Nothing contributes more to the success of a crime fiction than a realistic setting of the crime scene. Some cities and places are more prone to create a sense of dread than others. These are the places where the alleys, the graveyards, the small dark musty smelling houses etc. simply reek of crime consequently drawing more and more tourists to come and get a feel of the dark and the mysterious.
Among the most popular settings for well-known crime fiction according to CNN are Baltimore (USA), Brattleboro (USA), Edinburgh (Scotland), Gaborone (Botswana) and Sweden.
Baltimore
Baltimore has been immortalized by Laura Lippman in her Tess Monaghan series. Most readers of this series want to see Baltimore through the eyes of Tess and make it a point to visit places like the Fell's Point Neighborhood which is the location of Tess's home, the local joints she visits like the Daily Grind and the Kali's Mezze in Fell's Point, the Lexington Market situated to the south of the Washington Monument, the Enoch Pratt Free Library which is mentioned in most of Lippman's books.
Brattleboro in Vermont
The very mention of Vermont conjures images of snow covered mountains and rustic farms and of course the Connecticut River where sightings of bloated floating bodies have been mentioned by Joe Gunther, the detective protagonist created by the famous crime novelist Archer Mayor.
Brattleboro happens to be the home turf of Joe Gunther and there are packages available for lodging in an Archer Mayor mystery scene. Even though fire and floods in the recent years have caused some damage to the city, the pull of the mysterious beauty of Vermont has not diminished at all.
Edinburgh in Scotland
Home of the immensely famous detective John Rebus created by Ian Rankin, Edinburgh has guided tours to the Royal Oak which was the favorite pub of Rebus. Edinburgh and John Rebus are so intimately related that Ian Rankin has been forced to make Rebus come back after having been retired five years ago.
Gaborone in Botswana
This place has been immortalized by Alexander McCall Smith whose No.1 Ladies Detective Agency novels have descriptions of characters and places taken directly from the real life in Botswana. A visit to the house of Precious Ramotswe, the protagonist of these novels, along with her favorite Red Bush Tea is a must on any travel itinerary associated with this place.
Sweden
Currently popularized by a host of immensely popular Swedish crime writers like Henning Mankell, Camilla Lackberg, Stieg Larsson, Mikael Blomkvist etc. Sweden has had a steady increase in the number of tourists flocking its countryside. It is a prime example of the effect popular crime fiction has on the tourism numbers. Today even the smallest of towns and cities of Sweden like the Ystad and the Fjällbacka have flocks of tourists visiting them.
