The Cozy Mystery List Blog

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

Cozy Mystery Series With Multiple Themes

August 21, 2016

When I was writing my entry about Katherine Hall Page’s Faith Fairchild Mystery Series (click here for that entry), I started thinking about Cozy Mystery themes and the way authors sometimes weave more than one theme into many series. As most of you know, I have a number of Cozy Mystery theme lists on my site (click here for the table of contents for those themes).  When I add a new series or book to the site’s lists, I try to update the themes pages >>> I have to admit that a few times times I haven’t been so good about doing that >>> but I try. Anyway, this is not a new series, so I did not have to think about updating the theme pages >>> but what I did start thinking was that even back in the early days of the modern Cozy Mystery books (circa 1990), authors, such as Katherine Hall Page, were already creating series with multiple themes.

Several of the themes that I was thinking about about when re-looking at A Body in the Belfry were the Culinary – Cooking theme (there are so many cooking theme mysteries that this is actually a link to our “where to start with culinary mysteries” discussion), the Religious theme and the Rich Sleuths theme >>> not to mention our Cozy Mysteries by state lists with this series mostly fitting in the Massachusetts list.

For the Religious theme, Faith is a daughter of a minister and the new wife of a minister. Goings on in and around the church are a big part of the Body in the Belfry, and not much happens in the story where the church and the congregation are not discussed.

Also, for the Rich Sleuths theme, although Faith has a “modest but adequate” (as she calls it) trust fund, she is not normally spending  extraordinary amounts of money in these books. Her husband Tom, much like Darren in Bewitched not wanting Samantha to use her special powers, doesn’t want Faith to spend her trust money. (What’s with these husbands?!?) The only concessions he has given Faith are for her wardrobe and her kitchen >>> which are both lavish. Nevertheless, Faith is lucky to have the money when she needs it (or just really wants it).

And finally, the Culinary Theme is pretty restrained, at least in the first book in the series. Yes, I know that the series does veer much more towards culinary issues later when Faith gets her “Have Faith” catering service going again, and Katherine Hall Page is one of the authors on the Mystery Authors with Cookbooks list with her Have Faith in Your Kitchen cookbook of Faith Fairchild’s favorite recipes.

So, I found it interesting to think about how many themes Katherine Hall Page managed to squeeze into the first book in this very popular series even way back at the dawn of what I think of as the modern Cozy. I imagine it would probably be a very long list if we were to discuss every Cozy series that has multiple themes, so I won’t be trying to make a complete list.

But, I thought I might throw it open for discussion as to what your favorite Cozy series are that have multiple themes. Please leave a comment with your favorite Cozy series with multiple themes – please tell us the author, series and what themes you think the series fits in. Thank you!

  • Facebook
  • Twitter

11 Comments - Click Here to Read the Comments or to Add Another

Cleo Coyle: Coffeehouse Mystery Series

July 19, 2016

Next on my list of the most popular & recommended Cozy Mystery series is the Coffeehouse Mystery Series by Cleo Coyle. This very popular series is a New York Times Bestselling series for a reason! I probably should mention that Cleo Coyle is actually a husband and wife writing team, but I think it will be easier to  just refer to the author as “her” in this entry. The duo also writes the Haunted Bookshop Mystery Series as Alice Kimberly.

On What Grounds is the first book in this very popular series, and it introduces us to Clare Cosi, an almost 40 year old manager of a historic New York coffeehouse, the Village Blend. As the book begins Clare is just about to finish moving into the apartment above the coffeehouse, having just returned to manage the Blend after a 10 year hiatus to raise her daughter in the New Jersey suburbs. She has returned as manager >>> lured by the promise of “Madame” (the aging owner) that she would get an ownership stake in the shop. Madame has also made a similar deal with her son (Clare’s ex-husband Matt). So Clare and her ex will be living in the same rooms above the shop, at least during a week or so every month when Matt, a coffee buyer, will be in town. (As an aside, why do most all good things come with at least one not-so-good?)

