The Cozy Mystery List Blog

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

Cozy Mystery Books Recommendations – November 2012

Can you believe the year 2012 is almost over? I can’t! It seems like I just got used to putting “2012” on what little I actually write, and already I know that I’m going to have to get used to “2013.”

And since it is the end of November, it is the time when I ask you to please tell us about a few of your very favorite Cozy Mystery reads of this month. The authors should be people who you think the rest of us need to know about.  They can be authors who you just started reading, or authors who you have revisited this past month. Please include WHY you enjoyed these authors. What makes these authors stand out from the other authors you read this past month, but who “didn’t rate” as much in your book?

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I will add the recommended authors to this entry as they come in. (Please do not tell us about the authors you did not like.) Thank you!

What Cozy Mystery book (or author) have you read during November 2012, and why did you enjoy it (or him/her)?

Here are the current authors who some of you have read this past month, and wanted to tell the rest of us about:

Avery Aames: Cheese Shop Mystery Series

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

Tasha Alexander: Lady Emily Mystery Series

Madelyn Alt: Bewitching Mystery Series

Connie Archer: Soup Lover’s Mystery Series

Charlotte Banchi: Foul Deeds (“Cozy thriller”)

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

M. C. Beaton: Agatha Raisin Mystery Series

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

Ali Brandon (aka Diane A.S. Stuckart): Black Cat Bookshop Mystery Series

Lilian Jackson Braun: The Cat Who *** Mystery Series

Elizabeth Lynn Casey (aka Laura Bradford): Southern Sewing Circle Mystery Series

Kate Collins: Flower Shop Mystery Series

Sheila Connolly (aka Sarah Atwell): Museum Mystery Series

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

Waverly Curtis: Barking Detective Mystery Series

Deborah Crombie: Kincaid and James Mystery Series

Krista Davis: Domestic Diva Mystery Series

Jana DeLeon: Mystere Parish Series (The Vanishing)

Barbaras Delinsky: Escape

Laura DiSilverio (aka Ella Barrick & Lila Dare): Mall Cop Mystery Series

Elizabeth J. Duncan: Penny Brannigan

Janet Evanovich: Stephanie Plum Mystery Series

Christopher Fowler: Peculiar Crimes Unit Mystery Series

Dashiell Hammett: The Thin Man

David Handler: Berger & Mitry Mystery Series

Lee Hollis: Hayley Powell Food & Cocktails Mystery Series

Maddy Hunter: Passport to Peril Mystery Series

Michael Innes: Inspector Sir John Appleby Mystery Series

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

P.D. James: Adam Dalgliesh Mystery Series

Rita Lakin: Gladdy Gold Mystery Series

Jill Marie Landis: Tikki Goddess Mystery Series (Mai Tai One On)

Amanda Lee (aka Gayle Trent): Embroidery Mystery Series

Susan Elia MacNeal: Mr. Churchill’s Secretary

Molly MacRae: Haunted Wool Shop Mystery Series

Margaret Maron: Deborah Knott Mystery Series

J. J. Marric (aka John Creasey): Gideon’s Month

Kate Morton: The Secret Keeper

Katherine Hall Page: Faith Fairchild Mystery Series

Dornford Yates: Cost Price

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

Mystery Book Series with a Music and/or Musician Theme

Ksenija just asked me if I had a Music/Musician mystery book theme on the site, and I responded that I don’t. Actually, I started putting all of the mystery authors I could think of with Music/Musicians, and came up with this list, which I wrote as a comment, but just decided to post as a theme.

Amanda Carmack: Elizabethan Mystery Series, starring Kate Haywood (musician in Elizabethan England)

Joelle Charbonneau: Glee Club Mystery Series (high school choir coach)

Alisa Craig (aka Charlotte MacLeod): Inspector Madoc Rhys Mystery Series (Trouble in the Brasses)

Sarah Fox: Music Lover’s Mystery Series

Sara Hoskinson Frommer: Joan Spencer Mystery Series (orchestra manager)

Kaye George (aka Janet Cantrell): Cressa Carraway Mystery Series (musician conductor)

Cynthia Harrod-Eagles: Bill Slider Mystery Series (young violin player girlfriend)

Morag Joss: Sara Selkirk Mystery Series – Sara is a world renown cellist.

