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Mystery Fiction
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Also known as a "mystery story" or

simply a "mystery", Mystery Fiction is
a genre where the plot revolves
around a mysterious happening that
acts as the Driving Question.
In a standard mystery, the
explanation for the mystery is
gradually revealed by the
investigative process of the
protagonists. This is accomplished
through a mixture of intelligence,
ingenuity, the logical interpretation of
evidence, and sometimes sheer luck.
Many mysteries use a Mystery Arc as
the basis of their narrative structure,
though variations on the theme can
frequently be found.

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Detective Drama
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Spy Fiction

Detective Fiction is a type of Mystery Fiction that focuses on

a detective solving a crime, and the term is often treated as
synonymous with Mystery Fiction.

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Basic Classes of Mystery

The Fair Play Whodunnit: You know what the detective
knows, and if you're smart enough, at a certain point,
you can solve it ahead of him without being Genre
Savvy.

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Narrative
Other Categories
Topical Tropes

The Clueless Mystery: The author doesn't provide

enough clues for the audience to figure it out.
The Reverse Whodunnit: The reader knows who, what,
where, when, and why, perhaps in more detail than the
detective will ever know. For the reader, the question is:
How will the detective solve what appears to be a
perfect crime?
Subgenres of Mystery Fiction
Amateur Sleuth: A character with no formal connection
to law enforcement regularly solves crimes, but does
not get paid for it.
Cozy Mystery : Sex and violence are downplayed or
treated humorously, and the crime and detection take
place in a small, socially intimate community. The
detectives in such stories are nearly always amateurs
and frequently women. They are typically welleducated, intuitive, and often hold jobs that bring them
into constant contact with other residents of their town
and the surrounding region. This frequently features the
Little Old Lady Investigates.
Great Detective: The classic Great Detective relies on
his personal powers of deduction, education and insight
to solve crimes.
Hardboiled Detective: A tough, cynical guy with a gun
and a lot of Street Smarts, who solves mysteries with
dogged persistence rather than astounding insight, the
Hardboiled Detective was America's Darker and Edgier
response to the classic ideal of the Great Detective.
This type of Mystery Fiction is often associated with
Film Noir.
Historical Detective Fiction: Detective and mystery
stories set in the past.
Paranormal Investigation: Based on the investigation of

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actual or alleged paranormal activity, this subgenre by

its very nature tends to be less realistic than the others.
Police Procedural: The emphasis is on realistic or at
least semi-realistic depictions of modern police
investigative techniques.
For just a few of the other ways of classifying mysteries,
see here and here .
For a brief history of Mystery Fiction, see the Trivia page

Examples:
Anime and Manga
Film
See also Mystery and Detective Films
Literature
Live Action TV
Other Examples:
PINBALL

WHO dunnit by Williams Electronics, which casts the

player as a Hardboiled Detective who must solve a
series of murders at a hotel and casino.
VIDEO GAMES

Infocom's Deadline is an Interactive Fiction game

where the player has 12 (in-game) hours to solve a
Locked Room Mystery.
Discworld Noir combines this trope with Terry
Pratchett's Discworld series, casting the player as a
citizen who becomes a detective because of the Theory
of Narrative Causality.
Alternative Title(s): Mystery , Mystery Story , Whodunnit , Whodunit