D'Amato, Barbara (American, 1938- )
http://www.barbaradamato.com/
(Police Procedurals, Thrillers)
In addition to producing several standalones and other writings, this talented writer has penned two notable series, the first documenting the exploits of investigative reporter Cat Marsala (nine novels between 1989-2001), the second featuring Chicago PD officer Suze Figueroa , Deputy Chief of Detectives Polly Kelly, and Police Superintendent Nick Bertolucci (five novels from 1996-2004).   In 2001 D'Amato won the first annual Mary Higgins Clark award for her novel Authorized Personnel Only . 		 
Darnton, John
Dean, John
Delany, Vicki (Canadian)
http://www.vickidelany.com/
In 2007 Vicki Delany introduced readers to Molly Smith, a newbie police constable operating in her home town of Trafalgar, B.C.  Since then Delany’s gone on to pen five more in the series, and for good measure has written several historical tales set in the Klondike, together with a number of standalones.  Clearly a woman with a mission.  Readers are the beneficiaries, though, with a wide range of well-told stories that will keep you coming back for more.  My favourites are the Molly Smith sagas, but among Delany’s varied work there is truly something for everyone.
Deverell, William
Dexter, Colin (British (1930- )
http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/d/colin-dexter/
(Police Procedurals)
To describe Colin Dexter as "merely" a writer of police procedurals is akin to labeling Mozart as "just" a songwriter.   Dexter's sublime tales feature Oxford-educated Inspector (later Chief Inspector) Morse and his long-suffering, working-class sidekick, DS Lewis , solving crimes against the incomparable backdrop of Oxford, both challenging and delighting the reader at every turn.   Like Agatha Christie, Dexter's clues are often devilish; but his characters are nuanced, his adversaries more believable, and perhaps more than anyone apart from P. D. James, Dexter is responsible for making the notion of an intelligent copper more than an oxymoron.   Along with a very few others Dexter represents the very best in contemporary crime writing. 		 
Dickson, Carter (John Dickson Carr) (American, 1906-1977)
http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/d/carter-dickson/
See John Dickson Carr 		 
Dobbs, Michael (British, 1948- )
http://www.michaeldobbs.com/
(Thrillers)
Best known for his superb series of political thrillers featuring the criminally cunning Prime Minister Francis Urquhart ( House of Cards, To Play the King, The Final Cut ), Michael Dobbs has also penned two other remarkable series.   The first focuses on the much more likeable Thomas Goodfellow, an uncompromising backbench MP, and like it's predecessors, it also deals with power and corruption.   The other draws on the events of World War Two, revolving around Prime Minister Winston Churchill in a riveting series of tales grounded in historical fact.   Add half a dozen standalones dealing with topics ranging from terrorism in the Houses of Parliament to Cyber-warfare to a nuclear meltdown in an aging Russian reactor, and you have a wealth of reading from a skilled storyteller.   If you like political drama, exquisitely conceived, then Dobbs is not to be missed. 		 
Dobson, Joanne and Beverle Graves Myers
Donaldson-Yarmey, Jn
Downing, David (British, 1946- ))
http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/d/david-downing/
(Historical Thrillers)
British author David Downing’s thrillers are reminiscent of the layered novels of Philip Kerr, drawing as they do on the plight of ordinary people trying to do the right thing in extraordinary circumstances.  Downing takes the reader back to the dark days of World War Two.  His protagonist, British-American journalist John Russell, has a German lover Effi, and a son by a former marriage.  Coerced by the security services of more than one nation into helping them, he attempts at the same time to locate and rescue his family.  The first three books of the quartet (Zoo Station, 2007, Selesian Station, 2009, and Potsdam Station, 2011) take readers from pre-war days through the closing days of the conflict, as the Russians advance on Berlin. Russell is at their side, striving to learn what’s become of his family, unaware that his son is part of a German artillery unit charged with defending the city.  Told from multiple points of view it is a compelling series deftly exploring the tensions faced by ordinary German people as the Allied noose drew ever tighter.
Doyle, Arthur Conan (British, 1859-1930)
http://www.sirarthurconandoyle.com/
(Historical Mysteries)
If Edgar Allan Poe invented the mystery genre, Conan Doyle is responsible for its early popularity.   His larger-than-life protagonist, the eccentric Sherlock Holmes, aided by the more conventional Dr. Watson, are brilliantly conceived, and set the stage for later crime-solving duos.   Doyle also anticipated later crime novels with his attention to the central importance of forensic evidence.   Although today some consider his stories dated and over-the-top, his contribution to the genre cannot be denied, and he continues to attract new fans eighty years after his death.
