Lesbian detective fiction offers a fundamental challenge to the accepted conventions of detection genre by firstly placing a female character in a traditional male role and secondly allowing her to transgress the conservative heterosexual norms of sexuality and identity. This paper aims to explore the formula of lesbian detection describing how writers such as Barbara Wilson, Mary Wings or Katherine V. Forrest through the creation of their lesbian detectives deal with the transformations applied to the detection genre when they manage to reconcile two apparently contradictory discourses: the detection genre, which assumes a masculine perspective of existence, and feminist thought which attempts to expand the rigid sexual stereotypes. Among the modifications operated in the genre, most of the texts avoid final resolution, reverse the traditional characterization of criminal and victim and are less concerned with the solving of a crime than with offering a subversive social critique revealing sexist practices. In this sense lesbian crime fiction deals with concerns and conflicts which are particularly relevant to women and forces the reader to confront their own feelings on questions concerning female power and social oppression, while challenging the existing structures of law and patriarchal authority.Keywords: lesbian crime fiction, lesbian detective, feminist crime fiction Dinámica de la novela negra lesbiana RESUMEN La ficción de detectives lesbiana reta las convenciones tradicionales del género de detección en primer lugar situando a una mujer detective en un papel mayoritariamente masculino y en segundo lugar al permitirle transgredir las normas tradicionalmente asociadas a la sexualidad e identidad femenina. Este artículo pretende explorar el funcionamiento de la novela de detectives lesbiana mostrando cómo, a través de la creación de detectives lesbianas, autoras como Barbara Wilson, Mary Wings o Katherine V. Forrest, articulan las transformaciones operadas en el género al intentar conciliar dos discursos en apariencia contradictorios: el género de detección que aporta una visión masculinista de la existencia y la ideología feminista que intentó expandir los rígidos estereotipos sexuales. Entre estas modificaciones destacan cómo la novela negra lesbiana suele eludir una resolución final, invierte los roles de criminal y víctima y se preocupa más por ofrecer una crítica social subversiva que por la resolución de un caso. Consecuentemente la novela negra lesbiana reflexiona acerca de preocupaciones y conflictos relevantes para las mujeres e induce al lector a confrontar sus propias actitudes sobre temas como el poder y la
María del Mar Ramón Torrijos
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