As Clare is arriving early one morning with the final things in her car from her move, she discovers that her assistant, Annabelle, has not opened the shop. When she takes a look around she finds Annabelle’s nearly lifeless body at the bottom of the stairs leading to the basement storeroom. I doubt I give too much away when I say that (of course!) Annabelle was not the victim of a tragic accident. Clare suspects foul play – and she won’t stop until she finds the culprit.

The detective in charge of determining whether Annabelle fell or was pushed is Detective Quinn. (Hmmm… As this is the first book in the series, the reader may wonder if Detective Quinn and Clare’s ex-husband Matt provide a romantic rivalry in the series? No spoilers here, but I will say I certainly hope so!) Also in Clare’s life is her daughter, Joy, who is also Matt’s daughter. Joy is attending culinary school in the city, which is one of the reasons that Clare was willing to come back to the Blend.

There are a lot of Cozy Mystery theme books that just provide the barest of background information related to the books’ theme. This book isn’t like those series. The making and drinking of coffee is woven throughout the book. You will no doubt learn what goes into buying coffee beans and even proper techniques to make a great cup. Also, the book contains many coffee recipes and tips. (I know I’m only discussing the first book in the series, but I want to interject that all of the Coffeehouse mysteries have recipes in them.)

Cleo Coyle’s Coffeehouse series takes place in New York City, but the author is able to provide a small community in the midst of NYC by making the coffeehouse into a small community. On What Grounds is a great start to the series with just the right combination of character introduction and sleuthing. The mystery is difficult enough to solve that I did not guess the ending >>> but looking back on it I think I should have! There were plenty of clues, I just missed them! Although there is a lot of discussion about coffee, the theme does not become overwhelming, and I would guess that even non-coffee lovers would still enjoy the book.

This is a Cozy Mystery series I’ve followed since its beginning, and I’m looking forward to the next one, which is scheduled to be published in January 2017. (Even though I haven’t caught up with it, I always like to hear there’s another on the way!)

As always, if you’re interested in seeing more highlights of some of the most recommended or popular Cozy Mystery authors/series, visit the Most Popular & Recommended Cozy Mystery Series page on my site.

  • Facebook
  • Twitter

44 Comments - Click Here to Read the Comments or to Add Another

Private Investigator Sleuths

June 24, 2016

sleuthWay back in 2010, I created a theme (with your help!) that covered sleuths who are private investigators. After just discussing Lea Wait’s Mainely Needlepoint series (click here for that entry), I checked to see if I had remembered to include this series on that list. Yikes! I’m glad I checked!

Hmmm… Finding that I had forgotten to include this series on the list, I wondered what other series/sleuths were missing from the list. What better time than now >>> to update that list!

I think we should include sleuths who were former private investigators, also. In the Mainely Needlepoint series, the sleuth formerly worked for a private investigator, and she uses skills she learned as a private investigator to work on and solve the mysteries.

(I know there are authors from the 2010 list who are not Cozy Mystery authors. In 2010 we listed only the authors who could be found on the Cozy Mystery Site. However, this method sometimes meant that non Cozy authors were included in entries and Cozy authors who weren’t on the site were not included on the lists.)

So, here is the list of sleuths who are private investigators (as updated). Do you see any who are missing? Please leave a comment below so that I can add them to the list. Thank you!

Private Investigator Sleuths:

Cathy Ace: WISE Enquiries Agency Mystery Series – 4 Women PIs

Conrad Allen (aka Edward Marston & Keith Miles): Dillman Mystery Series – Transatlantic Cruise Ship Detective

Lori Avocato: Pauline Sokol Mystery Series – Medical Fraud Investigator

Julian Barnes – (not Cozy)

Linda Barnes: Carlotta Carlyle Mystery Series – Boston PI AND Michael Spraggue Mystery Series… PI Actor

M. C. Beaton: Agatha Raisin Mystery Series – Owner of PI Agency

Carol Lea Benjamin: Rachel Alexander Mystery Series – PI Dog Trainer

Ruth Birmingham (aka Walter Sorrells & Lynn Abercrombie) – Sunny Childs Mystery Series  – Georgia PI

