another name for a detective story

A sleuth story. 'Sleuth' is another word for a detective, so a sleuth story is essentially a detective story.

A mystery story. It often involves solving a crime or uncovering a secret, just like a detective story.

Well, another name could be a crime novel. Detective novels often revolve around solving crimes, and crime novels have a similar focus on criminal activities and the process of uncovering the truth behind them. They usually involve elements like a crime scene, suspects, and a protagonist, often a detective or someone with investigative skills, trying to piece together what really happened. So, crime novel is a valid alternative name.

A noir story can be considered as another name in a sense. Noir stories often have a detective - like figure and involve elements of mystery and crime. They typically have a dark and moody atmosphere which is also common in many detective stories.

A tale.

A tale.

In a detective story, names matter. 'Griffin' could be a name for a shrewd detective, it has an air of intelligence. 'Natalie' is a common but effective name for a detective's assistant, perhaps. And 'Dexter' has a double meaning, it can imply someone who is dexterous in solving crimes but also has a bit of an edge.

A tragic tale.

Well, 'the commencement' is another way to refer to the start of a story. It's like the story is about to commence, start its journey, and draw the reader in from that very first moment.

The start of a story can also be called the 'opening'. For example, in many novels, the opening sets the scene, introduces the main characters or gives a hint about the main conflict.