35 Crime Fiction Quotes

Crime fiction has long captivated readers with its intricate plots, compelling characters, and the eternal battle between good and evil. This genre, rich with suspense and psychological depth, has the unique power to transport us into the minds of detectives, criminals, and everyone in between. With this fascinating world comes a treasure trove of memorable quotes that encapsulate the essence of mystery, tension, and intrigue. In this post, we have curated a collection of the top 35 crime fiction quotes that highlight the genre's wit, wisdom, and thrilling allure. Whether you are a seasoned fan of crime fiction or a newcomer eager to explore, these quotes will offer a glimpse into the captivating world of crime storytelling.

1. “All I knew was, my Father was famous for being a loser, and a loser that wanted nothing to do with me, since the day I was born.” - Holly Hood

2. “A detective who uses his deductive powers to corner a suspect and then does nothing to stop them from committing suicide is no better than a murderer himself. - Kudo Shinichi” - Gosho Aoyama

3. “Her aunt and uncle worked fifteen hours a day in their desperate attempt to keep the corner shop in profit, and their Sundays were marked by exhaustion. The moral code by which they lived was that of cleanliness, respectability and prudence. Religion was for those who had the time for it, a middle-class indulgence.” - P.D. James

4. “Harry sensed the onset of resignation. No, he bloody didn't! On the FBI course they had examined cases where it had taken more than ten years to catch the killer. As a rule, it had been one tiny random detail, it seemed, that had solved the case. However, what actually cracked it was the fact that they had never given up, they had gone all fifteen rounds and if the opponent was still standing they screamed for a return fight.” - Jo Nesbø

5. “I was its skin, its movement, its shape, its god, its creator, its destroyer. And you thought Dexter was bad. The Bridgeman arrives soon.” - Catherine Astolfo

6. “You have the Answer. Just get quiet enough to hear it. ~Pat Obuchowski” - Laurie Stevens

7. “There was a ringing in his ears, like a dead phone line that he couldn’t hang up on.” - Mark Capell

8. “Before man can explore outer space he should first learn to explore the Inner Space of his mind.” - Merlin Fraser

9. “I looked at her, with her hair spilled out on the pillows and the warmth of her body warming mine. And I thought, god-dang, if this ain't a heck of a way to be in bed with a pretty woman. The two of you arguing about murder, and threatening each other, when you're supposed to be in love and you could be doing something pretty nice. And then I thought, well, maybe it ain't so strange after all. Maybe it's like this with most people, everyone doing pretty much the same thing except in a different way. And all the time they're holding heaven in their hands.” - Jim Thompson

10. “Listen, we got two stiffs and a river of red in a villa in Herne Bay...” - Rhys Chamberlain

11. “Chapter 1I was sitting in Tina's Sunset Restaurant, watching the outriggers shuffle lazily through the clear waters of Sabang Bay, when Tomboy took a seat opposite me, ordered a San Miguel from Tina's daughter, and told me someone else had to die. It was five o'clock in the afternoon, there wasn't a cloud in the sky, and up until that point I'd been in a good mood.I told him I didn't want to kill people anymore, that it was a part of my past I didn't want to be reminded of, and he replied that he understood all that, but once again we needed the money. 'It's just the way the cookie crumbles.' he added, with the sort of bullshit 'I share your suffering' expression an undertaker might give to one of his customer's relatives. Tomboy Darke was my business partner and a man with a cliche for every occasion, including murder.” - Simon Kernick

12. “Kara knew je only recognised t and a on a string and he was nothing more than a sleazy pupeeter” - Saira Viola

13. “The village of Holcomb stands on the high wheat plains of western Kansas, a lonesome area that other Kansans call ‘out there.’ . . .The land is flat, the views are awesomely extensive; horses, herds of cattle, a white cluster of grain elevators rising as gracefully as Greek temples are visible long before a traveler reaches them.” - Truman Capote

14. “There are two kinds of people who sit around all day thinking about killing people...mystery writers and serial killers. I'm the kind that pays better.” - Richard Castle

15. “Al... You ever kill anybody? In the United States? Because I know you mean it and everything, but I know these guys better than I know you. They're soldiers, that's all. No questions, no time to ask, no talk. Cops are worse, and less predictable. When you pull a gun, you've gotta be ready to kill somebody, and I'm telling you it's better to run.” - Phillip Rock

16. “Al Hickey: It's not about anything. Frank Boggs: Yeah, it's about four hundred grand” - Phillip Rock

17. “My inner goddess confirms that staring at a beautiful/rich/powerful face is the basis of True Love.” - Jess C. Scott

18. “You ever choke a man out with his own shirt?”“What kind of question is that?”“A yes or no one.” - Todd Morr

19. “Sometimes a girl's gotta be bad to be good.Murder in the Dog Park” - Jill Yesko

20. “I covered the body with a rug. You think I’m an idiot?”Bruno HansonIn The Shadow of Sadd.” - Steen Langstrup

