If you read a Cozy mystery this month and want to recommend it to the rest of us, be sure to post it here! For this month, I read David Rosenfelt’s Andy Carpenter Mystery Series, a series that isn’t completely Cozy but I feel close enough to it to include in this list. For the reasons I want to recommend it, be sure to check out the blog entry!
So, what have you been reading that you can recommend in November? Please be sure to tell us why you liked these Cozies so much. I know we’re all always on the lookout for more particularly good Cozy Mystery authors! (If you have a lot of Cozies you think are great, please post the ones you like the most at the top of the list.)
As always, please do not tell us about the Cozy Mysteries you did not like.
What really good Cozy Mystery did you read during November 2018 that you want the rest of us to know about, and why did you enjoy it?
Here are the current recommended authors who some of you have read and recommended this past month:
Winnie Archer (aka Melissa Bourbon & Misa Ramirez): Bread Shop Mystery Series
Sandra Balzo: Maggy Thorsen Mystery Series
Bethany Blake: Lucky Paws Petsitting Mystery Series
Kathleen Bridge: Hamptons Home & Garden Mystery Series
Duffy Brown: Cycle Path Mystery Series
Ellen Byron: Cajun Country Mystery Series
Maya Corrigan: Five-Ingredient Mystery Series
Vicki Delany (aka Eva Gates): Sherlock Holmes Bookshop Mystery Series
Amanda Flower (aka Isabella Alan): Magic Garden Mystery Series
Sarah Fox: Pancake House Mystery Series
Jacqueline Frost (aka Julie Chase & Julie Anne Lindsey): Christmas Tree Farm Mystery Series
Daryl Wood Gerber (aka Avery Aames): Cookbook Nook Mystery Series
Betty Hechtman: Crochet Mystery Series
Mary Ellen Hughes: Keepsake Cove Mystery Series
G. A. McKevett: Granny Reid Mystery Series
Teresa Michael: Mariposa Cafe Mystery Series (first entry Murder in Mariposa Beach)
Holly Quinn: Handcrafted Mystery Series (first entry A Crafter Knits a Clue)
David Rosenfelt: Andy Carpenter Mystery Series
Dorothy Simpson: Inspector Thanet 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.]
I will list the authors and series that have been recommended, but I urge you to read the comments below so you can see the reasons other Cozy Mystery readers thought these were their best reads of the month.
♦To access more Cozy Mystery Books Recommendations, click on this link♦
P.S. I usually don’t comment on your recommendations since they speak for themselves.
Cheryl Palmour says
I just finished A Crafter Knits A Clue by Holly Quinn. Fun read.
Moira says
I have been devouring the Inspector Luke Thanet series by Dorothy Simpson. The writing is clean, cinematic and insightful- this is a compassionate inspector who deeply understands human nature. He’s also a loving man who adores his wife and two children, appreciates his colleagues and feels a deep connection with the Kentish countryside in his part of England. Highly recommended!
Judith Timmons says
Judy
I would like to recommend a new cozy that has just been offered on Amazon. It is currently sold as an e-book and will be offered soon in paperback form. It is called MURDER in MARIPOSA BEACH by Teresa Michael.
It is set in Southwest Florida in a beautiful beach area and the main character owns and runs a small cafe.
She has a past that comes into plays as she sets out to solve the murder of a business associate.
It is fast-paced and exciting as she works with a local police officer.
Ms. Michael is a professional woman who has been pursuing a literary career for several years.
I think you will enjoy her first book in this new series.I did!
MJ says
December Recommendations – 2018
On The Hook – Betty Hechtman
This book is the 12th one in a series I’ve enjoyed for several years. Most likely I’ve recommended the previous books. Since I just finished it minutes ago, I wanted to get it on this month’s list.
Molly Pink is a widow and is the assistant manager for a book store (also selling yarns) in southern CA. A crochet group gathers there for their various projects. There is a ‘craziness’ (or perhaps a ‘zaniness’) to these stories. The characters (and there are many) are quite diverse. This author keeps the reader captivated with her story telling abilities.
An actor who conducts acting workshops has been murdered in his home. His home was ‘for sale’. A realtor friend of Molly’s takes her and another friend through the home to view it. They leave in a hurry and Molly left her scarf there. Unbeknownst to them, his body is in the den. It is discovered later by another realtor…………complicated, I know. Buy, I’m trying to keep it simple!
There are several suspects. The culprit and the reason why is a surprise, keeping the reader guessing until the end. There are problems with the romance story line (involving a lawyer and a detective). The author seems to be going backwards, rather than forward with this aspect of the story, making it a bit boring (NOT the mystery story, just this aspect)! Hopefully in the next book the author can find a new ‘romantic’ direction for Molly. (:
In the final chapters there seems to be an explanation sequence out of order. It should be an ‘epilogue’.
There is SO much to this book, it’s difficult to give it a simple description. It is an engaging series….one I think many of you will enjoy.
