Bookriot: WHAT MAKES A GOOD MYSTERY SERIES? [View all]

https://bookriot.com/what-makes-a-good-mystery-series/

When I find a new, exciting mystery series, I know it’s time to clear space on my bookshelf. Like many mystery fans, when a new sleuth wins me over, I want to read every book they’re in. So what is it about a good mystery series that makes readers like me commit for multiple novels, dozens of murders, and thousands of pages? The answer lies in the series’ comforting blend of familiarity and intrigue. With a favorite series, I get to spend time with my favorite detectives and a cast of familiar faces, from police chiefs to neighborhood busybodies. Whether cozy or hard boiled crime, the best series give readers a chance to step into a familiar world that still offers guaranteed twists and turns with every crime. Here are the key elements of mystery series that keep readers hooked, book after book.

AN ORIGINAL SLEUTH YOU CAN ROOT FOR

A mystery series is only as good as its sleuth. Sometimes, it’s one with incredible powers of observation, like the Sherlockian IQ in Joe Ide’s IQ series. Sometimes they can talk to ghosts like Alexa Gordon’s Gethsemane Brown. Whatever their crime-solving talent, the central character has to be compelling. Sometimes they’re dark and brooding, like Jo Nebso’s Harry Hole or dapper and fastidious like Agatha Christie’s Hercule Poirot. Whether a hard-drinking Texas Ranger like Darren Matthews in Attica Locke’s Highway 59 series, or sarcastic amateur detective and socialite like like Lady Georgie in the Her Royal Spyness series by Rhys Bowen, the series’ main sleuth is usually noble in their own way, putting themselves in danger book after book to restore justice. Once the sleuth gets us on their side, we’ll be clamoring for their next case.

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