The Cozy Mystery List Blog

Cozy Mystery (and Other Favorite) Books, Movies, and TV

Can Anyone Name These Cozies?

clipart_questionLately I’ve gotten a number of questions in the comments by people looking for the name of a Cozy novel or series that they read at one point, but can no longer remember the name of the book or of the author. Many of these have easy answers, but a few have stumped both me and the readers who have seen them. Since the front page gets more visitors than anywhere else, I thought I’d try again to get an answer to what series these people are looking for!

From Kathy:

I read a beginning sample of a book and do not know the title or author, I was hoping someone would help me locate and read the entire thing! beginning synopsis: A female character just got home, upon checking her messages-or her secretary had messages – I recall a work situation – a husband of a dog show competitor called to say his wife had passed away, would she go and get the woman’s dogs to find homes for them. He had put them in the garage in crates. I believe they were welsh corgis, she went to get the dogs and all the files, fed them and took them to go to a vet for boarding the next day. thanks all I read – would love to find the book and finish the story – Thanks, (I love your site, it gives me more books to look forward to reading)

EDIT: The general consensus is that this is probably the Melanie Travis Mystery Series by Laurien Berenson. Thanks to everyone who wrote in!

From Pam:

Hopefully, someone who knows the book and author I am looking for will read this and help me with my quest.

(cut part here for a book series I’m pretty sure I answered)

The second book is about a wedding planner in Washington DC who has a male friend, a caterer, I believe, prone to funny comments and histrionics and a female friend who owns a florist! Murder claims the life of a member of the mother of the bride, I believe!

If anyone recognizes these descriptions in the above synopsis’ please let me know! They were really enjoyable reads that I would like to read again!

EDIT: Most people who have written in have suggested that this is probably Laura Durham‘s Anabelle Archer Mystery Series. Thanks to everyone who wrote in!

From knightshift:

Very happy to have stumbled upon this site today. I love books which feature dogs and I was hoping some-one maybe able to identify this book, for a query posted on a different forum that I too would like to read.

The heroine is a dog trainer. She has 3 dogs. She is asked to go on an undercover mission with some kind of government agent. I remember them escaping on a boat and I think the mission was on an island. She took one of the dogs with her, I think it was because “what kind of government operation would have a dog on a boat?”. I know that the bad guy comes after them at the end, after you think everything is going to be cleared up by other government types. And I do believe that the bad guy kills two of her dogs, which really upset me at the time. I think one of the dogs was named Sweet Pea.

There is a part at the end where she is calling her dog (Wiley???) to jump onto the boat. But she is using a hand signal to tell him to stay. So he is going back and forth, kind of dancing around. And then the guys who work for the bad guy are even telling him to “jump”.

Thanks for your help.

For this last one, I suggested Deadly Tides by Susan Holmes, which is NOT the correct answer unfortunately. So that’s definitely not it!

So, if you’ve got a suggestion for any of these readers, please chime in! I’d love to be able to reunite these visitors with their favorite Cozies that they have unfortunately forgotten the name of!

PS EDIT: Naturally I put up these questions then walked away from the computer all day >>> big mistake on my part! Thanks to everyone who sent in suggestions!

Comments

  1. I believe Pam is talking about the Laura Durham wedding planner series: BETTER OFF WED, FOR BETTER OR HEARSE and TO LOVE AND TO PERISH. Her website has information about the series and hints that another in the series is in the works.–Maya Corrigan

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  2. The Melanie Travis series by Laurien Berenson is the author of the first one I believe which Kathy ask about.

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  3. Series number 2, featuring the wedding planner, might be Laura Durham’s Annabelle Archer series. There are only 3 books — “Better Off Wed”, “For Better Or Hearse” and “To Love And To Perish” .

