Amateur Sleuths

Introduction

Amateur sleuths are the mainstay of so-called “cozy” mysteries, in which the four mystery genre elements—the sleuth, the setting or the sleuth’s occupation, the sleuth’s associates, and the crime itself—coalesce into novels that reassure readers about the existence of order and meaning in puzzles associated with human existence. These mysteries always involve a crime, but readers often find the crime itself less important than the novel’s major emphases: acquainting readers with the sleuth’s personality and background, the sleuth’s associates, and puzzles for both sleuths and readers to solve.

Elements of Amateur Sleuth Mysteries

Fascination with puzzles is an important element in human nature. Many newspaper readers believe they could solve crimes more quickly and efficiently than the police, and apparently many of those readers are busy writing mystery novels featuring amateur sleuths much like themselves. Thus, the audience pool for amateur sleuth mystery seems unlimited, and the author pool is also huge, with even the children of former U.S. presidents writing novels set primarily in Washington, D.C. First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt solves crimes in books written by her son Elliott Roosevelt; Harry S. Truman’s daughter, Margaret Truman, has written several mysteries; and Gerald Ford’s daughter Susan Ford has drawn on her experience as a child of the president to create an amateur sleuth.

Despite surface differences, such as settings and the sleuths’ backgrounds and personalities, these mysteries tend to follow a similar overall pattern. In the course of their daily activities, the amateur sleuths—who may have no previous experience solving crimes—encounter mysteries whose circumstances render them uniquely qualified to unravel. Either completely alone, or assisted by close friends or family members, the amateur sleuths uncover series of clues, and survive physical perils (often because of timely rescues). Finally, they provide answers to law-enforcement authorities, who are often uncooperative or even hostile up until the resolution of the crimes. Because the writers provide readers all the information their amateur sleuths possess—including red herrings—the primary appeal of these mysteries is the challenge for readers to unmask the culprits before the sleuths do. However, a secondary appeal is that readers enter the sleuths’ worlds. They become acquainted with basically likeable characters and gain new understandings of various groups and occupations. Amateur sleuth novels often end with the sleuths promising never to get involved in another mystery; however, readers generally hope that a series will follow.

The Sleuths’ Backgrounds

As diverse as the people who read about them, amateur sleuths may be any age. Some—for example, Agatha Christie’s Miss Jane Marple and Patricia Wentworth’s Maud Silver—draw their inferences from lifetimes of experience. For others—including Carolyn Keane’s teenage Nancy Drew, who influenced generations of mystery writers; Martha Grimes’s Emma Graham; and Jeffery Deaver’s “Rune”—independence and enthusiasm compensate for lack of experience and naïveté. Several, such as Mary Daheim’s Judith McMonigle-Flynn and Anne George’s sister team of Mary Alice and Patricia Ann, consider themselves middle-aged, as do Corinne Holt Sawyer’s Angela Benbow and Caledonia Wingate, residents of an upscale retirement home.

Sleuths also vary in marital status. Being unmarried is not an absolute requirement, but sleuths must possess a high degree of independence. Thus, married sleuths, such as Elizabeth Peters’s Amelia Peabody and Valerie Wolzien’s Susan Henshaw, must have cooperative, patient husbands. Romantic relationships are another recurring element. As early as M. McDonnell Bodkin’s Dora Myrl of The Lady Detective (1900), the courtship and marriage of the primary sleuth becomes a subplot; for example, in Carolyn Hart’s series, the romance of Annie Laurance and Max Darling figures significantly. Likewise, Amanda Cross describes Kate Fansler’s marriage to Reed Amhearst, and Charlotte MacLeod’s Sarah Kelling not only marries Max Bittersohn but eventually gives birth to a son. A few sleuths—including Joan Hess’s Claire Malloy, Virginia Rich’s Eugenia Potter, and Richard Barth’s Margaret Binton—are widowed. However, far more are divorced or, like Rita Mae Brown’s Mary Minor Haristeen, separated from their spouses. Notable examples are Lilian Jackson Braun’s James Qwilleran and JoAnna Carl’s Lee McKinney, both of whom choose new locales in which to rebuild their lives. In contrast, Tamar Myers’s Magdalena Yoder discovers that she has married a bigamist but nevertheless continues to run the Penn-Dutch Inn, becoming involved in another ongoing romantic relationship in later novels.

