Thinking Aloud ...

... or rather, thinking a-blog. heh heh.

I've just finished Ian Rankin's The Black Book. I think I've finished reading all his books on Inspector Rebus. I think. I'm starting on PD James A Certain Justice. I can't remember what are the books of hers I've read but I'm sure I've not read this one ... erm, have I?

*****

Bugger it all ... I have read PD James A Certain Justice before! Ack!

Why am I so fascinated by crime books? Or murders and mysteries? It's like a study of human's darker and baser nature. There is a sense of suspense, or seeing things not in the glare of the sunlight, but in the shadows of the twilight where everything is muted and grey. In a murder story, it is not the murder that matters. It is only the beginning. The fascination comes in the revealing of the murderer's identity, and what leads him to commit the act of violence. It is about the life and dreams and hopes of the murderer, and the probing into the mind of a seemingly sane person to discover the deep dark secrets within the depths. A good murder book which keeps me totally riveted is one which expounds on the character and personality of the suspects, the whys and hows and the whodunits. I like PD James for that, and especially Minette Walters. Ian Rankin's is more on the controversal inspector Rebus, of how much a loner he is who is full of contradictions. Agatha Christie, on the other hand, is a different world of crime stories all together. Hers is classic, of a romantic type, and not as dark or deep as today's crime writers. Sherlock Holmes is .. erm, more for the puzzles and trying to catch Dr Conon Doyle at solving the puzzle before his famous detective, though usually it doesn't work cos' the reader is not privy to all the clues Holmes has. heh. Then there are some really good ones I've read, but can't remember the titles. Some by foreign authors too.

Are there any other good books to read?