The Cozy Mystery List Blog

Four New-to-the-Site Cozy Authors

November 20, 2016

I’m adding another set of new authors to the site >>> four more specifically. As usual, these are authors I’ve heard of from visitors to the site, either through comments or by email.

Cindy Bell is the author of numerous series, including the Chocolate Centered Mystery Series, the Sage Gardens Mystery Series, the Dune House Mystery Series, the Heavenly Highland Inn Mystery Series, the Wendy the Wedding Planner Mystery Series, and the Bekki the Beautician Mystery Series.

A. Gardner is a former health care worker. She is the author of the Poppy Peters Mystery Series, starring a former ballet dancer now enrolled in a pastry academy in Georgia, and the Bison Creek Mystery Series, starring an employee at the Pinecliffe Mountain Resort.

Suzanne Trauth has been a playwright, screenwriter, and novelist. She has both produced and directed stage productions, and is a former member of the theatre faculty at Montclair State University in Montclair, New Jersey. Her Cozy Mystery Series, the Dodie O’Dell Mystery Series, stars a restaurant manager who formerly lived on the Jersey Shore but now lives in the small New Jersey town of Etonville.

Christine Trent is a book enthusiast and collector who decided to begin her own fiction writing career. She is the author of the Lady of Ashes Mystery Series, starring Violet Morgan, an undertaker in Victorian London, as well as several other stand-alone historical mystery series.

I hope you enjoy all these great looking Cozy Mystery authors!

New Releases – November 14 to November 20, 2016

November 14, 2016

Here is the list of new release for November 14 to November 20!

David Baldacci: No Man’s Land (This will be the 4th in the Puller Mystery Series.)

Mary Higgins Clark & Alafair Burke: The Sleeping Beauty Killer (This will be the 4th in the Under Suspicion Mystery Series.)

Patricia Cornwell: Chaos (This will be the 24th in the Kay Scarpetta Mystery Series.)

Clive Cussler and Dirk Cussler: Odessa Sea (This will be the 24th in the Dirk Pitt Mystery Series.)

Janet Evanovich: Turbo Twenty-Three (This will be the 23rd in the Stephanie Plum Mystery Series.)

Linda Fairstein: Into the Lion’s Den (This will be the 1st in the Devlin Quick Mystery Series, which is for middle school mystery lovers.)

Question – Are There any Cozy Series Set in the Same Town, But Starring Different Sleuths?

November 12, 2016

questions-clipart-question-guy Hey folks! Not long ago I got a question by email that I hoped some of you might be able to help answer!

I have a cozy question for you! Are there any series that you are aware of that are all set in the same town but have a different protagonist in each one? (Like Debbie Macombers Cedar Cove books for example but cozy instead of romance)

I know on one hand that defeats one of the purposes of the cozy, but I’m doing NaMoWriMo and had the best idea for a series based around my fictional town!

The only answer that popped into mind for me was Dani Pettrey‘s Alaskan Courage Mystery Series, which stars various members of the McKenna family in Yancey, Alaska… though like Debbie Macomber’s Cedar Cove Books, it isn’t necessarily a strictly Cozy series. So can anyone think of more series that are set in the same location, but star different sleuths?

Rae Davies: Dusty Deals Mystery Series

November 10, 2016

I know I normally write entries about Cozy Mystery authors who have been recommended by ALL of you, however I’ve decided to write this entry about an author who I am recommending.

Several people wrote to me telling me how much they enjoy Rae Davies (aka Lori Devoti), so I added her to the Cozy Mystery site. I also was intrigued by her series, so I decided to add her to my authors-to-try list. Once I read Loose Screw (the first in her Dusty Deals Mystery Series) I added her to my “favorite authors” list. Yep! That’s how much I enjoyed Loose Screw…

The Dusty Deals series has a rather unique setting. Well, at least it’s different to me. It takes place in Helena, Montana >>> which Rae Davies makes seem like a typically small, Cozy village, even though it’s Montana’s state capital!

The sleuth, Lucy Mathews, owns and operates an antique shop, but also works as a crime reporter for the newspaper. She’s not terribly happy about being rail-roaded back to her job as a crime journalist, but it does provide a very good way for the author to explain why Lucy involves herself so much with the solving of the crime. Brava to Rae Davies for providing an absolutely great reason >>> other than nosiness!

Lucy’s side-kick “in crime” is Kiska, her Malamute. (Exactly the type of dog I’d envision in Montana!) There are also other important characters >>> which I’m guessing will be present in the following books of the series. Rhonda is Lucy’s best friend, Betty works at Dusty Deals, Gary’s the paper’s photographer, and Peter Blake is the police detective. I like all of these characters – which is important to me. If I don’t like the sleuth or the other recurring characters in a series, it’s unlikely I’ll keep reading the series.

There were plenty of red herrings thrown in, making the book more interesting. I enjoyed Rae Davies’s style of writing, too. (Rae Davies was a reporter before becoming a full-time author of novels.)

For those of you who like looking at book covers, I want to warn you about this one. I know I have a “no-negative policy” on my site, so I’ll just say this: Don’t judge this book by its cover! (I know that several of you have said you don’t like Cozies with cartoon-like covers…)

As I said before, I have added Rae Davies to my “favorite authors” list. I already have the second book in the series (Cut Loose) waiting for me on my Kindle! I hope some of you give Loose Screw a try. You may end up liking it as much as I did!

P.S. As always, if you are interested in reading some of the other entries about highly recommended Cozy Mystery series, you can find them at the Most Recommended Cozy Mystery Series page on my site.

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