In the Spotlight: Top 5 Favorite Fictional Detectives by @CarolineFardig #mystery
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I LOVE making favorites lists.
Love. It. When DeeJay suggested I make a list to share with the
Masquerade Crew, I jumped at the chance! Since writing mysteries is
my thing, I decided to come up with a list of my “Top
Five Fave Fictional Detectives”. Please note, this is a list of my
favorites,
not necessarily a list of who is generally considered to be the best.
I like to have fun, and I like characters who like to have fun—not
necessarily those who are the most competent at their jobs.
BOOKS:
Favorite
Detective: Stephanie
Plum (Stephanie Plum
series, Janet Evanovich)
Why?
Stephanie Plum does what she needs to do to catch the bad guy…um,
even though she usually is the one getting caught by
the bad guy. Nevertheless, she doesn’t back down from a fight, and
she has a fun time doing what she does best.
Honorable
Mentions: Meg Cabot’s
Heather Wells, Gemma Halliday’s Maddie Springer, and Wendy
Roberts’s Sadie Novak, and of course, my girl Lizzie Hart.
CHILDREN’S
BOOKS
Favorite
Detective: Trixie
Belden (Trixie Belden
series, Julie Campbell and Kathryn Kenny)
Why?
I loved Trixie Belden
when I was a kid. I mean, I was her Number One Fan. Trixie was such
a relatable character for me—kind of a tomboy at heart, but at the
same time she wanted to have a boyfriend and be pretty. She was
smart and stubborn and totally fearless, and would do anything for
her friends.
I
never liked: Nancy
Drew. What?!? A female mystery writer who didn’t like Nancy Drew
as a child? Yes, that’s me. She was too complicated. And
besides, if you’re a Trixie fan, you can’t be a Nancy fan, too.
It’s the rules.
MOVIES:
Favorite
Detective: Ichabod
Crane (Johnny Depp, Sleepy
Hollow, 1999)
Why?
Ichabod was way ahead of his time, using forensics to solve crime
instead of simply gumshoeing until he stumbled onto the killer. And
he did it with flair.
Honorable
Mention: David Mills
(Brad Pitt, Se7en,
1995) It was refreshing to see a detective in a movie totally lose
his you-know-what and kill his suspect in cold blood.
I
never liked: Ace
Ventura. Nobody
liked Ace Ventura.
TV,
MY CHILDHOOD:
Favorite
Detective: Thomas
Magnum (Tom Selleck, Magnum,
P.I., 1980-1988)
Why?
Magnum was so laid-back, but you could count on him to always solve
the crime. In under an hour. I kind of had a crush on Magnum.
Maybe it was the mustache…
Honorable
Mentions: The Harts of Hart
to Hart, the angels of
Charlie’s Angels,
McGarrett and Danno of Hawaii
Five-O
I
never liked: Jessica
Fletcher of Murder, She
Wrote and Ben Matlock
of Matlock.
My grammy used to make me watch those shows with her. Sorry, but
elderly detectives just don’t do it for me.
TV,
PRESENT DAY:
Favorite
Detective: Rick
Castle (Nathan Fillion, Castle,
2009-present)
Why?
Beckett might think that she’s the one who solves all of the
cases, but I beg to differ. It’s always Castle, and his quirky,
zany mystery writer’s brain, who can think outside the box and come
up with the motive and the identity of the real killer.
Honorable
Mentions: Jim Longworth of The
Glades, McGarrett and
Danno of Hawaii Five-O
(I’m still a fan. And it doesn’t hurt that there’s a LOT more
eye candy than in the original.)
Great list, Caroline! I definitely agree with Ichabod Crane as the best movie detective (Johnny Depp is just amazing), but I'd say Benedict Cumberbatch as Sherlock Holmes was my fave present day TV detective.
Thanks for swinging by the Crew today!
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