Charlie Zailer: detective sergeant, and Simon Waterhouse, a detective constable, in rural England, by Sophie Hannah

Jerry Zalman: Beverly Hills lawyer and deal-maker, in Los Angeles, California, by Gabrielle Kraft

Joe Zanca: ex-boxer private investigator working for The Agency, in San Francisco, California, by James N. Frey

Faith Zanetti: contemporary war correspondent in the Mid-East, Russia, and Europe, by Anna Blundy

Dr. Peter Zak: Jewish psychologist in Boston, Massachusetts, by G.H. Ephron

Aurelio Zen: Italian police inspector in Rome, Italy, by Michael Dibdin

Alfeo Zeno: young noble apprenticed to Nostradamus, the astrologer and alchemist, in a fantasy version of 16th century Venice, Italy, by Dave Duncan

Nina Zero: smart, sexy photographer in California, by Robert Eversz

Simon Ziele: former New York City police detective starting in 1905 Dobson, Westchester County, New York, by Stefanie Pintoff

Andrew “Lizard” Zirk: former rock star turned private investigator, based in Australia, by Dave Warner

Martin Zolotow, suffering from a condition that hampers his short-term memory, by Brian A. Hopkins

Mickey Zondi: Bantu police sergeant, and Tromp Kramer, an Afrikaner police detective, in Trekkersburg, South Africa, by James McClure

Lady Ashby de la Zouche, Countess of Clapham, a 60-something former mistress of the deceased Charles II, fallen on hard times, and her former maid Alpiew, around 1700 in London, England, by Fidelis Morgan

Zephyr Zuckerman: young, hapless sleuth, who also works as the super of her parent’s Greenwich Village building, in New York City, by Daphne Uviller

Helma Zukas: librarian in Washington state, by Jo Dereske

Niccolò Zuliani: Venetian businessman turned bodyguard at the court of Kubilai Khan in 1262, by Ian Morson