Nero Blanc (aka Cordelia Frances Biddle & Steve Zettler) – Crossword Puzzle Mystery Series – PI and Crossword Puzzle Editor

Lawrence Block: Matt Scudder Mystery Series – not Cozy

D.B. Borton (aka Della Borton): Cat Caliban Mystery Series – Sexagenarian PI

Rhys Bowen: Molly Murphy Mystery Series – Irish PI in New York

Susan M. Boyer: Liz Talbot Mystery Series – Paranormal PI series

Susan Breen: Maggie Dove Mystery Series – a Sunday school teacher who opens a private detective agency

Kate Bryan: Maggie Maguire Mystery Series – Pinkerton PI

Carole Buggé:  Sherlock Holmes Mystery Series – British PI

Nancy Bush: Jane Kelly Mystery Series – PI & Pug

Dorothy Cannell: Ellie Haskell Mystery Series – Flower Sisters PIs

Sally Chapman (aka Annie Griffin): Silicon Valley Mystery Series – Computer Fraud PI

Agatha Christie: Hercule Poirot Mystery Series – PI with a whole lot of the little Gray Cells

Carole Higgins Clark: Regan Reilly Mystery Series – California PI

Bill Crider: Truman Smith Mystery Series – Texas PI

Arthur Conan Doyle: Sherlock Holmes Series – London PI

E.J. Copperman (aka Jeffrey Cohen): Haunted Guesthouse Mystery Series – PI & a PI Ghost

Waverly Curtis: Barking Detective Mystery Series – Investigator and her “Chihuahua extraordinaire”

Lindsey Davis: Marcus Didius Falco Series – Ancient Roman PI (not Cozy)

Sharon Duncan: Scotia MacKinnon Mystery Series – Washington (State) PI

Susan Dunlap: Kiernan O’Shaughnessy Mystery Sereis – Ex Medical Examiner, Current PI (not Cozy)

Selma Eichler: Desiree Shapiro Mystery Series – “Murder Can…” PI

P.N. Elrod: Jack Fleming Mysteries – Chicago PI in 1930s (not Cozy)

Charles Finch: Charles Lenox Mystery Series – PI in 1860s London

Dick Francis: Sid Halley – not Cozy

Christy Tillery French: Natasha Chamberlain Mystery Series – Bodyguard PI

Lee Goldberg: Mr. Monk Mystery Series – Idiosyncratic PI

Sue Grafton: Kinsey Millhone Mystery Series – Alphabetical PI

Ann Granger: Fran Varady Mystery Series – British PI

Carolyn Haines: Sarah Booth Delaney Mystery Series – Owners of Detective Agency

Linda Hall: Teri Blake-Addison Mystery Series AND Fog Point Mystery Series – both Maine PIs

Tarquin Hall: Vish Puri Mystery Series – PI in Delhi, India

C.S. Harris: Sebastian St. Cyr Mystery Series – (not Cozy)

Carolyn Hart: Death on Demand Mystery Series – Book Store Owner & PI

Betty Hechtman: Yarn Retreat Mystery Series – Ex-PI

Veronica Heley: Abbot Agency Mystery Series – British PI

Gabriella Herkert: Animal Instincts Mystery Series – Washington (State) PI

Kaye C. Hill: Lexy Lomax Mystery Series – PI and her Chihuahua

P.D. James: Cordelia Gray Mystery Series – Inheritor of PI Business

Jon Katz: Suburban Detective Mystery Series – New Jersey PI

Marne Davis Kellogg: Lilly Bennett Mystery Series – Wyoming PI

Karen Kijewski: Kat Colorado Mystery Series – Sacramento PI

Alice Kimberly (aka Cleo Coyle): Haunted Bookshop Mystery Series – Ghostly PI

Laurie R. King: Mary Russell Mystery Series – Sherlock Holmes’ Wife PI

Mary Kruger: Gilded Age Mystery Series – 1890s PI

Hilda Lawrence: Mark East Mystery Series – New England PIs

Martha C. Lawrence: Elizabeth Chase Mystery Series – Parapsychologist / Psychic PI

