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Historical Mysteries: Twentieth Century
Mysteries set in historical periods of the Twentieth Century.
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20th Century General
1900-1919
1920s
1930s
1940s
1950s
1960s
1970s
1980s
Historical Mysteries: Twentieth Century General
(Scroll up/down for other 20th Century periods.)
- Collins, Max Allan: Nathan Heller series (Listed in order of publication)
- True Detective

- True Crime

- The Million-Dollar Wound

- Neon Mirage

- Stolen Away

- Carnal Hours

- Blood and Thunder

- Damned in Paradise

- Flying Blind

- Majic Man

- Angel in Black

- Chicago Confidential

- Bye Bye, Baby

(short stories) Dying in the Postwar World
(short stories) Kisses of Death 
- Karp, Larry: Ragtime series

- The Ragtime Kid

- The King of Ragtime

- The Ragtime Fool

Historical Mysteries: 1900s-1910s
(Scroll up/down for other 20th Century periods.)
- Dams, Jeanne M.: Hilda Johansson series (1900)
- Death in Lacquer Red

- The Red, White and Blue Murder

- Green Grow the Victims

- Silence is Golden

- Crimson Snow

- Indigo Christmas

- Day, Dianne: Fremont Jones series (San Francisco, c. 1900)
- The Strange Files of Fremont Jones

- Fire and Fog

- The Bohemian Murders

- Emperor Norton's Ghost

- Death Train to Boston

- Beacon Street Mourning

- Jakeman, Jane: Claude Monet series
- In the Kingdom of Mists

In the City of Dark Waters

- Linscott, Gillian: Nell Bray series (1900s)
- Sister Beneath the Skin
- Hanging on the Wire

- Stage Fright

- An Easy Day for a Lady

- Crown Witness

- Dead Man's Sweetheart

- Dance on Blood

- Absent Friends

- A Perfect Daughter

- Dead Man Riding

- Blood on the Wood

- Monahan, Brent: John Le Brun series
- The Jekyl Island Club

- The Sceptred Isle Club

- The Manhattan Island Clubs

- Tallis, Frank: Oskar Rheinhardt series
- A Death in Vienna

Vienna Blood

- Fatal Lies

- Thompson, Victoria: Gaslight series (New York, 1900s)
- Murder on Astor Place

- Murder on St. Mark's Place

- Murder on Gramercy Park

- Murder on Washington Square

- Murder on Mulberry Bend

- Murder on Marble Row

- Murder on Lenox Hill

- Murder in Little Italy

- Murder in Chinatown

- Murder on Bank Street

- Murder on Waverly Place

- Murder on Lexington Avenue

- Chesney, Marion: Rose Summer & Harry Cathcart series (aka Edwardian Murder Mystery series)
- Snobbery With Violence

- Hasty Death

- Sick of Shadows

- Our Lady of Pain

- Langley-Hawthorne, Clare: Consequences of Sin

- Martin, Andrew: Jim Stringer series

- The Necropolis Railway

- The Blackpool Highflyer

- The Lost Luggage Porter

- Murder at Deviation Junction

- Pintoff, Stefanie: Simon Ziele series

- In the Shadow of Gotham

- A Curtain Falls


- Albert, Susan Wittig: Cottage Tales of Beatrix Potter series

- The Tale of Hill Top Farm

- The Tale of Holly How

- The Tale of Cuckoo Brow Wood

- The Tale of Hawthorn House

- The Tale of Briar Bank

- The Tale of Applebeck Orchard

- The Tale of Oat Cake Crag

- Pearce, Michael: Sandor Seymour series (1906)

- A Dead Man in Trieste

- A Dead Man in Istanbul

- A Dead Man in Athens

- A Dead Man in Tangier

- A Dead Man in Barcelona

- A Dead Man in Naples

- Curzon, Clare: Guilty Knowledge (1908)

- Eccles, Marjorie: The Cuckoo's Child
(1909) 
- Allen, Conrad: George Porter Dillman & Genevieve Masefield series
- Murder on the Lusitania

- Murder on the Mauretania

- Murder on the Minnesota

- Murder on the Caronia

- Murder on the Marmora

- Murder on the Salsette

- Murder on the Oceanic

- Murder on the Celtic

- Pearce, Michael: Mamur Zapt series
- The Mamur Zapt and the Return of the Carpet

- The Mamur Zapt and the Night of the Dog

- The Mamur Zapt and the Donkey-Vous

- The Mamur Zapt and the Men Behind

- The Mamur Zapt and the Girl in the Nile

- The Mamur Zapt and the Spoils of Egypt

- The Mamur Zapt and the Camel of Destruction (aka The Camel of Destruction)