Amateur sleuths populate diverse times and places. Medieval England is home to Margaret Frazer’s Dame Frevisse and Ellis Peters’s Brother Cadfael. Fiona Buckley’s Ursula Blanchard is Lady of Presence Chamber to Queen Elizabeth I. Stephanie Barron’sJane Austen mysteries are set in early nineteenth century England, Robin Paige’s Kate Sheriden is one of the landed gentry in Victorian England, and P. B. Ryan’s Nell Sweeney is an Irish immigrant working as a governess in Boston during the late nineteenth century Gilded Age. Peter Heck has written a series of mysteries in which Mark Twain is the sleuth. More modern novels set in England feature Sarah Caudwell’s Oxford don Hilary Tamar and Nancy Atherton’s American heiress Lori Shepherd. Almost all areas of the United States have provided settings for contemporary mysteries, and small towns seem to attract a substantial number of amateur sleuths.

The Sleuths’ Occupations

The underlying premise of amateur sleuth novels is that solving mysteries requires keen powers of observation, imagination, and deduction but not necessarily formal training. In fact, amateur sleuths may hold mundane jobs, exotic jobs, or no jobs at all. The important element is that their lives involve frequent, often close, interaction with relatively limited groups of people.

In contrast to police procedurals and private investigator mysteries, in which detectives may pursue clues over long periods of time and across relatively large geographical areas, or forensic mysteries, whose solutions depend primarily on laboratory analyses, amateur sleuth mysteries are character-driven and are resolved within limited time frames and geographical areas because their victims, suspects, and sleuths are part of cohesive social groups, which are usually determined by the sleuths’ occupations or circles of friends. The sleuths themselves often lead relatively ordinary lives, but their occupations seem destined to lead them to encounters with people with serious problems and to mysteries that need to be solved.

Whatever an individual reader’s area of interest, curiosity, or professional expertise may be, there probably is at least one amateur sleuth who shares it and uses its specialized skills and training to solve crimes. For example, Kate Goldring’s Willi Gallagher uses the tarot to unmask murders, while Dorothy Salisbury Davis’s Julie Hayes employs her skills as a fortune-teller. Kathleen Kunz’s Terry Girard gets involved in murders connected to her profession as a genealogist, as does Rhett MacPherson’s Torie O’Shea, who is also the town historian in a small Appalachian community. Parnell Hall’s Sherry Carter composes crossword puzzles and, as an unofficial sideline, solves mysteries, but her flamboyant aunt Cora Felton receives credit for both. Katrina Nash’s Cassandra Burnett solves crimes while she is on her professional golfing tours, Christine L. Goff’s Angela Dimato leads bird-watching groups, and Kate Grilley’s Kelly Ryan is a Caribbean tourist guide.

Amateur sleuths may also belong to more conventional professions. For example, Connie Shelton’s Charlie Parker is a certified public accountant, Lou Allen’s Belle Palmer is a Realtor, Tim Cockey’s Hitchcock Sewell is an undertaker, and Paula Paol’s Dr. Alexandra Gladstone and Robin Hathaway’s Dr. Andrew Fenimore are village physicians. Claudia Bishop’s Austin McKenzie is a veterinarian and equestrian judge, and Edie Claire’s Leigh Koslow is a pet-sitter who frequently works with her veterinarian father. Julie Smith’s Rebecca Schwartz is an attorney, and Carolina Garcia Aguiera’s Margarita Maria Santos Silva combines professional and domestic lives as a lawyer on maternity leave. In contrast, Sarah Strohmeyer’s Bubbles is a hairstylist who writes a newspaper beauty column, Marian Babson’s Trixie Dolan and Evangeline Sinclair are former film stars. Even more unusual is Barbara Seranelle’s Munch Mancini, a recovering drug addict, former prostitute, and former convict who works as an auto mechanic.

Academic Sleuths

Not surprisingly, perhaps, many amateur sleuths are associated with academics. Placing mysteries in the academic world allows writers to create amusing and eccentric characters, who often include the sleuths themselves. Charlotte MacLeod’s Peter Shandy teaches at a small agricultural college, where his wife, Helen, is a librarian. Together, they solve crimes directly or indirectly involving their college’s academic and support personnel, a relatively cohesive social group they know well. In contrast, Amanda Cross’s Kate Fansler teaches at a large city university; nevertheless, the scope of her mysteries usually is limited to individuals who interact with Fansler and her academic colleagues. Thus, despite the urban university setting, the crimes are played out within a restricted social group.

