For the traveler, Crimes of the Scene serves as an exceptional reference book, offering lists and reviews of mystery novels that are set in countries around the world. To get the most out of a trip to Paris, try digging into one of the suggested novels featuring Maigret, the city's most celebrated detective. Or to really soak up the scene in the outback, become engrossed in one of Arthur Upfield's Bony adventures. What better way is there to enjoy vacation reading and learn about all the stops along the way than to pore over an atmospheric mystery?
In addition to featuring important mysteries that take place in particular foreign countries, each of the twenty-one chapters opens with a brief, entertaining essay that describes how an area's cultural and political climate impacts that area's crime fiction.