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Mardi Gras Murder — Ellen Byron
First of all – THANK YOU to this author for providing the reader a list of characters at the beginning of the book. There are many characters and it gets confusing, so the list was quite helpful. I referred to it several times.
This series is set in a small Louisiana community. Maggie Crozat is the lead character. She moved back to her home town community and is helping her family with their B&B. She also works at a loval museum. Recently there was a flood and a body was uncovered.
Maggie steps in to help with a Mardi Gras beauty pageant as a judge since her grandmother became ill. There is a LOT of drama to this contest, especially between the ‘mothers’. This concept may sound trite, but it’s the basis for an ongoing conflict between families.
The story is woven together quite well with a very interesting historical component. The characters have depth and are engaging. There are several story lines to keep track of, but it all adds to the appeal of the book. It’s an absorbing story, written with some humor.
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Walking Bread — Winnie Archer
This is the third book in this series. Photographer Ivy Culpepper has returned to her small hometown in CA. She also works part-time at a local Mexican bread bakery. The owner has become a wise older friend.
Each spring this community hosts an art car show, where cars are specifically designed with art work. Ivy’s brother, Billy, enters the contest each year. He always receives the 2nd place award. The perennial first place winner is a local real estate magnate. This year Ivy discovers his body in his art car. Billy is suspect #1.
It took me a bit to get into this story because I was trying to remember all the characters. Ivy’s sidekick in her sleuthing is an octogenarian neighbor. I had vaguely remembered a romantic interest, but it wasn’t mentioned in this story until page 80 or so. By then, everything came back to me.
Entertaining characters, good drama, plotted and paced well, and a surprise ending…………what’s not to like?!
Sally Fortney says
I read S’More Murders by Maya Corrigan. It had a Titanic theme but also had cooking and recipes. I like her grandfather.
Becky McFadden says
We love the Andy Carpenter series at our house and recommended it to my husband’s uncle who became an instant fan! We discovered David Rosenfelt by listening to an audiobook, because we had heard the reader narrate a book and really liked his voice. Andy Carpenter is great company on a car ride! Since we have listened to 4 books, I would be comfortable putting this series in the cozy genre.
Barb E says
My favorite book this month was Murder in her Stocking by G.A.
McKevett (A Granny Reid Mystery #1). This is a “spin off” of her Savannah Reid Mystery series. It goes back in time to Savannah’s childhood. All of her books are nicely written with rich characters. This was no exception and fun to read.
Another book I enjoyed a lot was Death and Daisies by Amanda Flower. This follows Flowers and Foul Play in the Magic Garden Series. Good characterization and a lovely Scottish setting. I don’t normally care for magical mysteries but I really like her 3 Amish mystery series (one under the name Isabella Alan) so gave this series a try and found it charming.
Janice G says
I read a lot of good books this month so I’ll keep the descriptions short. My favorite is A Midwinter’s Tail by Bethany Blake – a Christmas themed mystery set in a pet friendly town in the Pocono Mts. A former resident returns to town and threatens to upset the town’s economy by opening a big box pet supply store. Lots of residents have reason to dislike her and she soon ends up as a victim. The main character Daphne is of course the one to find the body and gets involved in helping to solve the case. Her hilarious explanations and interpretations of her basset hound Socrates’s moods and feelings add a light touch to a serious subject.
Also good this month were Yeast of Eden by Sarah Fox, Tandem Demise by Duffy Brown (always funny), Wreath Between the Lines by Daryl Wood Gerber, A Vintage Death by Mary Ellen Hughes, and A Study in Scarlet by Vicki Delany. I somehow ended up getting Sandra Balzo’s new book in the coffee house series Murder a la Mocha from the library this week. It’s listed as being available in the US in January but it is published by a British publisher and has been released there and this seems to be the British version. I enjoyed reading it and catching up with some old favorite characters.
Hanna says
Hope I can still add. I finished Kathleen Bridge’s Hampton Home and Garden Mysteries and enjoyed them. The last one – Ghostal Living – takes place in a soon to be opened Bed & Breakfast home dedicated to famous authors. Thus, we are treated to various life events of authors – F. Scott Fitzgerald, Herman Melville, Edith Wharton and others to decorate each guest room in the style of the author. They mystery is the disappearances of original, value books, as well as someone to authenticate a recently found manuscript.
And, Meg Barrett’s personal life has settled, too. The description of the northern tip of Long Island, New York is interesting and enticing, as well as the lives of regular people serving the tourists.
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Hanna, I usually keep updating these recommendations posts for at least a week, often quite longer! So don’t feel like you absolutely need to get it in before the end of the month.
Julie F. says
I love Jacqueline Frost’s Christmas Tree Farm series set in a Christmas-themed town in Maine. The second installment is ‘Twas the Knife Before Christmas and it didn’t disappoint! If you like your cozies with lots of humor, this series is for you!