Small Towns in Recent American Crime Fiction

Book excerpt: Small towns have long been a commonplace setting in cozy mysteries, but in recent years writers of realistic crime fiction have discovered fresh possibilities in small town settings. There they can take advantage of distinct facets of small town life--a sense of community, slower pace of life, proximity to nature--and yet deal with social, economic and environmental issues. Because crimes in small communities hit closer to home, the human element can better be emphasized. This book focuses on the work of ten contemporary authors who have placed small towns like Rocksburg, Pennsylvania (K. C. Constantine), West Table, Missouri (Daniel Woodrell), Niniltna, Alaska (Dana Stabenow), Aurora, Minnesota (William Kent Krueger), Paradise, Michigan (Steve Hamilton), Millersburg, Ohio (P. L. Gaus), Heartsdale, Georgia (Karin Slaughter), Millers Kill, New York (Julia Spencer-Fleming), Durant, Wyoming (Craig Johnson), and a number of national parks (Nevada Barr) on the map of American crime fiction.