These are modern authors whose first book was published after 1985. This list is not meant to include all authors during
the period, but only those whose books that I have read and enjoyed. Note that these books are set in Britain, though some of the authors are Americans or Canadians. Mysteries published prior to 1990 may be found at
British Mystery Novels 1945 - 1990
Kate Atkinson - Author of mystery novels featuring Jackson Brodie which have been adapted for the BBC series Case Histories. She won the Whitbread Prize in 2995 and the Costa Prize three times. For more information visit her web site which has a list of her books.
Benjamin Black - This is the pseudonym of John Banville who is the author of award winning novels. Banville was born in Wexford, Ireland. His mystery novels feature Quirke, an Irish pathologist based in Dublin. The first in the Quirke series is Christine Falls which was published in 2006. For more information visit, Banville's web site
Alan Bradley - Author of the delightful Flavia DeLuce series. Bradley was born in Toronto, Canada. He worked for many years in broadcasting before taking an early retirement to write. His first Flavia DeLuce novel, The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie won so many mystery awards that they are too numerous to list here. Fortunately, he has written more books in this series so that we can follow the adventures of an eleven year old who is an expert in poisons. Fans of Flavia will enjoy the essay "How the Flavia Deluce Series Investigates the Traditional English Village Murder Mystery" by Olivia Rutigliano at Crime Reads. June 16, 2020. Bradley's web site.
Rhys Bowen - Rhys Bowen was born in England, and has worked for both BBC and
Australian TV. She has also written children's books under her own name of Janet Quin-Harkin. She now lives in the United States. Her series detective is constable Evan Evans of the Llanfair, Wales police and the first book Evans Above was published in 1997. She also has a series about Molly Murphy, an Irish immigrant to the United States and The Royal Spyness series featuring a penniless member of the royal family. Rhys Bowen Web Site.
Ann Cleeves - (1954 - ) Ms. Cleeves has a background in social work, but has also
been a cook at a bird observatory on Fair Isle, and a coast guard on the isle of Hilbre. Her writings include police procedurals featuring Inspector Ramsey, and a series about George and Molly Palmer-Jones. George is a retired civil servant with a hobby of bird watching. She also writes a series about Detective Inspector Vera Stanhope which has been adapted for the TV series Vera. Her novels about detective inspector Jimmy Perez have been adapted for the TV series Shetland. Her Long Call series about Detective Inspector Matthew Venn are now appearing on TV. Ms. Cleeves received the Diamond Dagger Award from the Crime Writers Association in 2017Ann Cleeves Web Site.. For information about her TV series, visit the Internet Movie Database. You may see Ann Cleeves and Brenda Blethyn together on You Tube
Deborah Crombie (1952 - ) Ms. Crombie was born in Dallas, Texas, and has been a frequent visitor to England. Her series feature Duncaid Kinkaid of Scotland Yard, and Gemma Jones of the London Police Force. The first book in the series is A Share in Death which was published in 1993. Ms. Crombie has won the Macavity award. For more information, visit her web site
Martin Edwards (1955 - ) Edwards starting writing mystery novels in 1991 with the publication of All the Lonely People which was the first of his Harry Devlin series. He also writes the Lake District series. He has written many short stories and edited a large number of short story anthologies. In addition to all of this, he is an expert in the history of the mystery novel, and has written The Golden Age of Murder which is about the members of The Detection Club. He was awarded the CWA Diamond Dagger in 2020. A bibliography of his books may be found at Wikipedia. His web site is well worth a visit.
Anthony Eglin - Those who enjoy gardening will like the novels of Eglin. His
detective Lawrence Kingston investigates garden related crimes, and imparts a good bit of garden lore along the way. A list of his books may be found at Fantastic Fiction
Kate Ellis - Modern day police procedurals with a bit of archaeology mixed in. Follow
the investigations of DI Wesley Peterson, and find out more about archaeology investigations in England. The first book in the series The Merchant's House was published in 1998. The Kate Ellis web site
Charles Finch - An American author who writes Victorian mysteries featuring wealthy Charles Lenox as More information about Finch may be found at wikipedia. A bibliography of his books may be found at Fantastic Fiction
Christopher Fowler - (1953 - 2023) Fowler's Bryant and May series describes the sleuthing of two of the most eccentric and unusual detectives in the literature. The adventures of the Peculiar Crimes Unit began in the novel The Water Room. More information may be found at Fowler's web site
Ariana Franklin (1933 - 2011) - The pen name of Diana Norman. She was the author of a series of award winning historical mystery novels which describe the exploits of a woman physician Adelia who was trained in the schools of Salerno in the art of examining dead bodies to determine the true manner of their death. She brings these skills to medieval England in the twelfth century. More about Ariana Franklin may be found at Wikipedia
Robert Galbraith - Pen name of J. K. Rowling who has previously written children's books. Her first mystery The Cuckoo's Calling was published in 2013. The author's web site.
