I don’t know if I should admit this, but I am not reading a Cozy Mystery right now. Yes, it’s true, every once in a while I leave my favorite Cozies to read something different. It doesn’t happen all that often, but I have to say that it does happen.

A while ago I mentioned a book that I was reading that is still very much in my mind. This is a book that I strongly recommend to everyone: The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom. It is a book that depicts the strength and positive outlook of a woman who endured much suffering. It is a book that may perhaps leave you feeling humbled. Terrific book!

Another type of book that entices me away from my Cozies is true crime. Ann Rule is one of my favorite true crime authors. She does extensive research before writing her true crime books, and she makes them read like fiction. I find myself having to remind myself that these are true stories of terrible events that truly did happen.

But right now I am reading a book that might surprise you. I am reading (and enjoying!) Nancy Zieman‘s Seams Unlikely, and I don’t sew! (Other than re-attaching buttons and fixing small seams that have come apart.)

I have mentioned before how much I miss crafting shows like the Carol Duvall Show. I absolutely loved that show! (I guess it would be more accurate if I said I loved, loved, loved that show!) Since I couldn’t find anything to take Carol’s place, I started watching Sewing with Nancy. While the show doesn’t feature crafting, and since I don’t sew, I will admit that the most interesting part of the show is the last ten-minute segment, when Nancy highlights a sewing project that benefits others. I love these segments. I usually don’t watch the ending credits, but for some reason, I did this week. And I’m glad I did. I saw that Nancy Zieman has written her autobiography, and I started reading it that very same day. Her spirit is as positive as the segment that she features in her show highlighting beneficial sewing projects from all around the world.

This got me thinking: It might be interesting to us to see what other Cozy Mystery readers read when they aren’t reading a terrific Cozy… So, I ask you this:

When you aren’t reading a Cozy Mystery, with what type of book are you most likely spending your time? Please post a comment to let us know. Thank you!

I have an announcement to make. For those of you who use either your mobile phones or tablets to browse the Cozy Mystery site, my “tech guy” (aka my husband) just reformatted my site so that you can view it on a small screen. (There shouldn’t be much of a difference for those of you who use your computers to see my site.)

I have mentioned that I am a hold-out for my old flip cell phone, but he finally got a smart phone a few months ago. When he accessed my site on his smart phone, he was shocked to see how difficult it was to read.

Long story, short >>> Since 2006 I have used Microsoft Frontpage for the Cozy Mystery site. However, Frontpage has been obsolete/discontinued for years. Frontpage wasn’t able to reformat the site so that you all who use your mobile phones and tablets could see it.

For those of you using your smart phones and tablets, the menu is at the top of your screen on the left side. The menu should be on every page. If you press the menu button (the one with three lines) it will drop the menu down so that it will be easier for you to navigate my Cozy Mystery site. (The mobile menu has been added to the blog too).

Whatever screen you have, big or small, would you please let me know if you notice any glitches? There shouldn’t be any, but my husband isn’t a “real tech guy”, just a dabbler, so there might be some (hopefully minor) glitches. Please let me know, and I’ll pass the information along to him.

You know, they say you should never work with family members. You can’t fire them, but you (I guess I should say “I”!) can always complain!

I have talked about my personal lists that I keep about Cozy Mystery authors I have read. I have one list that has all of my favorite Cozy Mystery authors on it. I keep it on my computer’s desktop so that I can revise it whenever one of my favorite authors publishes a new Cozy. I mark off the books as I read them. This just works best for me, as I like to read my Cozies in chronological order.

The lists I don’t talk about much are the alphabetical lists I use to mark down my “YUCK” authors. I try a whole lot of Cozies but don’t end up enjoying all of them. I’ve talked about my “50 page rule” on many occasions. If I don’t like a Cozy I’m reading by page 50 (which I’m now translating to be about 20 – 25% of a Kindle copy) I stop reading the book, and place the author’s name on his/her corresponding alphabetical list with a big “YUCK” after the name. (Unfortunately, I just started adding the reason I didn’t enjoy the author a few years ago, so there are quite a few authors on the list who I can’t remember even trying, let alone the reason they didn’t appeal to me.)

We have discussed retrying Cozy Mystery authors who had once been favorites of our, who we then thought we had outgrown. This time I’m talking about authors who we never liked, perhaps not even making it to our cut-off page limit. These are authors who start on our yuck lists, and usually never get a chance to be taken off of it.

Usually I consult my lists before I buy a book by a new-to-me author, but sometimes I forget to do that. Fortunately, in the case of one of my very favorite authors, I forgot to consult my yuck list. Wow, am I glad I did! You cannot imagine how surprised I was to find that at one time in my life I had tried this author and had totally disliked her. Good grief! I have spent many hours of very enjoyable Cozy Mystery reading with this author’s sleuth, all because I (luckily) didn’t check that doggone yuck list! I have had this happen a few other times, so I am finding myself wondering if I actually dislike all of the Cozy Mystery authors who I have on my yuck list, or not!

Have any of you ever disliked an author who you later find you like a whole lot? Without naming names, could you tell us about it?

*** As usual, please do not mention the names of authors you don’t like.***