I just finished a mystery by a favorite author of mine, but I am not sure I am going to continue with her. My problem is that this was her third consecutive mystery book that I have read where I absolutely knew the mystery solution by at least page fifty.
I have all of the rest of her books in my TBR bookshelf, which shows you just how committed I am to her. But, I have been toying with dropping her. I read mysteries for the mystery factor, along with all of the other ingredients it takes to make up a good mystery novel. I mean, if I want to read great NON-mystery fiction, I could spend my time reading Charles Dickens’ Bleak House. (Both my husband and my daughter love that novel, and have been trying to get me to read it for… forever!)
I actually pulled my remaining mysteries by this favorite author of mine from my TBR bookshelf. But then I felt the same feeling I have felt in the past when I dropped one of my favorite authors: DISLOYAL!!! She had given me so many hours of very enjoyable reading, but lately, she was starting to get on my nerves! “Come on” I would mentally urge, “don’t let the solution of this mystery be this obvious. Get with it!” I would coax…
I have spoken before about going to the end of a mystery book when I am absolutely sure I know the culprit, and then being annoyed if I am correct. Well, with this author’s last book I didn’t pull that trick. Sure, I wanted to, but I held myself back. I KNEW she wouldn’t let me down… not after the last two mysteries let me down. Surely she was back on her game. NOPE!!!
I want to drop this author, but just can’t seem to do just that. I feel like I enjoy her writing, but I find myself truly annoyed that her crimes are so obvious. There’s a lot of really great fiction out there, why should I continue with an author just because she writes mysteries? Perhaps it’s time for me to take a break from mysteries… but mysteries are what I enjoy reading…
Have any of you found yourself in this position? To drop or not to drop, that is the question!
Christina S. says
I’ve been in the same situation and I feel the same guilt, but I say you should drop her. There are just too many genuinely good mysteries out there to stick with her books out of mistaken loyalty (mistaken, because if she’s not a ‘good’ mystery writer). If I am reading a mystery book, I want to read a good mystery! It is unfortunate but true that sometimes authors do a great job in the beginning of a series and then deteriorate, but it does happen. If you still feel guilty, I would perhaps gift the books to someone else, perhaps someone who is new to reading mysteries. They will probably get more enjoyment out of them than is possible for you as a more advanced mystery reader and armchair sleuth. ^_^
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Christina, I wonder why we feel such loyalty to these authors!?! I wouldn’t feel guilty about discontinuing with a favorite television show… although, I do tend to stay with shows longer than I should.
I guess it’s because these authors bring us into worlds we want to visit… places we enjoy “keeping up with”… “friends” we enjoy passing the time with. And, when our “real” friends let us down, we are always too quick to give them more and more chances…
Laura says
Drop! Our time for recreational reading is limited. It’s too precious to waste on books we really aren’t enjoying. I admit that when I read a cozy, it isn’t just for the mystery. I love following the details of the characters’ everyday life, too. However, when an author has the main character jump on a soap box, I’m done with it. I’m reading the book to escape that for awhile for crying out loud!
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Laura, I am really moving toward dropping this author. She doesn’t “soap-box-it” but her mysteries are becoming too obvious. Also, I feel like the main character is the only character who keeps showing up regularly. It’s as if the author can’t decide on who the village/micro-world’s “interesting” inhabitants should be.
linda says
When this happens to me Danna, I just wait and pick this author up at the library. This is a whole lot less an expensive way to find out if an author is changing his/her ways! True, I don’t “buy” many books any more. But most of the time when serious readers decide an author is getting stale, the wait list at the library isn’t very long!!!
Carol says
It is indeed hard to “give up” on an author. I have sometimes given them too many chances, thinking that surely this time it will be better. But if an author isn’t writing what you want to read any more then it is time to move on. Give another author the chance to win your loyalty.
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Carol, I remember years ago when I dropped a favorite author of mine. A friend of mine and I shared almost the exact taste in Cozy Mystery authors, but she decided to continue giving the author a chance… I dropped the author, but my friend didn’t. A few books later, my friend talked me into giving the author another try… since my friend thought the author had improved. Yikes!!! I didn’t see the improvement! Once I finally “get up the nerve” to drop a favorite author, I never can go back.
