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* DetectivesFollowFootprints: Looking for evidence can solve the case.

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* ImportantCharacterImportantEvidence: It's always the protagonists who find the important evidence.


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* TheMainCharactersDoEverything: It's always the protagonists who find the important evidence.
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* FakeMystery: The mystery plot turns out to have been staged to prank the detectives.
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* NoOneSeesTheBoss: No one, not even his underlings, knows the BigBad's identity.
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* DameWithACase: Beautiful but untrustworthy woman who hires the HardBoiledDetective.
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+ ThisIndexIsAClue

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* FairPlayWhodunnit: The opposite of a Clueless Mystery-- a mystery story where the reader/viewer ''can'' follow along.

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* FairPlayWhodunnit: The opposite of a Clueless Mystery-- a Mystery--a mystery story where the reader/viewer ''can'' follow along.


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* GuiltyUntilSomeoneElseIsGuilty: A suspect isn't proven innocent until the true culprit is exposed.
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* CostumesChangeYourSize: A disguised figure's size is somehow different from that of the person underneath. A standard trope for ScoobyDooHoax mysteries.


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* ScoobyDooHoax: The perpetrator disguises the crime as a paranormal or supernatural event.
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* FantasicNoir: Mystery and magic mix on the mean streets.

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* FantasicNoir: FantasticNoir: Mystery and magic mix on the mean streets.
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* FantasicNoir: Mystery and magic mix on the mean streets.
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* PutOnAPrisonBus: The culprit is often defeated at the end by being arrested.
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* BookmarkClue: An important clue is discovered because someone used it as a bookmark.
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* AbsenceOfEvidence
* TheAlibi
* AmnesiacHero
* AnachronisticClue
* AnonymousKillerNarrator
* AntiClimacticUnmasking
* BeneathNotice
* BeneathSuspicion
* BloodStainedLetter
* BluffingTheMurderer

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* AbsenceOfEvidence
AbsenceOfEvidence: When the absence of something is a clue.
* TheAlibi
TheAlibi: Someone can prove they were physically incapable of committing the crime.
* AmnesiacHero
AmnesiacHero: When the protagonist has amnesia.
* AnachronisticClue
AnachronisticClue: Something which can't come from the time period it supposedly came from, which is a sign something is amiss.
* AnonymousKillerNarrator
AnonymousKillerNarrator: When the serial killer is the narrator of the mystery story.
* AntiClimacticUnmasking
AntiClimacticUnmasking: Someone rips off someone else's face-concealing costume (such as a mask, visor, etc), expecting someone extraordinary, but they get someone ordinary.
* BeneathNotice
BeneathNotice: Disguising oneself as a very plain, regular person.
* BeneathSuspicion
BeneathSuspicion: When the culprit was never suspected because no one thought it could have been them.
* BloodStainedLetter
BloodStainedLetter: A letter or note that has blood on the paper.
* BluffingTheMurdererBluffingTheMurderer: Someone is pretty sure who committed the crime, so they trick the criminal into revealing themselves.



* ChronicEvidenceRetentionSyndrome
* ClockDiscrepancy
* ClosedCircle
* CluelessMystery
* CondensationClue
* ConfessInConfidence
* ConsultingAConvictedKiller
* ConvictionByContradiction
* CozyMystery
* CurtainCamouflage
* CutHimselfShaving
* DeathInTheClouds
* DidNotDieThatWay

