Around the world in 80 D.I.s

0: Greenland: Smilla Jaspersen

1: Paris: Laure Berthaud

2: Delhi: Vish Puri

3: St Petersburg: Porfiry Petrovich

4: Istanbul: Cetin Ikmen

5: Mongolia: Inspector Nergui

6: Antarctica: Carrie Stetko

7: Jeddah: Osama Ibrahim

8: Beijing: Mei Wang

'The Eye of Jade' offers a fascinating glimpse of city life in modern China. Liang captures vividly Beijing's bustle and noise, from seedy gambling dens and cheap noodle bars to the splendour of the Forbidden City.

Borrow 'The eye of Jade' by Diane Wei Liang

9: Bering Sea: Arkady Renko

On psychiatric rehabilitation in Siberia, Arkady Renko is exiled on Polar Star, a Soviet factory ship which trawls the freezing waters from Siberia to Alaska. Then he is given a chance to regain his freedom by investigating a mysterious death.

Borrow 'Polar Star' by Martin Cruz Smith

10: Durban: Emmanuel Cooper

11: Tokyo: Kaji Kusanagi

Yasuko lives a quiet life. But when her ex-husband appears at her door without warning one day, her comfortable world is shattered. When Detective Kusanagi tries to piece together the events of that day, he finds himself confronted by the most puzzling, mysterious circumstances he has ever investigated.

Borrow 'The devotion of Suspect X' by Keigo Higashino

12: Ghana: Kayo Odamtten

13: Pyongyang: Inspector O

14: Bangkok: Vincent Calvino

15: Northern Territory: Emily Tempest

In 'Diamond dove' Emily Tempest, a feisty 29-year-old half Aboriginal woman 'with a fast mouth and a strong right hook' investigates the untimely death of an old friend

Borrow this book

16: Rio: Inspector Espinosa

17: Havana: Mario Conde

18: Algiers: Inspector Llob

Ben Ouda, a senior ranking diplomat is found savagely murdered. Is this yet another victim of the never ending Islamic fundamentalist violence plaguing Algiers? Inspector Llob has doubts: Ben Ouda had too many friends, too many far fetched theories. Against the backdrop of a city in turmoil, Inspector Llob investigates.

Borrow 'Double Blank' by Yasmina Khadra

19: Nablus: Omar Yussef

20: Beunos Aires: Pepe Carvalho

Manuel Vazquez Montalban's private eye leaves his Barcelona home to investigate a kidnapping which reveals the full impact of Argentian's troubled history.

Read 'The Buenos Aires Quintet'

21: Mombasa: Daniel Jouma

22: Moscow: Erast Fandorin

23: Mumbai: Sartaj Singh

24: Egypt: Hercule Poirot

25: Bombay: Ganesh Ghote

One of the reasons for the enduring popularity of HRF Keating's inpector Ghanesh Ghote is surely his likeable and appealing personality.

Borrow the Ghote series of novels

26: Laos: Dr Siri Paiboun

A major part of the appeal of Colin Cotterill's Dr Siri Paiboun series is its intriguing setting of 1970s communist Laos

Borrow the books

27: Ireland: Miss Maple

28: Wroclaw: Eberhard Mock

Or should that be Breslau? Marek Krajewski's quartet of pre-war mysteries take place in what was then a German town.

Borrow the Eberhard Mock stories

29: Amsterdam: Henk Grijpstra and Rinus de Gier

30: Athens: Costas Haritos

Chief Inspector Costas Haritos of the Athens CID has finally made time for a break from work. When a minor earthquake causes his holiday beach to spit up a corpse, he finds there is no such thing as being off duty.

Borrow 'Zone Defence' by Petros Markaris

31: Sicily: Inspector Montalbano

The sarcastic cynicism of the Mafia-bating detective have won Andrea Camilleri a loyal army of fans

Borrow the Montalbano mysteries

32: Konigsberg: Hanno Stiffeniis

33: Berlin: Nikolai Hoffner

Berlin, 1927. When a film executive is found dead in his bath, it falls to Chief Inspector Nikolai Hoffner to investigate. With the help of the German film director Fritz Lang and the head of the most powerful crime syndicate, Hoffner finds his case reaches deep into Berlin's sex and drug trade, and into the world of Hitler's Brownshirts

Borrow 'Shadow and light' by Jonathan Rabb

34: Vienna: Oskar Rheinhardt

Frank Tallis' 'Liebermann Papers' thriller series consist of intelligent and complex mysteries set in Vienna at the time of Freud.

