The Cozy Mystery List Blog

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

I Just Found a Few More Christmas Mysteries

When I was looking at my (computer) desktop’s folders I discovered a list that I had apparently made a very short while ago, but that I had totally forgotten. I clicked on the folder (which was conveniently titled “Christmas”) only to see a list of additional titles I had saved in order to add them to the Christmas mysteries lists. When I clicked the folder open, it looked somewhat familiar; it had authors’ names on it and the titles of their Christmas mysteries, both in the book format as well as the story/novella length. I vaguely remember going through my individual Christmas mysteries lists and finding out that I didn’t already have these authors/titles listed.

Here is the list of Christmas mysteries authors and titles that I just added to the Cozy Mystery site’s lists:

Hannah Alexander & Jill Elizabeth Nelson: Season of Danger: Silent Night, Deadly Night\Mistletoe Mayhem 

Pat Amsden: A Christmas Wedding to Die For

Gale Borger: Totally Decked (Story)

Roxy Boroughs, Brenda M. Collins, & C.J. Carmichael: A Frost Family Christmas Anthology

C.J. Carmichael, Roxy Boroughs, & Brenda M. Collins: A Frost Family Christmas Anthology

Brenda M. Collins, Roxy Boroughs, C.J. Carmichael: A Frost Family Christmas Anthology

Bill Crider, Terence Faherty, Wendi Lee, & Aileen Schumacher: Murder, Mayhem, and Mistletoe

Caroline Dunford: The Mistletoe Mystery  (Story)

K.J. Emrick: The Ghost of Christmas (Novella)

Terence Faherty, Bill Crider, Wendi Lee, & Aileen Schumacher: Murder, Mayhem, and Mistletoe

Andrea Frazer: White Christmas with a Wobbly Knee

Andrea Frazer: Snowballs and Scotch Mist

Andrea Frazer: Christmas Mourning

Jim Green: Miss Tayke Investigates Murder Under the Mistletoe (Story)

Diane Kelly: Death, Taxes, and Mistletoe Mayhem (Novella)

Carol Lee: A Catered Christmas Killer (Novella)

Wendi Lee, Terence Faherty, Bill Crider, & Aileen Schumacher: Murder, Mayhem, and Mistletoe

Jill Elizabeth Nelson & Hannah Alexander: Season of Danger: Silent Night, Deadly Night\Mistletoe Mayhem 

Jemima Norton: The Mistletoe Bride

Martha Ockley: The Advent of Murder

Ashantay Peters: Death Under the Mistletoe (Novella)

Sally Quilford ….. Mistletoe Mystery

Lawrence Rotch: Mistletoe and Murder

Aileen Schumacher, Bill Crider, Terence Faherty, & Wendi Lee: Murder, Mayhem, and Mistletoe

Laura Scott: Her Mistletoe Protector

N.E. Sully: A Mystery & Some Mistletoe (Novella)

Laina Turner: Mistletoe & Murder (Story)

It’s probably no surprise to all of you that I am asking you to take a look at the site’s lists to make sure I have all of the Christmas mysteries listed. (I usually try to do this before most holidays.) So >>> would you mind looking at the Christmas mysteries lists from the Cozy Mystery site and letting me know if you see any titles that are missing?

Christmas Mysteries –  Authors Beginning with A, B, & C

Christmas Mysteries –  Authors Beginning with D, E, & F

Christmas Mysteries –  Authors Beginning with G, H, I & J

Christmas Mysteries –  Authors Beginning with K, L, M, N & O

Christmas Mysteries –  Authors Beginning with P, Q, R, & S

Christmas Mysteries –  Authors Beginning with T, U, V, W, & Y

Thank you! I will add the titles – if there are any I’m missing.

January 2014 Mystery Book New Releases

The following Mystery Books (whose authors’ are found on the Cozy Mystery site) will be released in January 2014:

Ellery Adams (aka Jennifer Stanley, J. B. Stanley, and ½ of Lucy Arlington): Pecan Pies and Homicides (This will be the 3rd in the Charmed Pie Shoppe Mystery Series.)

Simon Beaufort (writing duo Beau Riffenburgh & Susanna Gregory): The Murder House (This will be a Stand Alone.)