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  6. Laura Durham wrote a 3 book series about Annabelle Archer, a D.C. wedding planner. Deborah Donnelly wrote a 6 book series about Carnegie Kincaid, a wedding planner in Seattle. Both series were funny and enjoyable reads with likeable characters. The 1st book in the Donnelly series, Veiled Threats was made into a Hallmark Mystery movie, but it was nowhere near as good as the book. Hope this info helps!

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    • Marcia, thanks for the suggestions – most people seem to think that it was probably Laura Durham, so that’s what I’m putting in the main post, but if the original poster indicates that isn’t right I’l definitely steer them toward Deborah Donnelly.

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  7. I love this blog and I love a mystery!

    I’m not sure, but it sounds like the one about the woman who has to find a home for the Corgi’s might be from the Dixie Hemingway series about a pet sitter….

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  8. The second one (wedding planner) sounds like the Laura Durham books. She only wrote three in the series, the last one in 2007 or 08. I have all three packed away some where. I really enjoyed them. Very enjoyable and fun reads. I’m really sorry that she never wrote more.

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  10. I believe the book that Pam is looking for is Better Off Wed by Laura Durham, the first book in the Annabelle Archer series and winner of the Agatha for Best First Novel.

    I’m not sure whether this is the book that Kathy is looking for. I remember in the first book of the Animals in Focus series by Sheila Webster Boneham, Drop Dead on Recall, that the main character takes care of a dog for the husband of a dead dog-show competitor, but I don’t recall if it involves dogs left in their crates in the garage.

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    • Judith, thanks for the suggestions! It sounds like you’re right on Laura Durham – no one else has suggested Sheila Webster though! I’ll suggest that one if the original poster doesn’t think it was the most suggested auther, Laurien Berenson.

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  11. The first dog mystery book she is asking about is one of Joanna Fluke’s books featuring Melanie Travis as the main character.

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  13. Pam, the wedding planner mystery could be one written by Laura Durham. I don’t remember the male friend, but it’s been a decade since I read her books. According to Danna’s listing, there were just three books written, the last in 2007. I loved the series and wish there had been more.

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  14. The wedding planner may be Laura Durham’s Better Off Wed and 2 sequels. It’s set in Washington DC.

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  16. For Pam re: the wedding planner books. I think the series you are asking about is by Laura Durham and is called Annabelle Archer Mysteries. There are only 3 books in the series, with the last one dated 2007. I read this series and thoroughly enjoyed it; wish the author would continue the series. Thank you.

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  17. Dear Pam,
    Not sure if it’s this one but try Better off wed by Laura Durham. Sounds really similar to what your looking for. Hope this helps.

    P.S. The not sure about the other ones. You’ve got me stumped too.

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  18. Book number 3 sounds so familiar. I’ve been thinking about it all afternoon. I wonder if it could be one of Susan Conant’s Holly Winter series. There’s also Donna Ball’s Raine Stockton series, but that would be a remote possibility.

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  19. I also have a question about a book that I read a a few sample pages of. It had a detective that rode a bike and mentioned about regrets of not going on a vacation and was investigating a crime. It seemed to have been written with a little sarcasm type humor.

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  20. As to the second dog mystery, in which the character works with three of her dogs, I’m thinking Laurie Berenson is the best bet.

    But I wonder if this might be a series about a woman working with Search and Rescue Dogs? I think I’ve heard of such a series.

    Reply

  23. For knightshift – I found this link on Goodreads that describes the same book. It says it’s called Sutter’s Wife by Lee Magner. Has a dog named Sweetpea and the guy is an agent? Below is what was copied in GoodReads. There’s a link under this comment:

    I found it!!!! It was in the same compilation book as another one I was looking for (The Cowboy Takes a Wife is another book that I just solved. And I saw that it was in a 3-in-1 book that looked familiar. And Boom!!). Sutter’s Wife by Lee Magner. I even checked and one of the dogs is named Sweet Pea! SOLVED!

    http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/18192966-solved-romantic-suspense-90-s—i-think—heroine-is-a-dog-trainer-wh

    Reply

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