Kristi aka FiberFool says
Sometimes I wonder if I’ve just gotten too familiar with an author’s tricks and writing tendencies. So I started trying to space out authors to no more than once every three months or longer instead of devouring a series in rapid succession. That has helped me quite a bit. I obviously don’t know how frequently you read this author. I think I’d have a harder time giving one up if I had already invested in several titles. There are a few authors lately that I’ve moved to the back burner. I may give them another go in a year or more and see what I think, but if that one doesn’t do it, I’ll just let them go. There are more and more great books to read everyday.
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Kristi, I wish I had just read her books too quickly in succession… no such luck. As I am becoming a slower and slower reader, I find that I am becoming more and more demanding of my authors.
Harvee says
I bet she’d appreciate it if she knew you felt that way!
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Harvee says
I mean, the author would probably appreciate knowing her mysteries are too predictable.
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Harvee, I see what you mean, but I think it’s just easier if I quit reading the author…
Patti says
Would you be willing to tell us who this author is?
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Patti, when I started the Cozy Mystery site, I decided that I would try never to say something negative about an author, even though there are quite a few authors I have tried who I have negative things to say about… believe me! I feel very comfortable talking about authors I enjoy, and post their names on different occassions. I don’t elicit bad opinions from site readers… since their negative opinions might keep some of us from trying an author, just because someone said negative things about him/her.
To answer your question, no, I wouldn’t feel comfortable mentioning who this particular author is. She is a best selling author, so I must be in the minority on this.
Alison says
I think you should drop them. If you are not enjoying them, don’t waste your limited reading time on them. I get where you’re coming from though – I stopped reading a former favourite a while ago, and felt a certain amount of “guilt” about not reading them anymore.
linda says
This, to me Danna, depends on the author. If the author is say, John Grisham, Iris Johansen, J. A. Jance, Dana Stabenow, someone of that caliber, then I say yes I read for the mystery. But if someone like Earlene Fowler or Joan Hess, I like the murder mystery plot but I really like reading about the antics of the characters, as well. I love Sue Grafton for both reasons. I love the storylines as well as the mystery. She is such a good writer and story teller.
I’ll tell you something I don’t really care for in some mysteries. I don’t care for the main character always having the hots for some guy. Sometimes the whole book can be mostly about the couple getting it on! The murder doesn’t really seem to be the issue in these books. I wish these two would go ahead and “do it” and then get on with the story!
Misty says
Linda-
John Grisham lost me for a while. A Painted House almost turned me off of him forever.
linda says
Misty, this wasn’t listed as a mystery though.
Craig says
I’ve been reading your blog for a little while now and I’m wondering if I could send you a copy of my new release “Terror from Within” for a review? Thanks, Craig
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Thank you for the very kind offer, Craig, but I don’t accept books or ARCs from authors or their agents.
Thanks, again!
Margaret says
I’m not sure what I would do; I have not been in that situation yet. I don’t know if the books I read are very well written or if I am just not putting as much thought into solving the mystery. Sometimes I figure it out but I don’t know if that makes a diffrence in my enjoyment level. I guess it would depend on how much I enjoyed the story and the characters. I tend to be very specific with the books I read. I like to stay with Female Sleuths and with East Coast locales so I do not have as many Authors that I choose from. Because of this I may keep up with the books. But sometimes I just enjoy the story itself, character interactions and such. I also like a bit of humor. But if I truly did not enjoy the books I would stop. I have stopped reading midway through just because the book was awful. Some of my friends cannot believe I could do that. But if I don’t enjoy it I can’t read it.
Sharon says
I agree with moving on. I sometimes wonder if it is knowing the outcome OR just tiring of the writing style, story, etc. When I find myself trying to space books out, I think it is saying something because there are authors I like so much, I can’t stop reading until there are no books left in the series. That tells me a lot and helps in choosing who I keep and who I drop. Besides, I can always go back and try again between books/series I find riveting.
Angela says
UGH this is always a struggle for me as well. I am learning to let go once I stop enjoying an author or series but it is so hard! I feel like I am abandoning them or losing friends. But sometimes it’s just time to hang it up and the author hasn’t figured that out yet. Just because it’s a bestseller doesn’t mean you are wrong. In my experience the best sellers can be the worst as far as getting stale or formulaic (is that even a word? hehe). I can forgive a dud in a series every so often but once it becomes a pattern it’s time to run. If you already space out your reading and this has happened multiple times then it’s probably time to drop it.
