Detective fiction always contain similar elements, since the Edgar Poe wrote "Murders in the Rue morgue" in 1841, and although "the adventure of the speckled band- by Conan Doyle and "The Affair at the Victory Ball- by Agatha Christie, were written many years apart, they share the same elements of those in "Murders in the Rue morgue." The genre of detective fiction is often compared to crime fiction, yet there are striking differences between them. In crime fiction much of the emphasis of the story is placed on the victim and their psychology, whereas in detective fiction there is an air of mystery to the crime. Unlike in crime fiction, detective fiction does not reveal the identity of the killer until the end; instead the story becomes based around the detective and their unravelling of the clues. The traditional elements of detective fiction include the presence of a sidekick such as Dr. Watson or Captain Hastings, a mystified police officer such as Japp, a quirky detective who often outwits the reader with their intellect and logic such as Sherlock Holmes, a list of suspects, carefully laid out red herrings and a resolution, where the detective comes to their conclusion. As both of the stories contain these traditional elements, and involve the reader, they are successful examples of detective fiction.
Although both stories have visible red herrings, the detective often outwits the reader in his intellect and logic thinking, therefore often the carefully laid out red herrings do not seem important until the reader until detective unravels his thoughts at the end. This is the reason, why the crimes seem insoluble to the reader. Both of the stories deal with very difficult murders whilst, the crime in "The adventure of the speckled band" is very cunning and one which uses eastern ideas and animals, creating an almost mystical air around the murder as it almost seems impossible to solve.