Curiosity: who are your favorite detectives?

peeplj · Post by **peeplj** » Sun Oct 21, 2007 6:08 pm

I like to read a good who-done-it every now and again, and I thought it might be neat to start a thread to share our favorite fictional detectives with each other. You can list one or many; you can list the works in which they are found, or you can leave it to the reader to figure out.

I'll start off with:

Sherlock Holmes (of course)

Aloysius X. L. Pendergast, who seems to me to have inherited Holmes' sensibilities in large part (Preston and Child's novels)

Kay Scarpetta (if you've missed these books by Patricia Cornwell, especially the early ones, you're missing a treat)

Lincoln Rhyme (wonderful books by Jeffery Deaver)

And, I'll list him last but hardly least, Dr. Victor Hunt, who in James P. Hogan's classic sci-fi trilogy "The Giants Novels" is given a unique mystery to solve: a 50,000 year old, space-suited corpse is found in a cave on the moon . The answer (which I won't give away here) is surprising and is a good reminder that just because you assume something has always been true, that doesn't make it so.

So who are your favorites?

--James

mutepointe · Post by **mutepointe** » Sun Oct 21, 2007 6:21 pm

sgt. joe friday played by jack webb. yes, i know it's not a book. the tv show was a hoot, especially that old lady who was a regular and who played multiple roles. the radio show was even better. they talked even quicker. joe friday and all the others talked so fast, it was like they were spitting bullets. especially when joe gave some punk a piece of his mind.

dum-da-da-dum.

anniemcu · Post by **anniemcu** » Sun Oct 21, 2007 6:56 pm

Hmmm.. TV wise... Andy Barker, Monk, and the poor guy in 'Early Edition', though he was involuntarily,

Book wise... Sherlock Holmes, and the Mustachioed reporter in the "Cat Who..." series.

Radio - Guy Noir

feeble, maybe, but that's it just off the top of my feeble little head.

MagicSailor · Post by **MagicSailor** » Sun Oct 21, 2007 7:36 pm

Hi

Poirot

Miss Marple

Dirk Gently

Regards,

Owen Morgan

Yacht Magic
Anchored in the lagoon, St Maarten

My new blog.
Click here for my latest reported position. (Use the satellite view.)

emmline · Post by **emmline** » Sun Oct 21, 2007 8:05 pm

Columbo.

cowtime · Post by **cowtime** » Sun Oct 21, 2007 8:13 pm

Sherlock Holmes (of course)

Miss Marple

and Dick Francis's - Sid Halley, I love how the artificial hand comes in "handy" on occasion

pastorkeith · Post by **pastorkeith** » Sun Oct 21, 2007 8:42 pm

TV: Columbo
Books: Sherlock Holmes and Tony Hillerman's Sgt Joe Leaphorn from innumerable books.
pastorkeith

carrie · Post by **carrie** » Sun Oct 21, 2007 8:45 pm

cowtime wrote: and Dick Francis's - Sid Halley, I love how the artificial hand comes in "handy" on occasion

I have never read more suspenseful books than Dick Francis's. I'm sure all my vital signs go off the chart when I'm reading his stories. Fun!

cowtime · Post by **cowtime** » Sun Oct 21, 2007 8:57 pm

carrie wrote:
cowtime wrote: and Dick Francis's - Sid Halley, I love how the artificial hand comes in "handy" on occasion
I have never read more suspenseful books than Dick Francis's. I'm sure all my vital signs go off the chart when I'm reading his stories. Fun!

I think between my Dad's and mine, I am close to having all of his books.

So, yes, I am definitely a fan.

Aanvil · Post by **Aanvil** » Sun Oct 21, 2007 9:27 pm

Rick Deckard

Takeshi Kovacs

Neither are quite a detectives but they fit.

If you don't know who they are you should.

Charlene · Post by **Charlene** » Sun Oct 21, 2007 9:32 pm

Lord Peter Whimsey
Sherlock Holmes
Miss Marple

Columbo, to a lesser extent. The TV show got old after awhile.

Charlene · Post by **Charlene** » Sun Oct 21, 2007 9:37 pm

Ok, you've probably already heard this but it seems appropriate here:

Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson went on a camping trip. After a good meal and a bottle of wine, they were exhausted and went to sleep.

Some hours later, Holmes awoke and nudged his faithful friend. "Watson, look up at the sky and tell me what you see."

Watson replied, "I see millions and millions of stars."

"What does that tell you?"

Watson pondered for a minute. "Astronomically, it tells me that there are millions of galaxies and potentially billions of planets. Astrologically, I
observe that Saturn is in Leo. Time wise, I deduce that the time is approximately a quarter past three. Theologically, I can see that the Lord is all powerful and that we are small and insignificant. Meteorologically, I suspect that we will have a beautiful day tomorrow. What does it tell you?"

Holmes was silent for a minute, then spoke.

"Watson, you idiot, someone has stolen our tent."

fel bautista · Post by **fel bautista** » Sun Oct 21, 2007 9:53 pm

Aanvil wrote: Takeshi Kovacs
.

OOH! Good choice! Never met an Envoy you didn't really like!!

Whistling Willie · Post by **Whistling Willie** » Sun Oct 21, 2007 10:14 pm

Sherlock Holmes & Miss Marple.

Innocent Bystander · Post by **Innocent Bystander** » Mon Oct 22, 2007 1:50 am

Spenser. By Robert B. Parker.

Judge Dee by Robert Van Gulik :Wen Dee-jeh, if I remember correctly. I think this stuff is long out of print. "The Chinese Bell Murders" was the first one. I admired his capability for sorting out his domestic squabbles - usually between his first and second wife - at the same time as whatever murders were going on, an mostly without resorting to torture.

Rebus by Ian Rankin. Not the pathetic actor on the telly, but the character in the books.

Inspector Ghote! The original nervous detective! by H.R.F.Keating

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Curiosity: who are your favorite detectives?

Curiosity: who are your favorite detectives?

Detectives