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Cozy Mysteries

20 replies

Morana · 27/06/2023 21:24

I am new to this genre and I can’t get enough of it! Please recommend your favourite series.

So far I’ve enjoyed H.Y. Hanna’s books and just started on Nancy Warren’s Vampire Knitting Club.

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Riverlee · 27/06/2023 22:09

Patricia Fisher - Steve Higgs

  • loves this series.
MeinKraft · 28/06/2023 02:28

The Agatha Raisin series is great.

DontGetEvenGetEverything · 28/06/2023 05:20

I love Rita Mae Brown's Mrs Murphy series. Yes, it's about a talking cat but give it a go - it's all done with Brown's great sense of humour. Coziest mysteries I know.

Morana · 28/06/2023 11:49

Thank you, I’ll be sure to check out each suggestion. Who wouldn’t enjoy a book with a talking cat? I love the childlike escapism of these stories.

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jellyminelli · 28/06/2023 11:55

Following for recs!

GulfCoastBeachGirl · 28/06/2023 12:06

I read a lot of cozy mysteries - what sort of "themes" are you looking for? Any cities/locations in particular? Do you prefer characters in a certain age range? Contemporary only or is historical OK?

GrannyAchingsShepherdsHut · 28/06/2023 12:10

The Aurora Teagarden ones are quite good for light entertainment.

Morana · 28/06/2023 12:20

I prefer a rural setting but the one I’m reading now is set in Oxford which the author manages to make feel quite intimate.

Historical could be interesting if it has a gently informative kind of feel. All I’ve read so far seem to be set in the present day, I do particularly like this because it creates a sort of parallel universe that contrasts nicely with reality.

I think I’d probably prefer characters more in my perimenopausal age range, rather than the young protagonists I’ve come across so far.

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GulfCoastBeachGirl · 28/06/2023 12:26

Forgot to ask...UK based only or are American settings OK?

Morana · 28/06/2023 14:58

My grandmother was British so I have a soft spot for those settings. One of the best parts about the books I’ve read so far is the protagonists have had dual UK/US heritage like me. I am fully bilingual 😀 and would definitely read a cozy mystery set in the States, especially if it was historical.

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GulfCoastBeachGirl · 28/06/2023 20:26

These are all cozy series but I'm just listing the first book.

UK Setting:

-Murder at Mallowan Hall (Colleen Cambridge)
(40ish protagonist, Agatha Christie's housekeeper and confidant)
-The Windsor Knot (SJ Bennett)
(Private Secretary to the Queen, circa 2016)
-Her Royal Spyness (Rhys Bowen)
(Cousin to the King, pre-WWII)
-Mr. Churchill's Secretary (Susan Macneil)
(British/American math genius becomes secret agent)
-Murder in an English Village (Jessica Ellicott)
(40-ish friends, post WWI, small village)
-The Marlowe Murder Club (Robert Thorogood)
(Small town, 3 friends, humorous. Second book is better!)

Honorable mention to Agatha Raisin and Martha Grimes "Richard Jury" mysteries.

Continnied...

cassiatwenty · 28/06/2023 20:28

Aurora Teargarden

GulfCoastBeachGirl · 28/06/2023 20:32

Cozy with a paranormal twist:

-Dead Until Dark (Charlaine Harris)
(aka the True Blood series. A little humor, A little romance...very evocative small town Louisiana setting)

-The Ghost and Mrs. McClure (Cleo Coyle)
(Single mom, widow, takes over family bookstore and is able to hear the voice of a 1940's PI. Small town Rhode Island)

GulfCoastBeachGirl · 28/06/2023 20:42

American settings:

-On What Grounds (Cleo Coyle)
(Divorced 40 something, single mom, runs coffee shop in NYC. Great NYC setting)
-Statue of Limitations (Kate Collins)
(Divorced, single mom. Moves back in with large Greek/American family. Reminded me of My Big Fat Greek Wedding. Fun).
-Assault and Pepper (Leslie Budewitz)
(40ish, divorced - and happy!- starting over. Terrific setting in Seattle's iconic Public Market)
-Here Comes the Body (Maria DiRicio)
(Divorced, returns to Queens, NY, to work for her ex-mobster father. Humorous, Italian-American family)

HonoriaLucastaDelagardie · 28/06/2023 21:01

All these available on Kindle:

The Dotsy Lamb Travel Mysteries by Maria Hudgins. Dotsy is an American college lecturer who gets mixed up in crime while holidaying in various European countries.

The Dorothy Martin Mysteries by Jeanne M. Dams. Dorothy is a retired American schoolteacher who has settled in an English cathedral city where she keeps falling over bodies.

Not American: the Rina Martin Mysteries by Jane Adams. Rina is a widow, an actress who had a successful tv series where she played a Jessica Fletcher type character, and now investigates crime for real.

Exloony · 28/06/2023 21:10

I love the TE Kinsey - Lady Hardcastle mysteries. Light hearted and fun stories set in the early 1900s. The first is A Quiet Life in the Country.

HonoriaLucastaDelagardie · 28/06/2023 21:50

If you haven't already, search on Amazon for a book you've enjoyed, and see what similar books are recommended.

Morana · 29/06/2023 10:04

Thanks so much for all these recommendations everyone, I am looking forward to loading my kindle for the summer and maybe ordering some paperbacks too.

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jellyminelli · 29/06/2023 10:34

Sign up to Bookbub and they'll send you links to free and discounted books every day

DeanElderberry · 30/06/2023 18:08

Donna Andrews' Meg Langslow mysteries are my comfort reads - small town and rural Virginia setting, extended family and friends, the murder victim is always a rotter and you don't break your heart when you find whodunnit.

And for me, the bonus feature of finding out about exotic American foods and customs.

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