Borrow the 'Liebermann Papers' series of novels

35: Rome: Aurelio Zen

36: Prague: Bernie Gunther

Philip Kerr's Bernie Gunther started his career in Berlin but by this, the eighth novel in the series, he's reached Prague, via Munich, Vienna and even Argentina.

Borrow the Bernie Gunther novels

37: Shanghai: Inspector Chen

Qui Xiaolong's mysteries offer a fascinating insight into the way China has changed over the past decade or so.

Borrow the Inspector Chen msyteries

38: Victoria: Joe Cashin

39: New Zealand: Roderick Alleyn

New Zealand theatrical manager Alfred Meyer wanted to celebrate his wife's birthday in style. The pie?ce de re?sistance would be the jeroboam of champagne. But something went horribly wrong and Chief Detective Inspector Alleyn witnessed it himself.

Borrow 'Vintage Murder' by Ngaio Marsh

40: Berne: Wachtmeister Studer

41: Galicia: Leo Caldas

42: Madrid: Carlos Clot

Carlos Clot - a paunchy, sartorially inept and alcoholic private eye - investigates crimes in the drug and drink-sodden metropolis of Madrid. With the help of a cowboy sidekick, on the loose from an unfinished manuscript, Carlos is on a personal quest to put some dodgy people in their place.

Borrow 'Blood on the saddle' by Rafael Reig

43: Lisbon: Ze Coelho

44: Florence: Michele Ferrara

Michele Giuttari's novels explore the dark undercurrents hidden beneath the city's beautiful surface.

Borrow the Michele Ferrara novels

45: Botswana: Precious Ramotswe

46: Greece: Officer Nikos

When Nikos, a detective in the final years of his career, is persuaded back to his home town he is faced with the gory murder of a young boy near the old monastery, echoing two murders committed 33 years previously in the exact same spot, and a mass cult suicide

Borrow 'The Black Monastery' by Stav Sherez

47: Singapore: C.F. Wong

Quirky characters and offbeat storylines have won Nury Vittachi a loyal and enthusiastic readership

Borrow the Feng-Shui Detective series

48: Venice: Guido Brunetti

If you can't actually visit Venice for yourself Donna Leon's richly detailed novels, with their complex protagonist, are arguably the next best thing.

Borrow the Brunetti mysteries

49: Bologna: Inspector Negro

In Carla Lucarelli's 'Almost blue' a serial killer is terrorising the students of Bologna. Rookie female detective Grazia Negro is determined to solve the case. But only one witness can positively identify the witness - and he's blind.

Borrow the Inspector Negro stories

50: Paris: Jean-Baptiste Adamsberg

Between 1943 and 2003 nine people have been stabbed to death with a trident. In each case, arrests were made, suspects confessed their crimes and were sentenced to life in prison. One slightly worrying detail - the presumed murderers lost consciousness during the nights of the crimes and have no recollection of them.

Borrow 'Wash this blood clean from my hand' by Fred Vargas

51: Marseilles: Daniel Jacquot

Martin O'Brien's French detective also solves crimes in Provence and the Riveria, but his base is Marseilles

Borrow the Jacquot novels

52: Moscow: Arkady Renko

Martin Cruz Smith's Soviet era novels such as 'Gorky Park' offer fascinating insights into a vanished Russia.

Borrow the Arkady Renko novels

53: Ontario: Vicki Nelson

54: Sydney: Cliff Hardy

Peter Corris' hard-bitten creation is a private detective very much in the American mould.

Read the Cliff Hardy books

55: Florence: Marshal Guarnaccia

Magdalen Nabb's investigator of few words has been favourably compared to Simenon's Maigrait.

