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Mystery Book Recommendations – June 2014

Well, I know it’s the end of June, because we are approaching the Fourth of July AND because it is hotter and more humid here in San Antonio than it was last month. Even without looking at the calendar, I could have guessed Fourth of July is right around the corner because last night I heard the first (illegal!) firecrackers – off in the distance. The other time firecrackers go off this much is when we are approaching New Year’s Eve, and it is a little cooler during that time of year. (OK, I’m underestimating the degree of cold here during the winter months!)

Since it is the end of June, I will ask you ALL, did you read a particularly good Cozy Mystery during June? If you did, please let us know about it (or them if you read more than one really good Cozy Mystery). And, please tell us why you are recommending the Cozy Mystery book(s), since the rest of us would really like to know, which will help us decide whether we want to read that author’s work, or not.

[As usual, I ask that you don’t tell us about the mystery books you read that you didn’t like.]

What Cozy Mystery book (or author) have you read during June 2014, and why did you enjoy it (or him/her)?

Here are the current recommended authors who some of you have read this past month:

Catherine Aird: Inspector Sloan Mystery Series (Police Procedural)

Jeffrey Allen: Stay at Home Dad Mystery Series

M.C. Beaton (aka Marion Chesney):  The Skeleton in the Closet (Stand Alone)

Eileen Brady: Kate Turner Mystery Series (book #1 Muzzled)

Emily Brightwell: Mrs. Jeffries Mystery Series

Duffy Brown: Consignment Shop Mystery Series

Lucy Burdette (aka Roberta Isleib): Key West Food Critic Mystery Series

Lynn Cahoon: Tourist Trap Mystery Series

Dorothy Cannell: Florence Norris Mystery Series

Kate Carlisle: Bibliophile Mystery Series

Chris Cavender (aka Jessica Beck, Elizabeth Bright, Melissa Glazer, Casey Mayes, Tim Myers, & D.B. Morgan): Pizza Lovers Mystery Series

Laura Childs: Tea Shop Mystery Series

Edie Claire: Leigh Koslow Mystery Series

John Clement & Blaize Clement: Dixie Hemingway Mystery Series

Nancy Coco (aka Nancy J. Parra): Candy-Coated Mystery Series

Kate Collins: Flower Shop Mystery Series

Sheila Connolly (aka Sarah Atwell): Museum Mystery Series

Amanda Cooper (aka Victoria Hamilton & Donna Lea Simpson ): Teapot Collector Mystery Series

Isis Crawford (aka Barbara Block): Mysteries with Recipes Mystery Series

Jessie Crockett: Granite State Mystery Series

Diane Mott Davidson: Goldy Bear Mystery Series

Krista Davis: Paws and Claws Mystery Series

Krista Davis: Domestic Diva Mystery Series

Jana DeLeon: Miss Fortune Mystery Series

Hannah Dennison: Honeychurch Hall Mystery Series

Jo Dereske: Miss Zukas Mystery Series

Dawn Eastman: Family Fortune Mystery Series

Christy Fifield (aka Christy Evans): Haunted Souvenir Shop Mystery Series

Shelley Freydont: Celebration Bay Mystery Series

Erle Stanley Gardner: Perry Mason Mystery Series

Celina Grace: Asharton Manor Mysteries (novella #1 Death at the Manor)

M.K. Graff: Nora Tierney Mystery Series – The Scarlet Wench – Book #3 (book #1 The Blue Virgin)

Kerry Greenwood: Corinna Chapman Mystery Series

Janice Hamrick: Jocelyn Shore Mystery Series

David Handler: Berger & Mitry Mystery Series

Tessa Harris: Dr. Thomas Silkstone Mystery Series (book #1 The Anatomist’s Apprentice)

