The Cozy Mystery List Blog

As many of you know, I’m a fan of Edie Claire‘s Leigh Koslow “Never” Mystery Series. The first book in this series, Never Buried, establishes Leigh Koslow, somewhat-down-on-her-luck advertising writer whose strong community ties to the small Pittsburgh-adjacent borough of Avalon help her solve various mysteries that seem to plague her and her friends.

Sometimes when you pick up a book by a relatively unknown author, you feel a bit surprised to learn that this is their first professionally released book. Edie Claire‘s Never Buried was one of those books for me. The level of writing, especially the natural quality of the dialogue between Leigh, her cousin Cara, and former roommate Maura all feel like they were written by someone with at least a few books under her belt.

Unfortunately Claire left the Cozy Mystery arena for a decade, but she’s back >>> in the last few years she seems to have returned to the fold and picked up her Leigh Koslow series, once again releasing a steady book per year – great news for lovers of terrific Cozy Mysteries!

MJ’s really thorough January 2015 Mystery Book Recommendation got me thinking that I should really write something about Edie Claire. She’s a Cozy Mystery author you really shouldn’t miss! Here’s MJ’s recommendation:

Never Preach Past Noon — Edie Claire

I started two other books, both of which I read previous books in the series. I just couldn’t get beyond page 30 or 40. In one the story line was just two heavy and in the other, for some odd reason, I disliked the characters.

So I decided to read the third book in the ‘Never’ series by Edie Claire (a series I started reading because Danna gave it such high praise). I was so excited Ms. Claire hadn’t deviated from the quality writing of the previous two books. It is quick, witty, and evenly paced. I love the characters – so diverse, well developed, and some even a bit offbeat.

In one scene Leigh Koslow (protagonist) needs to call 911. She searches around for a pay phone. WOW! I thought I was reading ‘historical fiction’!!

The romantic story line is almost as compelling as the mystery storyline. I couldn’t wait to get to the end to see how the ‘romance’ situation was resolved.

I then read a couple of other books and decided to read the 4th book in this series, “Never Kissed Goodnight’. I’m not going to go on and on, but suffice it to say, “It is EXCELLENT”.

Originally I thought ‘Death is Like a Box of Chocolates’ would be my favorite book for this month. But after reading ‘Never Kissed Goodnight’ it went straight to the top of the list. What a surprise on the first page!

I have written about Conrad Allen‘s Dillman Mystery Series before. (Actually, it’s called the Dillman and Masefield Mystery Series, but I find that to be a little bit of a SPOILER!) Well, since I just finished reading one of the Allen’s Dillman mysteries, I thought I would (again!) tell you about this series. I consider this series something of a “classic”, the Dillman and Masefield Mystery Series all takes place in a series of interesting venues – trans-Atlantic voyages at the turn of the 20th century.

Besides fitting comfortably within the Cozy Mystery formula, the Dillman and Masefield Mystery Series also qualifies as something of a historical mystery. Though started by Conrad Allen in 1999 with the release of Murder on the Lusitania, the books all take place in the early 20th century, with the first taking place on the maiden voyage of the Lusitania in 1906, the vessel whose sinking in 1915 would eventually lead to the entrance of America into World War I.

As with most good historical mysteries, the Dillman and Masefield series takes full advantage of its setting, using the bygone era to help paint a more “ideal” version of the setting, rather than the often more messy reality of the time. For a novel to truly qualify as a historical novel, it can’t take place during the author’s own time – so novels such as Agatha Christie’s Poirot series, which take place in what would now be considered the past, don’t usually qualify as historical since they took place in roughly the same era that Christie herself was writing.

The specific setting Allen selected, the early 1900s, make a particularly good period to set such novels due to the relatively peaceful nature of the decade. At the same time, the rising tensions before the actual outbreak of war are enough to help set the stage for intrigue among the passengers. The decade also benefits from perhaps being a bit less well entrenched in the minds of many readers than some alternatives – it manages to possess the prosperity of the roaring ’20s, without necessarily possessing the widespread cultural change from that particular decade.

Besides the charm of the setting, Allen also does a good job of making likeable protagonists and supporting cast. The first novel in particular is interesting since he takes his time in revealing the secrets and pasts of the main protagonists. Many authors are in too much of a hurry when they first introduce their sleuths, quick to drop as much exposition as possible to help get their characteristics across. Instead, George Porter Dillman and Genevieve Masefield are introduced more gradually, letting the reader come to like them through their interactions with the rest of the cast, so that when we learn about their pasts we’re more interested in them as characters whose company we already enjoy.

All told, I thoroughly enjoy this series and can recommend it to anyone seeking quality Cozy Mystery reading. The only suggestion I would make to readers is that perhaps they should space out their Dillman and Masefield mysteries. The setting of a grand ship making the trans-Atlantic passage in the 1900s is certainly interesting, but reading several novels with the same interesting setting in quick succession might wear slightly on the novelty. Conrad Allen has also written several other series, under his actual name of Keith Miles and his Edward Marston pseudonym.

Recently, I was asked the following question by site reader PamB, and I thought I’d share the answer with all of you.

“Miss Zukas Mysteries, by Jo Dereske, were recommended on this blog and this series has been my favorite to read this year. Miss Helma Zukas is a single lady, works in a library, and is set in her ways. The books are witty, well written, and make me smile as to how some things are described. I’ve slowed down reading them as the last book is Farewell, Miss Zukas and I can’t imagine not having a Miss Zukas book to look forward to.”

Well, as a matter of fact, I do sometimes hold onto a series that I’ve been enjoying, just so I can pull it out later. Just as one example, I had been working my way through the Peter and Helen Shandy Mystery Series by Charlotte MacLeod, but decided to take a break so I could come back to it later. I know that once I finish the series, there simply won’t be any more! That will be it! So I haven’t read the last two Cozies in that series. I just want to know they are there waiting for me.

So, do any of you have a favorite series that you’ve held off on finishing just so you could have the satisfaction of reading a new-to-you book by a favorite author later? Please leave a comment below!