In mystery novels and television shows amateur sleuths and private investigators have a love/hate relationship with a particular police detective. Sometimes the police detective is obtuse, and the sleuth/PI must work around them to solve the case. In other stories they may be old friends or even romantic partners.

Whatever the relationship, these police detectives (or friendly beat cops) are necessary to move the plot forward and create some drama. In many mystery series that relationship is crucial, and we seldom think of our sleuth/PI without also thinking of the police officer/detective who has become their friend or rival. Can you match these fictional crime solvers with their police connections (some have more than one) from the descriptions given below? Good luck!

Answers to this quiz can be found at the end of this issue in the article, “Next Month in This Awful Awesome Life – June 2024.” You can read through this issue or click on this link to get there faster, https://www.thisawfulawesomelife.com/home/2024/4/30/next-month-in-this-awful-awesome-life-june-2024-by-fran-joyce

Characters:

Captain Leland Stottlemeyer       Juliet O’Hara

Inspector Mallory                         Perry Mason

Lieutenant Doug Chapman          Stephanie Plum

Sherlock Holmes                          Chief Pete Adams

Zoe Chambers                             Kinsey Milhone

Hercules Poirot                            Inspector Valentine

Chief Russ Van Alstyne                Detective Mike Kingston

Lieutenant Arthur Tragg               Shawn Spencer

Head Detective Carlton Lassiter   Detective Randy Disher

Jessica Fletcher                           Sir Henry Clithering

James Rockford                           Detective Joseph Morelli

Inspector Lestarde                       Lieutenant Jonah Robb

Clare Ferguson                            Sergeant Goodfellow

Detective Tom Schulz                   Hannah Swensen

Miss Marple                                 Father Brown

Detective Chief Inspector Japp     Sheriff Amos Tupper

Sergeant Dennis Becker              Goldy Bear

Inspector Sullivan                         Paul Drake

Adrian Monk

1.    _____________________ is a retired Army helicopter pilot turned Episcopal priest and amateur sleuth and _________________________ is the local lawman.

2.    _________________________   and his partner Burton Guster Make life difficult for _____________________________________ and his partner ______________________________.

3.    ________________________________ is a bounty hunter who frustrates and fascinates her former love interest ____________________________.

4.    ______________________ caters her way into danger and the heart of _____________________________.

5.    ___________________________ is a Belgian private detective who is friends and sometimes rivals with _________________________________ from Scotland Yard.

6.    ______________________________ lives in a trailer at a beach in Malibu and often gets his friend ________________________________  to give him information about active investigations much to the annoyance of ___________________________ who despises private investigators.

7.    _________________________ lives in Vance Township in Pennsylvania. Her work as an EMT and later the coroner sometimes brings danger, but it also puts her beside the love of her life ___________________________.

8.    ____________________________ lives at 221 B Baker Street and often lets _________________________________ of Scotland Yard take credit for solving important cases.

9.    _______________________________ is a private detective on retainer to the famous attorney __________________________. Together they outwit District Attorney Hamilton and his chief investigator _________________________.

10. ______________________________ is a Catholic priest who solves crime aided by a friend in the police force ______________________________. His sleuthing eventually cracks the case, but the three inspectors he’s encountered, ____________________, _______________________, and ___________________________ aren’t always his biggest fans.

11. ________________________ suffered a mental breakdown after his wife was murdered. He becomes a private detective while trying to convince his former partner ______________________________ to put him back on the force. He solves cases that baffle ___________________________.

12. _____________________________ is a mystery writer who solves real life cases in Cabot Cove, Maine that often stump__________________________.

13. People think ________________________ is an old busy body, but she’s really an astute observer with amazing powers of deduction. When she needs information, she often calls on her good friend retired commissioner of police ________________________________.

14. After serving on the Santa Theresa California police department ________________________ quits and becomes a private detective. ________________________ who is still on the force is her go to for sensitive information. He’s also the man she wants, but their timing is always off.

15. ________________________ bakes her way into the heart of __________________________, but there’s a problem - she can’t seem to stop stumbling over dead bodies and trying to help solve his cases.