Duncan, Elizabeth J. (Canadian)
http://www.elizabethjduncan.com/
(Traditional Mysteries)
Talk about starting off with a bang: Elizabeth Duncan’s debut novel, The Cold Light of Mourning won the St. Martin’s Press/Malice Domestic Award for Best First Traditional Mystery Novel in 2008, and went on to be nominated for both the Arthur Ellis and Agatha awards for best first mystery.  It was the start of a series featuring amateur sleuth Penny Brannigan and set in the fictional village of Llanelen, in North Wales.  Duncan, a former journalist, freelance writer and broadcaster, followed with A Brush with Death, and then A Killer’s Christmas in Wales.  The rural setting forms the perfect backdrop for engaging stories of village life with a puzzle at the center, and her books are quickly earning the Toronto-based author a growing fan base.
Du Maurier, Daphne (British, 1907-1989)
http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/d/daphne-du-maurier/
(Thrillers)
Best known for her compelling classic Rebecca , Daphne Du Maurier's other works have somewhat languished in the shade; but this prolific author has produced many novels and short stories of suspense, and told with her incomparable talent for drawing on setting to create mood.   Especially recommended are My Cousin Rachel, The Scapegoat, and Don't Look Now and Other Echoes from the Macabre . 		 
Edmondson, Jill
Edwards, Caterina.  
Edwards, Martin (British, 1955- )
http://www.martinedwardsbooks.com/
British lawyer Martin Edwards has made a name for himself as a deft plotter of psychological thrillers and classic detection tales, compelling for their strong sense of place.   Twice shortlisted for a CWA Dagger, he has two main series running concurrently.   The Harry Devlin tales features a Liverpool lawyer whose troubles begin when his wife disappears ( All the Lonely People , 1991), and presently runs to the eighth novel in the series, Waterloo Sunset (2008), in which an obituary notice arrives at Devlin's law office, announcing Harry's own in less than a week.   Also noted for his Lake District mysteries, featuring DCI Hannah Scarlett and Oxford historian Daniel Kind, Edwards has penned two standalones of note, Take My Breath Away and Dancing for the Hangman , a fictional take on the Crippen case.
Edwards, Megan
Edwards, Ruth Dudley (British)
http://www.ruthdudleyedwards.co.uk/
(Cozies, Humourous Mysteries)
Think Jonathan Swift meets Monty Python.   For almost three decades Ruth Dudley Edwards has been lampooning the British Establishment in all of its forms, from the Church of England to academia, to the House of Lords, and not excluding private clubs, the civil service, and the world of publishing.   Apparently not content to tilt at British windmills, recently Edwards has cast her net wider, taking on American social mores.   The result brings together loose-cannon Baroness "Jack" Troutbeck and her reluctant co-conspirator, Robert Amiss, in a delightful series of comic misadventures that, however improbably, always manage to come out right in the end.   A prize-winning journalist with nearly a dozen non-fiction books to her credit, Edwards has also been shortlisted once for the John Creasey Award for Best First Novel ( Corridors of Death ) and twice for the Last Laugh Award for funniest crime novel of the year.   Her Murdering Americans won the Last Laugh Award at Bristol's CrimeFest in 2008.   If a little levity goes a long way, Edwards' tales will get you to the moon.
Eisler, Barry (American, 1964- )
http://www.barryeisler.com/
(Thrillers)
Nominated for a Barry Award in 2007 for his novel The Last Assassin , lawyer Barry Eisler has penned a fast-paced series of crime novels featuring the exploits of John Rain.   A Japanese-American assassin who answers to his own moral code, his calling inevitably brings him into conflict with formidable foes, including the Mossad, the CIA, the Japanese FBI and an ex-marine sniper he once called a friend. 		 
Elkins, Aaron (American, 1935- )
http://www.aaronelkins.com/
(Cozies, Forensics Mysteries)
A former boxer and anthropology professor, Aaron Elkins is best known for his stories revolving around forensic anthropologist Gideon Oliver, one of which, Old Bones , won an Edgar Award in 1988 for Best Novel. He was also shortlisted for Agatha Awards for Best novel in 1991 for Make No Bones , and again in 1993 for Old Scores . 		 
