It is customary for reviewers of two-volume works of reference to pepper their assessments with groans of disappointment at the allegedly crucial omissions. After putting to the test Crime Writing: An Encyclopedia, I confess to finding no inexplicable gaps nor entries criminally excluded.

I have my quibbles. Writers whom I thought substantial enough to deserve individual entries are mentioned only briefly, in passing - Patricia Moyes, Leo Bruce and H.C. Bailey came easily to mind. I'm sure there are others. Some of my favourites are given less space than authors of lesser significance; John Dickson Carr and Frances Fyfield stood out as being accorded comparatively insufficient attention.

But these are minor complaints. The same argument holds for writers who might be considered lucky to get into the encyclopaedia at all. A few were unknown to me. It wasn't just that I hadn't read their books. In my long years as a crime reader and reviewer, I had never, or only barely, heard of, for instance, Joyce Porter, William Roughead (two full pages) and Guy Cullingford. This may say something about my ignorance, but it says more about Forshaw's depth of knowledge - and the excellence and expertise of the contributors he has chosen, who include academics as well as commentators who are themselves successful crime writers.

Most of the 800-plus pages of the two hefty volumes deal with individual authors, biographically as well as through their books. Some of their creations get separate billing. Forshaw's interpretation of “crime writing” is broad. Authors not normally associated with the genre are included if they have written just one book that fits; Peter Ackroyd is there primarily because of Hawksmoor.

Other entries analyse the history and development of the genre and the encyclopaedia is particularly impressive in its wide range of associated issues. There are essays looking in some depth at feminism, social comment and sexuality. Film and television versions of crime novels - often seen by many more people than have read the original books - are treated seriously. The importance of the many specialist magazines, current and demised, dedicated to mystery and detection are duly recognised.

However, at £90 British Crime Writing: An Encyclopedia is not cheap, and I fear that some aficionados who would greatly enjoy it will be put off. That would be a pity, because the work is a trove of fascinating information that can be dipped into for months and years to come. An affordable paperback is urgently needed.

British Crime Writing: An Encyclopedia edited by Barry Forshaw
Greenwood World Publishing, £90 Buy the book

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