Ann Granger (1939 - ) Ann Granger was employed with the British diplomatic service for a number of years, and was posted to a number of foreign locations before returning to settle in Oxford. Her first series characters are Inspector Alan Markby of the Bamford police and his friend Meredith Mitchell, a foreign service officer temporarily posted to London. She writes 3 other series including the Lizzie Martin historical mystery series. For more information, visit Wikipedia
Elly Griffiths (1963 - ) was born in London. Her family moved to Brighton when she was five. She attended local schools and Kings College. She writes two series. The Dr. Ruth Galloway series tells of the mysteries solved by a forensic archaeologist, and the Stevens and Mephisto series tell of the adventures of a policeman and a magician. Her standalone novel The Stranger Diaries won the Edgar award in 2020. For more information, visit her web site
Patricia Hall - (1940 - ) Hall (real name Maureen O'Connor) was born in Yorkshire and
worked as a journalist. In her novels, police inspector Michael Thackeray and reporter Laura Ackroyd solve crimes in the Yorkshire town
of Bradford. Her novels deal with the political and social problems in modern Britain. A bibliography of her books may be found at Fantastic Fiction
Sophie Hannah - Prolific British mystery novelist. Born in 1971 in Manchester. She has published poetry but is best know for her crime novels. She published the first, Little Face, in 2006. She is now publishing a series of novels featuring the Agatha Christie detective, Hercule Poirot. More biographical information and a bibliography of her works may be found at Wikipedia. More information may found at her web site.
Cynthia Harrods-Eagles (1948 -) Author of the Bill Slider series about a London policeman. Ms Harrolds-Eagles was born in Shepherd's Bush in London. She graduated from the University of Edinburgh and University College of London. She worked at a variety of jobs until 1979 when she took up writing full time. She is also the author of the Morland Dynasty series of novels and the War at Home series about WWI on the home front. Her web site
Anthony Horowitz - (1955 - ) A prolific author of mystery novels for adults and young adults. He has also written several TV shows such as Foyle's War and movies. For more information, visit his web site. For a list of the many TV shows which he has written, visit the Internet Movie Database.
Jim Kelly - Author of several novels featuring newpaper reporter Philip Dryden. Kelly has worked as a journalist and education correspondent for the Financial Times. His first novel The Water Clock was shortlisted by the Crime Writers Association for best first novel. Visit his web site.
Morag Joss - Sara Selkirk, a concert cellist living in Bath, solves crimes and has a romance with the local police inspector in these literate novels. Joss has won the CWA Silver Dagger award for her book Half Broken Things. For more information, visit her web site.
Lynda LaPlante - (1943) Ms. LaPlante is probably best know for her writing of the Prime Suspect television series. She trained for the stage at The Royal Academy of Dramatic Art. Her first mystery novel Legacy was published in 1987. She has written both novels and TV series. More information and a list of her work may be found at Wikipedia. You may visit her web site Here. She has won many awards and in 2024 she received the diamond Dagger award from the British Crime Writers Association.
Val McDermid - (1955 - ). Ms McDermid was born in Kirkcaldy, Scotland and attended St. Hilda's College in Oxford. She worked as a journalist and a dramatist. Her first successful novel was Report for Murder which was published in 1987.She writes several mystery series. Some of these have been become TV series such as Wire in the Blood and Karen Pirie Her web site may be found here.. You may see Val McDermid in this You Tube video.. She was awarded the Crime Writers Association Diamond Dagger in 2010. Do visit Van McDermid's tour of her bookshelves.. If you wish to read her books in order, visit Book Series in Order.
G. M. Malliet - Agatha Award winning author of the St. Just mystery series which combines a good sense of humor with the conventional British cozy novel. Her new series features Max Tudor, a retired MI5 agent, who is now a village priest. Take some time to visit her web site.