Kejia says
With prolific authors, I find that at a certain point their books get stale. I swear I’ll never read them again…and then I do. And then, after author has passed away, I swear because the library discards the first 10 “good” books in their tattered jackets and displays the last 10, shiny and unreadable, until these get discarded because no one wants to read them.
(I wish Dorothy Sayers had written so many mystery stories that we had the indulgence of becoming bored with them. And Wodehouse’s last books seem almost as fresh as his first, perhaps because he tucked his personality away in the 1920s and spent the rest of his life churning out books.)
But if a writer’s books become stale for any reason other than old age, I cross them off my reading list without compunction. So I’d advise you to dump the author with neither guilt nor hard feelings.
Kejia says
p.s. and there is one author I just love and will read most of her books with delight. But her best known are in a series about vampires, and I’ve disliked vampire tales since watching reruns of the TV show Dark Shadows in the 60’s and long before Twilight. So fond as I am of CH, I give those books a miss. Eventually she’s gotta get tired of vamps.
Andie says
I concur with the previous comments. I have dropped authors and occasionally returned for a sample after a hiatus of a few years and often been disappointed.
I don’t know if it is too much success too soon but some authors, after a promising beginning, develop formulaic writing that telegraphs the solution to the puzzle long before the end of the story.
This annoys me no end. I am paying good money, even with the Kindle – and some of the new titles cost nearly as much as the hardbacks – and I feel cheated that the author thinks so little of me as to pound out this drivel.
Some are addicted to certain phrases describing their “feelings” and repeat and insert them far too often, as if they are filling space to up the word count.
This too is annoying, and often is the tip off as to the identity of the perpetrator and I don’t refer to the characters who have “special powers” and are expected to have unusual sensations.
Many of these stories are boring and I feel the author is bored writing them.
Marja says
I’m for dropping her, but letting her know WHY. I think it’s important for an author to know that kind of thing. Let her know you enjoyed her first few books and why, and then why you want to stop reading her now.
I also tend to space books out. For example, I read one R.B. Parker Jess Stone novel a year, one Spenser, and one Sunny Randall. With other authors who bring out only one book every year, I read one that’s about 6 months old and read other books in the meantime. There are so many authors I enjoy, I don’t seem to have a problem with doing this. My local library is, fortunately, rich in fiction, both general fiction and mysteries that I enjoy. I feel very fortunate to live here!
Anna H. says
I was thinking of dropping an author because her books were becoming rather boring. Her third book was so uninteresting that I didn’t CARE who the murderer was! I just wanted to finish the book so that I could donate it to a local library. BUT soon after, I read the fourth book and this one was actually quite better, back to the good quality of her 1st and 2nd books. So I guess I never completely give up on an author. Sometimes I don’t read their next book for another 2 years, just take a LONG break from them.
Shawn says
I also say Drop the series. I have been in the same situation and want to finish a series because of the book prior I have read. But once you get that first, second, third book that you know the ending already and move to the next book.. are you truly enjoying your reading? No. So as hard as it is and as disloyal we feel it is not worth the unhappiness and boredom you feel while reading it.
I have a ton of books on my TBR list that can fill the spots.
Maria (BearMountainBooks) says
Oooh, I totally get what you are saying! And I disagree with Harvee above. I am sure the author is writing the best books she can–and telling her, well, she may not be able to fix it! She’s probably on deadline and maybe she and her editor really feel the books are still mysterious.
It *could* be that you are a more discerning reader than you used to be! It could also be that you are “onto” her style. So your subconscious and quickly your conscious knows where things are going!!!
I’d say you have every right to drop the series. Drop it while you still have some great memories and love of the earlier books — and maybe if the author writes a completely fresh and different series, give that series a chance. Sometimes exploring a new series (for both author and reader) really opens up doors, ideas and new techniques!
Patricia says
I’m a mystery author and I have other author friends who I feel obligated to read. I’m not always into either the style or the storyline. But how do you drop a friend? I love to read for entertainment. I love mystery, but I agree, when the plots are thin it takes the fun out of it. My readers are always surprised with my endings and sometimes shocked even though I leave clues throughout. They can then go back and see the trail.
Kathryn says
I’m an all or nothing type of person and reader. I read an entire series in one clip if I am enjoying the stories. I may be more judgmental than fast readers because I am dyslexic and I read slowly. I hate wasting my reading time. I think I am more interested in the journey to the end and not just seeing the big reveal.
