One way to almost guarantee a satisfying conclusion in a novel is with a great chase scene. Such a scene frequently happens in genres such as the thriller, but also occasionally in more literary fiction.

Chases are exciting; the way they unfold can be quite inventive; and they make eager readers wonder: Will the pursued person (who can be the novel’s villain or hero) get caught or escape? Also, it should be noted that memorable chases might occur in the middle or soon after the start of a novel, too.

I just finished Kate Quinn’s The Rose Code, a terrific/intricate piece of historical fiction about British codebreakers during World War II that stars three unforgettable women. The icing on the cake near book’s end is an on-foot, top-speed, ultra-dramatic pursuit in London of a codebreaker traitor who had ruthlessly framed one of the three women.

Among the most memorable chases in the history of fiction? The pursuit of a terrified Eliza, holding her young son, as she tries to escape from slavery — including an attempt to cross the icy Ohio River — in Harriet Beecher Stowe’s Uncle Tom’s Cabin.

Also quite well known is Victor Frankenstein’s eye-opening, across-the-Arctic pursuit of the creature he created in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein.

Hunted Past Reason chronicles the brutal hunt of a fleeing man by another man — with Richard Matheson’s novel inspired by Richard Connell’s decades-earlier short story “The Most Dangerous Game.”

Other novels with unforgettable chase elements — again, not necessarily at book’s end — include Cormac McCarthy’s No Country for Old Men, Patricia Highsmith’s The Talented Mr. Ripley, William Goldman’s Marathon Man, John Buchan’s The Thirty-Nine Steps, and James Dickey’s Deliverance.

Of course, there are novels with car chases, too.

Obviously, chases in fiction don’t always involve just humans. For instance, Captain Ahab and his Pequod crew pursue a certain big white whale in Herman Melville’s Moby-Dick. Also, there are the shark shenanigans in Peter Benchley’s Jaws.

Any other novels with great chase scenes you’d like to mention? Any general thoughts on this topic?

Misty the cat says: “One small step for cat, one giant leap if I were a very small cat.”

My comedic 2024 book — the part-factual/part-fictional/not-a-children’s-work Misty the Cat…Unleashed — is described and can be purchased on Amazon in paperback or on Kindle. It’s feline-narrated! (And Misty says Amazon reviews are welcome. 🙂 )

This 90-second promo video for my book features a talking cat: 🙂

I’m also the author of a 2017 literary-trivia book…

…and a 2012 memoir that focuses on cartooning and more.

In addition to this weekly blog, I write the 2003-started/award-winning “Montclairvoyant” topical-humor column every Thursday for Montclair Local. The latest piece — about neglectful ownership of a lower-income apartment building and more — is here.