Similarly, Lee Harris’s Kix Bennett teaches at a community college in New York City and lives in Westchester—a situation that combines two types of limited social groups. Other university professor-sleuths include Susan Kenney’s Roz Howard at Vassar College; Gail Bowen’s Joanne Kilbourne at a Canadian university; Ralph McInerny’s Roger Knight at Notre Dame University; J. S. Bothwick’s Sarah Deane, an English professor in Maine; Patricia Thomas Graham’s Veronica Chase, an African American economics professor at Harvard; Erin Hart’s Cormac Maguire, an Irish archaeologist; Judith Van Gieson’s Clair Reynier, an archivist; Sarah Andrews’s Em Hunter, a geologist; Ridley Pearson’s Daphne Matthews, a psychologist; Susan Slater’s Ben Pecos, a Native American psychologist; and Virginia Swift’s Sally Alder, a professor in Wyoming.

Melissa Cleary’s Jackie Walsh teaches university film classes; Earlene Fowler’s Benni Harper is a folk art expert; Nageeba Davis’s Maggie Kean is an art teacher and sculptor; and Elizabeth Peters’s Jacqueline Kirby is a university librarian. Jane Isenberg’s Bel Barrett teaches English at a community college; Gillian Roberts’s Amanda Pepper teaches at a private high school; Denise Swanson’s Skye Denison is a school psychologist; Hazel Holt’s Mrs. Malory is a substitute teacher; and Marlis Day’s Margo Brown is an Indiana schoolteacher interested in mysteries. Among the retired teachers who become amateur sleuths are Amber Dean’s Abbie Harris, Stuart Palmer’s Hildegarde Winters, Anne George’s Patricia Anne, and Louisa Revell’s Julia Tyler. Patricia Houck Sprinkle’s Sheila Travis and Elizabeth Peters’s Vicky Bliss have become academic administrators.

Writers and Reporters as Sleuths

A clearly related group of sleuths are the writers and reporters. Ellen Pael’s Juliet Bodine is a former English professor who writes romance novels, as does Susan Rogers Cooper’s E. J. Pugh. Sarah Shaber’s Professor Simon Shaw has moved to North Carolina’s Outer Banks to write novels. Jill Churchill’s Jane Jeffrey wants to become a writer, but Mignon G. Eberhart’s Susan Dare and Dwight Babcock’s Hannah Van Doren already are mystery writers. Robin Paige’s Kate Sheriden writes novels. Lilian Jackson Braun’s James Qwilleran, once a crime reporter for a metropolitan newspaper, becomes a columnist for a small-town weekly. Ellen Byorrum’s Lacy Smithsonian writes a fashion column; Ann Ripley’s Louise Eldridge stars in a television show about gardening; Sherryl Woods’s Amanda Roberts is an investigative reporter in Atlanta; and Arlene Schumacher’s Tory Travers is a senator’s daughter and investigative reporter. Carolyn Hart’s Henrietta O’Dwyer Collins is a retired reporter; Jan Burke’s Irene Kelly is a California reporter, Tom Corcoran’s Alex Rutledge is a freelance photographer, Kerry Tucker’s Libby Kincaid is a New York City photojournalist, and Susan Ford’s Eve Cooper is a freelance photographer whose father happens to be the president of the United States.

Sleuths Among the Clergy

The training in theology and counseling that members of the clergy receive helps them to see the weaknesses and strengths of their parishioners. They thus presumably also possess special talent in analyzing the character of others. Moreover, their synagogues and churches constitute the kinds of limited social groups required in cozy mysteries. Harry Kemelman’s sleuth Rabbi David Small draws upon his specialized knowledge of the Torah to help his synagogue’s members solve problems. Frequently, those same problems draw him into murder investigations.

Similarly, seminary training—especially in logic—serves as preparation for sleuthing priests, such as G. K. Chesterton’s Father Brown, Andrew Greeley’s Father Blackie Ryan, Margaret Coel’s Father John O’Malley, and Ralph McInerny’s Father Dowling. In addition to his clerical duties, William X. Kienzle’s Father Bob Koesler writes for Detroit’s Roman Catholic newspaper, and his journalistic instincts lead to additional investigations and help him unmask murderers.

Most of the clergy sleuths are Catholic priests, but Sister Carol Anne chronicles mysteries solved by a sleuth named Sister Mary Helen, who sets a model that is also followed by Veronica Black’s Sister Joan, who solves mysteries in Cornwall. The best-known sleuthing monk, however, is Ellis Peters’s Brother Cadfael, whose intellectual independence—combined with astute judgment of human nature and scientific knowledge unusually advanced for his era—enable him to solve crimes in medieval England. The modern American version of this character is David Manuel’s Brother Bartholomew of Faith Abbey in Massachusetts.

