Mysteries on location

The Independent (UK) newspaper selects "80 of the best sleuths to escape with this summer," a list of crime novels set in a slew of destinations around the world. (Thanks to Sarah for the link.)

For years I've had a similar list on Mystery Ink (a list which hasn't been updated in years). A great many crime novels, especially mysteries, depend on their setting to bring the story alive. So here is a brief list of some of my favorite crime fiction locales, with a book that exemplifies its setting.

Baltimore: Laura Lippman's Every Secret Thing
As good as the Tess Monaghan series uses the city of Baltimore, Lippman's standalone novels are even more evocative. This powerful story of two girls, once accused of the murder of a young child and now under suspicion for a new crime, is a stunning, troubling novel. As fans of TV's The Wire know, Baltimore is a city beset with crime and racial strife; Every Secret Thing uses that backdrop to haunting effect.

Los Angeles: Michael Connelly's Angels Flight
All of the books in the Harry Bosch series use the city of Los Angeles as a vital component of their potent mix of elements -- and all of them are recommended. Angels Flight is high on my current list of favorites so I'm choosing it, in part due to its treatment of the L.A. riots, a seminal event in recent Los Angeles history. But it could have been any of them.

New York: Lawrence Block's When the Sacred Ginmill Closes
I don't think any author has used Manhattan in crime fiction as well as Block. His best creation, PI Matthew Scudder, just wouldn't work nearly as well in any other city. (I suppose that's true of all of these selections...but it feels even more true of Scudder.) There are several choices from the series that would work for this, but I'm selecting perhaps my favorite of them. When the Sacred Ginmill Closes showcases Block's considerable abilities as a writer: crisp prose, a wonderful character, an engrossing plot -- and, of course, a vibrant use of setting.

Washington, DC: George Pelecanos' Hell to Pay
It's almost impossible to pick just one Pelecanos novel to illustrate the remarkable job he's done of casting the city of Washington as a character in his plots. The Independent selected The Big Blowdown, which is a great book, but it's a period piece and I want to choose something contemporary. So I'm going with Hell to Pay, the second book in the Strange/Quinn series, for its powerful use of DC's black/white divide, legacy of crime and gritty reality of everyday life.

As you can see, this list reflects my preferences as a reader: urban American locales, with stories generally in the hardboiled tradition. (Note that this is by no means an exhaustive list. These are just a few I really like.)

How about you? What are some of your favorites?

Comments

[C.T. Henry]

Boston - Mystic River and Gone, Baby, Gone by Dennis Lehane

Wyoming - Open Season by C.J. Box

Northern Michigan - A Cold Day in Paradise by Steve Hamilton

Canada - Forty Words for Sorrow by Giles Blunt

Minnesota - Iron Lake by William Kent Krueger

Tokyo - Rain Fall by Barry Eisler

[Victor Gischler]

Scott Phillips did a great job making Kansas interesting.

VG

[Mark Combes]

I'll follow CT's lead...but jump to Europe.

Rome - David Hewson
Edinburgh - Ian Rankin
London, etc - Ken Bruen
Sweden - Henning Mankell

[David J. Montgomery]

I got tired of writing those up, but I would definitely add:

Galway: Ken Bruen's The Guards

Manilla: Ross Thomas' Out on the Rim

Louisiana: James Lee Burke (not sure which book)

I'm still debating what the best choice for Chicago is. I'm also still looking for the great Las Vegas crime novel (or series). I don't think it's been written yet.

[Leighton Gage]

And I'll jump to Brazil. There are Luiz Alfredo Garcia-Roza's books - and mine.

[Cameron Hughes]

Denver-Robert O. Greer. The Devil's Hatband

Boston-Dennis Lehane, Gone, Baby, Gone(I debated on this, but he gets into the city more than Parker)

San Diego(And yes, David, we know you have no soul and didn't like it!) The Dawn Patrol by Don Winslow

Florida: Carl Hiaasen. Is there really any doubt on this now? McDonald was a great writer, but Hiaasen's gift for anarchic comedy better reflects how weird that state is.

Maine: John Connolly, The Unquiet. Its amazing how well Connolly, an Irishman, writes this rural American City

Oklahoma: Dirty White Boys by Stephen Hunter

[C.T. Henry]

I have to agree with John Connolly's The Unquiet. I think it was one of the best novels I've read in a long time. He deserves more praise than most give him.

[Cristian]

Lisbon - A Small dead in Lisbon - Robert Wilson
Seville - Javier Falcón series
Cleveland/Indiana - L Perry series - M. Koryta

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[NFL Jerseys]

I got tired of writing those up, but I would definitely add:

Galway: Ken Bruen's The Guards

Manilla: Ross Thomas' Out on the Rim

Louisiana: James Lee Burke (not sure which book)

I'm still debating what the best choice for Chicago is. I'm also still looking for the great Las Vegas crime novel (or series). I don't think it's been written yet.