Laura Lippman: Tess Monaghan Mystery Series – Baltimore PI

Lisa Lutz: Izzy Spellman Mystery Series – San Francisco PI

Karen MacInerney: Margie Peterson Mystery Series – PI Mom

Charlotte MacLeod (aka Alisa Craig): Sarah Kelling & Max Bittersohn Mystery Series – Art Security PI

Taylor McCafferty (aka Barbara Taylor McCafferty & Tierney McClellan): Haskell Blevins, PI Mystery Series – Kentucky PI

Alexander McCall Smith: The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency Mystery Series – Botswana PIs

Val McDermid: Kate Brannigan Mystery Series (not Cozy)

Ralph McInerny (aka Monica Quill): Notre Dame Mystery Series – Indiana PI

G.A. McKevett: Savannah Reid Mystery Series – California PI

Lorena McCourtney: Cate Kinkaid Files Mystery Series – Assistant PI

Leslie Meier: Lucy Stone Mystery Series 

Marcia Muller: Sharon McCone Mystery Series – San Francisco PI

Katy Munger (aka Gallagher Gray): Casey Jones Mystery Series – North Carolina PI

Shirley Rousseu Murphy: Joe Grey Cat Mystery Series – California PI & Kit, the Cat

Lynne Murray: Josephine Fuller Mystery Series – Seattle PI

Diana Orgain: Maternal Instincts Mystery Series – New Mom PI

Sara Paretsky: V. I. Warshawski Mystery Series – ex-lawyer PI in Chicago (not Cozy)

Anne Perry: William Monk Mystery Series – Ex-PI

Maggie Pill: Sleuth Sisters – Michigan PIs

Rose Pressey: Maggie, PI Mystery Series – Florida PI

Spencer Quinn (aka Peter Abrahams): Chet and Bernie Mystery Series – PI & His Narrator Dog

Misa Ramirez (Melissa Bourbon): Lola Cruz Mystery Series – Sacramento PI

Dorothy L. Sayers: Lord Peter Wimsey Mystery Series – English PI

Sandra Scoppettone: Faye Quick Mystery Series AND Lauren Laurano Mystery Series – New York PIs

Connie Shelton: Charlie Parker Mysteries (Charlie is an accountant, her brother is the PI in a small PI firm)

Dana Stabenow: Kate Shugak Mystery Series – Alaska PI

Rex Stout: Nero Wolfe Mystery Series – Orchid Lover PI

Winona Sullivan: Sister Cecile Mystery Series – Boston PI

Leann Sweeney: Yellow Rose Mystery Series – Houston PI

Elizabeth Atwood Taylor: Maggie Elliott Mystery Series – California PI

Will Thomas: Cyrus Barker and Llewelyn Mystery Series – not Cozy

Victoria Thompson: Gaslight Mystery Series – Police Sergeant turned PI

Elaine Viets: Dead End Job Mystery Series – Florida PI

Lea Wait: Mainely Needlepoint Mystery Series – former PI

Edgar Wallace: ‘The Black’ series of short stories – Blackmail PI

Betty Webb: Lena Jones Mystery Series – Arizona PI (not Cozy)

Patricia Wentworth: Miss Maud Silver Mystery Series – British Ex-Governess PI

Valerie Wilson Wesley: Tamara Hayle Mystery Series – New Jersey PI

Jacqueline Winspear: Maisie Dobbs Mystery Series – Early 20th Century London PI

Sharon Zukowski: Blaine Stewart Mystery Series – not Cozy

P.S. If you’d like to see lots and lots of themes, be sure to take a look at the Cozy Mysteries by Themes page on my site.

  • Facebook
  • Twitter

46 Comments - Click Here to Read the Comments or to Add Another

Favorite Summer Cozy Mysteries!

June 15, 2016

summerWow, it feels like it’s already summer down here in San Antonio! But at the same time >>> the year seems to be going so quickly that I can’t believe summer’s almost here! Whenever the weather starts getting hot (and here in Texas it gets pretty doggone hot pretty quickly), I’m sure to start thinking about reading summer-themed Cozies.

I was thinking maybe we could compile a list of our ultra favorite Summer Cozy Mysteries.