Isabelle Holland’s Claire Aldingon is an Episcopal rector in New York City. Cristina Sumners’s the Reverend Dr. Kathryn Koerney is an Episcopal priest, as is Julia Spencer-Fleming’s Clare Fergusson. Claire Hunnings’s Rosemary Stubbs is a college chaplain, Matthew Head’s Dr. Mary Finney is a missionary in Africa, and Deborah Woodworth’s Sister Rose Callahan is a leader among Kentucky Shakers. Katherine Hall Page’s Faith Sibley Fairchild, the wife of small-town Massachusetts minister, sometimes draws her husband into the mysteries she solves. Less formally trained in theology is Charles Merrill Smith’s Reverend C. P. Randollph, a former pro football player whose role as pastor of the Church of the Good Shepherd places him at the center of his parishioners’ mysteries.

Clergy mysteries seem to appeal to readers in two ways. For readers unfamiliar with the sleuth’s religion, these novels provide introductions to basic religious tenets and practices, allowing the writers to explain beliefs and perhaps correct common misconceptions. For readers who share a sleuth’s religion, the familiar elements create a sense of shared insight and thus community with the sleuth; these readers may feel that they have “inside knowledge” that is an advantage as they solve the mystery along with the sleuth.

Sleuthing Among the Shopkeepers

Small specialty shops with local clientele also provide the kinds of restricted social groups conducive to the solving of mysteries, especially when the shop owners are well acquainted with their customers and the local community. Not surprisingly, therefore, many amateur sleuths operate such shops, solving crimes that affect their employees, clients, neighbors, and families. These shops sell merchandise of various kinds. In Monica Ferris’s novels, for example, divorcé Betsy Devonshire inherits a small-town needlecraft shop, solves her aunt’s murder, and becomes involved in other local conflicts. JoAnna Carl relates the adventures of another divorcé, Lee McKinney, who is caught up in local mysteries after her aunt invites her to keep the books for the family’s luxury candy factory and chocolate shop. Yet another divorcé, Mary Ellen Hughes’s Jo McAllister, finds herself involved in a murder on the day she opens her craft store.

An atmosphere of mystery always seems to surround antiques, and antique collectors are a comparatively cohesive group. Moreover, because owners of antique shops must investigate the provenance of their wares, they develop skills that can be useful for solving criminal mysteries. Logically then, these shopkeepers often become amateur sleuths. In Tamar Myers’s Den of Antiquity series, Abigail Timberlake tracks down murderers and forgers. Tony Fennelly’s Matt Sinclair also is an antique dealer, as are Deborah Morgan’s Jeff Abbott, Sharon Fiffer’s Jane Wheel, Jonathan Gash’s Lovejoy, and Elizabeth Dean’s Emma Marsh. Marianne Macdonald’s Dido Hoare sells antique books. Madelyn Alt combines an antique shop setting with a bit of witchcraft when her sleuth, Maggie O’Neill, accepts a job at an antique shop owned by avowed witch Felicity Down. Lee Wait’s Maggie Summer is a dealer in antique prints.

Some shopkeeping sleuths sell books or art. Strictly speaking, the protagonist of John Dunning’s Cliff Janeway is not an amateur sleuth because he is a former police detective. However, within the context of Dunning’s Bookman novels, he is an antiquarian book dealer by profession and a sleuth only by accident. Other fictional book dealers are more clearly amateurs. For example, following her husband’s death, Joan Hess’s Claire Malloy opens an independent bookstore. Carolyn Hart’s Annie Laurance runs a mystery bookstore; Julie Wallin Kaewert’s Alex Plumtree is a British publisher; and Alice Kimberly’s Penelope Thornton-McClure operates a bookstore in a haunted building. Clarissa Watson’s Persis Willum and Lise McClendon’s Alix Thorssen both own art galleries, and Haley Jane Kozak’s Wollie Shelly has a greeting card business.

Among other types of independent merchants who are sleuths is Laura Child’s Theodosia Browning, the proprietor of the Indigo Tea Shop. Doug Allyn’s Mitch Mitchell and Kathleen Taylor’s Tony Bauer both own cafés, and Ellen Hart’s Jane Lawless owns a pub. Other specialty shop-owning sleuths include Jacqueline Gardner’s Kate Jasper, the owner of a gift shop and Susan Wittig Albert’s China Bayles, who has an herb shop. Allana Martin’s Texana Jones owns a trading post, Mary Bowen Hall’s Emma Chizzit owns a salvage business, and Taffy Cannon’s Roseanne Prescott owns the Irish Eyes Travel Agency.

