British Crime Classics Challenge 2021

British Crime Classics Challenge is turning three! This couldn’t have happened without the support of all the wonderful participants, thank you all! Go ahead, pop open a bottle of wine or whatever drink you want, and let’s celebrate! Oh yes, not to forget the ‘new normal’ – social distancing and virtual parties. 😀

I wonder what our favourite British authors would have written if they were still alive – with the ongoing pandemic, don’t you think they would have come up with interesting mysteries? Would Agatha Christie have written a mystery featuring Miss Marple and Hercule Poirot – a collab between the two would have been the best thing ever, what say? How about my favourite author George Bellairs? Would he have written ‘murder during the pandemic’ featuring Inspector Littlejohn?

As a Doctor Who fan, I certainly think, if time travel was possible (and Doctor was real), The Doctor would have gone back in time and saved us from the wrath of the corona-virus. The thirteenth Doctor and her gang trying to save the world from corona-virus – a new species invented by the Daleks.

The British Crime Classics Challenge has no rules whatsoever. As the title suggests, make sure to read Mystery Classics (on or before 1965) written by British Author(s).

Since this is year 3 of BCCC, I have decided to make the challenge a little exciting. I leave it to you to choose. You can read as many books as you want, without caring for below mentioned themes. Or, include a little drama in your reading and have fun.

Themes to choose from:

Read a book by your favourite author. Easy peasy, mac and cheesy. Discovered a new favourite author and dying to read the whole series? Or, are you planning to re-read a book (or series)? Bring on the complete-lists.
Read a book by an author new to you: There are loads of hidden gems out there waiting to be discovered. Molly Thynne, Brian Flynn, Dorothy Bowers, or <insert author name here>, take your pick.
A Favorite Detective: Oh well, don’t we have a long list when it comes to favourite detectives? I do! Read a book featuring your favourite detective. Or, if you are like me, give all your favvies a chance. After all, we have survived the pandemic!
A Favorite Amateur Sleuth: Don’t we love amateur sleuths? I cannot wait to re-read AC’s Miss Marple. What about you?
A Re-read: Read a book years ago and planning to read it again?
Death by Strangulation | Death by Poison | Death by Drowning | Death by Stabbing: Do I need to say more? Choose one for each or choose any one.
The curious case of the missing documents: War time, documents gone missing and the detective is called to investigate/retrieve before it is too late. Tick-tock-tick-tock!
A Mystery set in a Foreign Land: The detective/amateur sleuth solving a case in a Foreign Land, talk about vacation gone bad!
A Mysterious Journey: Murder on the Orient Express or 4.50 from Paddington, pick a mystery that is set on a mode of transport, or a mystery that occurs on a mode of transport and is solved at a future date (Eg: In 4.50 from Paddington, Mrs Gillicuddy witnesses a crime on a train that’s running parallel to hers.)
Spooky Doobie Doo: Creaky stairwell, crooked house or haunted by poltergeists, what spooks you the most?
Locked Room Mystery | Trapped on an island: What can be better than a murder in a locked room mystery or a set of people trapped on an island with a killer in their midst?
Cliched tropes: It is always the spouse! No wait, inheritance! Can it be the jilted lover? Or, was it a love triangle? The cliched trope list is long. Take your pick.

Pick a theme and read as many books as you want. Or, choose one book for each theme. Or, pick as many themes as you wish and read a book for each. The choice is yours. You can always go back to reading the mystery classics without following any theme.

Note: There is no time-frame as such, you can join this challenge at any time.

If you wish to participate, include the tag “British Crime Classics Challenge” in your posts. If you do not blog but want to participate, you are most welcome to do so. You can also let me know about your participation via Goodreads or Twitter.