I am currently enjoying Emily Brightwell’s Mrs. Jeffries series. It is a true cozy series. I enjoy the Victorian downstairs staff of crime solvers. The last one I finished was pretty obvious but I don’t care. It was how the staff pulled together to find the killer that I liked. I still have a few more to go before I exhaust my library’s supply but I doubt if I’d give up the series because there are enough elements to the series that keeps me coming back.
Quite honestly author loyalty has nothing to do with my reading habits. If an author isn’t producing the same quality of stories and I am at the point of not picking up the next book, they are producing a defective product. It is just that simple. I haven’t changed, they have. None of us has the time or money to waste on second-rate products.
Mary Joy says
My feeling is if you are not enjoying the book, drop it. My favorite genre is mystery, but my reading is truly character driven, more specifically, character and surrounding driven. Sometimes I’ve skipped a book in a series because it is set in a different locale and I miss the familiar surroundings. These are cozy type mysteries, of course. On another note, I totally agree about the romance driven mysteries – don’t like them at all. I enjoy series where there is a love interest that progresses, but that does not drive the story. I have not been able to get into the Mystery + Romance type books. This is not driven by prudishness (I’ve read all the Dragon Tattoo books), but by the fact I’ve never enjoyed Romance books.
In a nutshell, Danna, if I’m not liking a book for any reason, I’ll persevere through it for a while and if it doesn’t pick up, (or in your case, your ending is spoiled), I do not finish it.
Misty says
I just discovered this site, I love it already. I agree with everyone here about dropping the series. However, part of my love of series is the character development and familiarity. For that reason, I tend to keep reading when the plots start to fall flat. I find it much easier to drop stand alone authors.
Marie says
Hey, Misty, that’s just what I was going to say! There are others whose characters are so well written that I don’t mind if the plot isn’t the best–Lillian Jackson Braun comes to mind–especially towards the end but I would have continued reading just because Qwill gave me goose-bumps 🙂
And, Danna, I just read the latest by another very famous author and it’ll be the last. It’s turned from fun into soft-porn and I’m just not interested. I also stopped reading another very famous author a few years ago. While I loved her books I found out she’d been involved in a murder and after that I just couldn’t stomach her stuff anymore.
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Marie, I wonder if publishers don’t push their authors to include more “adult situations” trying to appeal to more people.
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Thank you all for your responses to this “problem.” I am going to write a comment as today’s entry.
Ricky says
There are so many books out in the world to enjoy, why struggle with any you don’t enjoy. I personally don’t read series-wise, but as I come across books, so there isn’ t the “loyalty factor”.
One thing I don’t like is to find a supernatural element added to what I thought was a good mystery.
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Ricky, I would think that you wouldn’t be able to keep track of who is who if you read mystery series out of their chronological order. I sometimes have a difficult enough time just keeping the new characters in a mystery squared away, let alone the “regulars.”
linda says
Danna, What interesting topics you come up with!! This one is great!
I have to agree with Mary Joy with this one. I read a series for the character development. I have said before that I sometimes start to think some of these characters are old family members and/or friends. Example, as I have said before I hated when Nevada Barr took Anna Pigeon out of her National Parks to recuperate. To take Anna out of the skillet and put her into the frying pan was terrible! Anna Pigeon, Benni Harper, Miss Julia, Claire Malloy, Kate Shugack are my best friends. Don’t be mean to these people!!
I know, I know! Maybe I read wwwaaaaaayy too much.
Danna - cozy mystery list says
There you go, Linda… I, too, think of some of the characters as “friends” I want to catch up with. The character development and the setting have a lot to do with a well-crafted Cozy Mystery. But, when you know pretty much how the book is going to turn out, then it sort of takes away the “mystery” component… which is another of the important factors to me…. and I just start begrudging the author if he/she isn’t able to do what their book’s genre has promised… I mean, if it’s supposed to be a mystery, then it should “quack” like a mystery…
Paula says
I’m so glad I found your web site and this blog! You know, I read mysteries for the mystery, but I also read for the characters. They become like friends to me, and I really am more concerned about enjoying the journey, than the resolution. I like for a book to be clever but even more I want the characters to be people I would love to be friends with. They are comforting and enjoyable and isn’t that why we read? So if you don’t enjoy the journey that author is sending you on, then maybe it’s time to find another author, because you’re right , there are just too many good books out there to be discovered to hang onto one if you don’t enjoy the journey. If you enjoy the journey, then by all means keep reading 😀 Thanks for this blog and your website, I just know I will be lurking here a lot now that I know you are here. Are you on Facebook???