- The Mamur Zapt and the Snake Catcher's Daughter (aka The Snake Catcher's Daughter)

- The Mingrelian Conspiracy

- The Mamur Zapt and the Fig Tree Murder (aka The Fig Tree Murder)

- Death of An Effendi

- A Cold Touch of Ice

- The Last Cut

- The Face in the Cemetery

- The Point in the Market

- The Mark of the Pasha

- Casey, Donis: Alafair Tucker series (1912)
- The Old Buzzard Had It Coming

- Hornswoggled

- The Drop Edge of Yonder

- The Sky Took Him

- Shields, Joy: The Fig Eater

- McCarver, Sam: John Darnell series
- The Case of Cabin 13

- The Case of Compartment 7

- The Case of the 2nd Seance

- Aycliffe, Jonathan: A Garden Lost in Time (1917)

- Bradby, Tom: The White Russian (1917)

- Winspear, Jacqueline: Maisie Dobbs series

- Maisie Dobbs

- Birds of a Feather

- Pardonable Lies

- Messenger of Truth

- An Incomplete Revenge

- Among the Mad

- The Mapping of Love and Death

- Ison, Graham: Hardcastle series

- Hardcastle's Spy

- Hardcastle's Armistice

- Hardcastle's Conspiracy

- Rabb, Jonathan: Nikolai Hoffner series
- Rosa

- Shadow and Light

- Boyne, John: Crippen

- Kingsbury, Kate: Pennyfoot Hotel series (Edwardian England)
- Room With a Clue

- Do Not Disturb

- Service for Two

- Eat, Drink, and Be Buried

- Check-Out Time
- Grounds For Murder

- Pay the Piper

- Chivalry is Dead

- Ring For Tomb Service

- Death With Reservations

- Dying Room Only

- Maid to Murder

- No Clue at the Inn

- Slay Bells

- Shrouds of Holly

- Ringing in Murder

- Decked with Folly

Historical Mysteries: 1920s
(Scroll up/down for other Early Modern periods.)
- Arruda, Suzanne: Jade del Cameron series

- Mark of the Lion

- Stalking Ivory

- The Serpent's Daughter

- The Leopard's Prey

- Treasure of the Golden Cheetah

- Cleverly, Barbara: Laetitia Talbot series

- The Tomb of Zeus

- Bright Hair About the Bone

- A Darker God

- Culhane, Patrick: Black Hats: A Novel of Wyatt Earp and Al Capone

- The Mammoth Book of Roaring Twenties Whodunits (edited by Mike Ashley)