Joan Hess (aka Joan Hadley): Claire Malloy Mystery Series

Julie Hyzy: Manor of Murder Mystery Series

J.A. Jance: Ali Reynolds Mystery Series

Annie Knox (aka Wendy Lyn Watson): Pet Boutique Mystery Series

John J. Lamb: Bear Collector’s Mystery Series

Joyce and Jim Lavene (aka J.J. Cook & Ellie Grant): Peggy Lee Garden Mystery Series

Kylie Logan (aka Miranda Bliss & Casey Daniels): League of Literary Ladies Mystery Series

Meg London (aka Peg Cochran): Sweet Nothings Lingerie Mystery Series

Charlotte MacLeod (aka Alisa Craig): Peter Shandy Mystery Series

Molly MacRae: Haunted Yarn Shop Mystery Series

Alyssa Maxwell: Gilded Newport Mystery Series

Judy McCoy: Dog Walker Mystery Series

G. A. McKevett: Savannah Reid Mystery Series

Staci McLaughlin: Blossom Valley Mystery Series

Ruth Moose: Beth McKenzie Mystery Series (book #1 Doing It at the Dixie Dew)

Spencer Quinn (aka Peter Abrahams): Chet and Bernie Mystery Series (Not Cozy, but they are terrific!)

Hannah Reed (aka Deb Baker): Queen Bee Mystery Series

Ann B. Ross: Miss Julia Mystery Series

Sofie Ryan (aka Sofie Kelly): Second Chance Cat Mystery Series

Sarah R. Shaber: Professor Simon Shaw Mystery Series

Alexander McCall Smith: No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency Mystery Series

Karen Rose Smith: Caprice De Luca Mystery Series

Denise Swanson: Devereaux’s Dime Store Mystery Series

Victoria Thompson: Gaslight Mystery Series

Elaine Viets: Dead End Job Mystery Series

Heather Webber (aka Heather Blake): Nina Quinn 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.]

♦To access more Cozy Mystery Books Recommendations, click on this link♦

P.S. While I try to respond to all of the comments that are made on the Cozy Mystery blog, I generally don’t respond to the comments on these monthly recommendation entries. I do, however, list the recommended books that come via the Cozy Mystery blog’s comments!

Emily Brightwell (Mrs. Jeffries Mystery Series) – One of the Most Recommended Cozy Mystery Authors on the Cozy-Mystery Site

Mrs. Jeffries and the One Who Got Away (Mrs.Jeffries Mysteries Book 33) I know I have mentioned (many times!) that I am a little compulsive about certain things, so it was just a matter of time before I actually sat down and made a tally of how many times Cozy Mystery readers recommended Cozy Mystery authors for our monthly recommendations lists.

Once I had the Cozy Mystery authors all tallied up, I thought I would be finished with this (rather time consuming) endeavor of mine. But then I started thinking, hey, I should highlight some of the most recommended Cozy Mystery authors for my blog.

Emily Brightwell is one of the most recommended Cozy Mystery authors on our monthly recommendations lists. Mrs. Jeffries, her main sleuth, is a policeman’s widow in Victorian England. She heads the household staff of Inspector Gerald Witherspoon. He is quite lucky to have such a woman in his household! It turns out that the Inspector is a bumbling, not-so-clever Scotland Yard detective. However, because of Mrs. Jeffries’ sleuthing efforts, he has become a very well known gets-his-culprit type of Victorian era detective. Mrs. Jeffries is a great sleuth, and she is quite anonymous in her efforts: She lets the Inspector believe he solves the mysteries.

Emily Brightwell (aka Cheryl Lanham, Cheryl Arguile, & Sarah Temple) started writing the very popular Mrs. Jeffries Mystery series in 1993 (The Inspector and Mrs. Jeffries) and will be releasing her 33rd, Mrs. Jeffries and the One Who Got Away early next year.

(As an aside, I have always thought that it is interesting that the Inspector got top billing in the first Cozy Mystery of this series, but thereafter Mrs. Jeffries was clearly the star of the titles.)