Some amateur sleuths are into gardening and landscaping. Mary Freeman’s Rachel O’Connor owns a landscaping company. Patricia Houck Sprinkle’s MacLaren Yarbrough and Joyce and Jim Lavene’s Peggy Lee both operate seed stores and nurseries, and Janis Harrison’s Bretta Solomon is a florist. Other sleuths provide specialized services. Margaret Chittenden’s Charlie Plato is part owner of a Western dance club. Martha C. Lawrence’s Elizabeth Chase is a psychic, and Deborah Donnelly’s Carnegie Kincaid is a wedding planner.

Innkeepers, Caterers, and House Cleaners

Few social groups are more restricted than the residents of boardinghouses and inns, in which hospitality has a commercial element and paying guests feel free to make unusual demands and engage in eccentric behavior. Not surprisingly, the operators of those establishments often draw on their experience and become amateur sleuths. For example, realizing it is the only way to save the family mansion, Charlotte MacLeod’s Sarah Kelling converts it into a genteel boardinghouse and in the process learns quite a bit about human behavior. Similarly, after the stock market crash of 1929 forces Jill Churchill’s brother-and-sister team, Lily and Robert Brewster. to earn a living, they use their only training—in the social graces—and their mansion also becomes a boardinghouse. Tamar Myers’s Magdalena Yoder takes a slightly different approach. After her parents are killed in a freak automobile accident, she opens the family farmhouse to paying guests. Quickly recognizing that the inn’s true appeal is its Amish associations, she allows her guests to pay her for the privilege of cleaning their own rooms.

Perhaps no one knows people as well as the domestic servants who work in their homes. It is not surprising, therefore, that amateur sleuths become involved in mysteries when they work in other people’s houses, either as cleaners or as caterers. Kathy Hogan Trocheck’s Callahan Garrity is a cleaning woman. Ann Purser’s Lois Meade is building a cleaning business in the English village of Tresham, where she uses her crews to investigate crimes ranging from pornography to blackmail and murder. Similarly, Charlaine Harris’s Lily Bard cleans houses to supplement her income as a karate instructor. Like Lois, Lily solves mysteries through careful observation and astute questioning.

A number of sleuths are caterers, restaurateurs, or chefs. For example, Isis Crawford’s Libby Simmons, Diane Moss Davidson’s Goldy Bear, and Jerrilyn Farmer’s Madeline Bean all operate catering services. Janet Laurence’s Darina Lisle is a cookbook writer as well. Among the gourmet chefs who sometimes work as caterers are Katherine Hall Page’s Faith Sibley Fairchild, Joanne Pence’s Chef Angie Amalfi, and Eugenia Potter from the series begun by Virginia Rich and continued by Nancy Pickard.

The Sleuth’s Relatives

Although amateur sleuths may live almost anywhere—in rural areas, small towns, or big cities—and follow almost any occupation, the culprits and the victims of the crimes they investigate must be part of cohesive social groups. The sleuths are more likely to be successful if they also are part of the same groups. Nevertheless, sleuths often need assistance from other trustworthy characters.

Unlike professional private investigators, amateur sleuths frequently draw support from their own families and from the friends who surround them. Generally these other characters provide information, assist in searches for clues, help trail suspects, serve as sounding boards for the sleuths’ theories about their cases, and often rescue the sleuths at the climactic moments when they confront the villains. In most novels, these assistants function essentially in supporting roles. Although the sleuths may need their relatives’ and friends’ help and suggestions to track down and subdue culprits, the relatives and friends are never central to the mysteries themselves. Nevertheless, the relationships between sleuths and their assistants are usually close.

Assistants are often part of the sleuths’ extended families. For example, Charlotte MacLeod’s Sarah Kelling repeatedly draws upon her large extended family to solve murders involving Boston’s elite. Her elderly cousins provide crucial information, her aunts and uncles shadow suspects, and her first husband dramatically saves her from the first murderer whom she unmasks. Later, Sarah’s marriage to Max Bittersohn expands her family network with the addition of a close-knit Jewish family, whose members also participate in solving the mysteries.

Several sleuths are assisted by significant female relatives. For example, Meredith Blevins’s Annie Szabo works with her mother-in-law, Madame Mina, who describes herself as a gypsy fortune-teller. Mary Daheim’s Judith McMonigle-Flynn is usually assisted by her cousin Renie Jones. Some of their cases arise from Judith’s attempts to help Renie resolve personal problems. Parnell Hall’s Sherry Carter creates the crossword puzzles and solves the mysteries for which her aunt, Miss Cora Felton, takes credit. Perhaps the most unusual niece-aunt team, however, is Nancy Atherton’s Lori Shepherd and Aunt Dimity Westwood, as the latter happens to be a ghost.

Some sleuths have children living at home, but although these children may occasionally provide valuable pieces of information, their role more often seems to be comic relief. Interactions between sleuths and children can also help establish the sleuths as complex characters. The children rarely participate in solving mysteries because their parents try to shield them from violence and danger.

