The Top 100 Crime Novels of All Time is a list published in book form in 1990 by the
British-based Crime Writers' Association. Five years later, the Mystery Writers of America
published a similar list entitled The Top 100 Mystery Novels of All Time. Many titles
can be found in both lists.
The CWA List Josephine Tey: The Daughter of Time
Raymond Chandler: The Big Sleep John le Carré: The Spy Who Came In From the
Cold Dorothy L. Sayers: Gaudy Night
Agatha Christie: The Murder of Roger Ackroyd Daphne du Maurier: Rebecca
Raymond Chandler: Farewell My Lovely Wilkie Collins: The Moonstone
Len Deighton: The IPCRESS File Dashiell Hammett: The Maltese Falcon
Josephine Tey: The Franchise Affair Hillary Waugh: Last Seen Wearing ...
Umberto Eco: The Name of the Rose Geoffrey Household: Rogue Male
Raymond Chandler: The Long Goodbye Francis Iles: Malice Aforethought
Frederick Forsyth: The Day of the Jackal Dorothy L. Sayers: The Nine Tailors
Agatha Christie: And Then There Were None John Buchan: The Thirty-Nine Steps
Arthur Conan Doyle: The Collected Sherlock Holmes Short Stories
Dorothy L. Sayers: Murder Must Advertise Edgar Allan Poe: Tales of Mystery & Imagination
Eric Ambler: The Mask of Dimitrios Edmund Crispin: The Moving Toyshop
Margery Allingham: The Tiger in the Smoke Peter Lovesey: The False Inspector Dew
Wilkie Collins: The Woman in White Barbara Vine: A Dark-Adapted Eye
James M. Cain: The Postman Always Rings Twice Dashiell Hammett: The Glass Key
Arthur Conan Doyle: The Hound of the Baskervilles John le Carré: Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy
E. C. Bentley: Trent's Last Case Ian Fleming: From Russia, with Love
Ed McBain: Cop Hater Colin Dexter: The Dead of Jericho
Patricia Highsmith: Strangers on a Train Ruth Rendell: A Judgement in Stone
John Dickson Carr: The Hollow Man Anthony Berkeley: The Poisoned Chocolates
Case Ellis Peters: A Morbid Taste for Bones
Ellis Peters: The Leper of Saint Giles Ira Levin: A Kiss Before Dying
Patricia Highsmith: The Talented Mr. Ripley Graham Greene: Brighton Rock
Raymond Chandler: The Lady in the Lake Scott Turow: Presumed Innocent
Ruth Rendell: A Demon in My View John Dickson Carr: The Devil in Velvet
Barbara Vine: A Fatal Inversion Michael Innes: The Journeying Boy
P. D. James: A Taste for Death Jack Higgins: The Eagle Has Landed
Mary Stewart: My Brother Michael Peter Lovesey: Bertie and the Tin Man
Susan Moody: Penny Black Len Deighton: Game, Set & Match
Dick Francis: The Danger P. D. James: Devices and Desires
Reginald Hill: Underworld Mary Stewart: Nine Coaches Waiting
Paula Gosling: A Running Duck Michael Gilbert: Smallbone Deceased
Lionel Davidson: The Rose of Tibet P. D. James: Innocent Blood
Dorothy L. Sayers: Strong Poison Michael Innes: Hamlet, Revenge!
