We have a smattering of titles by best-selling writers John Sandford, James Patterson, Colin Dexter, Lawrence Sanders, Ed McBain, Iris Johanson, Ridley Pearson, Nelson DeMille, and others. We need more. We can use more. We'll make the room on our shelves. You know they'll get read and enjoyed.
Mysteries appeal for a variety of reasons best left to psychologists to theorize over.
Clues are masterfully revealed to the attentive reader, and the logic of the solution is tight and irrefutable. It's both an intellectual exercise and philosophical reaffirmation. Where there was once chaos and uncertainty, order is ultimately restored and we rejoice that there is a Morse, Poirot, Lucas Davenport, or a Kay Scarpetta smart enough and persistent enough to make the world right once again. They offer the same satisfactions we find in completing a crossword or putting the final piece in a jigsaw puzzle. We only wish our lives could be as clear and complete.