There are many sleuthing teams. One logical, and therefore frequent, two-person team consists of a wife and husband. Many of these teams are not, strictly speaking, amateur sleuths because they involve spouses of law-enforcement professionals. However, in some series, spouses play significant roles in the solution of crimes. Examples include Helen Shandy in Charlotte MacLeod’s Peter Shandy series, Godfrey Norton in the adventures of Carole Nelson Douglas’s Irene Adler, and Nick Ryan in P. M. Carlson’s Maggie Ryan mysteries. The actual solving of the crime and unmasking of murderers becomes more nearly a joint effort after MacLeod’s Sarah Kelling marries Max Bittersohn and after Carolyn Hart’s Annie Laurance marries Max Darling. In a formula reminiscent of Golden Age mysteries, Steve Allen introduces the detective team of Jayne Meadows and Steve Allen.

Siblings as Sleuthing Teams

Less numerous than husband-wife teams are brother-sister teams, which combine the humorous element of sibling bickering with the ability of siblings to anticipate each other’s thoughts and reactions. In most instances, one sibling is better at deductive reasoning than the other, while the other does more of the legwork. In Sharyn McCrumb’s novels about Elizabeth and Bill MacPherson, both siblings are central characters, but Elizabeth is the more analytical sleuth, while Bill does most of the interviewing.

In contrast, Lily and Robert Brewster of Jill Churchill’s Grace and Favor series carefully observe the conventions of their upscale society. Lily gleans information from the gossip of women in her quilting circle, while Robert is the one who discovers bodies and examines crime scenes. In Someone to Watch over Me (2001), Robert travels to Washington, D.C., to interview participants at the Bonus Army encampment, while delegating to Lily the task of examining old newspaper files. Robert refers to himself and his sister as The Sleuthing Siblings, and the eventual solution of their cases invariably depends on the work of both.

Relationships among sisters have also been brought into the amateur sleuth genre, and few relationships so closely combine closeness and competition. The pattern of eccentric sister sleuths apparently was established by Torrey Chanslor’s elderly sisters, Amanda and Lutie Beagle, who live in New York City during the 1920’s. That pattern continued with sister teams such as Mirinda and Clare Clively of Ann Crowleigh’s Clively Close series, set in Victorian England. More recent series involve teams of sexagenarian southern sisters such as Annie Griffin’s Kiki and Hannah and Anne George’s Mary Alice and Patricia Anne. Kiki Goldstein frequently precipitates crises through her flamboyant behavior and constant chatter. Hannah Malloy is a year older than Kiki. Both sisters consider Hannah the sensible one, and she frequently has to rescue Kiki from dangers of her own making. Likewise, Mary Alice Crane is a flamboyant sixty-five-year-old widow who has outlived three husbands. Weighing well over two hundred pounds, she describes herself as pleasingly plump, and her hair usually is some shade of pink. Her younger sister, Patricia Anne Hollowell, is a foot shorter, wears a size six, and refuses to dye her graying hair. Drawing on knowledge of human nature acquired during many years as a schoolteacher, Patricia Anne usually solves the mystery, extricating herself and her sister from dangers that result from Mary Alice’s heedless comments.

Animal Companions

In a growing number of mystery series, the valued assistants are not human beings but animals that live with them. Sleuths may rely on their animals to uncover valuable clues, help in trailing culprits, and ultimately rescue them at climactic moments. The animals can also be sympathetic listeners, serving as sounding boards while the sleuths work out theories about their cases. Apart from some children’s books, animals usually remain in secondary roles, primarily assisting the humans. Most such animal companions were originally dogs, but with the growing popularity of cats as indoor pets, the number of feline companions has increased. In these mysteries, the role of the animal companion has greatly expanded.

The number of sleuths with canine companions reflects the long-standing relationship between humans and dogs. In fact, the word “sleuth” itself seems to have developed from the now-archaic word sleuth hund, a Middle English term for dogs used in trailing and tracking. By the late nineteenth century, humans who followed trails of clues and tracked down culprits were being called sleuth-hounds, or sleuths.

