Why is the crime genre is so popular?
Crime fiction is one of the best selling genres and the most borrowed from public libraries. So what is it that makes crime fiction so popular?
Well apart from being a cracking good read, in crime fiction we know that, generally speaking, justice will be done and the case will be resolved and that doesn’t always happen in real life.
In crime fiction the villain either gets caught or gets his/her comeuppance but in real life the evil and manipulative, the guilty can get away with it as in the case of the unsolved murder in my own family in 1959 that of my great aunt, Martha Giles.
Crime fiction though can give us a resolution. It can also give us an insight into what makes people tick. One of the reasons I believe crime fiction is popular is because people are fascinated by human behaviour. Sometimes we are warmed by the actions of others and at other times horrified and apalled by it. I am interested in personalities, behaviour and motivation. What is it that makes people do the things they do?
I also enjoy a puzzle to solve, a crime to investigate and a mystery to unravel. When reading a crime novel I like to pit my wits against the protagonist or the detective and see if I can solve the crime before he or she can.
When I start to write a new crime novel whether featuring DI Andy Horton; Art Marvik or and my hero in my 1950 set series with Scotland Yard detective, Inspector Ryga I don't know who did it, where or when until I am about half way through, sometimes even later than that. As the characters begin to develop and their personalities and motivations become clearer it is only then that I begin to unravel the crime.
Crime fiction covers so many facets of human nature. The same goes for true crime. It’s a kind of voyeurism, the ghoul factor that causes people to stand and gawp at an accident or incident. Me though, I’m a real coward. I run a mile from reading true crime. Give me crime fiction any day where I can see that justice is served and my hero triumphs!
There are fifteen novels in the DI Andy Horton series with A DEADLY WAKE published on 2 June 2020 in paperback, as an ebook and on Amazon Kindle.
As DI Andy Horton follows the trail of a man found dead in a log cabin on the Isle of Wight, he uncovers some startling revelations into his own mother’s past and the truth behind her disappearance over thirty years ago.
"DI Andy Horton is a fascinating man to get to know, and his thoughtful approach to detection is a pleasure to read.” Publishers Weekly (Lethal Waves)
"Rowson’s plotting is deftly layered, and she successfully captures the mood of her protagonist’s tortured journey.” Library Journal (Undercurrent)
In September 2019 the first in my new crime series set in 1950 England, featuring Scotland Yard detective Inspector Alun Ryga DEATH IN THE COVE was published in paperback, as an ebook on Amazon Kindle and as an audio book.
When the body of a man wearing a pinstriped suit is found in a secluded bay on Portland Island, Dorset Scotland Yard detective, Inspector Alun Ryga is sent to investigate.
'Death in the Cove is a great read and one I recommend to any crime fans.' BH Living Magazine
There are also three Art Marvik mystery thrillers and I am the author of two standalone thrillers, In Cold Daylight and In For the Kill. My crime novels are available from any bookshop and can also be loaned from UK, USA and Commonwealth libraries.
Well apart from being a cracking good read, in crime fiction we know that, generally speaking, justice will be done and the case will be resolved and that doesn’t always happen in real life.
In crime fiction the villain either gets caught or gets his/her comeuppance but in real life the evil and manipulative, the guilty can get away with it as in the case of the unsolved murder in my own family in 1959 that of my great aunt, Martha Giles.
Crime fiction though can give us a resolution. It can also give us an insight into what makes people tick. One of the reasons I believe crime fiction is popular is because people are fascinated by human behaviour. Sometimes we are warmed by the actions of others and at other times horrified and apalled by it. I am interested in personalities, behaviour and motivation. What is it that makes people do the things they do?
I also enjoy a puzzle to solve, a crime to investigate and a mystery to unravel. When reading a crime novel I like to pit my wits against the protagonist or the detective and see if I can solve the crime before he or she can.
When I start to write a new crime novel whether featuring DI Andy Horton; Art Marvik or and my hero in my 1950 set series with Scotland Yard detective, Inspector Ryga I don't know who did it, where or when until I am about half way through, sometimes even later than that. As the characters begin to develop and their personalities and motivations become clearer it is only then that I begin to unravel the crime.
Crime fiction covers so many facets of human nature. The same goes for true crime. It’s a kind of voyeurism, the ghoul factor that causes people to stand and gawp at an accident or incident. Me though, I’m a real coward. I run a mile from reading true crime. Give me crime fiction any day where I can see that justice is served and my hero triumphs!
As DI Andy Horton follows the trail of a man found dead in a log cabin on the Isle of Wight, he uncovers some startling revelations into his own mother’s past and the truth behind her disappearance over thirty years ago.
"DI Andy Horton is a fascinating man to get to know, and his thoughtful approach to detection is a pleasure to read.” Publishers Weekly (Lethal Waves)
"Rowson’s plotting is deftly layered, and she successfully captures the mood of her protagonist’s tortured journey.” Library Journal (Undercurrent)
When the body of a man wearing a pinstriped suit is found in a secluded bay on Portland Island, Dorset Scotland Yard detective, Inspector Alun Ryga is sent to investigate.
'Death in the Cove is a great read and one I recommend to any crime fans.' BH Living Magazine
There are also three Art Marvik mystery thrillers and I am the author of two standalone thrillers, In Cold Daylight and In For the Kill. My crime novels are available from any bookshop and can also be loaned from UK, USA and Commonwealth libraries.
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