Alan Bradley: The Dead in Their Vaulted Arches (This will be the 6th in the Flavia de Luce Mystery Series.)

Anne Canadeo: A Dark and Stormy Knit (This will be the 6th in the Black Sheep Knitting Mystery Series.)

Joelle Charbonneau: A Chorus Lineup (This will be the 3rd in the Glee Club Mystery Series.)

Joelle Charbonneau: Independent Study (This will be the 2nd in The Testing Thriller Series for Young Adults.)

Jennifer Chiaverini: Mrs. Lincoln’s Rival (This will be the 3rd in the Elizabeth Van Lew Civil War Series. This is not a mystery book.)

Laura Childs: Eggs in a Casket (This will be the in the 5th Cackleberry Club Mystery Series.)

Mary Jane Clark: That Old Black Magic (This will be the 4th in the Piper Donovan Mystery Series.)

Hy Conrad: Mr. Monk Gets on Board (This will be the 17th in the Mr. Monk Mystery Series.)

J. J. Cook (aka Joyce and Jim Lavene & Ellie Grant): Playing with Fire (This will be the 2nd in the Sweet Pepper Fire Brigade Mystery Series.)

Jeanne M. Dams: Shadows of Death (This will be the 14th in the Dorothy Martin Mystery Series.)

Tim Dorsey: Tiger Shrimp Tango (This will be the 17th in the Serge Storms Mystery Series.)

Christy Fifield (aka Christy Evans): Murder Sends a Postcard (This will be the 3rd in the Haunted Souvenir Mystery Series.)

Martha Grimes: The Way of All Fish (This will be the 2nd in the Paul Giverney Mystery Series.)

Parnell Hall: NYPD Puzzle (This will be the 15th in the Puzzle Lady Mystery Series.)

Lee Hollis: Death of a Chocoholic (This will be the 4th in the Hayley Powell Food & Cocktail Mystery Series.) (This is a Valentine theme mystery.)

Julie Hyzy: Home of the Braised (This will be the 7th in the White House Chef Mystery Series.)

Miranda James (aka Dean James,  Jimmie Ruth Evans, & Honor Hartman): The Silence of the Library (This will be the 5th in the Cat in the Stacks Mystery Series.)

Linda O. Johnston: Teacup Turbulence (This will be the 5th in the Pet Rescue Mystery Series.)

Jonathan Kellerman, Ande Parks, & Michael Gaydos: The Web (This will be a graphic novel of the 10th in the Alex Delaware Mystery Series.)

Annie Knox (aka Wendy Lyn Watson): Paws for Murder (This will be the 1st in the NEW Pet Boutique Mystery Series.)

Victoria Laurie: The Ghoul Next Door (This will be the 8th in the Ghost Hunter Mystery Series.)

Jess Lourey: January Thaw (This will be the 9th in the Murder-By-Month Mystery Series.)

Carol Ann Martin: Tapestry of Lies (This will be the 2nd in the Weaving Mystery Series.)

Beverle Graves Myers: Whispers of Vivaldi (This will be the 6th in the Tito Amato Baroque Mystery Series.)

Joyce Carol Oates: Carthage (This will be a Stand Alone mystery.)

Phil Rickman: The Magus of Hay (This will be the 12th in the Merrily Watkins Mystery Series.)

Aimée & David Thurlo: The Pawnbroker (This will a Stand Alone or the 1st in the NEW Charlie Henry Mystery Series.)

Charles Todd: Hunting Shadows (This will be the 16th in the Inspector Ian Rutledge Mystery Series.)

Peggy Webb: Elvis and the Bridegroom Stiffs (This will be the 6th in the Southern Cousins Mystery
Series.)

Lis Wiehl: Snapshot (This will be a Stand Alone.)

To go back to the Cozy Mystery New Book Release page, click here.

Mystery Books Recommendations – November 2013

I have been keeping myself pretty busy lately, which is why I forgot to post this Cozy Mysteries Recommendations for November 2013 entry earlier. I have been working on going through our garage in the hopes of clearing up some space. It has just gotten too crowded out there. I have also been getting our Thanksgiving organized, and am trying to get our Christmas decorations up. (Yes, I know it’s odd to be working on Christmas before Thanksgiving, but our daughter comes home for such a short time that I like to have the house holiday-ed up for her.)

