Crime fiction has never been more popular. From the police procedural to the political thriller, from cosy crime to psychological thrillers, crime novels are flying off the shelves (both literal and virtual). Some of our earliest literary forms evidence a deep human interest in crime. From Oedipus Rex to Victorian ‘penny dreadfuls’ and on to contemporary literary fiction, such as Kazuo Ishiguro’s Never Let Me Go, the notion of mysteries to be solved, retribution and justice, and the mere simple puzzle of figuring out ‘who did it’ has fascinated the human mind.

We love to read them, but have you ever wondered what goes into crafting a crime novel? In this colloquy, we will do a quick survey of the history and genres of crime writing, followed by a deeper dive into four crime novels, all from different countries and comprising different genres of the form. The emphasis of the discussion will be analysis of narrative voice and structure with a view and its impact on the reader’s perception of story. The novels under discussion will be the following: Asa Advic (Sweden) The Dying Game, a re-imagining of Agatha Christie’s And Then There Were None, Janice Hallett (UK), The Appeal, a ‘cosy crime’ novel told entirely through email, text and the written word, Gillian Flynn (USA) Gone Girl, a psychological thriller, and Margaret Atwood (Canada) The Testaments, a work this reader would describe as a literary thriller.

Anne Manson has a Master’s degree in Crime and Thriller Writing from Cambridge University. She lives in London and Deer Isle and is at work on her second novel. She is also Music Director of the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra in Canada and has conducted opera and orchestral concerts internationally.

  ▼ Syllabus/Reading