Mystery Subgenres

child in peril- a child is in danger

woman in peril- a woman is in danger

legal- the protagonist is often in peril and
a lawyer solves the case

Private Detective -

Bumbling Detective - A story in which
the person solving the crime makes a lot
of mistakes, and usually is focused on comedy.

Doctor Detective - A story in which
a doctor acts as a detective

historical- the detective is in a historical setting

amateur sleuth- A genre in which the protagonist
is not affiliated with any detective or police agencies
but still solves a crime.

disabled-the detective's disability helps
them solve the mystery

police procedural- a police is the detective

cozy-no violence is involved

furry sleuth- a dog or cat
is the detective

children's story- mystery stories
directed towards children

young adult- a teenager solves the
crime

Cozy - Usually does not involve
violence, and usually takes place in
a small community.

hardboiled- lots of violence

Caper - Based around the protagonist being
the perpetrator of the crime.

Whodunit - A genre in which the focus of the
story is finding out who committed a crime.

Howdunit - A genre in which the perpetrator is
known, but the focus is figuring out HOW the
crime was committed.

paranormal-a ghost is responsible for
the crime

culinary- a chef is involved

locked room- also known as puzzle mysteries; the place where the crime is committed is hard to enter/exit unnoticed

multicultural and diverse-involves culturally diverse characters