The Cozy Mystery List Blog

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

Happy Halloween!

halloweenqHappy Halloween to ALL of you! I’m getting ready for the little ghosts and goblins who will be knocking, knocking, knocking at our door! And by ready, I mean I’m doing many taste-tests of the Butterfingers, Heath Bars, and the rest >>> just to be sure they’re up to my standards. (In other words, I made the mistake of opening the candy bags before 6:00 PM!)
October has been here and is ready to make its exit. Hope you all have enjoyed the month, and are ready for tonight’s festivities >>> whether you’re attending a Halloween party, are Trick-or-Treating, or are staying home to dole out the candy.
halloweenuAnd, as a “P.S.” >>> don’t forget to roll your clocks back an hour >>> getting a extra hour to do what you most want to do!

Cozy Mystery Book Recommendations – October 2015

I have been busy reading Halloween Cozies. Even though I rarely re-read my Cozies, I decided I would read some of the Halloween Cozies I have read (and enjoyed) in the past, two of Leslie Meier‘s Cozies were amongst them (Trick or Treat Murder and Wicked Witch Murder). Right now I am reading (not re-reading!) Krista Davis’ The Ghost and Mrs. Mewer. This is a Halloween themed Cozy that was released last December which has sat in my TBR Kindle queue since then. As much as I wanted to read it, I made myself wait until this month.

I think of the Paws & Claws Mystery Series (by Krista Davis) as an equal opportunity pet Cozy. You can be a devoted dog lover or a cherishing cat owner, and still there is a little something for you. Krista Davis sets this series in Wagtail, Virginia >>> and with a name like that, you know the town is a pet-friendly community.

As with her Domestic Diva Mystery Series, Krista Davis has developed her Paws & Claws characters in a way that makes you feel like you’re visiting with your friends. (I hope that makes sense!) I’m never quite sure where the mystery will end up, and sometimes the red herrings have fooled me completely! (I especially like it when a Cozy author does that >>> rather than the other way, when I can guess who the culprits are within the first fourth of the book.)

If you’re looking for a Halloween themed Cozy Mystery, I’d definitely recommend The Ghost and Mrs. Mewer. Now I’m going to go read some more to find out what Holly, Trixie, and Twinkletoes are up to!

How about you? Would you please tell us about the really good Cozy Mysteries you read this month, and please tell us why you liked them so much more than the other Cozies you read? These should be the Cozies you think are even better than the others you read this month. The rest of us are always interested in finding Cozy Mystery authors who write great Cozies  who we don’t yet read. Please list the ones you liked the most at the very top of the list, that way we’ll know those are the ones you liked the most.

As usual, please do not tell us about the Cozy Mysteries you did not like.

What really good Cozy Mystery book did you read during October 2015 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:

Susan Wittig Albert: China Bayles Herbal Mystery Series

Connie Archer: Soup Lover’s Mystery Series

Tessa Arlen: Lady Montfort Mystery Series

Donald Bain & “Jessica Fletcher”: Murder, She Wrote Mystery Series

M.C. Beaton (aka Marion Chesney): Agatha Raisin Mystery Series

Carrie Bebris: Mr. & Mrs. Darcy Mystery Series

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

Cindy Blackburn: Cue Ball Mystery Series

Kate Borden (aka Kate Grilley): Peggy Jean Turner Mystery Series

Maia Chance: Fairy Tale Fatal Mystery Series

Blaize & John Clement: Dixie Hemingway Mystery Series

Kate Collins: Flower Shop Mystery Series

J.J. Cook (Joyce and Jim Lavene & Ellie Grant): Sweet Pepper Fire Brigade Mystery Series

Deborah Crombie: Kincaid & James Mystery Series

Waverly Curtis: Barking Detective Mystery Series

Krista Davis: Domestic Diva Mystery Series

Krista Davis: Paws & Claws Mystery Series

Carola Dunn: Daisy Dalrymple Mystery Series

Dawn Eastman: Family Fortune Mystery Series

Janet Evanovich: Lizzy & Diesel Mystery Series

Shelley Freydont: Celebration Bay Mystery Series

Daryl Wood Gerber (aka Avery Aames): Cookbook Nook Mystery Series

Elly Griffiths: The Zig Zag Girl (not Cozy)

Janice Hamrick: Jocelyn Shore Mystery Series

Sherry Harris: Sarah Winston Garage Sale Mystery Series

D.E. Ireland: Eliza Doolittle & Henry Higgins Mystery Series

Miranda James (aka Honor Hartman, Jimmie Ruth Evans, & Dean James): Southern Ladies Mystery Series

Miranda James (aka Honor Hartman, Jimmie Ruth Evans, & Dean James): Cat in the Stacks Mystery Series

Diane Kelly: Tara Holloway Mystery Series

John J. Lamb: Bear Collector’s Mystery Series

Joyce and Joe Lavene (aka J.J. Cook & Ellie Grant): Retired Witches Mystery Series

Colette London: Chocolate Whisperer Mystery Series

Susan McBride: Debutante Dropout Mystery Series

G.A. McKevett: Savannah Reid Mystery Series

Leslie Meier: Lucy Stone Mystery Series

Angela Pepper: Stormy Day Mystery Series

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

Lora Roberts: Liz Sullivan Mystery Series

Michael Robertson: Baker Street Letters Mystery Series

Jeff Shelby (aka Jeffrey Allen): Moose River Mystery Series

Denise Swanson: Scumble River Mystery Series

Lea Wait: Shadows Antique Print Mystery Series

Donna Glaser White: Letty Whittaker 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.

