Busybodies, Meddlers, and Snoops: The Female Hero in Contemporary Women's Mysteries

(Hardback)

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Description

Although the mystery novel has been popular with women readers since the 19th century, until the late 1970s, fictional women detectives typically were portrayed as stereotypic and passive, and often overlooked by critics. Over the last two decades, however, women mystery writers have begun creating a new type of hero: the modern female detective - an independent, intelligent, witty and compassionate woman who can take care of herself. This volume analyzes the new female serial detectives and highlights their struggles with femininity and feminism in the everyday and the way they have profoundly altered the genre's standard plotting and characterization.

Reviews

"A writer rejoices to find a reader as intelligent as Kimberly Dilley! As women struggle to be treated fairly and to express our own important views of crime, morality, and justice in the often male-dominated mystery field, Dilley's [book] gives us a clear-eyed analysis of the cultural and economic problems and a warm appreciation of how women mystery writers are meeting the challenges." P. M. Carlson, Author, Bloodstream, 1992-93 President of Sisters in Crime - "Dilley's literatre, comprehensive and conclusive Busybodies, Meddlers & Snoops serves up a sting rebuttal to those who would dismiss mystery fiction by women as mere fluff." Dana Stabenow, Author of the Kate Shugak, Liam Campbell and Star Svensdotter series

Author Bio

KIMBERLY J. DILLEY is a freelance writer. She has a Ph.D. in Communications from the University of California, San Diego.