The Cozy Mystery List Blog

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

Mystery Books that Take Place in Kansas

21191966[1]Here are some fun Kansas facts:

The state capital is Topeka.
The largest city is Wichita.
State motto is “Ad astra per aspera” (To the stars through difficulties.)
State nickname is Sunflower State.
State flower is the Sunflower .
State bird is the Western Meadowlark .
State animal is the buffalo.
Kansas got its name for the Konza (aka Kaw or Kansa) Native Americans who lived there.

Mystery authors who are found on the Cozy Mystery Site and who feature Kansas locations in their books:

Sally Goldenbaum: Queen Bees Quilt Mystery Series (wrote first 3 in series)

Marnette Falley: Queen Bees Quilt Mystery Series (continued series at book 4)

Nancy Mehl: Ivy Towers Mystery Series (Mehl is on the Heartsong Presents Mysteries page)

Nancy J. Parra (aka Nancy Coco): Baker’s Treat Mystery Series

Charlene Weir: Police Chief Susan Wren Mystery Series

Please feel free to contact me if you see an author from the Cozy Mystery Site who belongs on this list, or if you have any comments.

♦To access more Cozy Mysteries by Theme click on this link.♦

Comments

  1. So glad I found your site! So many books to check out! I’ve read many that you mentioned and, thanks to you, I’ve now got a large list of books to check into! Thanks! Regarding your recommendation to watch As Time Goes By…yes, it’s wonderful! I’ve been watching it for years and I’ve seen all the shows many times but I still laugh! By the way, Judi Dench’s name on the show is Jean, not Jan. Again, thanks for all the recommended books and, as Rocky would say….Rock On! lol

    Reply

    • Welcome to the site, Constance! I’m glad you’re enjoying the site. We have a great group of Cozy Mystery readers here.

      Reply

  2. Danna.
    Gluten for Punishment by Nancy J Parra (First in Series) coming out May 2013. Takes place in Kansas. Write up from Barnes and Noble site: Gluten-free baker Toni Ryder may not cook with wheat, but when there’s a criminal on the loose, she’ll do what it takes to figure out who has their finger in the pie…

    Even though Toni is used to going against the grain by preparing allergy-safe, gluten-free products for her online bakery, Baker’s Treat, opening a storefront in the middle of wheat country Kansas might be biting off more than she can chew. The town is already skeptical of her flour-free ways, but when a local wheat farmer is murdered outside her patisserie, skepticism turns into outright suspicion.

    With the help of her eccentric grandmother, her handsome lawyer, and the sexy new widower in town, Toni is determined to find the real criminal before bad publicity and increasingly personal acts of vandalism shut her down. But when another suspect winds up dead, Toni realizes that this half-baked killer isn’t just trying to get her to close shop—he’s trying to make sure that she’s made her last gluten-free cookie…forever.

    INCLUDES GLUTEN-FREE RECIPES

    Reply

  3. I really enjoy visiting your site, ..I always find a book ( or three..) that I want to add to my list. =)

    I live in Kansas, grew up on a farm, and really enjoy small town living!

    Reply

    • Welcome to the site, Melissa! I’m glad you found us. (Even though I never lived in a small town, I love the feeling of them. I was fortunate having a grandmother who lived in a small town, whom I visited often.)

      Reply

  4. Hello!

    I absolutely LOVE this site! It is the ultimate ‘bible’ for our Mystery Book Club! 🙂

    Two friends and I are beginning to write a new cozy mystery series that centers around a small Shenandoah Valley town, its library and the eclectic folks who live, love and—murder there!

    custersmillmystery.com

    Reply

  5. Danna, Among many of the things that I often wonder about from time to time is if people who live in the many different regions that some of these mysteries are set in ever know of any of the places in these books!! I would imagine that those books that are set in the more common areas such as New York City, Los Angeles, Florida, Texas for example , readers can relate to more. But I wonder about some of the other places that have books set in their area. I know I read a series late last year that was set in Ohio but I couldn’t for the life of me think what town that series could be set in in Ohio.
    Just an idea that floats in my mind sometimes.

    Reply

    • Hmmm, Linda C, I never thought about this before. Personally, I prefer reading Cozy Mystery series that are either set in Great Britain or the USA’s East coast. For some reason, I find them Cozy-er.

      Reply

      • Danna, I know I have said this before but I like to read cozies that are set in areas that I would love to visit. I love to learn about different areas of the country and I do get a lot of knowledge just reading some of these books.

        Reply

        • Linda C, this comment of yours has me wishing I had started reading the first Maddy Hunter Passport to Peril book! (I have it in my TBR Kindle queue, along with many other new-to-me authors.)

          Reply

  6. I admit a preference to cozies set in the East Coast and GB as well – I think it’s because I love when the setting or plot revolves around an old house (creepy or otherwise). It’s not that there aren’t old houses on the West Coast or in the MidWest…they’re just more prevalent and older in the East (simply because the East was settled first).

    And of course if English mystery authors are to be believed you can’t move 10 feet without tripping over a quaint little 15th century abode.

    Reply

      • Julia, I love books that center on old houses near some kind of coastline. There almost always seems to be a storm brewing and the people are trapped in the house with no power. To me, in this type of story the house is the main character. I love it when the house is an old Victorian mansion and while someone is attempting to renovate that house a body or a bag of bones is discovered in the walls.
        I talked to a man some time last summer who had just bought an old Victorian mansion type house. Along with his wife, he was attempting to renovate. I asked him if he had found a hidden secret places yet! He said he hadn’t yet but he was still working on the house.

        I told the guy that in a lot of the murder mysteries I read, there seemed to be some sort of secret compartment behind the fireplace or in a closet, and to not be surprised if he found any bodies buried in the walls. He looked at me funny.

        Reply

  7. I just wanted to point out that the quilting mystery series by Sally Goldenbaum (Queen Bees Quilt Mysteries) takes place in a fictional town in Kansas.

    Reply

    • Thanks, Tara. I have added Sally Goldenbaum (as well as her successor Marnett Falley) to the Kansas list of mystery books.

      Reply

  9. I am so happy I found this site. As a small town Kansas librarian, I, as well as many patrons, adore Cozy Mysteries! This site has expanded my knowledge base, which means I can now pass on many new suggestions!!!

    Reply

Leave a Reply

Please don't tell us about Cozy Mystery authors or books you don't enjoy.

Please use a nickname or your first name and last initial (unless you are an author and want your full name to appear).

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

MENU