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Welcome to the Cozy Mystery site, Paula! I’m glad you found us.
I have gone ahead and gotten rid of the books I was asking about… Since I really had started looking at the author’s books as “got to read this” types of books, I read all of the comments, and decided that I really didn’t have to read them! It is always sad to say goodbye to a favorite author, though…
Ricky says
I guess that means I read every book as a stand-alone.
This is mostly dictated by economics and I mostly don’t get books from the library as I read in the bathtub too much.
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Ricky, that could get very pricey if you had a tendency of falling asleep in the bathtub while reading a library book!
Suditi says
I think u should drop an author u don’t like, but when I am reading a series I can’t stop once I have started!
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Suditi, I am tending to go with the “drop” side of this question. When I find myself spending more time thinking about problems with the author’s plots and writing, than reading and enjoying the mysteries, then it’s probably time to drop the author. It’s just always so difficult when you have followed an author from the beginning…
marion says
I read an author who I have enjoyed for years. True, she has had the same setting and same characters for years but each plot was different enough to keep my interest. However, in her last three or four novels, the main plot was the misery between the heroine and one of the main male characters because his former girlfriend had come on to the scene and was manipulating him in various ways. Therefore, the heroine and the male character were unable to advance their relationship. That author kept that up and I was getting sick and tired of it. I don’t know if she got a massive writer’s block or if the publisher insisted on the story line or what happened but I hope it’s over. At the end of the last book, they learned the former girlfriend had told a lot of lies and they, at that point, had decided to go ahead with their relationship although the old girlfriend is still around. Sounds like a pretty flimsy conclusion to me! I was so disgusted that in the last two books, I only looked to see if they had resolved the issues yet. If they hold back any more, I think I’ll just have to give up and just enjoy her earlier books before she started that nonsense. We’ll see. Her characters are very likable but I kept wanting to tell the male character to suck it up and either fish or cut bait. Oh, I was mad!!!!
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Marion, when an author keeps repeating the same dramas over and over, it’s time for me to pack up and leave!
marion says
I hear you. It makes you wonder if the author gets ‘stuck’ or if, by golly, that’s what he or she (or the publisher!) wants to write about and that’s what is gonna happen. I remember reading on Diane Davidson’s website, I believe it was, that a lot of readers wanted her to kill off her abusive ex-husband the ‘Jerk’. She explained that the publisher wouldn’t allow her to yet. She did eventually but he remained plot fodder for about 10 or 12 books!
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Interesting, Marion, about Diane Mott Davidson’s publishers wanting her to do something different than she did. I was sort of sorry she got rid of that character…
linda says
Marion, I thought Dianne Mott Davidson was wrong in killing off the Jerk. This being a fictional book, I just don’t think the Jerk got what he deserved. Yea, he does die ( I know, I know “Spoiler Alert”) eventually but I would have liked for Goldie’s husband to have had more of a roll in the Jerks’ demise. I didn’t want the cop husband to do the actual killing but I would have liked to see the cop husband (can’t right now think of his name) to have more, (I can’t think of the word that I want to use), of an inmput into giving the Jerk what he deserved for knocking Goldie around like he did for so many years.. I think several years in a looney bin would have been justice. The Jerk getting the same kind of treatment while in prison would have been justice. Maybe having Goldie’s son have some input into his father’s treatment of his mother would have been justice also. Just a couple of thoughts!!
Love this series, every book!! Can hardly wait for the next one to come out!!
marion says
Hmmm, too bad Diane didn’t consult us. Maybe red-hot slivers under the Jerk’s nails? lol. I tend to personalize characters very quickly and I guess I was always upset by what the Jerk was doing to Goldie and upsetting Arch. Ironically, I don’t really like violence and emotional upset and maybe the series is not right for me in some ways. So, I was glad to get him out of the way. Besides, now, I guess she can develop other people which upset me. lol. I’m going to take a break from her for a while. In some ways, I enjoy her but in her ways, as I said, I get upset and worried and it’s not worth the turmoil if I can find other mysteries I like. I’m starting D. Sayers’ Unnatural Death tonight. I always liked Christie’s approach in that, yeah, you have to get a body and therefore a criminal but the body and the criminal were rarely anyone you cared about or got to know well. It was more about the puzzle and I’m hoping Sayers is somewhat more like that. I guess what I’m saying as I fumble along here, is, that the more the mystery is about the puzzle and less about characters I like being in peril, the more I can enjoy it. Oh well, to each his own, and isn’t it wonderful that there is such a wide range of mysteries so we can all find something we can enjoy? If you all know of other authors where the puzzle is more the main focus, let me know. I am not familiar with many authors. I do love Davidson’s descriptions of the food and cooking and I have come to care very much about Goldie’s family. Her husband’s name is Tom, by the way.