As you all might be aware, we do already have a Summer Cozy Mystery Theme page. So what I’m talking about isn’t necessarily just every possible summer themed Cozy Mystery you can think up >>> that’s what the theme page is for after all! Instead I’m just looking for a short number of your “personal favorites” so to speak, so just one pick (or maybe two or three) would be great! And yes, considering that all three are squarely within the summer time frame, some of your favorite Fourth of July Mystery Cozies, Father’s Day Mystery Cozies, and Labor Day Mystery Cozies would definitely be appropriate recommendations! (Of course, feel free to recommend Cozies that aren’t already on those lists!)

I’ll put up a few quick recommendations of my own, just to get things started. Please leave a comment to add your favorites.

FAVORITE SUMMER COZY MYSTERIES:

Donald Bain & “Jessica Fletcher”: Murder on Parade (I couldn’t stop myself and read this holiday Cozy out of chronological order!)

Donna Andrews: Some Like It Hawk

Susan Bernhardt: Murder by Fireworks

Nancy Coco (aka Nancy J. Parra): Oh Say Can You Fudge

Cleo Coyle (aka Alice Kimberly): Murder Most Frothy

Isis Crawford (akaBarbara Block): A Catered Fourth of July

Kathi Daley: Bikinis in Paradise

Joanne Fluke: Lemon Meringue Pie Murder 

Shelley Freydont: Independence Slay

Victoria Hamilton (aka Amanda Cooper & Donna Lea Simpson): Bowled Over

Lee Harris: 

  • Cinco de Mayo Mystery – (A little early, but it’s already hot in some areas of the country!)
  • Mother’s Day Mystery
  • Father’s Day Mystery
  • Labor Day Mystery

Leslie Meier: Tippy Toe Murder

P.S. If you want to see a whole bunch of Cozy Mystery themes, visit the Cozy Mysteries by Themes page on my site. But, if you’re only interested in Cozies with holiday themes, visit the Holiday Mystery Book List page on my site.

  • Facebook
  • Twitter

11 Comments - Click Here to Read the Comments or to Add Another

« Previous Page
Next Page »

Subscribe to Blog Post Email Alerts

  • Cozy Mystery Blog Home
  • Cozy Mystery Site
  • Soon to be Released Mysteries
  • Cozies by Themes
  • New Mystery Releases
  • New Mystery Series
  • Cozy Mystery Recommendations
  • Most Popular and Recommended Cozy Mystery Series
  • Holiday Mystery Book Lists
  • What Is a Cozy?
  • TV and Movies
  • Author Interviews
  • Cozy-Mystery.com on Facebook

Recent Posts

  • Cozy Mystery Book Recommendations – April 2025
  • Jacqueline Winspear: Maisie Dobbs Mystery Series
  • TURNER CLASSIC MOVIES CHANNEL MYSTERY MOVIES – May 2025
  • April 14 to April 27
  • March 31 to April 13

Recent Comments

  • Regina Williams on Cozy Mystery Book Recommendations – April 2025
  • Fortney, Sally on Cozy Mystery Book Recommendations – April 2025
  • Shirley on Cozy Mystery Book Recommendations – April 2025
  • Georgia on Cozy Mystery Book Recommendations – April 2025
  • Rob Jarrad on Cozy Mystery Book Recommendations – April 2025

Cozy Mystery List Home | Affiliate Disclosure | Cozy Mystery Blog Home  | Cozy Mystery Blog Sitemap | Privacy Policy  | Contact Me   | About |

Copyright © 2006-2025, Cozy-Mystery.Com, All rights reserved.
A Guide to Cozy Mystery Books, Movies, and TV


MENU
  • Cozy Mystery Blog Home
  • Cozy Mystery Site
  • Soon to be Released Mysteries
  • Cozies by Themes
  • New Mystery Releases
  • New Mystery Series
  • Cozy Mystery Recommendations
  • Most Popular and Recommended Cozy Mystery Series
  • Holiday Mystery Book Lists
  • What Is a Cozy?
  • TV and Movies
  • Author Interviews
  • Cozy-Mystery.com on Facebook