Whatever one thinks about crime fiction -- the best, all-purpose label, encompassing more than "thriller" or "mystery" or "whodunit"* -- nothing is more formulaic than the semi-annual thumbsuckers on the genre, which require that 1) someone point out that crime fiction is popular (yes) 2) that it is formulaic (some, not all) 3) that it is a conservative form that breaks the world in order to re-order it, granting readers the illusion of control missing in daily life (true dat, most of the time) 4) that it is ultimately inferior to literary fiction because if a crime novel is really good, it can't be a crime novel. Read more [...]