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* ChronicEvidenceRetentionSyndrome
ChronicEvidenceRetentionSyndrome: Bad guys hold onto evidence for no good reason.
* ClockDiscrepancy
ClockDiscrepancy: Something seems to have happened at a certain time, but then it turns out it didn't, for instance because the clock had stopped.
* ClosedCircle
ClosedCircle: A plot where the characters can't leave until it's over.
* CluelessMystery
CluelessMystery: A mystery story where the reader/viewer can't follow along.
* CondensationClue
CondensationClue: A hidden message written with one's finger onto a mirror or window.
* ConfessInConfidence
ConfessInConfidence: The criminal confesses to someone whose job requires confidentiality, such as a clergy member, doctor, or lawyer.
* ConsultingAConvictedKiller
ConsultingAConvictedKiller: There's a dangerous criminal at large, but luckily the investigators can talk to another, incarcerated criminal.
* ConvictionByContradiction
ConvictionByContradiction: A whodunnit mystery is solved by finding a hole in the perp's story, like a logic puzzle.
* CozyMystery
CozyMystery: A mystery story where there is no graphic violence, sex, or profanity, the murder victims were bad people, the detective is usually a woman with a down-to-earth hobby, the setting is a small community, and the story in general has a lighthearted vibe despite usually dealing with a murder.
* CurtainCamouflage
CurtainCamouflage: Hiding behind a curtain.
* CutHimselfShaving
CutHimselfShaving: A character was attacked, but lies that the injuries are for a mundane reason, such as [[StaircaseTumble falling downstairs]].
* DeathInTheClouds
DeathInTheClouds: A mystery story involving a murder on a plane.
* DidNotDieThatWayDidNotDieThatWay: Someone lies about the cause of someone else's death.



* TheDogWasTheMastermind
* DramaticCurtainToss
* DrivingQuestion
* EagleEyeDetection
* TheEndOrIsIt
* EurekaMoment
* EveryoneIsASuspect
** EverybodyDidIt
* EvidenceDungeon
* EvidenceScavengerHunt
* EvilPlan
* ExpositionVictim
* FairPlayWhodunnit
* FingerLickingPoison
* FingertipDrugAnalysis
* TheGameNeverStopped
* HideTheEvidence
* HiddenInPlainSight
* HiddenVillain

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* TheDogWasTheMastermind
TheDogWasTheMastermind: The villain turns out to be a seemingly-harmless character.
* DramaticCurtainToss
DramaticCurtainToss: Someone dramatically removes a curtain/tarp/veil, revealing something important.
* DrivingQuestion
DrivingQuestion: When the whole story revolves around solving some sort of mystery.
* EagleEyeDetection
EagleEyeDetection: A detective whose main skill is being really observant.
* TheEndOrIsIt
TheEndOrIsIt: The story ends with a reveal (or at least an implication) that danger is still present.
* EurekaMoment
EurekaMoment: A character has an epiphany from seeing or hearing something unrelated that reminds them of the answer (e.g. seeing a dog, then realising the killer was the owner of the hot ''dog'' stand.)
* EveryoneIsASuspect
** EverybodyDidIt
EverybodyDidIt: All the suspects were responsible for the crime in some way.
* EvidenceDungeon
EveryoneIsASuspect: When the killer in a murder mystery could have been anybody.
* EvidenceScavengerHunt
EvidenceDungeon: The villain has a lair where lots of incriminating evidence is.
* EvilPlan
EvidenceScavengerHunt: A scene about protagonists searching for clues.
* ExpositionVictim
EvilPlan: A plan that a villain has.
* FairPlayWhodunnit
ExpositionVictim: Upon finding out who the killer is, the character speaks to them instead of fighting or running away.
* FingerLickingPoison
FairPlayWhodunnit: The opposite of a Clueless Mystery-- a mystery story where the reader/viewer ''can'' follow along.
* FingertipDrugAnalysis
FingerLickingPoison: Someone was poisoned by licking something covered in poison.
* TheGameNeverStopped
FingertipDrugAnalysis: Testing if a powder or liquid is drugs by sniffing or tasting it.
* HideTheEvidence
TheGameNeverStopped: Characters take part in a game involving a simulated death, then someone actually dies... or so it seems. As it turns out, the game hasn't ended yet.
* HiddenInPlainSight
HideTheEvidence: Hiding the evidence of something wrong or embarrassing is a major plot point.
* HiddenVillainHiddenInPlainSight: Something is being searched for, and it turns out it was there the whole time but blended into the surroundings.
* HiddenVillain: The villain's identity is not revealed until much later.