- Todd, Charles: Inspector Ian Rutledge series (England, 1920)
- A Test of Wills

- Wings of Fire

- Search the Dark

- Legacy of the Dead

- Watchers of Time

- A Fearsome Doubt

- A Cold Treachery

- A Long Shadow

- A False Mirror

- A Pale Horse

- A Matter of Justice

- The Red Door

- Atkins, Ace: Devil's Garden

- Cleverly, Barbara: Joe Sandilands series
- The Last Kashmiri Rose

- Ragtime in Simla

- The Damascened Blade

- The Palace Tiger

- The Bee's Kiss

- Tug of War

- Folly du Jour

- Strange Images of Death

- Dunn, Carola: Daisy Dalrymple series (1920s)
- Death at Wentwater Court

- The Winter Garden Mystery

- Requiem for a Mezzo

- Murder on the Flying Scotsman

- Damsel in Distress

- Dead in the Water

- Styx and Stones

- Rattle His Bones

- To Davy Jones Below

- The Case of the Murdered Muckraker

- Mistletoe and Murder

- Die Laughing

- A Mourning Wedding

- Fall of a Philanderer

- Gunpowder Plot

- The Bloody Tower

- Black Ship

- Sheer Folly

- Fulmer, David: The Dying Crapshooter's Blues

- Gold, Glen David: Carter Beats the Devil

- Gordon-Smith, Dolores: Jack Haldean series

- A Féte Worse Than Death

- Mad About the Boy

- As If By Magic

- A Hundred Thousand Dragons

- Greenwood, Kerry: Phryne Fisher series
- Cocaine Blues

- Flying Too High

- Murder on the Ballarat Train

- Death at Victoria Dock

- The Green Mill Murder

- Blood and Circuses

- Ruddy Gore

- Urn Burial

- Raisins and Almonds

- Death before Wicket

- Away with the Fairies

- Murder in Montparnasse

- The Castlemaine Murders

- Queen of the Flowers

- Death by Water

- Murder in the Dark

- Murder on a Midsummer Night

- Hoopes, Roy: Our Man in Washington

- Irby, Lee: Frank Hearn series
- 7,000 Clams

- The Up and Up

- Kellerman, Faye: Straight Into Darkness

- Kilian, Michael: Jazz Age Mystery series
- The Weeping Woman

- Satterthwait, Walter: Pinkerton Detectives series

- Escapade

- Masquerade

- Cavalcade

- Thompson, Mike: Curse of Al Capone's Gold

- McPherson, Catriona: Dandy Gilver series

- After the Armistice Ball

- The Burry Man's Day

- Bury Her Deep

- The Winter Ground

- Dandy Gilver and the Proper Treatment of Bloodstains

- Walker, Persia: Harlem Redux

- Woodworth, Deborah: Sister Rose Callahan series (aka Shaker series)
- Death of a Winter Shaker

- A Deadly Shaker Spring

- Sins of a Shaker Summer

- A Simple Shaker Murder

- Killing Gifts

- Meyers, Annette: Olivia Brown series
- Free Love

- Murder Me Now

- Randall, Brant: Blood Harvest

- Williamson, Penn/Penelope: Daman Rourke series
- Mortal Sins

- Wages of Sin

Historical Mysteries: 1930s
(Scroll up/down for other 20th Century periods.)
- Adams, Harold: Carl Wilcox series (1930s)
- Murder

- Paint the Town Red

- The Missing Moon

- The Naked Liar

- The Fourth Widow

- The Barbed Wire Noose

- The Man Who Met the Train

- The Man Who Missed the Party

- The Man Who Was Taller Than God

- A Perfectly Proper Murder

- A Way With Widows

- The Ditched Blonde

- Hatchet Job

- The Ice Pick Artist

- No Badge, No Gun

- Lead, So I Can Follow

- Albert, Susan Wittig: Darling Dahlias series

- The Darling Dahlias and the Cucumber Tree

- The Darling Dahlias and the Naked Ladies

- Baxter, Holly: Elodie Browne series

- Tears of the Dragon

- Bowen, Rhys: Lady Georgiana series (aka Her Royal Spyness series)

- Her Royal Spyness

- A Royal Pain

- Royal Flush

- Boyne, John: Next of Kin

- Churchill, Jill: Grace & Favor series (aka Lili & Robert Brewster series) (1930s)
- Anything Goes

- In the Still of the Night

- Someone to Watch Over Me

- Love For Sale

- It Had to Be You

- Who's Sorry Now?

- Collins, Max Allan: The War of the Worlds Murder

- Dold, Gaylord: The Last Man in Berlin

- Epperson, Tom: The Kind One

- Grand, David: The Disappearing Body

- Harris, Fred: Okie Dunn series
- Coyote Revenge

- Easy Pickin's

- Lansdale, Joe R.: Sunset and Sawdust

- Meade, Amy Patricia: Marjorie McClelland series

- Million Dollar Baby

- Ghost of a Chance

- Shadow Waltz

- Meyers, Annette: Repentances

- Roberts, David: Lord Edward Corinth & Verity Browne series (1930s)
- Sweet Poison

- Bones of the Buried

- Hollow Crown

- Dangerous Sea

- The More Deceived

- A Grave Man

- The Quality of Mercy

- Something Wicked

- No More Dying

- Rosen, Dorothy & Sidney: Belle Appleman series
- Death and Blintzes

- Death and Strudel

- Roosevelt, Elliott: Eleanor Roosevelt series (Washington, 1930s)
- Murder and the First Lady

- The Hyde Park Murder

- Murder at Hobcaw Barony

- A White House Pantry Murder

- Murder at the Palace

- Murder in the Oval Office

- Murder in the Rose Garden

- Murder in the Blue Room

- A First-Class Murder

- Murder in the Red Room

- Murder in the West Wing

- Murder in the East Room

- A Royal Murder

- Murder in the Executive Mansion

- Murder at the Chateau

- Murder at Midnight

- Murder in the Map Room

- Murder in Georgetown

- Murder in the Lincoln Bedroom

- Murder at the President's Door

- Roosevelt, Elliott: "Blackjack" Endicott series
- The President's Man

- New Deal for Death

- Clarke, T.E.B.: Murder at Buckingham Palace (London, 1935)

