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With the brooding and dramatic landscapes of Dartmoor and Exmoor, the beautiful sunny beaches of the English Riviera and the busy villages of mid-Devon, is it any wonder that the mysterious possibilities of the county have captured so many writers’ imaginations?
Devon is synonymous with legendary crime writer Agatha Christie and is the setting for one of Sherlock Holmes’ most famous cases, but is also the inspiration for many more mysterious crime novels than you might realise. Here are a just a few…
The Hound Of The Baskervilles
Arthur Conan Doyle
Sherlock Holmes is possibly the most famous detective of them all, and when he is called to the wilds of Dartmoor to investigate the death of Sir Charles Baskerville, a family curse, a demon hound and a prisoner escaped from Dartmoor ensure dark intrigue abounds. The Hound of the Baskervilles is probably the most iconic Sherlock Holmes mystery and one of the most enduringly popular.
Died And Gone To Devon
T.P. Fielden
This is the fourth of the Miss Dimont mysteries set in the fictional Devon coastal town of Temple Regis in the 1950’s. Judy Dimont, a reporter for local paper ‘The Riviera Express’, is also an amateur sleuth. When a body is discovered first in a library, then in an abandoned lighthouse, Judy is forced to look to a past murder to unravel the mystery. This four-book series are cosy crime novels with a hearty helping of humour.
The Long Call
Ann Cleeves
This is the first in the new Ann Cleeves Two Rivers Series set in North Devon where the rivers Taw and Torridge converge to meet the sea. When compassionate, reflective DI Mathew Venn returns to Barnstaple to live with his husband and when a body is found on the beach he knows it is inevitable that he must reconcile the gap between his current and former life as a member of a strict religious group called The Brethren and his estranged family. Artfully plotted with rich, well developed characters and a wonderful sense of place, The Two Rivers is already planned as an ITV series and the second book in the series, The Heron’s Cry, is published September 2nd.
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Exit
Belinda Bauer
Also set in North Devon, this is the story of 75 year old Felix Pink. When he lets himself in to Number 3 Black Lane he’s there to perform an act of kindness and charity: to keep a dying man company as he takes his final breath… But just fifteen minutes later Felix is on the run from the police after making the biggest mistake of his life. This novel is darkly plotted, well paced and full of humour as Felix’s world turns upside down and he tries to work out what happened, and why.
Sistersong
Lucy Holland
Set in medieval East Devon during the time of paganism, magic and old Gods vs Christianity, Lucy Holland reimagines the old English folk ballad The Twa Sisters, a story of sibling rivalry murder and transformation. Holland evokes the dark, ominous feeling of the original murder ballad and deftly weaves the story of sisters Riva, Keyne and Sinne as they navigate their birthright and realise their respective powers. A rich, lyrical historical fantasy that is both beautiful and heartbreaking.
And Then There Were None
Agatha Christie
First, there were ten—a curious assortment of strangers summoned as weekend guests to a little private island off the coast of Devon. Their host, an eccentric millionaire unknown to all of them, is nowhere to be found. All that the guests have in common is a wicked past they’re unwilling to reveal, and a secret that will seal their fate. For each has been marked for murder. A nursery rhyme is framed and hung in every room of the mansion. When they realise that murders are occurring as described in the rhyme, terror mounts. Who has choreographed this dastardly scheme? And who will be left to tell the tale? Agatha Christie is one of the most famous and best-selling novelists of all time – she wrote over 70 books, of which this is the one of the most celebrated (and imitated!).
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