Mrs. Bradley Mysteries – British Television Series

Mrs. Bradley Mysteries: The Complete Series [DVD] Calling all Diana Rigg fans! Get ready to see Rigg dead-panning to the camera as only Diana Rigg can do. She is absolutely delightful as Mrs. Bradley, a middle age flapper with very modern views.

Mrs. Bradley Mysteries is a BBC production that I was fortunate to have watched years ago. It ran in Great Britain during 1998-1999, so I’m not sure when my local PBS channel aired it >>> some time around then. It was particularly fun to watch Diana Rigg as she introduced the shows (she starred) in on PBS – during her Mystery! hosting years. (Those were the days when they actually provided background information about the authors, times, ETC.)

Neil Dudgeon (lately seen as John Barnaby on Midsomer Murders) plays George, Mrs. Bradley’s chauffeur. Mrs. Bradley, with George’s help, solves crimes, and is quite a celebrity. She is known to be an excellent crime solver and a very modern thinker. She is a woman who never stops learning. She keeps up with all the events that are happening during the current times. She is a loyal friend, but values justice over friendship. Her interests include those that were thought to be only men’s interests during this time. She is not a woman who would retire with the ladies while the men smoked cigars and drank cognac in the study!

The ambiance of this series is beautiful. Diana Rigg (Mrs. Bradley) wears the most amazingly beautiful clothes. The entire wardrobe department has done a wonderful job. The 1920s was a time of opulence: sequined gowns, soft fabrics, and tuxedos were common-place for the upper echelon to wear during the evening. This was a time when people (at least in Mrs. Bradley’s aristocratic circle) dressed up for dinner >>> which was “announced.”

The sets are excellent, the props are perfect. The Rolls Royce that George and Mrs. Bradley tootle around in is a phenomenal piece of art. And, the mysteries are good, too!

The unfortunate thing about the Mrs. Bradley Mysteries is that there are so few episodes. A 90 minute pilot aired in 1998 and only four sixty minute episodes were made for their 1999 airing. I ask you: WHY only five episodes!?! These productions are so delightful. What a shame there are so few… (and while I’m asking “Why?” >>> why can’t the USA match Britain’s beautiful period pieces?)

For more movie and television show recommendations, visit this page on my site: TV and Movies.

*** This series is available on Netflix in the disc format. Also, check your libraries.

Killer Nashville Conference 2015

I want to tell you all about a type of mystery convention. This one is called Killer Nashville Conference. And, what a perfect time of year for a mystery convention: All Hallow’s Eve, Allhalloween, Day of the Dead, Halloween!

The Killer Nashville Conference is a convention that is held every year that draws some of the most thrilling authors. Their list of past guests of honors include authors like Donald Bain, Carol Higgins Clark, J.A. Jance, Anne Perry, Jeffery Deaver, Michael Connelly, and William Kent Krueger. That’s quite a who’s-who type of list! The 2015 Killer Nashville Conference will be taking place from October 29 to November 1, at the downtown Omni Hotel. What a perfect place to be on Halloween night!

As it is with all of these mystery conventions, lots of us cannot attend. The good news is that there will be an anthology that will include many mystery stories from some of the biggest mystery-writing names out there!

Killer Nashville Noir: Cold-Blooded, edited by Clay Stafford
Featuring these stories:

  • Donald Bain: The Hunt for Skippy Walker
  • Jeffery Deaver: Repressed
  • Catriona McPherson: Kissin’ Don’t Kill
  • Anne Perry: Shutter Speed
  • Maggie Toussaint: High Noon at Dollar Central
  • Jefferson Bass: In Plain Sight
  • Paula Gail Benson: A Matter of Honor
  • Baron R. Birtcher: Ripple
  • Mary Burton: The Keepsake
  • Dana Chamblee Carpenter: Lullabies and Lightning Storms
  • C. Hope Clark: Rich Talk
  • Daco: The Virgo Affair
  • Robert Dugoni & Paula Gail Benson: A Matter of Honor
  • Blake Fontenay: The Coal Torpedo
  • Heywood Gould: He’ll Kill Again
  • Steven James: Second Thoughts
  • Jon Jefferson: Giving Blood
  • Eyre Price: Sad Like a Country Song
  • Clay Stafford: Savage Gulf
  • Jonathan Stone: Mailman
  • Jaden Terrell: Peace, Sometimes

If you happen to be in Nashville, and you happen to enjoy mysteries, you might want to check out the Killer Nashville Convention this weekend!

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