Preamble
As I read and write and think a lot about detective and crime fiction, I review on the theme. Sadly, capacity is too limited to cover detective films and TV series too! If you’re interested in reading my academic work about detective and crime fiction (free PDFs available), check it out here.
Or you can take a look at my short story collection featuring Victorian “lady detective” Meinir Davies: order now!
See also
These lists capture other stories and characters that I thought of as I was reading this piece. I won’t explain why, to avoid spoilers, but they’re associations and not ‘if you liked this, then you’ll love…’ recommendations!
- Many of the British Library crime compilations
- Her Body and Other Parties, Carmen Maria Machado
Review
It seems that I have begun 2024 with a return to the short story (perhaps a subliminal prompt that I really do need to write a thing that’s on my mind…), following one of Martin Edwards’ edited collections on science in classic detective stories with this more innovative endeavour.
Billed as “around the world in 22 murders”, The Perfect Crime begins together some of the greats of detective fiction (Walter Mosley and SA Cosby) and the short story genre (Silvia Moreno-Garcia), it spans an impressive array of countries, cultural contexts, and genres. In their thoughtful compilation and ordering of the stories, the editors bring us insights into both the indigenous and immigrant experiences across continents, as well as tales at the heart of establishment institutions (in the UK-based contingent, it’s hard to get more establishment than the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst!). The crime fiction genre does what it has always done best, exploring the quiet, murky rifts in our social experiences that might otherwise be glossed over. There’s Bluebeard-ing at the heart of the extraordinary phenomenon whereby professional sport makes instant multimillionaires of youths who’ve grown up in poverty, and cunning revenge emerges from the bravery, composure, and professional expertise of the Muslim woman victim after formal channels refuse to step in to tackle her vicious and insidious persecution.
All round, there are plenty of attempts to snatch at justice wherever it can be found, some of which even succeed, as well as lots of wonderful nods to all the ways in which crime fiction reinvents itself. Particular shoutouts for the gnomes of Felicia Yap, in her cosy and endearing romp (set at Sandhurst), and to Rachel Howzell Hall’s peek into a savage truth hiding within the online sleuthing community.
If you like short fiction, take a look at my collection featuring Victorian “lady detective” Meinir Davies: order now!
Dominique Gracia 
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