Beverle Graves Myers: Baroque Mystery Series (18th Century Castrati)

Mark Scheweizer: Liturgical Mystery Series (choir director and organist at his Episcopal church)

I don’t know how I missed these authors, but here are some more authors who have been recommended by some of you:

K. K. Beck: Jane da Silva Mystery Series (lounge singer)

Meg Cabot: Heather Wells Mystery Series (ex teen pop star)

Church Choir Mystery Series: (church choir)

Carole Nelson Douglas: Irene Adler Mystery Series (French opera singer)

Sarah Fox: Music Lover’s Mystery Series (Dead Ringer, book #1) (violinist)

Kinky Friedman: Kinky Friedman Mystery Series (country western singer)

Andrew M. Greeley: Nuala Anne McGrail Mystery Series (singer)

Kerry Greenwood: Phryne Fisher Mystery Series (Ruddy Gore)

Kate Grilley: Kelly Ryan Mystery Series (radio station manager)

Lucille Kallen: C.B. Greenfield Mystery Series (musicians)

Barbara Paul: Opera Mystery Series (tenor)

Mary Saums: Willie Taft Mystery Series former (singer )

Dorothy L. Sayers: Lord Peter Wimsey Mystery Series (pianist)

And, here are some authors who aren’t on the Cozy Mystery site:

Deborah Grabien: J P Kinkaid Mystery Series (Rock & Roll Never Forgets)

Phyliss Knight: ‘Lil Richie’ Series (Switching the Odds  and Shattered Rhythms)

Val McDermid: Kate Brannigan Mystery Series (Dead Beat)

Karen Sturges: Music Lover’s Mystery Series (Death of a Baritone and Death of a Pooh-Bah)

Please remember that I have only included the authors who are currently on the Cozy Mystery Site. Feel free to post a comment if you know of any other mystery authors from the site who write Music/Musician themed mystery books. Thanks!

♦ To access more Cozy Mysteries by Theme click on this link ♦

Laredo, Brownsville, and Points In Between

My husband and I have headed down south, to Laredo and Brownsville. We have lived in San Antonio for about twenty years, and have never headed down this way.

We have no great plans. We will be looking at a few apartment complexes, since our daughter will be moving down here next year. Other than that, we’ll see what happens. It’s one of those lazy “vacations” with no place in particular to go to, but lots of possibilities.

We have never been “birders” but are thinking about possibly joining a birding expedition one of the days. Neither of us knew that this part of Texas is apparently a huge birding enthusiast’s dream!

I told my husband that I would be interested in visiting some of the birding places in this area, and there are quite a few of them. The Edinburg World Birding Center, the Sabal Palm Audubon Center and Sanctuary, several parks, and even a battlefield that all feature good bird watching possibilities and/or activities. Who knew? (Certainly not us… but we aren’t birders!)

I have to admit that I am pretty tired of only seeing doves and house finches in San Antonio. I used to get Blue Jays in the yard, but had to discontinue feeding them peanuts, since the squirrels made off with them more often than the Jays. And I haven’t seen a Cardinal in months. So, I wouldn’t mind seeing a colorful bird of some sort this weekend.

It’s odd >>> I never was interested in birds before. It seems that since Sprite has been gone (our 16 1/2 year old puppy) I have become more interested in other animals, perhaps thinking that it would make me get over Sprite. My husband and I have talked about another pet, but we’re just not sure we are ready for a big commitment like that again. As much joy as Sprite gave all of us, her last few years were very difficult for her – and for us. A lot of worrying…

I’ll let you all know about our attempt at “birding” for the first time. Neither my husband nor I would have EVER guessed we would look forward to trying this new adventure. Who knew?

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