Crossover between mystery and horror fiction
Occult detective Carnacki inspecting the "queer, soft, flabby, spreading foot-print" of an apparent ghost, in the 1910 story "The Searcher of the End House"
Occult detective fiction is a subgenre of detective fiction that combines the tropes of the main genre with those of supernatural , fantasy and/or horror fiction . Unlike the traditional detective who investigates murder and other common crimes, the occult detective is employed in cases involving ghosts , demons , curses , magic , vampires , undead , monsters and other supernatural elements. Some occult detectives are portrayed as being psychic or in possession of other paranormal or magical powers.