tseliot recommends Possession & Mystery Novels

Of course, I start with Possession (by A.S. Byatt). Anyone who hasn't read it, should. A caveat, though: many people I know couldn't finish it because they got bogged down in the poetry and letters. I would suggest that you skip, or at least skim, the poetry and a lot of the letters. You're all experienced readers and can tell when something is important and when it's not. What I did the first time was go back when I'd finished the book and read some of the poetry/letters a little more carefully to add more depth to what was already an extraordinary story.

But if you want primarily mystery book recommendations, I'll give you a couple :

Dorothy L. Sayers. The best. The Porsche. The Veuve Clicquot. The...whatever other pompous metaphors there are for the standard of excellence. Start at the beginning -- Whose Body? -- and work your way through the canon chronologically. You'll watch an amazing talent and character develop. Sigh.

anything by Robert Barnard

Reginald Hill, the Dalziel and Pascoe series

Steven Saylor's Roma Sub Rosa series. Not my usual cup of tea, but these mysteries set in ancient Rome are well-written and very evocative of their time and place.

For archaeological/anthropological/research-based (though often outrageously out there) "mysteries," it's hard to beat the cheesy fun of Lincoln Child/Douglas Preston. Relic is a particular joy. Beats that dopey DaVinci Code hollow.

Um. That's it for now. But I think everyone should read Bee Season before the oddly miscast movie comes out so we can all discuss it.