Mystery fiction which peels back the layers

One thing we know for sure in mystery fiction is that nothing is ever as it initially seems. If it was, the police would have everything wrapped up in the first few chapters. However, what is also apparent is that when they tug at one little thread, a lot of different things can start to unravel. Here are a couple of mystery novels which involve peeling back the layers.

Deadly Secrets by Terry Odell

Gordon Hepler didn’t bank on a desk job when he joined the police force and rose through the ranks, but Mapleton, Colorado is a quiet town and his promise to his former boss and mentor means he has to deal with the mundane day-to-day stuff.

However, it isn’t long before he’s back on the street when a series of traumatic events rock the sleepy down and Hepler quickly makes the connections. First a fatal car accident, then a mugging, a burglary and then a gruesome murder all throw a spotlight on Mapleton. Hepler must find out what’s behind it all while uncovering some pretty dark secrets about the town’s inhabitants.

The Dark Town I: When You’re Gone by Marguerite O'Callaghan

The first of a new mystery trilogy, When You’re Gone begins with the disappearance of Lydia’s twin sister Kate. She alerts that police and the CCTV footage shows that she was at a London nightclub shortly before her disappearance.

While the police pursue a sex-trafficking lead, Lydia does some investigating of her own and discovers some dark secrets about her sister which involve some seeding places and people. Can Lydia get to the bottom of Kate’s secret life before it’s too late?

For more multi-layered mysteries check out the books at www.medialaze.com.

Uncovering the mystery: The evolution of crime fiction

Like many genres, the world of crime fiction has evolved and changed quite a bit over the years. From the days of Sherlock Holmes, the mystery novel has undergone many different overhauls and changes, right up to the present day with more diverse and sophisticated characters and storylines.

Arthur Conan Doyle’s Holmes was seen as the quintessential Victorian detective and spawned many similar novels and characters. However, the advent of the 20th century saw a new wave of crime fiction, particularly from the United States with authors such as Raymond Chandler and Dashiell Hammett creating characters such as Philip Marlowe and Sam Spade, who went on to achieve even greater fame on the big screen. This new approach of the hard-boiled police detective proved a big hit with readers.

However, there remained a popular and vibrant British mystery tradition, not least with one the first superstar authors Agatha Christie, whose novels featuring Miss Marple and Hercule Poirot, often mirrored a sense of adventure in her own life.

One of the major features of more modern mystery novels is that identity of the investigators and the duties the end up having to perform. It’s no longer just about studiously deducing clues and coming up with a well-thought-out conclusion.

Detectives these days often more closely resemble action heroes. The protagonist in a mystery novel isn’t always a member of the police force – they can be an FBI agent, a skilled amateur or a newspaper reporter seeking to get to bottom of something. Often, they are conflicted and flawed, blurring the lines somewhat between good and bad. However, what is clear is that crime fiction is no less engaging than it ever was.

From more tales of mystery check out the books at www.medialaze.com.