As you already know, I am an avid reader, and reading is not only one of my favorite things to do but is also something I feel really constitutes a big part of who I am.

When I was younger I had a habit of never leaving a book I started reading, even if I didn’t like it. As I grew older I became (a little) less strong-headed and also realized that if I don’t seem to “click” with a certain a book, there are two possibilities:

1. I really don’t like the book. In this case – why suffer? Better go on to something more enjoyable.

2. This is not the right timing for me to meet this book. I have let a few books “ripe” in my library, and to my surprise a    book I could not get over page 20 in at one point was read in one continous read three years later.

That said, I sometimes go through periods in which I find it very difficult to read anything. These episodes are rare, but they do happen. They make me wonder – is there a “Reader’s Block” similar to a writer’s block?

Lately I find myself picking one book after another, reading a few dozen pages and leaving them for a later date, or moving very slowly through them. I started getting worried until I found this lovely book – The Oxford Murders (Crímenes imperceptibles) by Argentinian author Guillermo Martínez – an enjoyable, easy to read, intelligent little thriller that I finished in two days’ reading on the bus on my way to work.

Although I am still struggling with other books I started, this gave me hope that this phase shall and can pass.

Tags: Crímenes imperceptibles, Guillermo Martínez, Reader's Block, The Oxford Murders

Well, some of my story-hoarding friends may find this hard to believe or even offensive, but to me there is nothing like a good detective story. A lower art, some may say, but I beg to differ – a good detective story is a masterpiece of the imagination and the mind. They are smart books, but to my taste – not geekish. A true pleasure.

In this art form the British definitely set the tone, and today I will discuss three of my all time favorites.  I provide no specific recommendations – anything by these authors is definitely worth reading.

First and foremost, Sherlock Holmes by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.

The father of all detectives. The mesmerizing story lines, the enigmatic, charismatic character of Sherlock Holmes and the comic and emotional relief the character of Dr. Watson brings to the stories combine into a thrilling, challenging and highly enjoyable series of books and stories. Holmes’ powers of deduction and his encyclopedic knowledge in various scientific and cultural realms is fascinating.

The great Dame – Agatha Christie

Ms. Christie lived in a man’s world but managed to express her extraordinary talent, introducing two of the most unlikely but shrewd detectives – the flamboyant (and probably gay) Hercule Poirot and the seemingly frail old spinster, Miss Marple. These two exhibit a surprising acute perception of minute details in the ongoings around them, making for many books that have a fantastic mixture of a sensitively described social scene, a humorous take on that same scene and the detectives themselves, and great suspense.

Last but not Least – P.D. James and her poet-detective Adam Dalgliesh

Don’t you just adore a man that is both a hard-working, no-nonsense police officer and a sensitive, tortured poet? This author is much more modern than the previous two, and her books reflect that in the more complex, full characters she presents and in letting us into the lives of both victims, murderers and the people who investigate the crimes. Apart from being wonderfully and thoughtfully written, these books offer a wonderful mixture of great detective work and pure old good story telling.

Do you have more recommendations for great detective books?

Tags: Adam Dalgliesh, Agatha Christie, Arthur Conan Doyle, detective, Dr. Watson, Hercule Poirot, Miss Marple, P.D. James, police, Sherlock Holmes