymond Chandler and Patricia Highsmith, among many others, get a chapter.
Edwards uses the author chapters to discuss other authors in a similar vein. The chapter on Georges Simenon give him the opportunity to discuss other notable European crime writers.
Edwards also has many chapters on particular types or themes of crime writing. He has chapters, for example, on the effect of WW1 on crime fiction, on science based stories, on locked room stories, on legal thrillers, on humorous crime writing and on Scandinavian crime stories.
This reads like intelligent commentary, history and analysis. Edwards is just the right level of opinionated. He has enough of his personal takes to prevent from reading like an encyclopedia but he is fair enough to be reliable.
Of course, one of the pleasures of reading this kind of tome is quibbling with the selections made. Edwards definitely has a bias towards English crime writing. There are relatively extensive discussions of many little-known English writers while more significant American writers are not mentioned or only briefly referred to. Robert Parker, Charles Willeford, William Gault and Donald Westlake are examples. How can you have a chapter on humorous crime novels without mentioning Westlake's Dortmunder books? Westlake's Parker series also has to be mentioned in a book like this..
The footnotes to each chapter are wonderful. Edwards uses then as a place to make additional recommendations, add good nuggets and throw in some critical judgments. Don't miss the footnotes.
Edwards is also good on the origin stories of detectives. His discussions of the origins of Sherlock Holmes and Chesterton's Father Brown both included stuff I had never seen before.
A good line. In the early 1950s Kenneth Fearing was a crime novelist of strong leftist tendencies. He had a bad drinking problem. Towards the end of his short life, while he was in tough shape, he was called to testify before the House Unamerican Activities Committee in Washington. Edwards describes what happened. When asked if he was a member of the Communist party, "he mumbled, "Not yet."
This is book is packed with good stuff. My books-I want-to-read list got a substantial boost.
August 12, 2023
[Imported automatically from my blog. Some formatting there may not have translated here.]
I think I picked up this book at the Portsmouth Public Library because I was impressed with an essay by the author (Martin Edwards) in the WSJ last year. Sadly, I was misled.
It's a tome: 622 pages of main text, which includes a few pages of footnotes at the end of each of the book's 55 chapters. And I'll tell you up front: the theme song of the book might be "Mamas, Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up to be Crime Writers". Because the recurring motif in the mini-biographies of the authors discussed here is dysfunction: physical and mental infirmities (including both the authors and their families), violence, infidelity, substance abuse, perversion, left-wing politics, … Well, the list goes on. Edwards seems to have an eye for that sort of thing.
It's rough going in spots, and the coverage is idiosyncratic, with (I think) over-emphasis on the Brits. There's an entire chapter on BBC radio mysteries. But Elmore Leonard doesn't show up at all. No Robert Crais. Robert B. Parker gets a few lines, in one of those end-of-chapter footnotes.
In comparison, Danish writer Anders Bodelsen gets a few lines in the main text. Ever heard of him? (However, that mention inspired me to rewatch a movie based one of his books.)
There are a lot of interesting (if not particularly edifying) stories here. Want to know why Mary Roberts Rinehart was shot at for hiring a butler in Bar Harbor? Why Mencken called S. S. van Dine's behavior a "masterpiece of imbecility"? Why Howard Hawks thought Leigh Brackett was a guy? Who "joined an 'intellectual motorcycle gang' that took inspiration from Dostoevsky and Rimbaud"?
On page 553, Edwards gets around to observing that a "significant number of crime writers have faced mental health challenges". At this point many readers will say: Gee, ya think?
But the lurid stories are separated by long stretches of tedious "then-they-wrote" recounting of works that are often obscure. Spoiler-free as near as I could tell, but I may have skimmed.
December 30, 2022
Usually exhaustive books about one subject are not read speedily, but Martin Edwards’ book is. If you’re interested in the literary side of crime and murder fiction, this one is for you. You’ll learn not just the history of writers of every definable sub-genre of crime, but of the best books to read, too.
Very distinct prose offers in-depth history and analysis of some authors and/or their works, and it’s not just the Ruth Rendells or the Conan Doyles or the super-names. A very interesting part of this book was the history of writers and books I’ve never heard of. And, chances are, if I haven’t heard of them, you haven’t, either. So you should read this for that reason alone.
