Crime and mystery fiction is built on a single irresistible question: what really happened? From locked-room puzzles and cosy village whodunits to bleak Nordic noir and breakneck psychological thrillers, it's the genre readers return to more than any other - and the one our reviewers argue about most. At LoveReading we've been recommending crime fiction for over twenty years. The titles below are curated by our editorial team and informed by our 800-strong Reader Review Panel - chosen on merit, never ranked by an algorithm. Whether you're hunting the next Richard Osman, working back through Agatha Christie, or after a debut nobody's talking about yet, this is where to start. Short on time? Go straight to our editors' pick of the best crime books.
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