The Cozy Mystery List Blog

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

Our Main Sleuth’s Reprieve

I was just re-reading all of your comments about an author killing off the main sleuth because she/he thought the sleuth is boring. (My last entry.) It looks like the definite consensus is “No! Don’t do it!” Most of us seem to feel the same way about taking our sleuths away: One of the things we enjoy about our Cozy Mystery series are the characters and their development. Killing the sleuth would be a development we would rather avoid, at least until the author is pulling the plug on the series.

I totally agree with the sentiment that it would be almost disrespectful to the fans who actually like the series. What a way to repay them >>> bring on a sleuth who makes it more enjoyable to the author? What about the fans who bought your books? Perhaps the sleuth has gotten stale for the author, but as long as there continue to be fans who are buying the books, apparently the sleuth isn’t boring to everyone – the fans.

Who would have thought that Sherlock Holmes would rise from the dead? As for Poirot, I knew that Christie got tired of him, but she continued because of her (or should I say “his”?) fans. ‘Cause, let’s face it, when we like a mystery series, we’re not only fans of the author, but also of the sleuth.

I’m sure we all enjoy it when an author actually writes the last mystery in a series, and wraps it all up, so why not go that course? I get quite annoyed when I have stayed with a series through several books and then find out the publisher no longer wants to let the author continue with the series. I would always appreciate it if the publisher would let the author write one more mystery – just to wrap things up.

So, here’s a helpful suggestion to authors with this predicament. Retire your sleuth gracefully, before your fans think your sleuth is just as boring as you think he/she is!

To Kill, OR Not to Kill, That Really Is the Question!

I received a really good idea for an entry from one of you, who wishes to remain anonymous. Actually, I think it’s a really, really good idea, and would have loved to give credit to the person posing the question, but will go with what he/she asked.

“I was having a conversation with a mystery writer whose books feature an amateur sleuth. He mentioned he was thinking of killing her off a few books in, and having another younger (more interesting) character take over the crime solving business. Now my instinct as a reader was “No! Don’t do it!”, but I was really curious whether you or your readers knew if a mystery writer has gotten away with this successfully, or did it destroy the series. I don’t mean spin-off series, but out-and-out remove the main sleuth permanently and replace with a whole different lead sleuth. What do you think?”

I don’t know of any mystery series where the author has killed off the main sleuth and brought in a more “interesting” sleuth to take his/her place. I wonder just how boring (my word, not anybody else’s) this particular author’s main sleuth is. Is she/he boring to readers? (The sleuth, not the author!) Is he/she boring to just the author? Is this particular author’s mystery series a well-known and well-established mystery series?

If this particular author’s series is popular, my advice would be to: “Get over it! Don’t tamper with success! Go get yourself a pseudonym and start another series with a more interesting (to you) main sleuth.” (Many other authors are going the pseudonym route, so just join them. It makes it more difficult for the readers to keep the particular authors with pseudonyms straight, but apparently that doesn’t seem to bother the authors. And, let’s face it, with pseudonyms, if people don’t like one of your series, they may still give another one of your series a try.)

I am one of those people who missed Captain Hastings when he moved to Argentina. Yes, I know he wasn’t the main sleuth in Agatha Christie’s Hercule Poirot Mystery Series, but he sure was a great secondary character. And as such, he added a lot to the series. Imagine, though, that Christie has gotten rid of Hercule instead, and made Hastings the sleuth. So much more exciting: a military hero and a gaucho, to boot! Can’t get more “interesting” than that! Good thing Christie didn’t, or we would be reading the Captain Hastings Mystery Series!

So, although I don’t know of any successful mystery authors who have managed to pull the old bait and switch routine, I will agree with the person who sent me this entry’s subject:

“No! Don’t do it!”

Getting back to the actual topic of this entry:

“I was really curious whether you or your readers knew if a mystery writer has gotten away with this successfully, or did it destroy the series. I don’t mean spin-off series, but out-and-out remove the main sleuth permanently and replace with a whole different lead sleuth. What do you think?”

One of My Fall Rituals OR How I Do (Plan) My Television Viewing

With all of these current comments about television shows, I decided to share a little about what I do each year at this time.

