Spanish crime fiction authors

Crime novels in Spain go beyond the Carmen Mola phenomenon, the pseudonym under which writers Jorge Díaz, Agustín Martínez and Antonio Mercero published The Gypsy Bride, the first instalment of the hit series starring inspector Elena Blanco. Our bestselling authors also include Dolores Redondo—the creator of the Baztán trilogy—Juan Gómez Jurado—behind the Red Queen trilogy—or Javier Castillo—author of The Snow Girl, El cuco de cristal and La grieta del silencio—. And talking about bestsellers, we need to go to Dolores Redondo’s homeland, the Basque Country. In Álava, Eva García Sáenz de Urturi—author of The Silence of the White City— has started a fan phenomenon, the Kraken, surrounding the main character in her novels, the police officer Unai López de Ayala, nicknamed Kraken. In Biscay, Mikel Santiago is the living image of the Euskandinavian thriller—a concept created by writer Ibón Martín to frame thrillers set in Euskadi (the Basque Country)—with his acclaimed series Illumbe.

Not even the premature passing of Domingo Villar in 2022, one of the greats of the genre in the 21st century with just three novels—Water-blue eyes, Death on a Galician Shore and El último barco—, has slowed the thriller boom in Spain. The genre has also been endorsed by well-known Spanish writers, like Arturo Pérez-Reverte—with his Lorenzo Falcó series—and Javier Cercas—with the trilogy featuring mosso d’esquadra (police officer) Melchor Marín—. The annual turnover, which according to the Federation of Publishers’ Guilds of Spain (FGEE) reached 91.81 million euros in 2024—an 18.2% increase compared to 2023—, is also a good sign. Christmas, alongside the Madrid Book Fair—an event sponsored by Iberia—, is one of the busiest sales periods of the year. Do you know which book you are going to gift? Here is a list of other crime novel authors worth mentioning if you are looking for ideas.

Lorenzo Silva

In 1998, just one year after rising to fame with The Weakness of the Bolshevik—Premio Nadal finalist—, Lorenzo Silva (Madrid, 1966) published the first volume in the Bevilacqua series: El lejano país de los estanques. Then came El alquimista impaciente —2000 Premio Nadal—, La niebla y la doncella and La marca del meridiano—2012 Premio Planeta—. Las fuerzas contrarias is the fourteenth and last instalment in the saga, for now. Rubén Bevilacqua and Virginia Chamorro, both members of the Spanish Civil Guard, have turned into hallmarks of Spanish noir and one of the most well-loved detective duos.

Readers got to know agents Bevilacqua and Chamorro in ‘El lejano país de los estanques’ / Female detective Petra Delicado revolutionized the genre with ‘Death Rites’ / ‘The Sadness of the Samurai’ turned Víctor del Árbol as a role model of noir. © Booket / Destino / Tusquets

Alicia Giménez Bartlett

The Spanish crime novel genre has always had Pepe Carvalho, the detective written by Manuel Vázquez Montalbán in 1972, as a role model. That is, until the first novel featuring a female detective, Petra Delicado, came out in 1996: Death Rites. Alicia Giménez Bartlett (Almansa, Albacete, 1951), inserted a woman into a traditionally masculine environment and breathed new life into the detective genre. In 2008, this female writer was granted the Raymond Chandler Award, a top lifetime achievement honour to an expert of the thriller and noir literary genre. Just look at the list of winners: Graham Greene, John le Carré, Leonardo Padura, Henning Mankell, Jo Nesbø…

Víctor del Árbol

The life of Víctor del Árbol (Barcelona, 1968), from his childhood in the humble neighbourhood of Torre Baró to his years as a seminarian or his time as a mosso d'esquadra (police officer)—even as an escort for the former president of the Government of Catalonia Jordi Pujol—would be enough for a film, but we are here to talk about his books. In 2011, The Sadness of the Samurai rose to stardom, especially in France, where he was ordained Chevallier de L'Ordre des Arts et des Lettres in 2017. In Spain, he’s not lacking recognition either, winning the 2016 Premio Nadal for La víspera de casi todo. Full of intense psychology and moral complexity, his novels go beyond solving a crime.

Susana Martín Gijón

Following in the wake of Alicia Giménez Bartlett is Susana Martín Gijón (Sevilla, 1981), an author who has created not one but two iconic female figures in the Spanish noir genre. We’re talking about Annika Kaunda, a police officer of African origin living in Extremadura who starred in her debut novel—Más que cuerpos—, and Camino Vargas, a Sevillian female inspector who led to a trilogy: Progenie, Especie and Planeta. This writer’s social commitment shines through her books, which distil a deep sensibility towards topics like racism, inequality or domestic violence. In her latest novels, she has toyed with the historical thriller genre: La Babilonia, 1580 and La Capitana.

‘Especie’, second instalment in the trilogy starring inspector Camino Vargas / Toni Hill closed his Verdugo Trilogy this year with ‘The White Death’ / ‘Don de lenguas’ received a special mention at the 2014 Hammett Prize. © Alfaguara / Grijalbo / Siruela

Toni Hill

Hill, not Gil. Indeed, he is a Spaniard of English origin. Perhaps this is where his passion for the queen of mystery, Agatha Christie, comes from, whom he was an avid reader of as a child. Toni Hill (Barcelona, 1966) started out as a translator until he decided to take the leap and tell his own stories. Over time, he has turned into a big name in the noir genre, both inside and outside of Spain, thanks to the complexity of his characters and his tense atmospheres. His literary career started with the trilogy about inspector Héctor Salgado and, for now, is bookended by the Verdugo trilogy. His latest, The White Death, was published this summer.

Rosa Ribas

In 1991, Rosa Ribas (El Prat de Llobregat, Barcelona, 1963) landed in Germany, where she stayed for 30 years—many of them dedicated to teaching before launching her literary career—. Marked by that period, she created the Spanish-German superintendent Cornelia Weber-Tejedor, the character who brought her fame. Then, alongside German writer Sabine Hofmann, she delivered an intriguing trilogy starring reporter Ana Martí set in 1950s Spain. Used to solitary detectives, Rosa turned the genre up a notch in 2019 by creating the Hernández detective family who investigate together, the stars of four novels already.

The Spanish crime novel scene is spurred on by many writers, including Manel Loureiro—author of The Last Passenger and winner of the 2024 Fernando Lara Novel Award for When the Storm Passes—, Virginia Feito—an international phenomenon after her debut novel Mrs. March—, Carlos Zanón—The Barcelona Brothers: A Novel or Taxi are some of his famous forays in the genre—, Teresa Cardona—a hit in France under the pseudonym Eric Todenne, alongside Eric Damien, and the author of the Blecker y Cano series—, César Pérez Gellida—with a long career, the 2024 Premio Nadal for Bajo tierra seca gave him well-deserved recognition—or María Oruña—creator of the Los Libros del Puerto Escondido series—. Other names worth keeping in mind are Juan Madrid, Mónica Rouanet, Alfonso del Río, Carme Chaparro, Alexis Ravelo, Noelia Lorenzo, Eugenio Fuentes or Arantza Portabales. The mystery behind the success of Spanish crime novels is easy to solve: it is called talent.