21. “Those Zolofts make me so fucking hungry. I’ve gained 20 pounds – it’s totally out of control.”George HansonIn The Shadow of Sadd.” - Steen Langstrup

22. “Fuck!” he shouts. “FUCK! FUCK! FUCK!”“I’m not too fucking fond of loud noises, Bruno. Maybe it’d be a good idea if you backed up to the curb and got your insurance papers ready. We wouldn’t want the police to get involved, would we?”Conversation between Bruno Hanson and George HansonIn The Shadow of Sadd.” - Steen Langstrup

23. “The old joke is that psychiatrists are doctors who can't stand the sight of blood. Maybe they can't stand it, but if they work where I work, they damn well better get used to it.At least surgeons and prizefighters get to wear gloves” - Mike Bartos

24. “His most characteristic detective stories end with the realization that no rational account of events is possible, and his suspense stories tend to close with terror not dissipated but omnipresent, like God.("Introduction")” - Francis M. Nevins

25. “All we can do about this nightmare we live in is to create, if we are very lucky, a few islands of love and trust to sustain us and help us forget. But love dies while the lovers go on living, and Woolrich excels at making us watch while relationships corrode. He knew the horrors that both love and lovelessness can breed, yet he created very few irredeemably evil characters; for with whoever loves or needs love, Woolrich identifies, all of that person's dark side notwithstanding.("Introduction")” - Francis M. Nevins

26. “When he shows I’ll say: ‘Good day, a bouquet for Mr. Hovgaard.’ Then you shoot him. Understood?”Ingrid aka ‘Alis K’The Informer” - Steen Langstrup

27. “My name’s Alis K. From now on you will be Willy. Come on, let’s push the bicycles for a bit.”Ingrid aka ‘Alis K’The Informer” - Steen Langstrup

28. “Sneaking out at night. You think you’re so clever, but you’re not. Either you’re a saboteur, Johannes, or you’ve got a mistress.”The Reverend’s wife, GreteThe Informer” - Steen Langstrup

29. “I just can’t comprehend, that you, Borge, of all people, couldn’t keep your mouth shut.” - Steen Langstrup

30. “You’ll be very close to him when you shoot him. So shove the pistol in his face and pull the trigger instantly.”Ingrid aka ‘Alis K’The Informer” - Steen Langstrup

31. “Captain Crawford didn't like the idea of any kind of murder, but he went at it patiently and honestly and with none of the stupidity and bombast and rubber-hose techniques that Los Angeles crime fiction writers had led me to expect. I'd gotten the impression that unless a gifted amateur in love with the lady got himself almost beaten to a pulp and practically inside the lethal gas chamber before he unmasked the venal and brutalized constabulary, any innocent bystander they could get their hands on was a gone duck.” - Leslie Ford

32. “We saved the lives of a whole family that night. Children, parents, uncles, aunts, grandparents, all sailed to safety in Sweden inside a little fisherman’s boat.”Johannes aka ‘BB’The Informer by Steen Langstrup” - Steen Langstrup

33. “The remaining chain swung down, he wrenched the door out and he was free. The last thing he heard behind him was the oncoming stomp of running feet.Now began flight, that excruciating accompaniment to both the sleep-dream and the drug-dream as well. Down endless flights of stairs that seemed to have increased decimally since he had come up them so many days before. Four, fourteen, forty - there seemed no end to them, no bottom. Round and round he went, hand slapping at the worn guard-rail only at the turns to keep from bulleting head-on into the wall each time. The clamor had come out onto a landing high above him now, endless miles above him; a thin voice came shouting down the stair-well, "There he is! See him down there?" raising the hue and cry to the rest of the pack. Footsteps started cannonading down after him, like avenging thunder from on high. They only added wings to his effortless, almost cascading waterlike flight.Like a drunk, he was incapable of hurting himself. At one turning he went off his feet and rippled down the whole succeeding flight of stair-ribs like a wriggling snake. Then he got up again and plunged ahead, without consciousness of pain or smart. The whole staircase-structure seemed to hitch crazily from side to side with the velocity of his descent, but it was really he that was hitching. But behind him the oncoming thunder kept gaining.Then suddenly, after they'd kept on for hours, the stairs suddenly ended, he'd reached bottom at last. He tore out through a square of blackness at the end of the entrance-hall, and the kindly night received him, took him to itself - along with countless other things that stalk and kill and are dangerous if crossed.He had no knowledge of where he was; if he'd ever had, he'd lost it long ago. The drums of pursuit were still beating a rolling tattoo inside the tenement. He chose a direction at random, fled down the deserted street, the wand of light from a wan street-lamp flicking him in passing, so fast did he scurry by beneath it.” - Cornell Woolrich

34. “His fear-inflamed mind sent the control-signal to his finger-joint to fold back. The trigger sliced back. The blast seemed to lift the booth clear off the floor, drop it down again. A pin-wheel of vacancy appeared in the glass, flinging off shards and slivers.” - Cornell Woolrich

35. “There were three of them in the room now, where only two had first come in. Death was in the room with the two of them.” - Cornell Woolrich