Crime Writer Margot Kinberg

The thing about people is that we’re all different. And yet, because humans are social animals, we want to be accepted, even if we don’t quite conform to every norm (whatever that even is). There can often be a conflict between non-conformity and the wish to be accepted, and that can make for an interesting fictional character. There are plenty of them in crime fiction. I’ll just mention a few; I know you’ll think of more than I could.

In Julia Keller’s Bitter River, Acker’s Gap, West Virginia prosecuting attorney Bell Elkins is drawn into the case of the death of sixteen-year-old Lucinda Trimble. The girl’s body was found in a local river, and it’s soon shown that she was dead before going into the water, so this is a case of murder. Bell soon finds that there are several suspects, too. One of them is Madeline ‘Maddie’ Trimble, the victim’s mother. There’d never been any obvious trouble between the two, but who knows what goes on behind closed doors? The fact is, Maddie is a sort of outsider. She’s what many would call a hippie who lives a sort of unconventional ‘artist’s life.’ Some in town even think she engages in witchcraft. This is a small town where everyone knows everyone, and there’s a lot of gossip. Maddie would like to be accepted as she is, but she knows that’s not likely. Because she’s a bit unusual, plenty of people are happy to assume Maddie is guilty. Bell isn’t sure, though, so she keeps digging for the truth. In the end, we learn that this case is more complex than it seems.

In Kinae Minato’s Confessions, we are introduced to middle school teacher Yūko Moriguchi. She’s recently suffered the loss of her four-year-old daughter Manami and grieves deeply. As the story opens, it’s her last day of teaching, and she uses the opportunity to address her class. She tells them that she knows that at least one of them killed Manami, and that she knows who is responsible. She doesn’t think the Japanese law enforcement system will adequately punish the guilty, so she has made her own plans. After she dismisses her class and leaves her position, a new teacher takes over, and it seems at first that all will be well. But soon, things begin to spiral out of control, particularly for three students. One of them, Shūya Watanabe, is an academic genius, but he doesn’t fit in well with his peers. You might even say he has sopciopathic tendencies. He’s an ‘outsider’ who drifts increasingly apart from his peers after the murder. It’s an interesting look at the balance, even conflict, between wanting to be accepted, and being an ‘outsider.’

Tove Alsterdal’s We Know You Remember is the story of the Hagström family. As the story begins, Olaf Hagström returns to his hometown after twenty years to see his father, Sven. When he gets there, though, he finds that his father has been murdered. Local police detective Eira Sjödin begins the investigation. She won’t have an easy time of it, though. The victim was an unpleasant old man who’d made more than his share of enemies. What’s more, the Hagström family is under a cloud anyway. Twenty-three years earlier, Olaf Hagström was accused of the rape and probable murder of Lina Stavred. The town hasn’t forgiven him. But, as Eira looks more deeply into the case, she finds that things are not as clear as they seem. For one thing, it’s increasingly possible that someone else killed Lina Stavred. Olaf has always been a sort of ‘outsider,’ but that doesn’t mean he’s a killer. For another, none of this answers the question of who killed Sven Hagström. Eira will need to probe the past to find out the truth.

Matthew Sullivan’s Midnight at the Bright Ideas Bookstore features an unusual Denver bookshop, and Lydia Smith, who works there. She’s a bit offbeat, although she’s well aware of what the world expects. She’s drawn to the ‘outsiders, of whom there are plenty who frequent the bookshop. In fact, most of the regular customers are non-conforming, offbeat people. The bookshop’s welcoming atmosphere is shattered one day when a patron called Joey Molina is found dead by suicide. Lydia considered Joey a friend, so his death is hard enough on her. What makes it worse, though, is that he’s left her a cryptic message. Lydia is determined to find out what the message means, and what drove Joey to suicide. So, she starts asking questions. As she investigates, Lydia finds that Joey’s past is integrated with her own in ways she hadn’t known. So, as she solves the riddle that was Joey, she also must face her own traumatic history. This novel features a number of quirky, offbeat characters who don’t conform, but still want to be accepted.

There’s also Gabriel Bergmoser’s The Caretaker. Melbourne-based Charlotte Laurent is on the run from her criminal husband, so she’s taken a job as caretaker at a resort in the Australian Alps. She likes the relative isolation, as it makes her feel safer, and the work is not hard, especially as it’s the off-season. She makes occasional trips into town for supplies, and although she’s thought of as a bit of an oddball, no-one pays much attention to her, and that suits her well. All Charlotte wants is a peaceful place to live and work, out of the reach of her husband. Then, some unsettling things begin to happen. Charlotte takes as many precautions as she can, but it seems that someone is trying to unnerve her. Has her husband somehow found out where she is? Is someone else targeting her? It’s upsetting and frightening, but Charlotte will have to find out what (or who) is behind what’s going on if she’s to stay alive.

People who don’t fit in with society’s norms can sometimes find it very difficult to balance their own selves with what is expected. That can make for some interesting character development in a crime novel. It can also make for a tense, suspenseful plot point. These are only a few examples. Over to you.

*NOTE: The title of this post is a line from Styx’s I’m OK.