Meny

Sample of literary figures

  • Matthew Hope

    Male

    Lawyer Matthew Hope moves with his wife Susan and daughter Joanna from Chicago to Calusa in Florida to work with commercial law for a small law firm. But nothing goes as he wished: thanks to his detective talents, he unwillingly becomes a leading criminal lawyer and his marriage ends in divorce, as we read in the books by Ed McBain (pseudonym for Evan Hunter).

    Further reading

  • Tom Ripley

    Male

    He is charming, handsome and cultivated as well as being a ruthless serial killer and psychopath totally lacking in empathy, the main character in five classic thrillers by Patricia Highsmith. Thomas ‘Tom’ Ripley became an orphan when he was five years old, and was brought up by a callous female relative. He later marries the wealthy Héloïse Plisson, but nevertheless has successfully continued his criminal career.

    Further reading

  • Father Brown

    Male

    The Catholic priest Father Brown (he has no first name) is active in England. He has a round, non-descript face and an umbrella which he is always losing; in addition, he usually carries a paper-wrapped package which he finds difficult to keep in order. But he is also one of the best amateur detectives in fiction, the main character in five classic collections of short stories (but no novel) by G.K. Chesterton.

    Further reading

  • Enzo Macleod

    Male

    British, famous forensic technician of Scottish-Italian heritage. After a trying divorce, he moves to France and is employed as a university teacher. He re-marries, but becomes a widower. Enzo Macleod is middle-aged, heavily built and (according to his creator Peter May) has a complex personality as well as a boorish temperament – which affects his two daughters, one from each marriage.

    Further reading