I’ve always loved mysteries. Ever since I was a little girl, I was drawn to stories of intrepid investigators hunting down clues, solving crimes and righting wrongs.

Nancy Drew, the Hardy Boys, The Secret Seven, The Famous Five…….I loved them all, and these days my reading list always features a crime or mystery author’s offering.

Crime and mystery fiction covers a multitude of sub-genres, from the classic “cozies” to Scandinavian Noir.  And  over all,  they all continue to rise in popularity, only overtaken by Romance.

In 2020, the top twenty New York Times bestsellers featured eleven crime/mystery novels – including two from James Patterson and collaborating authors, and two from the ever popular John Grisham.

Despite the continued surge in sales, women crime writers are still under-represented in the genre.

It is a real shame, because we are darn good at writing suspenseful plots, realistic characters and spellbinding cinematic writing, page-turners that leave their loyal readership hungry for more.

I don’t know why this state of affairs should exist. Maybe it’s because woman are pigeon-holed as “romance writers” (interestingly, there are few men romance writers in the charts), maybe it’s because woman are dismissed as only “good” at the whimsical “cozy” sub-genre, rather than action-packed, high octane thrillers, it’s a mystery in itself.

P.D James once said, “What the detective story is about is not murder but the restoration of order”.

In my small way, I am attempting to restore order. Each week, I’ll be profiling a Lady of Crime and reviewing books by female crime writers, and hopefully helping to elevate women crime writers to their rightful position in crime fiction history – at the top of the charts.