Denise Mina (1966 - ) - Denise Mina was born in Glasgow, Scotland. Because of her father's job, the family moved 21 times in 18 years. At age 21, she began to study law at Glasgow University. She went on to do research for a Ph. D. thesis at Strathclyde University. Her research dealt with mental illness and female offenders. Instead of working on her thesis, she stayed home and wrote the novel Garnethill which was published in 1999. It won the John Creasy Dagger for the best first crime novel from the Crime Writers Association. She has since written two more novels in the Garnethill series, and 5 novels in the Field of Blood series. For more information, visit her web site.
S. J. Parris - This is the pen name of Stephanie Merritt who is the author of a literate and fascinating mystery series in which the series detective is the philosopher Giordano Bruno. These books are set in Elizabethan England which is rife with intrigue and religious controversy. The first book in the series is Heresy which was published in 2010. More information and a list of the Bruno books may be found at Book Series in Order
Stuart Pawson (1940 - 2016) - Pawson was the author of a series of books about Detective Inspector Charlie Priest which are set in the Yorkshire district. Pawson lived in Yorkshire and, at one time, was a probation officer which, he believed, gave him a good insight into the criminal justice system. A bibliography of his books may be found at Book Series in Order.
Ian Pears (1955 - ). Pears has written a series of art theft mysteries featuring Jonathan Argyll. Argyll lives in Rome where he is affiliated with Flavia de Stefano and General Bottando of the Italian National Art Theft squad. A bibliography of his books may be found at the Fantastic Fiction web site.
Ann Purser - Ann was born in Market Harborough and has lived most of her life in villages. She has been a magazine columminist, an art gallery owner, and a clerical assistant in a village school. Her series features Lois Meade who runs a housecleaning service and also helps the local police in an English village. A bibliography of her books may be found at The Cozy Mystery List
Ian Rankin (1960 - ) Rankin is a Scot who was born in Cardenden. His series features Inspector John Rebus of the Lothian and Borders police who tackles serious and dark social issues in the city of Edinburgh. Rankin won the 2004 Edgar award for his novel Resurrection Men. Ian Rankin Web Site.
Christopher John (C. J.) Sansom - (1952 -2024) was born in Edinburgh, Scotland. He was a practising lawyer until he decided to quit and become a novelist. He wrote a series whose sleuth is Matthew Shardlake, a lawyer in England in time of Henry VIII. He received the Diamond Dagger award in 2022. An interview with C. J. Sansom may be found at the Guardian web site. Sansom's web site.
Veronica Stallwood - Author of a series of novels in which the sleuth is historical novelist Kate Ivory who lives in Oxford. The first book in the series, Death in the Oxford Box, was published in 1993. Stallwood was a librarian at the Bodleian Library in Oxford before becoming a full-time novelist. A bibliography of her books may be found at the Cozy Mystery List.
Charles Todd - Charles Todd is a mother and son writing team who are Americans. Their series detective is Ian Rutledge who has returned from World War I shell-shocked and accompanied always by the voice in his head of Hamish, a British soldier whom he had executed on the battlefield for refusing to fight. Todd's books are gripping and well-written looks at England immediately after World War I. They also write a series about Bess Crawford, a nurse who has returned from the WWI battlefields.Charles Todd Web Site. Caroline Todd died in 2021
Nicola Upson - A real treat for fans of Josephine Tey. Nicola Upson writes a series of mysteries which feature Josephine Tey as the sleuth. The first book An Expert in Murder was published in 2006, and more books in the series have followed. Ms. Upson has also written nonfiction books, and has been the mystery critic for the New Statesman. For more information, visit the Fantastic Fiction web site. For an interview with Ms. Upson, visit the Crime Fiction Lover web site.
Minette Walters (1949 - ) Walters continues to bring new style to the British mystery with an intense
focus on the psychology and motivations of her characters. Her first book The Ice House was published in 1992. She has won an Edgar, a Macavity, and several other awards. Visit her web site. A bibliography of her books may be found at Book Series in Order
You, of course, since you visited this page, wish to keep up with what is good, popular, and awarded in current British mystery writing. It would be best if you visited the web site of the The British Crime Writers Association to to see who is winning their daggers.
This site is maintained by Linda Bertland,
Philadelphia, PA. Please address any comments, additions, or corrections to info@sldirectory.com
Home- Where you will find out more about mystery novels, find new authors, and learn about some really great older ones.