We are already at the end of November, so I’d like to ask you all to let us know about some of the mysteries you have read during the month which you thought were really, really good. Would you please tell us why you enjoyed your recommended Cozy Mystery books? A lot of us use those comments to help us decide if that particular author/mystery is something we would also enjoy reading.

[As usual, I ask that you don’t tell us about the mystery books you read that you didn’t like.]

[If you click on the author’s name (blue) link, it will take you to their page on the Cozy Mystery site. Their page has all of the author’s books listed chronologically.]

What Cozy Mystery book (or author) have you read during November 2013, and why did you enjoy it (or him/her)?

Here are the current recommended authors who some of you have read this past month:

Victoria Abbott (Mary Jane Maffini & Victoria Maffini): Book Collector’s Mystery Series

Charles Warren Adams: The Notting Hill Mystery

Ellery Adams (aka Jennifer Stanley, J. B. Stanley, & 1/2 of Lucy Arlington): Books by the Bay Mystery Series

Isabella Alan (aka Amanda Flower): Amish Quilt Shop Mystery Series

Donna Andrews: Meg Langslow Mystery Series

Lucy Arlington: (Jennifer Stanley & Sylvia May): A Novel Idea Mystery Series

Josie Belle (aka Jenn McKinlay & Lucy Lawrence): Good Buy Girls Mystery Series

Frances Brody: Kate Shackleton Mystery Series

Joelle Charbonneau: Glee Club Mystery Series

Jessie Crockett: Sugar Grove Mystery Series

Mary Daheim: Hillside Manor Bed & Breakfast Mystery Series 

Christine DeSmet: Fudge Shop Mystery Series

Janet Evanovich: Stephanie Plum Mystery Series 

Shelley Freydont: Celebration Bay Mystery Series

Sophie Kelly (aka Sophie Ryan): Magical Cats Mystery Series 

Laurie R. King: Mary Russell Mystery Series

Joyce and Jim Lavene (aka J. J. Cook & Ellie Grant): Missing Pieces Mystery Series 

Ada Madison (aka Camille Minichino & Margaret Grace): Sophie Knowles Mystery Series

G.M. Malliet: Max Tudor Mystery Series

Jenn McKinlay (aka Josie Belle & Lucy Lawrence): Hat Shop Mystery Series

Leonard Merrick: Mr. Bazalgette’s Agent

Camille Minichino (aka Margaret Grace & Ada Madison): Periodic Table Mystery Series

Clare O’Donohue: Someday Quilts Mystery Series

Sara Rosett: Ellie Avery Mystery Series

Josephine Tey: Alan Grant Mystery Series

♦To access more Cozy Mystery Books Recommendations, click on this link♦

Finally It’s Time for a Winter Carnival Mystery…

In March of this year, I finally tried my first Joanne Fluke Hannah Swensen (Cookie Jar) mystery. I liked it so much that I actually recommended Fluke as my pick for the monthly mystery book recommendation entry. While it has been (more than) several months since I last read about Hannah and the rest of Lake Eden’s towns’ people, I am currently feeling very Cozy reading about the town’s Winter Carnival.

For those of you who read Fluke’s series, you will probably remember that the Winter Carnival takes place in the third book of the series. Why, you may ask, has it taken me so long to read these mysteries if I enjoy them so much?

This all gets back to my seasonal mysteries hang-up. For some reason, I just don’t enjoy reading about a winter carnival that takes place up in Minnesota during a San Antonio 100° summer day. Those two things just don’t mesh for me. That’s a problem that I encounter from time to time when I really like an author, but I know the next book in the series takes place in a certain type of weather/season.

So after I read Strawberry Shortcake Murder (the second in the series) I took a rather long break before reading the third in the series, Blueberry Muffin Murder, since I knew I would want to read it during one of our infrequent cold snaps, which is exactly what we are experiencing right now.

I have spoken a lot about how much I enjoy reading seasonal Cozy Mystery books during their appropriate seasons. This sort of thing often leads to me feeling like I’m not able to read a book until the “correct time of year.” It’s a major drag when I really like an author, but it’s what I do.

So, while I may not have to put on a winter coat, a scarf, and mittens, at least I am wearing my jacket these days. Perfect weather in San Antonio for a Winter Carnival.

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