The Cozy Mystery List Blog

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

Cozy Mysteries Recommendations – October 2013

Oh, I love this time of year. It is almost the end of October, and I have actually worn my light-weight jacket (once)! I have the best “autumn scents” going on my coffee warmer (Better Homes and Gardens Mulberry Plum Spice and Cranberry Mandarin Splash). I also have loaded up on my seasonal teas (caffeine-free Celestial Cranberry Apple and Cinnamon Apple Spice, as well as Bigelow’s caffeine-free Cranberry Apple). (I found my scents at Walmart, but had to order the teas.)

Since it is the end of October, it is time for me to ask you all to tell us about a few mysteries you read this past month (October) that you think the rest of us have got to know about. Please tell us why you enjoyed each of your recommended books. I think a lot of us read your comments, and they are what sway us to try your recommended book(s).

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

[Also, if you click on the author’s name (blue) link, it will take you to their page on the Cozy Mystery site. Their page has all of the author’s books listed chronologically.]

What Cozy Mystery book (or author) have you read during October 2013, and why did you enjoy it (or him/her)?

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

Victoria Abbott (Mary Jane Maffini & Victoria Maffini): Book Collector’s Mystery Series

Ellery Adams (aka J.B. Stanley, Jennifer Stanley, & 1/2 of Lucy Arlington): Books by the Bay Mystery Series

Jeffrey Allen: Stay at Home Dad Mystery Series

Donna Andrews: Meg Langslow Mystery Series

Nancy Atherton: Aunt Dimity Mystery Series

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

Lorna Barrett (aka Lorraine Bartlett & L.L. Bartlett): Booktown Mystery Series

Lorraine Bartlett (aka Lorna Barrett & L.L. Bartlett): Victoria Square Mystery Series

Laurien Berenson: Melanie Travis Mystery Series

Gail Bowen: Joanne Kilbourn Mystery Series

Meg Cabot: Heather Wells Mystery Series

JoAnna Carl (aka Eve K. Sandstrom): Chocoholic Mystery Series

Ally Carter: Gallagher Girls Mystery Series (Young Adult Series)

Erika Chase: Ashton Corners Book Club Mystery Series

Jill Churchill: Jane Jeffry Mystery Series

Mary Jane Clark: Piper Donovan Wedding Cake Mystery Series

Sheila Connolly (aka Sarah Atwell): Orchard Mystery Series

Philip R. Craig: Martha’s Vineyard Mystery Series (not quite Cozy)

Jessie Crockett: Drizzled with Death (Sugar Grove Mystery Series, book #1)

Dawn Eastman: Pall in the Family (Family Fortune Mystery Series, book #1)

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

Amanda Flower (aka Isabella Alan): Appleseed Creek Mystery Series

Shelley Freydont: Celebration Bay Mystery Series

Elizabeth George: Inspector Lynley Mystery Series

Sue Grafton: Kinsey Millhone Mystery Series

Ellie Grant (aka Joyce and Jim Lavene & J.J. Cook): Pie in the Sky Mystery Series

Kerry Greenwood: Phryne Fisher Mystery Series

Victoria Hamilton: Merry Muffin Mystery Series

Veronica Heley: Ellie Quicke Mystery Series

Sofie Kelly (aka Sofie Ryan): Magical Cats Mystery Series

Laurie R. King: Bones of Paris (not Cozy)

Jill Marie Landis: Two to Tango (Tiki Goddess Mystery Series, book #2)

Amanda Lee (aka Gayle Trent): Embroidery Mystery Series

Anna Loan-Wilsey: Hattie Davish “Have Typewriter Will Travel” Mystery Series

M. Louisa Locke: Victorian San Francisco Mystery Series

Kylie Logan (aka Miranda Bliss & Casey Daniels): Chili Cook-Off Mystery Series

Debbie Macomber: Cedar Cove Series (not mysteries)

G.M. Malliet: Max Tudor Mystery Series

Carol Ann Martin: Weaving Mystery Series

Jenn McKinlay (aka Josie Belle & Lucy Lawrence): Hat Shop Mystery Series

Jenn McKinlay (aka Josie Belle & Lucy Lawrence): Library Lover’s Mystery Series

Diana Orgain: Maternal Instincts Mystery Series

Louise Penny: Chief Inspector Gamache Mystery Series

Sara Rosett: Ellie Avery Mom Zone Mystery Series

Barbara Ross: Clammed Up (Maine Clambake Mystery Series, book #1)

Hank Phillippi Ryan: Jane Ryland Mystery Series

Christine Wenger: Do or Diner (Comfort Food Mystery Series, book #1)

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

Hallmark Channel Holiday Movies

Laura, you asked about the Hallmark channel holiday movies. So far I have found two:

Halloween: The Good Witch’s Destiny
It is premiering this Saturday (Oct. 26) right after they show a run of all of the past The Good Witch movies (at 8:00 PM and also at 10:00 PM) and then on Sunday, Oct. 27 at 12:00 AM and again at 8:00 PM.

