Getting permission to read more mysteries

One of Chicago Tribune Biblioracle John Warner’s new year’s resolutions was to read more crime and suspense fiction because he enjoys it. 

I chuckled when I read that. It was the first time I heard anyone say they ought to read more genre fiction. It’s likely for people to resolve the opposite, vowing to cut back on mysteries in favor of “more literary” fiction. Even though critical appreciation of crime novels grows, a puritanical inner voice cautions me that mysteries should be like snacks between substantial nourishment. It felt like the Biblioracle had given me permission to indulge a secret passion. 

During a couple of weeks of nursing a bad back, when I was unable to do much but sit with a heated massage cushion, I read all nine mystery novels in Julia Spencer-Fleming’s Clare Fergusson and Russ Van Alstyne series. Fortunately, I’d checked them all out of the library before my back acted up.

Clare, an ex-Army helicopter pilot who became an Episcopal priest, begins her ministry at a parish in a small Adirondack town. She is repeatedly thrown into contact with Russ, the married police chief, and they feel an irresistible attraction. The books should be read in sequence to follow their developing relationship.

The writing is smooth if not eloquent, the characters likable and relatable. The plots not only involve crimes but also issues such as homophobia, PTSD, addiction, and environmental damage. Spencer-Fleming makes you care for Russ and Clare — maybe too much, because you root for a couple in an emotional affair. 

The depth of character doesn’t match that of great literature, but the protagonists’ challenges are serious. Finishing the series, I didn’t feel guilty about wasting time — not always the case with mysteries. Shallow, flat characters are the usual reason when I’m dissatisfied with a crime novel, but sometimes it’s the writing. I’m one of the few people I know who can take Louise Penny only in small doses. Her short, choppy sentences and paragraphs annoy me. 

Having finished Spencer-Fleming, I’m in search of other mystery series. I’ve already read P. D. James, Elizabeth George, Tony Hillerman, and Dorothy L. Sayers. A Google search suggested some others to consider.

Deborah Crombie has come out with her 19th novel featuring featuring Scotland Yard Detective Superintendent Duncan Kincaid and Detective Inspector Gemma James. Their personal relationship is reportedly as central as the mysteries, so this series should have appeal similar to Spencer-Fleming’s.  

The late Margaret Maron’s awarding-winning Judge Deborah Knott series of 20 novels is set in North Carolina. The books feature the judge, a native of the state, and her eventual husband, Dwight Bryant, a sheriff’s deputy. 

Like Maron, Sharyn McCrumb sets her series in the South, but her detective is a forensic scientist, Elizabeth MacPherson. McCrumb’s wit should appeal to me: it has been compared with Jane Austen’s.

Jacqueline Winspear’s Maisie Dobbs books are historical mysteries set in England between the world wars. Amateur sleuth Maisie literally grows up in the series, which starts when she is a teenager.

That should be enough for a while, but if you have other suggestions of mystery series where characterization matters as much as plot, please pass them on.