Who dunnit? Top tips for writing detective fiction
From red herrings to maguffins to double identities, Knightley and Son author Rohan Gavin shares the secrets of writing great detective stories
Why a non-white Nancy Drew could be amazing
The biggest cracker in crime-fighting won’t be Caucasian in a new TV adaptation – which might mean she’ll also acquire a personality
Gaudy Night by Dorothy L Sayers – a weighty novel that still thrills
This is a mystery that encompasses large questions of life and love – and your verdict on the case will swing my judgment of you
Russian censors target children’s books that break the mould
Publishing a children’s book in Russia is not a straightforward matter, as Anna Starobinets found when her detective stories set among woodland animals were deemed to be far too beastly for children
Henning Mankell remembered by Kenneth Branagh
The actor starred as the Swedish crime writer’s detective Kurt Wallander. Here, he recalls their last meal
Agatha Christie: with drugs, violence and swearing, will the queen of crime recapture Christmas?
And Then There Were None is the bestselling mystery novel of all time. The new adaptation could also be the TV event of the year
Dark Corners review – Ruth Rendell’s final novel ratchets up the tension
It’s the fine detail that enthrals in this tale of small lapses that lead to escalating calamity
Serial thrillers: why true crime is popular culture’s most wanted
The genre is witnessing a new era of popularity led by US podcast Serial, Channel 4’s recent The Murder Detectives, and bestselling books
On a plate: the top five spoilt suppers in fiction
From murderous revenge to gruelling hunger, calamity is on the menu in literature’s most unappetising mealtime gatherings
Scotch, beer and cigarettes: my weekend with Patricia Highsmith
Screenwriter Phyllis Nagy first met novelist Patricia Highsmith for a tour of a cemetery. The two became firm friends, though Pat’s opinions and pride in her own paintings caused a few sticky moments
The Hunter of the Dark by Donato Carrisi review – on the trail of the ‘Monster of Rome’
A priest hunts a serial killer in a grisly Italian noir that’s more Nesbø than Mankell
Which are your favourite books of 2015?
Authors’ votes are in ... Now it’s your chance to nominate the book you enjoyed the most this year
Top 10: the best dialogue in crime fiction
Some of the most brilliant speech in novels can be found in this genre. From Agatha Christie to Raymond Chandler and even Martin Amis, here are some of the best practitioners
Todd Haynes: ‘She said, there’s a frock film coming up, with Cate attached … It sounded right up my alley’
As his film Carol opens, the director talks about getting the 50s look in Cincinnati and the enduring influence of … Mary Poppins
Will crime writers be the victims of the clean-up of Colombia’s second city?
After decades of murder, extortion, gang warfare and narco crime, the newly laundered image of Medellín is providing a set of fresh challenges for its writers