* ImportantCharacterImportantEvidence
* InsistsOnBeingSuspected
* IntrepidReporter
* LetOffByTheDetective
* LightsOffSomebodyDies
* LockedRoomMystery

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* ImportantCharacterImportantEvidence
ImportantCharacterImportantEvidence: It's always the protagonists who find the important evidence.
* InsistsOnBeingSuspected
InsistsOnBeingSuspected: The detective counts themselves as a suspect.
* IntrepidReporter
IntrepidReporter: A journalist who actively searches for stories.
* LetOffByTheDetective
LetOffByTheDetective: The detective knows who did it, but sympathises with their motive (or feels they've been punished enough) and so doesn't say so.
* LightsOffSomebodyDies
LightsOffSomebodyDies: The lights go out, then when they turn back on, someone has been murdered.
* LockedRoomMysteryLockedRoomMystery: A crime that seems to have been impossible at first glance (for instance, a murder victim in a locked room.)



* TheMeddlingKidsAreUseless
* MistakenForEvidence
* {{Mockspiracy}}
* MocksteryTale
* MotiveEqualsConclusiveEvidence
* MysteriousStranger
* MysteryEpisode
* MysteryMagnet
* MysteryOfTheWeek
* NeedleInAStackOfNeedles
* NeverOneMurder
* NeverSuicide
* NeverTheObviousSuspect
* NotableNonSequitur
* NotSoFakePropWeapon
* OldDarkHouse
* OnlyOnePlausibleSuspect
* OntologicalMystery
* OrgyOfEvidence
* PerfectPoison
* PlaceboEurekaMoment

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* TheMeddlingKidsAreUseless
TheMeddlingKidsAreUseless: The protagonists did all the cool stuff, but ultimately it was some other person, such as the police, who solved the problem.
* MistakenForEvidence
MistakenForEvidence: Something looks like a specific, suspicious item but it's something different.
* {{Mockspiracy}}
{{Mockspiracy}}: A conspiracy theory which turns out not to be true.
* MocksteryTale
MocksteryTale: A story that starts out with a mystery, but the mystery turns out to be fake or unsolvable, so the plot goes somewhere different.
* MotiveEqualsConclusiveEvidence
MotiveEqualsConclusiveEvidence: A motive is treated as incriminating evidence.
* MysteriousStranger
MysteriousStranger: A recurring character who isn't known by the others, and who's deliberately set up as enigmatic.
* MysteryEpisode
MysteryEpisode: An episode in a serial work dedicated to solving a mystery.
* MysteryMagnet
MysteryMagnet: Someone who coincidentally seems to attract mysteries.
* MysteryOfTheWeek
MysteryOfTheWeek: The protagonists solve a mystery in every episode.
* NeedleInAStackOfNeedles
NeedleInAStackOfNeedles: An object hidden in a bunch of similar objects.
* NeverOneMurder
NeverOneMurder: Murder mysteries never have just one victim.
* NeverSuicide
NeverSuicide: It looks like somebody killed themselves, but it turns out to be murder instead.
* NeverTheObviousSuspect
NeverTheObviousSuspect: Somebody seems to have been the culprit due to having obvious motive and ability to have done it, but it was somebody else who was the real culprit.
* NotableNonSequitur
NotableNonSequitur: In a detective story, every out-of-place line turns out to be important.
* NotSoFakePropWeapon
NotSoFakePropWeapon: An actor [[AccidentalMurder accidentally kills]] another actor due to a prop weapon being switched for a real one.
* OldDarkHouse
OldDarkHouse: One or more murders happens in an old, poorly-lit house.
* OnlyOnePlausibleSuspect
OnlyOnePlausibleSuspect: A whodunnit where the identity of the culprit is obvious to the viewers.
* OntologicalMystery
OntologicalMystery: A story where the characters are locked somewhere and must find out how they got there, why, how to escape, and who (if anyone) is the cause of the situation.
* OrgyOfEvidence
OrgyOfEvidence: A criminal plants fake clues, but gives themselves away by the sheer number of fake clues.
* PerfectPoison
PerfectPoison: Killing someone with poison is unrealistically quick and easy.
* PlaceboEurekaMomentPlaceboEurekaMoment: A character figures out a mystery on their own, but thanks someone near them anyway.