This book also works as a definitive scholarly referendum of what others have said and written about some authors and titles. Every now and then, Edwards throws his own in there, but it’s very quick, very concise, often just a sentence or two. But the reader gets the impression that Edwards is writing what he knows, and mixing in the stew what he knows others have said or written. Unlike many books like this, it doesn’t read like he just pulled together everybody else’s opinions from the internet and threw it into a book. This book is Edwards’ creation, and he pulls everything else into it as they fit.
This is a brilliant, comprehensive read that will also make you want to read many of the books he writes about. Not all of them, because there are way too many, but enough to last you. I got so much out of this book that I’m thinking of returning it now to the library and buying one and putting it on the shelf. I’ll get something out of it when I read it again, because there’s so much here, you’re not going to retain it all in one reading. Many times I regretted while reading that I had not been jotting things down in a journal as I read. If you’re a fan of the genre as I am, don’t make that same mistake.
Very distinct prose offers in-depth history and analysis of some authors and/or their works, and it’s not just the Ruth Rendells or the Conan Doyles or the super-names. A very interesting part of this book was the history of writers and books I’ve never heard of. And, chances are, if I haven’t heard of them, you haven’t, either. So you should read this for that reason alone.
This book also works as a definitive scholarly referendum of what others have said and written about some authors and titles. Every now and then, Edwards throws his own in there, but it’s very quick, very concise, often just a sentence or two. But the reader gets the impression that Edwards is writing what he knows, and mixing in the stew what he knows others have said or written. Unlike many books like this, it doesn’t read like he just pulled together everybody else’s opinions from the internet and threw it into a book. This book is Edwards’ creation, and he pulls everything else into it as they fit.
This is a brilliant, comprehensive read that will also make you want to read many of the books he writes about. Not all of them, because there are way too many, but enough to last you. I got so much out of this book that I’m thinking of returning it now to the library and buying one and putting it on the shelf. I’ll get something out of it when I read it again, because there’s so much here, you’re not going to retain it all in one reading. Many times I regretted while reading that I had not been jotting things down in a journal as I read. If you’re a fan of the genre as I am, don’t make that same mistake.
August 5, 2023
This is a bit of a challenge to review and I have a lot of thoughts I've been mulling around. It's hard to even categorize. It's very academic like an encyclopedic reference book. Yet it's not truly encyclopedic in that it doesn't fully cover all authors, all writings, etc. and he makes that clear in the introduction. It's a fairly dry anthology yet still very readable for a non academic audience. The breadth and depth from the well known to the very obscure around the globe was quite amazing in the truest sense of the word.
I found myself frequently yearning to discuss it with my grandmother who passed 10 months ago. She was the first to introduce me to penny dreadfuls and the world of Victorian crime authors. She was a huge fan of Ann Perry and voraciously read everything she authored and accounts of Ann's personal history. I would have loved to read this with her and discuss the authors and topics covered.
I think crime writing is so fascinating and compelling and thought Edward's organization via 55 chapters on themes within the genre to be quite interesting. I definitely found myself pushing through a bit during the 18 hours of audio listening. That being said, I did start it over again and listened to the first 2.5 hours again. I will seek out a hard copy too to review too. It's quite an impressive compilation and it serves a rather specific purpose. From a narrative perspective, something half as long would be much more engaging for the broader consumer but I think it's important to acknowledge what it is and not hold it to a standard of what it is not.
The most fascinating story was certainly Dorothy L. Sayers's encounter with Dr. John Dancy. I found this (including the comments) to be very interesting to read as I looked into it further: https://blog.nationalarchives.gov.uk/....
I found myself frequently yearning to discuss it with my grandmother who passed 10 months ago. She was the first to introduce me to penny dreadfuls and the world of Victorian crime authors. She was a huge fan of Ann Perry and voraciously read everything she authored and accounts of Ann's personal history. I would have loved to read this with her and discuss the authors and topics covered.
I think crime writing is so fascinating and compelling and thought Edward's organization via 55 chapters on themes within the genre to be quite interesting. I definitely found myself pushing through a bit during the 18 hours of audio listening. That being said, I did start it over again and listened to the first 2.5 hours again. I will seek out a hard copy too to review too. It's quite an impressive compilation and it serves a rather specific purpose. From a narrative perspective, something half as long would be much more engaging for the broader consumer but I think it's important to acknowledge what it is and not hold it to a standard of what it is not.
The most fascinating story was certainly Dorothy L. Sayers's encounter with Dr. John Dancy. I found this (including the comments) to be very interesting to read as I looked into it further: https://blog.nationalarchives.gov.uk/....
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