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Marion, it isn’t often that an author is able to include a “jerk” into the secondary characters of a series, and still get me to want to read the series. I thought, as bad as the Jerk was, he added a touch of realism >>> unlike other mystery series that have characters who are all super nice. (I think I liked to have a “regular” character who was actually bad.)
Donna says
Marion, you should like Sayers! Also try Ngaio Marsh, Ellery Queen, any of the “classic” mystery authors will probably be your cup of tea. That era focused on the puzzle more than the personal lives of the characters. I love cozies too but – someone else can fill us in on this subject, I’m no expert – it seems like the modern cozy era began in earnest in the ’70s, when authors developed a standard set of characters and focused on their personal lives more than upon the traditional puzzle aspect of the mystery.
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Donna, I’m glad you told Marion about the “classic” mystery books. I did an entry with some suggested Classic Mystery Book Authors.
marion says
I did find that entry this morning, Danna, and I will be consulting it. Thanks a lot, as always. Hope you and your husband are having a wonderful time.
Donna says
Wonderful list, Danna, a good place for a beginner to begin. I’m looking for a good Nero Wolfe novel to refresh my memory before attempting that contest you mentioned in another post! It has been a while since I read any of those books, but I do remember liking them.
marion says
Hi, Donna. Nice to meet you. Thanks for your input. I checked out from the library the first books of Christie, Marsh, James, and Sayers tonight and will give them a whirl! I read the first few chapters of the ‘Mysterious Affairs at Styles’ when I got home and thought ‘Oh, yeah, this is more like it.’ I may be super sensitive but when I get really into characters, my line between fiction and reality blurs and I really get upset if they start to go through the wringer. Some people enjoy drama but I seem to internalize the characters’ distress and peril and get upset. I had some really nasty dreams last night which seemed to be connected to what I had been reading and when I woke up, I thought ‘Uh-uh, this isn’t good! I’m supposed to be enjoying these mysteries!’ I have said to people in the past that I prefer cozies where the protagonist gets in and out of trouble in ten pages. I guess I will just have to try out different authors and pass on the ones which bother me and I think the ‘classic’ writers will be a good place to start and the really very soft-boiled cozies. I love Miss Marple! I read a few chapters of Carolyn Hart’s ‘Design For Murder’ and am enjoying it so far.
marion says
Danna, I just thought of something else. A big thing that I often wonder about in cozies is why the “hero” or “heroine” is becoming involved in finding “who dunnit”? In detective or police procedural mysteries, it’s easy to figure out. That’s their job. It’s also not too hard to figure out when the detective asks the amateur to help (often in Miss Marple), the person’s livlihood (or life!!) is in danger or for revenge. But after that, in a number of novels I’ve looked at, the reasoning gets pretty flimsy. I almost admire an author’s integrity when his or her protagonist says, “ok, so I’m nosy.” I realize that to get a cozy started, there has to be a crime and then the protagonist has to get interested or we wouldn’t have a story but sometimes I get bugged and think that if it were anyone else, we’d say the person is an idiot. I often lose sympathy when it seems that the protagonist is already leading a complicated life. I notice this more in some of the more recent books. Sometimes, if I like the book well enough, I can suspend my sense of reality, take a deep breath and plunge in and enjoy other aspects of the story and in other cases, I have to just pass because I can’t buy the reasoning.
linda says
Marion, I guess I do understand what you said about how maybe Diane Mott Davidson should have consulted her readers about killing off the Jerk. She is the published author. I sure am not!!
This series has become one more of those series that I tend to forget is just fiction. As far as forgetting “Tom’s” name, I am also terrible about that. I do have problems trying to remember some peoples’ names even in real life!! Arch is the son’s name, I think. I tend to have quite a few “Senior Moments.”