If any of you all would like to add a little something about why you enjoy (and in some cases recommend) Emily Brightwell‘s Mrs. Jeffries Mystery Series, please post a comment. Thank you!

P.S. If you’re interested in other entries about some highly recommended Cozy Mystery series, you can see them on the Most Recommended Cozy Mystery Series page on my site.

Fourth of July Mystery Book Theme (List)

I truly cannot believe that June is almost over! We have actually had some rain down here in San Antonio, but it is still hot, hotter, and hottest!

Since Fourth of July is coming up so soon, I thought now would be a good time to post the Fourth of July Mystery Book List that I have compiled. If you know of any other mysteries that take place during this holiday, would you please let us know. Thank you!

Fourth of July Mystery Book List

Harold Adams….. The Fourth of July Wake

Donald Bain…. Murder on Parade

Laurien Berenson….. Hair of the Dog

Lilian Jackson Braun…..The Cat Who Went Underground

JoAnna Carl….. The Chocolate Frog Frame-Up

Meg Chittenden….. Dead on the 4th of July

Jill Churchill….. Someone to Watch Over Me

Anne-Marie Clark….. Independence Day

Carol Higgins Clark…..Twanged

Cleo Coyle….. Murder Most Frothy

Isis Crawford….. A Catered Fourth of July

Bill Crider….. Red, White, and Blue Murder

Jeffery Deaver (editor of anthology)….. A Century of Great Suspense Stories (includes Fourth of July Picnic by Rex Stout)

R. E. Derouin….. Dead on the Fourth of July

“Jessica Fletcher”….. Murder on Parade

Joanne Fluke….. Lemon Meringue Pie Murder

Shelley Freydont ….. Independence Slay

Sarah Graves….. Knockdown

Jane Haddam….. Act of Darkness

Victoria Hamilton….. Bowled Over

Carolyn G. Hart….. Yankee Doodle Dead

Carolyn Hart….. Dead, White, and Blue

Sue Ann Jaffarian ….. Rockets’ Red Glare (Short Story)

Carolyn Keene….. Murder on the Fourth of July

Joyce and Jim Lavene….. A Timely Vision

Jess Lourey….. Knee High by the Fourth of July

Donna McLean…..  A Sparrow Falls Fourth of July  (story)

Donna McLean….. A Sparrow Falls Holiday (Includes 4 stories: Christmas, Halloween, Valentine’s Day, & the above Fourth of July)

Leslie Meier….. Star Spangled Murder

James Patterson & Maxine Paetro….. 4th of July

George P. Pelecanos….. King Suckerman

Cathy Pickens….. Can’t Never Tell

Sharon Short….. Death by Deep Dish Pie

Earl H. Smith….. The Dam Committee

Julia Spencer-Fleming….. A Fountain Filled with Blood

Rex Stout….. Fourth of July Picnic (found in And Four to Go)

Carla Lee Suson….. Independence Day Plague

Valerie Wolzien….. A Star-Spangled Murder

Sue Owens Wright….. Embarking on Murder

If you know of any other Fourth of July mysteries, please post a comment. Thanks!

If you would like to see more Holiday Mystery Books, click on this link.

Cozy Mystery Sleuth Lives Next Door (Yikes!)

Last week, a Cozy Mystery reader made a comment (I wish I had written it down in a note to myself, since I can’t remember the exact comment!) about a Cozy Mystery sleuth moving in next door. I went back and read my Definition of a Cozy Mystery (click on the blue link to see the entire definition), since I sort of remember talking about Jessica Fletcher moving in, and the horror one might feel to know that someone who apparently is followed by the Grim Reaper should be moving in next door.

So, at this time, I would like to borrow from that comment and ask you all:

Which Cozy Mystery sleuth would you most want to live next door to, and why?

Oh, and to do this, let’s pretend that your favorite Cozy Mystery sleuth doesn’t follow the Grim Reaper around, solving mysteries, because, let’s face it, none of us would want to live next door to him/her!

Thank you!

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