Borrow the Marshal Guarnaccia series of novels

56: Kuala Lumpur: Inspector Singh

Though based in Singapore, Shamani Flint's character is called upon to solve crimes all over Asia.

Borrow the Inspector Singh novels

57: Greece: Hermes Diaktoros

The likeable 'fat man' appears in series of novels by Anne Zouroudi, set in a variety of locations round Greece.

Borrow the Diaktoros mysteries

58: Amsterdam: Inspector DeKok

A.C. Baantjer's series of stories include the intriguingly titled 'DeKok and the death of a clown', 'Dekok and the grinning strangler' and 'DeKok and the geese of death'.

Borrow the Inspector DeKok stories

59: Ontario: John Cardinal

Giles Blunt's series of novels have been described as thinking person's thrillers, with as much emphasis on the main character's personal struggles as on the cases he's trying to crack.

Borrow the John Cardinal books

60: Reykjavik: Erlendur Sveinsson

Things are never quite what they seem in Arnaldur Indriðason's mysteries

Read them for yourself

61: Copenhagen: Sarah Lund

Each of the 20 episodes in this genre-busting series chronicle a single day in a murder investigation. Featuring that item of knitwear.

Rent 'The Killing' on DVD

62: Oslo: Harry Hole

Jo Nesbo's novels are a big factor in the success of Scandinavian crime fiction.

Borrow the Harry Hole books

63: Stockholm: Martin Beck

Maj Sjowall and Per Wahloo's series of police procedurals seek to redefine the genre for their own progressive purposes. (They've also got really smart covers)

Borrow the Martin Beck series

64: Helsinki: Timo Harjunpaa

Matti Joensuu's series of novels include 'The Priest of Evil' and 'To steal her love'

Borrow these books

65: Turku: Kimmo Joentaa

Jan Costin's Wagner's haunting and disturbing psychological thrillers are absorbing studies of character.

Borrow the Joentaa mysteries

66: Melbourne: Hal Challis

Garry Disher's police procedurals have been described as 'intelligent and atmospheric'.

Borrow the Hal Challis books

67: Quebec: Armand Gamache

Strong characterisation and sophisticated plotting are the main factors behind Louise Penny's success.

Borrow the Armand Gamache mysteries

68: Johannesburg: Jacob Tshabalala

69: Fjallbacka: Patrik Hedstrom

At the rate Camilla Lackberg is killing them off there might soon be nobody left in this corner of Sweden!

Borrow the Partik Hedstrom novels

70: Sweden: Inspector Van Veeteren

Separated from his wife, with a son in jail for drug smuggling, Hakan Nesser's character doesn't have his troubles to seek.

Borrow the Van Veeteren books

71: Sweden: Kurt Wallander

72: Gotland: Anders Knutas

The endless days and nights in the far north of Sweden provide an eerie backdrop to Mari Jungstedt's mysteries.

Borrow the Anders Knutas books

73: Norway: Adam Stubo and Johanne Vik

Anne Holt's books explore the relationship between a criminal profiler and a police superintendent as they work together to solve a series of grisly crimes.

Borrow the Adam Stubo mysteries

74: Gothenburg: Irene Huss

Gothenberg is the setting for 'The Glass Devil' but Helene Tursten's books take place in locations throughout Sweden

Borrow the Irene Huss novels

75: Kenya: Superintendent Vachell

Canadian Superintendent Vachell is called to Lady Baradale's Kenyan safari camp to investigate the disappearance of her jewels. Within hours Lady Baradale is murdered and there is also an attempt on Vachell's life.

Borrow 'Murder on Safari' by Elizabeth Huxley

76: Iceland: Thora Gudmundsdottir

Yrsa Siguroardottir's attorney heroine finds herself investigating all manner of brutal slayings.

Borrow the books

77: Egypt: Gareth Cadwallader Owen

Gareth Owen, the Mamur Zapt or Head of the Secret Police, confronts a series of challenges in early twentieth century Egypt.

Borrow the books

78: Provence: Joe Sandilands

79: Paris: Jules Maigret

Maigret is, quite simply, a fictional detective like no other. Unique in style, Simenon's novels could be said to constitute a genre in themselves.

Borrow the Maigret mysteries