- Satterthwait, Walter: Dead Horse

- Collins, Max Allan: Eliot Ness series
- The Dark City

- Butcher's Dozen

- Bullet Proof

- Murder By the Numbers

- Engel, Howard: Murder in Montparnasse

- Kaminsky, Stuart M.: Toby Peters series (Hollywood, 1930s-1940s)
- Bullet for a Star

- Murder on the Yellow Brick Road

- You Bet Your Life

- The Howard Hughes Affair

- Never Cross a Vampire

- High Midnight

- Catch a Falling Clown

- He Done Her Wrong

- The Fala Factor

- Down for the Count

- The Man Who Shot Lewis Vance

- Smart Moves

- Think Fast, Mr. Peters

- Buried Caesars

- Poor Butterfly

- The Melting Clock

- The Devil Met a Lady

- Tomorrow is Another Day

- Dancing in the Dark

- A Fatal Glass of Beer

- A Few Minutes Past Midnight

- To Catch a Spy

- Mildred Pierced

- Now You See It

- Hayes, John R.: Catskill (1938)

- McClendon, Lise: Dorie Lennox series
- One O'Clock Jump

- Sweet and Lowdown

- Pastor, Ben: Lumen (1939)

- Pawel, Rebecca C.: Carlos Tejada series
- Death of a Nationalist

- Law of Return

- The Watcher in the Pine

- The Summer Snow

- Quinn, Peter: Hour of the Cat

- Jefferson, M.T.: The Victory Dance Murder

- Janes, J. Robert: St. Cyr and Kohler series
- Mirage (aka Mayhem)

- Carousel

- Kaleidoscope

- Salamander

- Mannequin

- Dollmaker

- Stonekiller

- Sandman

- Woods, Stuart: Rick Barron series
- The Prince of Beverly Hills

- Beverly Hills Dead

- Santa Fe Dead


Historical Mysteries: 1940s
(Scroll up/down for other 20th Century periods.)
- Baron, Aileen G.: Lily Sampson series

- A Fly Has a Hundred Eyes

- The Torch of Tangier

- Glatzer, Hal: Katy Green series (1940s)
- Too Dead to Swing

- A Fugue in Hell's Kitchen

- The Last Full Measure

- Benn, James R.: Billy Boyle series

- Billy Boyle

- The First Wave

- Blood Alone

- Evil for Evil

- Collins, Max Allan: The Pearl Harbor Murders (1941)

- Little, Constance & Gwenyth: The Black Shrouds (1941)

- Dunning, John: Two O'Clock, Eastern Wartime (1942)

- Gardner, John: Suzie Mountford & Tommy Livermore series
- Bottled Spider

- The Streets of Town

- Angels Dining at the Ritz

- Troubled Midnight

- No Human Enemy

- Haines, Kathryn Miller: Rosie Winter series

- The War Against Miss Winter

- The Winter of Her Discontent

- Winter in June

- When Winter Returns

- Hart, Carolyn: Letter From Home

- Kingsbury, Kate: Elizabeth Hartleigh Compton series (aka Manor House series) (World War II)
- A Bicycle Built for Murder

- Death is in the Air

- For Whom Death Tolls

- Dig Deep for Murder

- Paint By Murder

- Berried Alive

- Fire When Ready

- Wedding Rows

- Wilson, Laura: The Innocent Spy

- Lucarelli, Carlo: De Luca series

- Carte Blanche

- The Damned Season

- Via Delle Oche

- Mrazek, Robert J.: The Deadly Embrace

- Haines, Carolyn: Fever Moon

- Coffey, Tom: Blood Alley

- Monroe, Steve: '46, Chicago

- Bergman, Andrew: Jack LeVine series (1940s-50s)
- Hollywood and LeVine

- The Big Kiss-Off of 1944

- Tender is LeVine

- Steinhauer, Olen: Inspector Brod series
- The Bridge of Sighs

- Victory Square

- Broadbent, Tony: The Smoke

- Davidson, Jim: Mine Work

- Dunn, Hilda: The Hanged Man

- Hoff, Benjamin: The House on the Point

- Wright, Edward: John Ray Horn series

- Clea's Moon

- While I Disappear

- Abbott, Megan: The Song is You

- Mackle, Elliott: It Takes Two (1949)

- Muller, Eddie: Billy Nichols series
- The Distance

- Shadow Boxer

Historical Mysteries: 1950s
(Scroll up/down for other 20th Century periods.)
- Black, Benjamin: Quirke series

- Christine Falls

- The Silver Swan

- Elegy for April

- A Death in Summer

- Hills, Kathleen: John McIntire series
- Past Imperfect

- Hunter's Dance

- Witch Cradle

- The Kingdom Where Nobody Dies

- Levinson, Robert: Neil Gulliver & Steve Marriner series (1950s)
- The Elvis & Marilyn Affair

- The James Dean Affair

- The John Lennon Affair

- Hot Paint

- Blank, Hannah: A Murder of Convenience (Paris, 1953)

- Davis, J. Madison: Alfred Hitchcock series
- The Vertigo Murders

- Gorman, Ed: Sam McCain series
- The Day the Music Died

- Wake Up Little Susie

- Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow?