Among modern sleuths, Virginia Lanier’s Jo Beth Siddens breeds and trains bloodhounds. Her favorite companion is Bobby Lee, a blind bloodhound who is still an outstanding tracker and who protects Jo Beth. Donna Ball’s Raine Stockton also uses Cisco, her young golden retriever, primarily as a tracker. In Laurien Berenson’s Melanie Travis series, protecting Melanie is the primary job of her standard poodle Faith. In professional dog-trainer Carol Lea Benjamin’s Rachel Alexander and Dash series, Rachel is on her own in New York City and trusts only her rescued pit bull terrier, Dashiell. Colleen Coble’s Bree Nicholls probably could not solve her mysteries without the help of her German shepherd-chow, Samson, a search dog. Likewise in Cynthia Baxter’s Reigning Cats and Dogs series, veterinarian Jessica Popper solves mysteries with the help of her one-eyed Dalmatian, Lou, and her tailless Westie Max.

Faithful Felines

From the days of Rin Tin Tin and Lassie, mystery fiction conventions have established dogs’ roles as trackers, protectors, and judges of human character. The emergence of cats in similar roles is a relatively recent development. Even in series such as Lydia Adamson’s Alice Nestleton mysteries, the crimes are solved by Alice, who cat-sits various finicky and valuable felines; the cats usually are treated as trophies or window dressing, and the assistance they provide to the sleuth is minimal. That limitation changed with the popularity of Lilian Jackson Braun’s Cat Who series. In that series, former newspaperman James Qwilleran’s interviewing skills help him to solve mysteries; however, he insists that credit actually should go to his Siamese cats Koko and Yum Yum, particularly the former. In these popular books, certain typical feline behaviors have become conventional signals for readers. Aloof behavior by Koko, the tomcat, quickly indicates when a visitor is dangerous. He howls each time a murder takes place, and the titles of books he knocks off the shelves provide clues to the culprit’s identity. Yum Yum, the female cat, is less active in sleuthing, but she frequently retrieves small objects that are vital clues in solving the mystery.

Rita Mae Brown credits her cat Sneaky Pie as cowriter in her long running Mrs. Murphy Mystery series. Sneaky Pie changes Braun’s formula by telling the stories from the point of view of Mrs. Murphy, a tabby who helps Mary Minor “Harry” Haristeen run the local post office. The roles of sleuth and assistant are reversed as Mrs. Murphy and Tee Tucker, a corgi who lives with Harry’s best friend, roam the countryside, investigating everything that piques their curiosity, and then try to figure out how to alert Harry. Although Mrs. Murphy is sometimes assisted by Tee Tucker and Pewter, an overweight Russian blue who continually bickers with her, the mysteries are really solved by this astute tabby.

Another feline sleuth and narrator is Carole Nelson Douglas’s jet-black tomcat, Midnight Louie, who refers to himself as the roommate of Las Vegas public-relations agent Temple Barr. Midnight Louie considers himself a hard-boiled private detective, and his only regret is that he cannot speak to the humans and reveal his brilliant deductive reasoning.

Shirley Rousseau Murphy’s gray tomcat Joe Grey and his feline girlfriend Dulcie have mastered the skill of human language. Joe—who can think, read, and speak—is clearly the primary sleuth in this series, and Dulcie is his assistant. Although both Joe and Dulcie live with humans and use them to convey messages to the police, the human characters’ role is peripheral. In one novel, even the villain is a cat (Azrael) who possesses the same skills as Joe and Dulcie.

The Popularity of Amateur Sleuth Series

The fan base of amateur sleuth and cozy mysteries appears unaffected by the rise of video games or the increasing readership of romance as well as other types of mystery fiction. Bookstore employees regularly post recommendations of new authors or series. When fans perusing bookstore or library shelves meet other fans doing the same, even total strangers are apt to compare mysteries they have read and recommend authors. The explanation for the genre’s enduring popularity is complex. On the whole, amateur sleuth fans are as intrigued by puzzling plots as they are by the sleuths about whom they read, and solving mysteries along with the sleuths is an intellectual game.

Although the overwhelming variety of amateur sleuths’ interests and occupations indicates there are several sleuths for every reader, amateur sleuth fans do not restrict their reading to those who share their interests. In fact, readers often consider reading these novels educational exercises, not only introducing them to unfamiliar beliefs and practices but often involving them in mental or ethical problems. Other sleuths provide their readers directions for hobbies such as cooking, quilting, or needlework. Many novels even include recipes, quilting templates, and needlework patterns.

The key elements in novels are action, setting, plot, tone, and characters. In amateur sleuth novels, the mystery is an intellectual puzzle, and the action is limited to the kind of crimes that might take place in neighborhoods or small towns. Victims are poisoned, bludgeoned, or shot, but there are no terrorist attacks or drive-by shootings. Settings may be modern or medieval, most frequently British or American. Some readers enjoy reading about familiar settings, and other readers consider these novels a substitute for travel books. Fans of amateur sleuth series are likely to be relatively forgiving about plot repetition; in fact plots frequently become almost indistinguishable. Clearly these elements may add to reader appeal, but they are not the primary reason amateur sleuth fans choose this genre.