* ProofDare
* PublicSecretMessage
* PuzzleThriller
* RedHerring
* ReverseWhodunnit
* RewindReplayRepeat
* ARiddleWrappedInAMysteryInsideAnEnigma
* RippedFromTheHeadlines
* SayingTooMuch

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* ProofDare
ProofDare: The criminal dares the detective to prove their guilt.
* PublicSecretMessage
PublicSecretMessage: Sending a coded message to everyone because only the intended target of the message will understand the code.
* PuzzleThriller
PuzzleThriller: A mystery story where the mystery is "how does it all work?".
* RedHerring
RedHerring: Something seems like a clue, but it misleads the audience.
* ReverseWhodunnit
ReverseWhodunnit: We know who committed the crime, but we don't know how the detective will solve the case.
* RewindReplayRepeat
RewindReplayRepeat: Somebody finds something that gets their attention in a video, so they rewind and replay it over and over.
* ARiddleWrappedInAMysteryInsideAnEnigma
ARiddleWrappedInAMysteryInsideAnEnigma: Somebody describes a frustrating mystery as three mysteries in one.
* RippedFromTheHeadlines
RippedFromTheHeadlines: A crime story based on a real crime.
* SayingTooMuchSayingTooMuch: Someone accidentally says something that reveals plot-sensitive info.



* SerialKillingsSpecificTarget
* ShellGame
* SherlockCanRead
* SherlockScan
* TheSevenMysteries
* SignatureItemClue

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* SerialKillingsSpecificTarget
SerialKillingsSpecificTarget: A murderer covers up the murder by killing other people with similar traits as the initial victim.
* ShellGame
ShellGame: Two or more identical things are shown, one is significant, and we initially know which it is until the objects get mixed.
* SherlockCanRead
SherlockCanRead: Someone thinks someone else used great detective work when they didn't.
* SherlockScan
SherlockScan: A detective comes to a conclusion about someone they just met from looking at them.
* TheSevenMysteries
TheSevenMysteries: Mysteries come in sevens.
* SignatureItemClueSignatureItemClue: A distinctive item means that someone must have put it there and that's a clue.



* TheStakeout
* StrangerBehindTheMask
* TheSummation
** SummationGathering

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* TheStakeout
TheStakeout: One or more people setting up camp somewhere and watch a location in secret to search for information.
* StrangerBehindTheMask
StrangerBehindTheMask: The answer to the mystery is something or someone we've never heard of.
* TheSummation
** SummationGathering
TheSummation: When the detective does a speech about how they solved the mystery.
* SummationGathering: During the Summation in a murder mystery, all the suspects, including the killer, are present.



* TenLittleMurderVictims
* ThatMysteriousThing
* ThrillerOnTheExpress
* TwistEnding
* TwoDunIt
* TheUnsolvedMystery
* WeatherReportOpening
* WheelProgram

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* TenLittleMurderVictims
TenLittleMurderVictims: A group of people ends up somewhere, one of them turns out to be a killer, and they must find out which one before they kill everybody.
* ThatMysteriousThing
ThatMysteriousThing: Characters refer to something in ambiguous terms so the audience won't know what it is.
* ThrillerOnTheExpress
ThrillerOnTheExpress: A crime story set on a train.
* TwistEnding
TwistEnding: The plot leads one way, but then something happens at the end which changes everything.
* TwoDunIt
TwoDunIt: There were two culprits all along.
* TheUnsolvedMystery
TheUnsolvedMystery: A mystery story without a resolution.
* WeatherReportOpening
WeatherReportOpening: The story opens with a description of the weather.
* WheelProgramWheelProgram: A number of TV shows are run in the same slot under one title.



* WorldOfMysteries
* WritingIndentationClue
* YouMeddlingKids
* YouWakeUpInARoom
* YouWakeUpOnABeach

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* WorldOfMysteries
WorldOfMysteries: A setting with heaps of mysteries in it.
* WritingIndentationClue
WritingIndentationClue: Reading the indentations of notes written on a separate piece of paper.
* YouMeddlingKids
YouMeddlingKids: The villain claims they would have gotten away with whatever they planned on doing, if not for the protagonists.
* YouWakeUpInARoom
YouWakeUpInARoom: A character wakes up in an unfamiliar location.
* YouWakeUpOnABeachYouWakeUpOnABeach: A story that starts with a protagonist waking up on a beach.
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* BeneathNotice

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* TheEndOrIsIt



* SecretIdentityApathy: The villains do not care who the true identity of the hero who's always thwarting them is.