- Save the Last Dance for Me

- Everybody's Somebody's Fool

- Breaking Up Is Hard To Do

- Fools Rush In

- Ticket to Ride

- Smith, Tom Rob: Leo Demidov series
- Child 44

- The Secret Speech

- Matetsky, Amanda: Paige Turner series (1954)

- Murderers Prefer Blondes

- Murder is a Girl's Best Friend

- How To Marry a Murderer

- Atkins, Ace: White Shadow (1955)

- Steinhauer, Olen: The Confession (1956)

- Ludwig, Jerry: Getting Garbo

- Granger, Pip: No Peace for the Wicked

- Granger, Pip: Rosie series
(prequel) Trouble in Paradise

- Not All Tarts Are Apple

- The Widow Ginger

- Horwitz, David R.: Ben Carey series

- Murder Bay

- McDonald, Craig: Hector Lassiter series (1957)
- Head Games

- Toros and Torsos

- Print the Legend

- Latour, José: Havana World Series (1958)

Historical Mysteries: 1960s
(Scroll up/down for other 20th Century periods.)
- Carter, Charlotte: Cook County series
- Jackson Park

- Daniel, David: White Rabbit

- Duchin, Peter & Wilson, John Morgan: Philip Damon series
- Blue Moon

- Good Morning, Heartache

- Dunn, Carola: Cornish Mystery series

- Manna From Hades

- A Colourful Death

- Faherty, Terence: Scott Elliott series (1960s)
- Kill Me Again

- Come Back Dead

- Raise the Devil

- Fulmer, David: The Blue Door

- Klein, Daniel: Elvis Presley series
- Kill Me Tender

- Blue Suede Clues

- Viva Las Vengeance

- Such Vicious Minds

- Martin, Rosemary: Murder-a-Go-Go series

- It's a Mod, Mod, Mod, Mod Murder

- Twist and Shout Murder

- Randisi, Robert J.: Rat Pack series

- Everybody Kills Somebody Sometime

- Luck Be A Lady, Don't Die

- Hey There (You With the Gun in Your Hand)

- You're Nobody 'Til Somebody Kills You

- Spencer, Sally: Charlie Woodend and Bob Rutter series
- The Salton Killings

- Murder at Swann's Lake

- Death of a Cave Dweller

- The Dark Lady

- The Golden Mile to Murder

- Dead on Cue

- The Red Herring

- Death of an Innocent

- A Death Left Hanging

- The Enemy Within

- The Witch Maker

- Dying in the Dark

- The Dead Hand of History

- Nelscott, Kris: Smokey Dalton series
- A Dangerous Road

- Smoke-Filled Rooms

- Thin Walls

- Stone Cribs

- War at Home

- Days of Rage

(short story) A Smokey Dalton short story appears in Chicago Blues (edited by Libby Fischer Hellmann)

- Crider, Bill & Wilson, Clyde: Ted Stephens series
- Houston Homicide

- Mississippi Vivian

- Parker, T. Jefferson: California Girl

- Wilson, Clyde & Crider, Bill: Ted Stephens series
- Houston Homicide

- Mississippi Vivian

Historical Mysteries: 1970s
(Scroll up/down for other 20th Century periods.)
- Stansberry, Domenic: Manifesto for the Dead (1971)

- Gebhard, Pat: Motives for Murder (1970s)

- Hoopes, Roy: A Watergate Tape (1973)

- Peace, David: 1974

- Pelecanos, George P.: King Suckerman

- Lin, Ed: Robert Chow series
- This is a Bust

- Snakes Can't Run

- Wildwind, Sharon: Some Welcome Home

Historical Mysteries: 1980s
(Scroll up/down for other 20th Century periods.)
- Carr, Jess: Murder on the Appalachian Trail (1981)

- Lehane, Con: Brian McNulty series

- Beware the Solitary Drinker

- What Goes Around Comes Around

Other Historical Mysteries
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updated: Saturday, July 23, 2011
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