Overall, the tone of amateur sleuth novels is essentially optimistic. Readers can retreat from the daily news into a world of meaning and universal order, where ultimately the forces of good prevail, and villains are unmasked and punished. Cases are resolved; there are no so-called cold cases. In addition, these novels give their readers reassurance about human nature; friends intervene to rescue sleuths, and even the most brutal villains usually are shown to be psychologically impaired, not totally evil.

The primary appeal of amateur sleuth novels lies in the personalities of the sleuths. Amateur sleuths possess primarily positive qualities, along with enough quirks and character flaws to make them believably human. Amateur sleuths must resemble people whom readers know, such as business associates, friends, or family members, or persons whom readers would like to know.

Conventional Characteristics of Amateur Sleuths

One characteristic of all amateur sleuths is independence of thought. The sleuths may lack financial independence or their situations may make independent action difficult, but they always think for themselves. Amateur sleuths possess a strong ethical sense and show respect for conventional views, but although they approach others politely, they refuse to be cowed by authority. Generally, they trust their instincts about people and situations, and failure to do so often leads them to peril as the culprit tries to exploit some area of vulnerability, either physical weakness, personal insecurity, a checkered past, or concern for a child or a close family member.

Amateur sleuths usually get involved in mysteries for one of two reasons. The first is that they may simply be at the wrong place at the wrong time and need to have their own names cleared after they are unjustly accused of crimes. The second reason for their involvement is their need to investigate to win the release of friends from jail. Amateur sleuths have faith in their own knowledge of human nature, especially within their own families or restricted social groups. Consequently, these sleuths exhibit loyalty to friends, believing them innocent of whatever charges are leveled against them. Although amateur sleuths often employ skills developed from their occupations or other life experiences, their success actually results from their own personality traits. They notice discrepancies and persist in asking questions, never settling for the easy answers. Polite as well as inquisitive, they know when to let people talk, and they gather information from even the most innocuous conversations. At times, the sleuths simply stumble on solutions to crimes. Often these cases place the sleuths in physical jeopardy. In such situations, sleuths must use their wits in order to escape from danger and alert legal authorities. However, their friends occasionally must come to their rescue.

Bibliography

Albert, Walter. Detective and Mystery Fiction: An International Bibliography of Secondary Sources. San Bernardino, Calif.: Brownstone Books, 1997. Comprehensive list of secondary sources, including references to non-English publications.

Bleiler, Richard J. Reference Guide to Mystery and Detective Fiction. Englewood, Colo.: Libraries Unlimited, 1999. Annotated bibliography of general and specialized historical, critical, and bibliographical volumes—for academic and public libraries.

Breen, Jon L. What About Murder? 1981-1991: A Guide to Books About Mystery and Detective Fiction. Metuchen, N.J.: Scarecrow Press, 1993. General histories, bibliographies, critical essays, reviews, and sections about individual writers.

DellaCava, Frances A., and Madeline H. Engel. Female Detectives in American Novels: A Bibliography and Analysis of Serialized Female Sleuths. New York: Garland, 1993. Traces genre’s development, listing characters by author, series, and occupation.

Heising, Willetta L. Detecting Women 2: A Reader’s Guide and Checklist for Mystery Series Written by Women. Dearborn, Mich.: Purple Moon Press, 1995-1996. Lists of female writers indexed by writer, mystery types, and series characters, with bibliography.

Herald, Diana Tixier, ed. Genreflecting: A Guide to Popular Reading Interests. Westport, Conn.: Libraries Unlimited, 2006. Extremely useful general discussion of fiction types, with lists of mystery authors by subgenre and sleuths’ occupations.

Hubin, Allen J. Crime Fiction II: A Comprehensive Bibliography 1749-1990. 3d ed. 2 vols. New York: Garland Press, 1994. Important volume with indexes of titles, settings, series, and film versions, including authors’ pseudonyms and series characters.

Jackson, Christine A. Myth and Ritual in Women’s Detective Fiction. Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland, 2002. Applies principles of myth criticism to discussions of mystery novels by British and American women, many of whom write about amateur sleuths.

Larmon, Jeanine. Murder on the Menu. New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1972. Extended discussion of the role of food, primarily in English country house mysteries, which typically involve amateur sleuths.

Paul, Robert S. Whatever Happened to Sherlock Holmes: Detective Fiction, Popular Theology, and Society. Carbondale: Southern Illinois University Press, 1991. Discusses theological implications of mysteries, arguing that clergymen are logical figures to act as sleuths.