Three days into 2015, it seems like now is a great time to ask you ALL if you have one specific Cozy Mystery book or series that you read this past year which you think that every other Cozy Mystery reader absolutely needs to read/ know about. I started doing the Favorite Cozy Mystery Books for the entire year in 2012, after getting a letter from Lynn T asking that we do the best Cozy of the year list. We came up with some great recommendations, so, let’s try doing that again!

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

What terrific Cozy Mystery book or series did you read during 2014 that you think the rest of us would definitely enjoy reading, and why did you enjoy it?

Here are the current recommended books who some of you recommended as the best Cozy Mystery you read all year:

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

Annie Adams: Flower Shop Mystery Series

Ellery Adams (aka Jennifer Stanley, J. B. Stanley, & 1/2 of Lucy Arlington): Murder in the Mystery Suite (Book Retreat Mystery Series)

Lucy Arlington (aka Ellery Adams & Sylvia May, Susan Furlong): Novel Idea Mystery Series

Nancy Atherton: Aunt Dimity Mystery Series

Maggie Barbieri: Murder 101 Mystery Series

Jessica Beck (aka Elizabeth Bright, Melissa Glazer, Chris Cavender, Casey Mayes, Tim Myers, & D.B. Morgan): Donut Shop Mystery Series

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

Emily Brightwell: Mrs. Jeffries Mystery Series

Duffy Brown: Cycle Path Mystery Series

Edie Claire: Leigh Koslow “Never” Mystery Series

Nancy J. Cohen: Bad Hair Day Mystery Series

Sheila Connolly (aka Sarah Atwell): Orchard Mystery Series AND Museum Mystery Series

Cleo Coyle (aka Alice Kimberly): Coffeehouse Mystery Series

Jana DeLeon: Miss Fortune Mystery Series AND Miss Fortune Mystery Series

Jo Dereske: Miss Zukas Mystery Series

Kate Ellis: Wesley Peterson Mystery Series

Amanda Flower (aka Isabella Alan): Appleseed Creek Mystery Series

Shelley Freydont: Celebration Bay Mystery Series

Kathryn Miller Haines: Rosie Winter Mystery Series

Gemma Halliday: High Heels Mystery Series, Hollywood Headlines Mystery Series, & Anna Smith & Nick Dade Mystery Series

Maddie Hunter: Passport to Peril Mystery Series

Julie Hyzy: White House Chef Mystery Series

Josi S. Kilpack: Culinary Mystery Series

Kate Kingsbury (aka Allison Kingsley & Rebecca Kent): Pennyfoot Hotel Mystery Series

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

Joyce and Jim Lavene: Renaissance Faire Mystery Series

Laura Levine: Death of a Neighborhood Witch (Jaine Austen Mystery Series)

T.C. LoTempio: Meow if it’s Murder (Nick and Nora Mystery Series)

Anna Loan-Wisley: Hattie Davish Mystery Series

Jenn McKinlay (aka Josie Belle & Lucy Lawrence): Cupcake Bakery Mystery Series, Hat Shop Mystery Series, AND Library Lover’s Mystery Series

Laura Morrigan: A Tiger’s Tale (Call of the Wilde Mystery Series)

Kee Patterbee: Hannah Starvling Twilight Mystery Series

Leigh Perry (aka Toni L.P. Kelner): Family Skeleton Mystery Series

Ann Purser: Lois Meade Mystery Series

Spencer Quinn (aka Peter Abrahams): Chet and Bernie Mystery Series

Hannah Reed (aka Deb Baker): Off Kilter (Scottish Highlands Mystery Series)

Annelise Ryan (aka Allyson K. Abbott): Mattie Winston Mystery Series

Hank Phillippi Ryan: Truth Be Told (Jane Ryland Mystery Series)

Gayle Trent (aka Amanda Lee): Daphne Martin Cake Mystery Series AND Myrtle Crumb Mystery Series

Diane Vallere: Suede to Rest (Material Witness Mystery Series)

Heather Webber: Nina Quinn Mystery Series

Ovidia Yu: Aunty Lee’s Singaporean Mystery Series

[If you click on the author’s name (blue) link, it will take you to his/her page on the Cozy Mystery site. The pages have all of the authors’ books listed chronologically.]

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

P.S. While I try to respond to all of the comments that are made on the Cozy Mystery blog, I generally don’t respond to the comments on these recommendation entries.

We started the “Favorite Cozy Mystery Books for the Year” last year when Lynn T proposed that we list our very, very favorite-est (my words, not hers!) mysteries of the year. We already do our monthly favorite mysteries, so these Favorite of the Year should be the very best of the best we have read.

I have read many good Cozy Mystery books this year. I have also read some not-so-good Cozy Mysteries. (Haven’t we all?!?) I have mentioned several of the authors who are on my Favorite Authors list. But who wrote my very favorite mystery read of the year?

When I was talking to my husband about this entry, I asked him how I could ever pick just one mystery book and say it was my very favorite of the year. I have enjoyed so many, how would I be able to pick just one? I then told him about several of my favorite authors who I have read this year. Since this list is not comprised of just brand new authors who started being published this year, it includes ALL Cozy Mystery authors. Hmmm… That’s a whole lot of authors! He then asked me who I thought is my very favorite Cozy Mystery author, to which I responded, Agatha Christie.

Christie is one of the very few authors who I have read, re-read, and plan to re-read again. She was a formidable story-teller. Her characters always ring true to me. There’s a reason her books are still so popular; although written many years ago, they seem almost ageless. She is able to describe/depict the very nature of people and their quirks. Her writing style is flawless and flows so easily. Her mysteries are perfect.

So, I will nominate Agatha Christie’s (1957) What Mrs. McGillicuddy Saw (aka 4:50 from Paddington) since it is the last Miss Marple mystery I have read by this phenomenal author.

So please tell us about your Favorite Cozy Mystery Read for 2013, and why you are picking this book or author. Thank you!

As usual with these types of entries, I will add the books/authors who you all comment about to the list:

Favorite Cozy Mystery Reads for 2013:

Ellery Adams (aka Jennifer Stanley, J.B. Stanley, & 1/2 of Lucy Arlington: Poisoned Prose

Nancy Atherton: Aunt Dimnity and the Lost Prince

Josie Belle (aka Jenn McKinlay & Lucy Lawrence): Buried in Bargains

Agatha Christie: 4:50 from Paddington (aka What Mrs. McGillicuddy Saw)

Agatha Christie: By the Pricking of My Thumbs 

Sheila Connolly: Buried in a Bog

Amanda Flower (aka Isabella Alan): A Plain Scandal

Mary Lou Kirwin: Killer Librarian

Joyce and Jim Lavene (aka J.J. Cook & Ellie Grant): Harrowing Hats

Jenn McKinlay (aka Josie Belle & Lucy Lawrence): Cloche and Dagger

Louise Penny: How the Light Comes In

Dana Stabenow: Bad Blood

Heather Webber (aka Heather Blake): The Root of All Trouble

If you’re interested in seeing a whole lot more recommendations made by Cozy Mystery readers, click here: Monthly Cozy Mystery Recommendations.