Ellroy, James (American, 1948- )
http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/e/james-ellroy/
(Thrillers, Noir Crime Fiction, Hard-boiled, Historical Mysteries)
Bestselling author James Ellroy is best known for his period tales gathered under the heading of the L.A. Quartet.   The Black Dahlia , The Big Nowhere , L.A. Confidential , and White Jazz have each been critical and popular successes, some spawning equally well-known feature films.   His graphic stories are laced with crackling dialogue, and his hard-edged characters are reminiscent of the heyday of Spade and Marlowe.   Don't ignore his other novels, the Lloyd Hopkins Trilogy, his series known as Underworld U.S.A ., and his standalones.   A delight for fans of the genre. 		 
Emery, Anne (Canadian)
http://www.anneemery.com/anne.php
(Cozies)
Author Anne Emery draws on her background as a Maritime-based lawyer to build a series of tales around Halifax attorney Monty Collins.   Her debut novel, Sign of the Cross, won the Arthur Ellis Award for Best First Novel in 2007, and her four novels to date are literate, original, and painstakingly researched.   Highly recommended.
Engel, Howard (Canadian, 1931- )
http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/e/howard-engel/
(Humourous Mysteries)
If Sam Spade and Philip Marlowe are hard-boiled detectives, then Howard Engel's PI, Benny Cooperman, is definitely a three-minute job.   This Jewish sleuth's favourite lunch is a chopped-egg sandwich on white, washed down with a glass of milk, while he contemplates visiting his mother, who constantly nags him about his more successful brother and wonders aloud about who he's seeing.   A masterful parody of the hard-boiled genre, lovingly created, and set in the Niagara region of Ontario, Howard Engel's Benny Cooperman series is a real gem, not nearly widely enough read.   Do yourself a favour and track his books down.
Epperson, Tom
Evanovich, Janet (American, 1943- )
http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/e/janet-evanovich/
(Humourous Mysteries)
The author of several romance novels and four other series of crime tales, it is for her series of stories featuring bounty hunter Stephanie Plum that New Hampshire author Janet Evanovich has achieved widespread popularity, in the process earning Dagger and Anthony nominations for her work.   Plum's uneasy alliance with vice cop and lover Joe Morelli, along with her relationships with her libidinous partner Ranger and Bob the Dog, set the stage for a light read and rollocking good fun. 		 
Evans, Jon
Evans, Stanley (British-Canadian)
(Hard-boiled)
Born in Lancashire, England, Stanley Evans made his crime fiction debut mystery in 1996.  Since then he has penned a unique hard-boiled series set on Vancouver Island, and featuring Native North American police detective Silas Seaweed.  His deftly-written, atmospheric tales combine evocative characterization with a rich understanding of native lore.


Farrow, John (Trevor Ferguson) (Canadian, 1947 – present)
http://authors.simonandschuster.ca/Trevor-Ferguson/409340253
(Literary and police procedurals)
Publishing under both his birth name and his pen name, Trevor Ferguson has written eleven novels and four plays to date, including The Kinkajou, which earned him the Hugh MacLennan Prize for fiction and was made into a film.  His series of crime fiction novels featuring Sergeant Detective Emile Cinq-Mars has been described by the German periodical Die Zeit as the best [crime] series of all time, and includes five novels to date, the original three being City of Ice, Ice Lake, and River City.  Since then Ferguson has embarked on a trilogy, the first of which is The Storm Murders, to be followed by Seven Days Dead and a further, unnamed novel.  Ferguson teaches creative writing at Concordia University in Montreal, and he and his wife make their home in Hudson, Quebec.
Ferris Gordon
Dan Fesperman (American)
http://www.danfesperman.com/
(Thrillers)
A former reporter with extensive overseas experience, Dan Fesperman's early novels were set in the former Yugoslavia (where he had worked as a journalist), and featured ex-detective Vlado Petric .   His debut novel Lie in the Dark , picked up the CWA's John Creasey Award for Best First Crime Novel, and its sequel, The Small Boat of Great Sorrows , earned him the 2003 Ian Fleming Steel Dagger for Best Thriller.   Since then Fesperman has gone on to pen several outstanding standalone tales, including The Prisoner of Guananamo , which earned him a Barry nomination for Best Novel, The Amateur Spy , and The Arms Maker of Berlin.  A convincing series from the pen of a man who's been there.   
Filteau, Patricia
Forrest, C. B.
Forsyth, Frederick (British, 1938- )
http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/f/frederick-forsyth/
(Thrillers)
Author of such best-sellers as The Day of the Jackel, The Odessa File, and The Dogs of War , thriller writer Frederick Forsyth has been entertaining readers around the world for more than three decades.   Drawing on his background as an international journalist, he imbues his tales with meticulously-plotted references to real-world events.   Forsyth took home an Edgar for Best Novel for 1972's The Day of the Jackel , about a plot to assassinate then-French President Charles de Gaulle.   It was one of several of his novels to go on to become successful feature films. 		 