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* SecretIdentityApathy: The villains do not care who about the true identity of the hero who's always thwarting them is.them.



* SpotTheImposter: Someone is seen with their impersonator and their friends have to determine who is the real deal and who is the disguised phony.

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* SpotTheImposter: SpotTheImpostor: Someone is seen with their impersonator and their friends have to determine who is the real deal and who is the disguised phony.



* TheEndOrIsIt



* TenLittleMurderVictims



* TenLittleMurderVictims



* WhodunnitToMe: Someone survives a murder attempt or comes back from the dead after being killed and tries to find out who it was who killed them or tried to kill them.

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* WhodunnitToMe: WhoDunnitToMe: Someone survives a murder attempt or comes back from the dead after being killed and tries to find out who it was who killed them or tried to kill them.



[[/index]]
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[[/index]]
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[[/index]]
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Mystery Arc is being cut per TRS


* MysteryArc
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* MysteryEpisode

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''Tropes associated with MysteryFiction and DetectiveFiction.''

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''Tropes Tropes associated with MysteryFiction and DetectiveFiction.''



!!Tropes:



Categories:

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Categories:'''Categories:'''



+ {{Criminals}}
+ CrimeAndPunishmentSeries



* DetectiveDrama

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* + DetectiveDrama



+ MurderTropes
* MysteryFiction

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+ MurderTropes
*
MysteryFiction



+ ToxicTropes




!!!!Tropes:
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* InsistsOnBeingSuspected
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* SuspiciousMissedMessages: Someone won't answer their phone? Better find out why!
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* AmnesiacHero
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* TheButlerDidIt
* CastAsAMask

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* TheButlerDidIt
TheButlerDidIt: A butler turns out to be the one who committed the crime.
* CastAsAMaskCastAsAMask: A character and their disguised self are played by separate actors.



* DisabilityAlibi

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* DisabilityAlibiDisabilityAlibi: A suspect is determined innocent because they have a disability of some sort that makes it impossible for them to have done the crime.



* INeverSaidItWasPoison

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* INeverSaidItWasPoisonINeverSaidItWasPoison: A character accidentally gives themselves away by revealing information that their knowledge of proves they are guilty.



* LotsaPeopleTryToDunIt

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* LotsaPeopleTryToDunItLotsaPeopleTryToDunIt: It turns out that all the suspects tried to kill the victim.



* PrecrimeArrest

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* PrecrimeArrestPrecrimeArrest: Someone gets arrested for a crime they haven't even committed yet.



* SecretIdentityApathy

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* SecretIdentityApathySecretIdentityApathy: The villains do not care who the true identity of the hero who's always thwarting them is.



* SpotTheImposter

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* SpotTheImposterSpotTheImposter: Someone is seen with their impersonator and their friends have to determine who is the real deal and who is the disguised phony.



* SuspectIsHatless

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* SuspectIsHatlessSuspectIsHatless: Someone reports a crime while giving a description of the culprit that is too vague and generic to narrow down who the person responsible could be.



* WhodunnitToMe
* WhoMurderedTheAsshole

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* WhodunnitToMe
WhodunnitToMe: Someone survives a murder attempt or comes back from the dead after being killed and tries to find out who it was who killed them or tried to kill them.
* WhoMurderedTheAssholeWhoMurderedTheAsshole: An unsympathetic person has been killed, but it is difficult to determine who's responsible because pretty much everyone who knew the victim hated them.
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* SpotTheImposter
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* WhodunnitToMe
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* YouWakeUpOnABeach

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More accurate.


+ BasicMysteryClasses



* DetectiveDrama



* DetectiveDrama



* BasicMysteryClasses
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* WorldOfMysteries

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* MysteriouslyPrematureDeathDeclaration
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* MysteriouslyPrematureDeathDeclaration
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