Thanksgiving: The Thanksgiving House
It is airing Saturday, Nov. 2 at 7:00 PM and again Sunday, Nov. 3 at 1:00 PM (Central)

As I haven’t seen either of these movies, I can’t vouch for them. (But, I am rather partial to the Hallmark holiday movies.)

Also, you had better consult your TV guides as I could be a little off on times and/or dates (although I don’t think I am.)

(I wrote this as a comment response to Laura’s comment, but decided some of the rest of you might want to know about both of these Hallmark channel  Halloween and Thanksgiving movies. They are not mystery movies.)

Amazon MatchBook Program Information

MJ sent me an interesting letter during September that I have been meaning to post:

MatchBook is a new service from Amazon that is due to launch sometime in October. This service puts a new spin in the publishing world! MatchBook works like this: when you buy a print edition book from the MatchBook section of Amazon, it will allow you to also buy a copy of the same book as an e-book for either $2.99, $1.99, $.99 or free. The books have to be in the Matchbook program to qualify for this, and it will apply to thousands of books dating back to 1995 (when Amazon opened its online store). It not only applies to your present purchases, it also applies to your book purchasing history with Amazon. Did you know that Amazon has a list of every book you have ever purchased from them?

For example, if you bought the book I Know This Much is True, by Wally Lamb, back in 1998 from Amazon (this book is part of the MatchBook service), and you would now like to re-read it on your e-reading device, you would be able to purchase the electronic version through MatchBook for anywhere between $2.99 and free. (By the way, the prices are determined by the publishers, and the titles that are available are determined by both the publishers and the authors.) I think this is really great for those of you who love your print version books, but who are slightly envious of the convenience offered with an e-book.

Amazon MatchBook Program Information

This looks like a pretty great deal, MJ. Thank you so much for this letter!

[My husband read the “real book” copies of all of Patrick O’Brian’s Aubrey/Maturin series, and now he is re-reading them in Kindle format (so he can control the font size).  When he heard about Amazon’s MatchBook program, he wondered if these books would be in the MatchBook program. He didn’t bother to find out since he didn’t get the books from Amazon…]

Thanks, again, MJ!

Craft (and Cooking) Ideas on Hallmark’s Channel Home & Family

I have talked about the TV ritual I go through every fall, in which I tape every new sitcom that is being shown >>> to see if any of them will make my personal favorites list. (I also try any new non-sitcom shows that catch my fancy.) I have written about shows that were on my favorite sitcom list… WERE being the operative word.

I had grown tired of the comedy shows that I used to follow. Actually, last year I dropped all of my sitcoms except for Hot in Cleveland and Happily Divorced. (Unfortunately, Happily Divorced was cancelled, based on people’s opinions that are totally 180° different than mine. The whole cast was a treasure, Rita Moreno was absolutely delicious in her characterization of Fran Drescher’s mother.)

Getting back to this entry’s purpose. (Yes, I do actually have something to tell you all.)

I have complained in the past about all of the crafting shows being taken off the HGTV channel. They were great resources for young parents, looking for crafts their children could enjoy making while improving their fine motor skills – as well as their self concepts. (Apparently there’s a bigger viewership which the sponsors prefer paying for in Do-It-Yourself-Bathroom-Make-Overs!)

Again, I lost my purpose… Oh, that’s right…

Last year, I tried the Hallmark channel’s new Home & Family show when it first premiered. There was something not quite right with it, so I deleted it from my recording queue. Had I stayed with the show I would have found out that they revamped it six weeks after it began. Happily, I put this show on this fall’s TV ritual round-up, and I’m happy I did. It is currently on my TV watching list.

The real reason for this post is to tell you that this Hallmark channel morning show has crafts! All two hours are not dedicated to crafting, but there is at least one crafting segment per show. (This is based on just the last two weeks that I have viewed the show.)

So, while there may not be any television shows solely dedicated to crafting (that I’m aware of) at least the Hallmark channel’s  Home & Family has some crafting segments. (The show airs on Monday – Friday,  from 9:00 – 11:00 AM central time zone.)

Happy holiday crafting!

***** March 4, 2014 Update:

Now that the holiday season is way behind us, I am not quite as keen about the Home & Family show. I have to say that I find it extremely annoying to watch one of the hosts cut people off almost all of the time. Yesterday, one of the hosts started the show by welcoming the viewers to the Home and Fa— when the other host quickly cut in  with his/her welcome.

This morning I was watching a doctor talk about something quite interesting, only to AGAIN be treated to another “amazing story” from this host of the show. I was much more interested in what the doctor had to say than this host’s story, which I have heard many times before from this host. Very annoying!*****

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