Every new fall television season, I tape all of the new shows and watch them. (We have a Sage television recorder which is fabulous – although “extinct”. It enables us to record a lot of different shows at the same time.) I actually go through the television roster and pick out all of the new shows. I then record and watch them, to determine whether they are keepers or not.

You might think that I must devote hours and hours to watching all of the new shows the four major networks have to offer. Actually, I wish that were the case! Unfortunately, I usually don’t last more than ten minutes for most shows. I try to “force” myself to watch at least ten minutes, but sometimes I don’t even last that long. I can usually tell if the show is something that will “last” for me rather quickly. Some of the time, all I need to see is a “funny” sex joke. If a show’s writers think they have to rely on a “funny” sex joke within the first ten minutes to catch the viewer’s attention, then they are looking for a different type of viewer than me.

Another thing that tells me the show isn’t for me is when I see a cute, angelic, little child doing quick double-take looks at the parents. That or the “always funny” same sweet child rolling his/her eyes at something one of the parents said. Relying on that is a definite turn-off to me. I guess I just don’t agree with the laugh-track technician.

Let’s see, what are some other pet peeves of mine… (I think I’m on a roll!!!)

How about doctors and lawyers on these shows who look like they are nineteen years old? >>> And I’m not talking about Dougy Hauser, MD! What happened to all of those years of college and then medical school, interning, residency, etc.? At least give me a lawyer with four years of college, followed by three years of law school, I’ll give it a break and not put in the LL.M.s!

Here’s yet one more thing that will determine if I’m able to last longer than ten minutes watching a new show: Give me some actors who are not “generic” looking actors. I’d like to be able to differentiate between the actresses and actors. I mean, do all of the actors have to be buff, Chippendale looking men? Do all of the actresses need to look like they all received the same cosmetic surgery upon graduating from high school? And, when I say I’d like them not to all look alike, I don’t mean throw a blonde in amongst the brunettes!

Yes, I know, I’m a tough crowd!!!

So far, this season, I have two possible shows that I will continue watching. Two out of the entire new television roster for all three channels. That’s pretty telling, isn’t it? But, at least I have two possible shows. Some years I don’t even have one!

How about you? How do you find new shows to follow? Do you have any pet peeves when it comes to finding a new show?

Murder in Suburbia Television Show

Murder in Suburbia Complete Collection If you are looking for a new television mystery to follow – that has good mysteries, a lot of humor, great acting, wonderful 3-D characters, and is just plain fun to watch; Murder in Suburbia will fit the bill.

I found this British television mystery series while tracking down the shows that Caroline Catz has been in. For those of you who watch Doc Martin (not a mystery, but a wonderful British television series) you will definitely know her acting style as exhilaratingly fun to watch. She brings a youthful, girl-next-door quality to her work.

Getting back to Murder in Suburbia. This British mystery series is set in the suburbs, and features two young detectives. Ash (Caroline Catz) and Scribbs (Lisa Faulkner) are both very competent detectives. Ash outranks Scribbs, but the only apparent rank-pulling is that Scribbs has the driving duty. They are both single, both looking for their Mr. Rights.

Ash comes from a very posh background, which includes an upper-crust British girls’ education. She is self-conscious and embarrasses very easily. The equally delightful Scribbs is street-savvy. She has a working class upbringing and is rather “saucy” –  to say the least. (She does not embarrass easily!)

The show never explains how Scribbs and Ash became partners, but however it was, it works! The two women are friends, confidants, and working partners. Of course, being a police drama, they find time to discuss their cases. But a lot of the time they talk about their private lives.

Scribbs, it turns out, dates a lot. She is not necessarily picky, and many times is sorry about her choices of men. Ash, on the other hand, is very picky, only dates “eligible” men, and secretly hankers for her boss.

This show is fun to watch, and the mysteries are actually good. They don’t take a back seat to the inter-personal relationships. I strongly recommend Murder in Suburbia – both season 1 and 2.

P.S. >>> If you’re looking for two-dimensional characters, CSI type forensics, and gruesome mysteries, this series is not for you!

If you would like to see more TV and Movies suggestions, click here.

MENU