Fowler, Christopher (British, 1953- )
http://www.christopherfowler.co.uk/
(Cozies, Humourous Mysteries)
Christopher Fowler describes his books as about urban unease, dark comedy, mystery and horror.   He might have added fantasy as well, seeing as he's won or been nominated for six awards in that category.   But for our purposes the most interesting thing he's done is a cozy crime series featuring the exploits of Bryant and May.   Arthur Bryant and John May are a pair of bickering septuagenarian sleuths employed by Britain's Home Office, in something called the Peculiar Crimes Unit.   It's their job to solve crimes that the Met's CID Branch can't (or more likely, don't want to) tackle, and they are perfectly suited to their task.   As you might guess, the appeal of the novels lies in the combination of puzzle plots and quirky characters, and they are unfailingly funny.   I recommend the series highly.
Fradkin, Barbara (Canadian)
http://www.barbarafradkin.com/
(Police Procedurals)
Set mostly in Ottawa, Canada, Barbara Fradkin's Inspector Green series will open up unexplored territory for many readers.   And fertile fields they are, dealing with such topics as sexual abuse, the conflict in the former Yugoslavia, and the corrupting power of professional sports on the lives of young athletes.   Fradkin is the only writer to have won the Arthur Ellis Award for Best Novel twice, in 2005 for Fifth Son , and again in 2007 for Honour Among Men .
Francis, Dick (Welsh, 1920- )
http://www.dickfrancis.com/
(Thrillers)
Winner of the CWA's Cartier Diamond Dagger, and Grand Master of the Mystery Writers of America, Dick Francis has penned over forty international bestsellers focusing on the turbulent world of horse racing. His Sid Halley Series garnered two Edgar Awards for Best Novel.   A former jockey with over 350 wins to his credit, Francis writes with considerable experience, and has attracted a global following. 		 
Fraser, Anthea (British, 1930- )
http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/f/anthea-fraser/
(Cozies, Psychological Thrillers)
The author of sixteen tales of crime fiction featuring Detective Chief Inspector David Webb of the Shillingham Police, and, more recently, another half dozen based on the exploits of journalist Rona Parish, as well as a number of standalones. 		 
French, Tana (Irish, 1973- )
http://www.tanafrench.com/
(Psychological Thrillers, Police Procedurals)
One of the strongest crime writers to emerge in a very long time, Tana French is quickly making a name for herself worldwide.  The Dublin-based author has published just three novels to date, and each has been a ground-breaker, earning both critical and popular acclaim.  Her debut novel, In the Woods, won her Edgar, Anthony, Barry and Macavity Awards, The Strand Magazine’s Best First Novel Award, and was on the New York Times extended bestseller list.  Her most recent novel, Faithful Place, was shortlisted for another Edgar, for best crime novel of 2010.  A superb stylist, French is Ireland’s answer to Ian Rankin, and an author to savour.
Fulmer, David (American)
http://www.davidfulmer.com/
(Historical Mysteries, Hard-boiled, Noir Crime Fiction)
Set in and around pre-WW I New Orleans, in Atlanta during the 20's, and in Philadelphia during the early 60's, Fulmer's evocative tales feature a variety of protagonists, and are set against the vibrant music - jazz, blues, soul, and rock - of the times.   Fulmer draws on his own musical experience, together with his writings about blues and jazz for National Public Radio and Atlanta Magazine . His Chasing the Devil's Tail earned him the 2002 Shamus Award for Best First P.I. Novel.
Fyfield, Frances (Frances Hegarty) (British, 1945- )
http://www.francesfyfield.co.uk/
(Psychological Thrillers)
Drawing on her previous experience with the London Metropolitan Police and as a Solicitor for Britain’s Crown Prosecutor Service, Frances Fyfield has published two dozen crime novels, including two series and nine standalones, since the late 1980s.  Her works have been nominated for an Edgar Award (A Question of Guilt) for Best Novel, and twice for the CWA Dagger Award for Best Novel (Safer Than Houses, and Blood From Stone), winning for the latter work.  Her stories are finely-crafted explorations of extraordinary people, both good and evil, revealing their complex characters in insightful plots that are as plausible as they are terrifying.  Yet gore and gratuitous violence are largely absent from her work.  When not writing novels and short stories, Fyfield is a contributor and presenter for the BBC’s Radio Four.