Best Literary Mysteries

These mysteries are more than a typical whodunit. The characters in these are complex, the storyline intriguing, and the language is rich.

See also:
100 Mysteries and Thrillers to Read in a Lifetime Readers Picks
Best Mysteries of the 21st Century
Best Mysteries of the 20th Century
Popular Highly Rated Mystery

Best Mysteries by Subgenre
Best Cozy Mystery Series
Best Crime Mystery Books
Best Historical Mystery
Best Literary Mysteries
Best Thrillers

Edgar Awards:
Edgar Award Winners
Edgar Award Winners for Best First Novel
Edgar Award Winners for Fact Crime
Edgar Award Winners for Best Young Adult Fiction

Best Mysteries By Decade
1960, 1970, 1980, 1990, 2000, 2010, 2020

Best Mysteries By Ratings
100,000 or more
50,000 to 99,999
25,000 to 49,999
10,000 to 24,999

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All Votes Add Books To This List

2501	Così Fan Tutti (Aurelio Zen, #5) by Michael Dibdin 3.64 avg rating — 1,606 ratings score: 6, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
2501	I'll Keep You Safe by Peter May (Goodreads Author) 3.66 avg rating — 8,079 ratings score: 6, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
2503	A Death in Valencia (Chief Inspector Max Cámara, #2) by Jason Webster (Goodreads Author) 3.60 avg rating — 334 ratings score: 5, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
2503	Three Hours by Rosamund Lupton (Goodreads Author) 4.16 avg rating — 23,191 ratings score: 5, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
2505	Reykjavík Nights: Murder in Reykjavík (Young Inspector Erlendur, #2) by Arnaldur Indriðason 3.68 avg rating — 6,598 ratings score: 4, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
2505	First Born by Will Dean 3.60 avg rating — 15,562 ratings score: 4, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
2507	Tatiana (Arkady Renko, #8) by Martin Cruz Smith 3.78 avg rating — 5,623 ratings score: 3, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
2507	The Last Thing to Burn by Will Dean 3.99 avg rating — 26,623 ratings score: 3, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
2509	A Game of Lies (DC Morgan, #2) by Clare Mackintosh (Goodreads Author) 3.80 avg rating — 17,843 ratings score: 2, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
2510	The Housemaid (The Housemaid, #1) by Freida McFadden (Goodreads Author) 4.29 avg rating — 2,673,120 ratings score: 1, and 1 person voted	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

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2,510 books · 4,491 voters · list created October 6th, 2008 by Colleen (votes) .

Tags: best, literary, literary-mysteries, literary-mystery, mysteries, mystery

776 likes · Like

Lists are re-scored approximately every 5 minutes.

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Post a comment »
Comments Showing 1-13 of 13 (13 new)

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message 1: by Kelly (new)

May 23, 2010 03:57PM

I define "literary mystery" as the person who created the list does: mysteries written in the style of quality literature.

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message 2: by Foxontherun (new)

Jun 03, 2010 10:17AM

Have you seen the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo movie yet? Almost as good as the book. Amazing acting and cinematography, and it stays amazingly faithful to the text.

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message 3: by Kamakana (new)

Jun 13, 2010 09:44AM

Foxontherun wrote: "Have you seen the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo movie yet? Almost as good as the book. Amazing acting and cinematography, and it stays amazingly faithful to the text."

Geniuswaitress wrote: "I define "literary mystery" as the person who created the list does: mysteries written in the style of quality literature."

liked the movie more than the book: shorter, more intense, and less fantasy- subtlety not required, images can cover same plot mechanics quickly, images indelible, characters iconic rather than pages of description

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message 4: by Ramona (new)

Jan 01, 2012 06:09AM

Great reading list!

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message 5: by Lori (new)

Apr 01, 2012 12:36PM

I have 'mysteries written in the style of quality literature' as well as literature that happens to have a mystery. I also only have one book per author.

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message 6: by Amanda (new)

Dec 24, 2012 12:10PM

Thoughts on adding Louise Penny's "Inspector Armand Gamache" series to this list?

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message 7: by Sandra (new)

Dec 25, 2012 04:44PM

I agree that Louise Penny's novels should be added to literary mystery category. They are wonderfully complex with intriguing motifs.

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message 8: by Sue (new)

Jan 10, 2014 05:45PM

Sandra wrote: "I agree that Louise Penny's novels should be added to literary mystery category. They are wonderfully complex with intriguing motifs."

I voted for a couple of her books; surprised they are not on the list!

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message 9: by nehasbookcorner (new)

Nov 11, 2014 06:52AM

Louise Penny

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message 10: by Sheila (new)

Nov 29, 2014 07:02AM

Have read all I voted for. Love PD James a d Eco. My favorite genre. Sheila

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message 11: by MElisabeth (new)

Sep 20, 2018 04:16PM

What about Nicci French? Or more by Elizabeth George? Or the series featuring Emma Graham by Martha Grimes? All of these are high on my list.

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message 12: by Greg (new)

Dec 05, 2019 12:51PM

Great list! For the best literary mysteries based on a variety of sources like curated lists from The Guardian, Book Riot and more, suggestions from readers on Goodreads and Library Thing, and picks from literary mystery authors like Mark Haddon, Jenny Milchman, Laurie R. King and Derek B. Miller, check out The 112 Best Literary Mysteries at https://www.greghickeywrites.com/best....

Plus, download two special bonus features:
1. The favorite literary mysteries and crime novels from nine contemporary mystery and crime authors
2. A one-page PDF shopping guide to The Best Literary Mysteries and Crime Novels

Happy reading!

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message 13: by Greg (new)

Jan 31, 2020 09:17AM

Greg wrote: "Great list! For the best literary mysteries based on a variety of sources like curated lists from The Guardian, Book Riot and more, suggestions from readers on Goodreads and Library Thing, and pick..."

Here’s an update to that list with The Best Literary Mysteries of 2019: https://www.greghickeywrites.com/best....

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