Curling up with a good mystery means more than just trying to solve puzzles. The best mysteries will draw us right into the life of the detective: we cheer when they figure out an essential clue, and groan when they step right on a telltale sign but fail to recognize it.
In other words, our relationship with the crime-solving protagonist can make the difference between a great detective novel and one that is doomed to sit forever on the shelf.
Best Fictional Detectives in Literature
In no particular order, here are some of the best fictional detectives throughout history:
1. Sherlock Holmes
Classic writer Sir Arthur Conan Doyle hit on something when Sherlock Holmes first stepped onto the page. Who would’ve guessed that the eccentric, forgetful man that Dr. Watson ends up boarding with can read signs in mere footsteps, or marks on the wall? As he’s wont to say, “Elementary, my dear Watson.”
Ever since his birth in the nineteenth century, Holmes has been portrayed in radio shows, on stage, and even on film as one of the most beloved fictional detectives of all time.
2. The Hardy Boys
Ever since they made their way to bookshelves in the late 1920s, brothers Joe and Frank Hardy have inspired countless young boys to go on adventures themselves. The first books in the series were commended for offering excellent-quality writing not commonly found in children’s books during that time.
Since then, the Hardy Boys have been featured in television shows and computer games, and have even inspired a parody in South Park.
3. Dirk Gently
Bestselling author of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, Douglas Adams brings us Dirk Gently, whose real name is Svlad Cjelli in his books Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency and the Long Dark Tea-Time of the Soul.
Dirk takes a “holistic” approach to his investigations, giving him just cause to take tropical vacations and charge them to his bills. One quirk to his investigations is that his clients don’t ever seem to be able to pay him!
4. Philip Marlowe
Raymond Chandler first created the rough, hard-drinking, but strangely charming Philip Marlowe in his book The Big Sleep. Despite his gruff personality, Marlowe is actually highly educated in philosophy and poetry, and also plays a mean game of chess.
His quirks include being fussy about his coffee and not being easily swayed by women who try to seduce him. He has since appeared in radio shows, film, television adaptations, and even a videogame.
5. Lord Peter Wimsey
As the main detective in the classic mystery novels by Dorothy Sayers, Lord Peter Wimsey first comes onto the page in the 1923 book, Whose Body? Since then, he has successfully solved murder mysteries in 5 short stories and 13 novels, along with several film, radio, television, and stage adaptations.
While Lord Wimsey solves different mysteries as a hobby, he also writes his own books, and is known as an aficionado for classical music, fashion, and wine. Some critics believe that Sayers created the character as a light satire on the upper class in Britain during that time.
6. Hercule Poirot
The brainchild of classic mystery writing legend Agatha Christie, the dignified Belgian detective Hercule Poirot is the main investigator in 33 of her novels and more than 50 short stories. He uses logical reasoning to solve crimes, which he calls “order and method.”
Since then, Poirot has been portrayed in film adaptations, television shows, radio dramas, and even on stage and in an animated series.
7. C. Auguste Dupin
Edgar Allan Poe’s protagonist has played a significant role in the changing faces of detective fiction over the years. The Murders in the Rue Morgue, published in 1841, is said to be the first detective story, released at a time when the term “detective” was not even in use.
In that story, Poe introduces us to C. Auguste Dupin as having almost superhuman skills of deduction and a deep understanding of how the criminal mind works.
8. Miss Marple
Who says that detectives have to be male? Agatha Christie’s elderly spinster Jane Marple stars in 20 short stories and 12 of Christie’s novels. She’s known for spending her free time solving mysteries in her hometown of St. Mary Mead.
Over 40 years, Miss Marple has evolved significantly: she started off as a nosy gossip but grew to be a well-educated woman who applies her experience, knowledge, and wit to solve problems. She is known for connecting her cases with things that happened in her past.
9. Alan Grant
Josephine Tey’s The Daughter of Time, named as the greatest mystery novel of all time by the Crime Writers’ Association, brings us a Scotland Yard inspector. Instead of investigating a current case, Grant actually goes back 300 years to look into the life of Richard III, the War of the Roses, and the Tudor empire.
10. Kinsey Millhone
Sue Grafton’s private eye Kinsey Millhone is a highly independent, rebellious woman who’s also practical and funny. She’s known for not shying away from a difficult job, even if it means sometimes also bending the rules. She’s the main character in Grafton’s Alphabet series.
11. Professor Robert Langdon
Dan Brown ambled his way to the bestseller lists with his excellently-crafted detective, Robert Langdon, who first appears in Angels & Demons, followed by The Da Vinci Code. His uniqueness lies in his not being a professional investigator; instead he’s actually a professor at Harvard University, teaching history of art and a fictional field called “symbology.”
Dan Brown supposedly created Langdon as a fictional alter ego of himself. But he shares that he named Robert Langdon after a real-life professor of typography John Langdon, known for his ambigrams, some of which appear in Angels & Demons.
12. William of Baskerville
In The Name of the Rose, Umberto Eco brings us a medieval Franciscan friar with a young sidekick to solve mysteries in 14th century Italian monasteries. William is portrayed as having great deduction and analytical skills. A 1986 movie adaptation starred Sean Connery as William.
13. Father Brown
Another detective in priestly garb, G.K. Chesterton’s Father Brown stars in 51 short stories as a short and plump Catholic priest lacking in fashion sense. Although he severely lacks glamour or elegance, his intuition would always lead him to solve the crime. He was known for putting himself in the shoes of the criminal and try to understand which of the suspects had the clearest motive for committing the crime.
14. Sam Spade
Dashiell Hammett brings us Sam Spade in his bestselling work The Maltese Falcon. The complicated, unflinching, and silent Spade is known for getting the best of anybody.
Humphrey Bogart’s portrayal of Spade in the third movie adaptation of The Maltese Falcon remains the absolute standard for all detective stories on Hollywood.
15. Adam Dalgliesh
P.D. James brings us an archetype of the British gentleman detective in the person of Adam Dalgliesh: with a long history of culture in the family, Dalgliesh is known for writing poetry, and being a very private man who spends much time alone. Oh, and he drives a Jaguar!
16. Nancy Drew
Nancy Drew has been inspiring young girls since the 1930s with her independent, can-do attitude and sleuth skills. Much like her contemporaries, The Hardy Boys, Nancy has starred in many movies, television shows, and video games since her creation nearly a century ago.
What Does Detective Fiction Mean?
Detective fiction is a subgenre of crime or mystery fiction, in which a detective investigates a crime (usually a murder).
The detective might be a professional, amateur, or retired crime-solver. Sometimes, they find themselves reluctantly pulled into the situation to solve a crime.
Similar genres include thrillers and general mysteries.
Reading Mystery Novels
Reading mystery novels is a great way to test your own skills by putting together clues and solving puzzles throughout the story.
There’s nothing more satisfying than finding that you can actually figure out something either with or before the main investigator—except, perhaps, when a thrilling plot twist leaves you stumped!
Did you find this post helpful? Let us know in the comments below!
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Yen Cabag is the Blog Writer of TCK Publishing. She is also a homeschooling mom, family coach, and speaker for the Charlotte Mason method, an educational philosophy that places great emphasis on classic literature and the masterpieces in art and music. She has also written several books, both fiction and nonfiction. Her passion is to see the next generation of children become lovers of reading and learning in the midst of short attention spans.