Tony Hillerman: A Thief of Time Caryl Brahms & S. J. Simon: A Bullet in the
Ballet Reginald Hill: Dead Heads
Graham Greene: The Third Man Anthony Price: The Labyrinth Makers
Adam Hall: The Quiller Memorandum Margaret Millar: Beast in View
Sarah Caudwell: The Shortest Way to Hades Desmond Bagley: Running Blind
Dick Francis: Twice Shy Richard Condon: The Manchurian Candidate
Caroline Graham: The Killings at Badger's Drift
Nicholas Blake: The Beast Must Die Martin Cruz Smith: Gorky Park
Agatha Christie: Death Comes as the End Christianna Brand: Green for Danger
Cyril Hare: Tragedy at Law John Fowles: The Collector
J. J. Marric: Gideon's Day Lionel Davidson: The Sun Chemist
Alistair MacLean: The Guns of Navarone Julian Symons: The Colour of Murder
John Buchan: Greenmantle Erskine Childers: The Riddle of the Sands
Peter Lovesey: Wobble to Death Dashiell Hammett: Red Harvest
Ken Follett: The Key to Rebecca Ed McBain: Sadie When She Died
H. R. F. Keating: The Murder of the Maharajah Simon Brett: What Bloody Man Is That?
Gavin Lyall: Shooting Script Edgar Wallace: The Four Just Men
The U.S. list Arthur Conan Doyle: The Complete Sherlock
Holmes Dashiell Hammett: The Maltese Falcon
Edgar Allan Poe: Tales of Mystery & Imagination Josephine Tey: The Daughter of Time
Scott Turow: Presumed Innocent John le Carré: The Spy Who Came In From the
Cold Wilkie Collins: The Moonstone
Raymond Chandler: The Big Sleep Daphne du Maurier: Rebecca
Agatha Christie: And Then There Were None Robert Traver: Anatomy of a Murder
Agatha Christie: The Murder of Roger Ackroyd Raymond Chandler: The Long Goodbye
James M. Cain: The Postman Always Rings Twice Mario Puzo: The Godfather
Thomas Harris: The Silence of the Lambs Eric Ambler: A Coffin for Dimitrios
Dorothy L. Sayers: Gaudy Night Agatha Christie: The Witness for the Prosecution
Frederick Forsyth: The Day of the Jackal Raymond Chandler: Farewell My Lovely
John Buchan: The Thirty-Nine Steps Umberto Eco: The Name of the Rose
Fyodor Dostoyevsky: Crime and Punishment Ken Follett: Eye of the Needle
John Mortimer: Rumpole of the Bailey Thomas Harris: Red Dragon
Dorothy L. Sayers: The Nine Tailors Gregory Mcdonald: Fletch
John Le Carré: Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy Dashiell Hammett: The Thin Man
Wilkie Collins: The Woman in White E. C. Bentley: Trent's Last Case
James M. Cain: Double Indemnity Martin Cruz Smith: Gorky Park
Dorothy L. Sayers: Strong Poison Tony Hillerman: Dance Hall of the Dead
Donald E. Westlake: The Hot Rock Dashiell Hammett: Red Harvest
Mary Roberts Rinehart: The Circular Staircase Agatha Christie: Murder on the Orient Express
John Grisham: The Firm Len Deighton: The IPCRESS File
Vera Caspary: Laura Mickey Spillane: I, the Jury
Maj Sjöwall & Per Wahlöö: The Laughing Policeman
Donald E. Westlake: Bank Shot Graham Greene: The Third Man
Jim Thompson: The Killer Inside Me Mary Higgins Clark: Where Are the Children?
Sue Grafton: "A" is for Alibi Lawrence Sanders: The First Deadly Sin
Tony Hillerman: A Thief of Time Truman Capote: In Cold Blood
Geoffrey Household: Rogue Male Dorothy L. Sayers: Murder Must Advertise
G. K. Chesterton: The Innocence of Father Brown
John le Carré: Smiley's People Raymond Chandler: The Lady in the Lake
Harper Lee: To Kill a Mockingbird Graham Greene: Our Man in Havana
Charles Dickens: The Mystery of Edwin Drood Peter Lovesey: Wobble to Death
W. Somerset Maugham: Ashenden Nicholas Meyer: The Seven Per-Cent Solution
Rex Stout: The Doorbell Rang Elmore Leonard: Stick
John le Carré: The Little Drummer Girl Graham Greene: Brighton Rock
Bram Stoker: Dracula Patricia Highsmith: The Talented Mr. Ripley
Edmund Crispin: The Moving Toyshop John Grisham: A Time to Kill
Hillary Waugh: Last Seen Wearing ... W. R. Burnett: Little Caesar
George V. Higgins: The Friends of Eddie Coyle Dorothy L. Sayers: Clouds of Witness
Ian Fleming: From Russia, with Love Margaret Millar: Beast in View
Michael Gilbert: Smallbone Deceased Josephine Tey: The Franchise Affair
Elizabeth Peters: Crocodile on the Sandbank P. D. James: Shroud for a Nightingale
Tom Clancy: The Hunt for Red October Ross Thomas: Chinaman's Chance
Joseph Conrad: The Secret Agent John D. MacDonald: The Dreadful Lemon Sky
Dashiell Hammett: The Glass Key Ruth Rendell: A Judgement in Stone
Josephine Tey: Brat Farrar Ross Macdonald: The Chill
Walter Mosley: Devil in a Blue Dress Joseph Wambaugh: The Choirboys
Donald E. Westlake: God Save the Mark Craig Rice: Home Sweet Homicide
John Dickson Carr: The Three Coffins Richard Condon: Prizzi's Honor
James McClure: The Steam Pig Jack Finney: Time and Again
Ellis Peters: A Morbid Taste for Bones and Ira Levin: Rosemary's Baby
Notes
References
The Hatchards Crime Companion. 100 Top Crime Novels Selected by the Crime Writers' Association,
ed. Susan Moody. The Crown Crime Companion. The Top 100 Mystery
Novels of All Time Selected by the Mystery Writers of America, annotated by Otto Penzler
and compiled by Mickey Friedman. See also
Tozai Mystery Best 100 Addictive Books - The 400 best crime fiction
novels