The Cozy Mystery List Blog

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

Mystery Books that Take Place in Ohio:

Here are some Fun Ohio Facts:
Ohio got its name from the Iroquoian word which means “great river.”
The capital is Columbus.
The state flower is the Scarlet Carnation.
The state bird is the Cardinal.
The state motto is “With God, all things are possible.”

Authors who are found on the Cozy Mystery Site and who feature Ohio locations in their books:

Avery Aames: Cheese Shop Mystery Series…

Kristi Abbott: Gourmet Popcorn Shop Mystery Series…

Isabella Alan (aka Amanda Flower): Amish Quilt Shop Mystery Series

D.B. Barton (aka Della Barton): Cat Caliban Mystery Series AND Movie Lovers’ Mystery Series…

Vivien Chien: Noodle Shop Mystery Series

Melissa Cleary: Dog Lover’s Mystery Series…

Casey Daniels: Pepper Martin Mystery Series…

Amanda Flower (aka Isabella Alan): India Hayes Mystery Series…

Amanda Flower (aka Isabella Alan): Amish Candy Shop Mystery Series

Amanda Flower (aka Isabella Alan): Amish Matchmaker Mystery Series

P. L. Gaus: Ohio Amish Mystery Series…

Cathie John: Journals of Kate Cavanaugh Culinary Mystery Series…

Kylie Logan (aka Miranda Bliss & Casey Daniels): Ethnic Eats Mystery Series…

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

Kylie Logan (aka Miranda Bliss & Casey Daniels): Jazz Ramsey Mystery Series

Ralph McInerny (aka Monica Quill): Egidio Manfredi Mystery Series…

Emilie Richards: Ministry is Murder Mystery Series…

Sharon Short: Stain-Busting Mystery Series AND Patricia Delaney Mystery Series…

Sugar Creek Amish Mysteries

Heather Webber: Nina Quinn Mystery Series…

Please feel free to contact me if you see an author from the Cozy Mystery Site who belongs on this list, or if you have any comments.

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

A Truly Terrific TNT Channel Show: The Closer …

I have recently mentioned (several times!) that my daughter is home for the summer. The two of us watch a television show together every morning… a “chick flick” type of show that we have not introduced to either my husband or son. Our favorite show is TNT’s… The Closer.

We have several shows that we follow together, but The Closer just seems to “have it all” for us. It is a detective/”cop” show which is different from others. The boss happens to be a woman who is very smart, who demands respect from her subordinates while instilling a trust and comradeship in the office. She is able to balance being “the boss” with being one of the detectives who must solve the case during the one-hour time limit of the show.

Several weeks ago, after watching that week’s show, I tried to decide why we like the show so much >>> I think it’s because the characters actually interact the way real people do. There is a genuine friendship between some of the characters, but there are also jealousies.

Brenda Lee (the main character) is played by Kyra Sedgwick. She is a strong woman with many weaknesses. She is a boss who believes in second chances – third, fourth, and even fifth chances! She is a woman who makes no excuses for doing things her way. She has worked all of her adult life to achieve the success in her career that she is now experiencing – heading the homicide department in the city’s police department.

She hasn’t put off having children to a time when they would conveniently fit into her life. Instead, she has elected to forgo children… knowing that children not only bring joy, but as she has seen on the job, they can also bring such unbearable sadness when they disappear or are harmed. (*****SPOLER ALERT FOR THE NEXT SENTENCE*****) The loss of her beloved “Kitty” took Brenda Lee to such an unexpected sad point in her life that she simply cannot fathom putting herself in a position that would take her even beyond that sadness.

The Closer has the perfect addition of comedy, the characters all seem (to my daughter and me, at least) to be three-dimensional with true-to-life pasts, and the acting is truly enjoyable.

The Closer is a show that I highly recommend!

Mystery Books that Take Place in Virginia:

Here are some Fun Virginia Facts:
The largest city is Virginia Beach, and the capital is Richmond.
State motto is “Thus always to tyrants.”
State bird is the Cardinal.
State flower is the American Dogwood.
Virginia got its name in honor of Queen Elizabeth I.

Authors who are found on the Cozy Mystery Site and who feature Virginia locations in their books:

Beverly Allen (aka Barbara Early): Bridal Bouquet Shop Mystery Series

Donna Andrews: Meg Langslow Mystery Series

David Baldacci: Maxwell & King Mystery Series

Josie Belle (aka Jenn McKinlay & Lucy Lawrence): Good Buy Girls Mystery Series

Miranda Bliss: Cooking Class Mystery Series

Rita Mae Brown: Mrs. Murphy Mystery Series AND Foxhunting Mystery Series

Mollie Cox Bryan: Cumberland Creek Mystery Series

Taffy Cannon (aka Emily Toll): Roxanne Prescott Mystery Series

Alyse Carlson: Garden Society Mystery Series

Patricia Cornwell: Kay Scarpetta Mystery Series AND  Judy Hammer Mystery Series

Ellen Crosby: Wine Country Mystery Series

Krista Davis: Domestic Diva Mystery Series

Krista Davis: Paws and Claws Mystery Series

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

Honora Finkelstein & Susan Smily: Ariel Quigley Mystery Series

Victoria Gilbert: Blue Ridge Library Mystery Series – Amy Webber is a former university librarian who now manages a public library in Virginia.

John J. Lamb: Bear Collector’s Mystery Series

Graham Landrum: Club Mystery Series

Joyce and Jim Lavene (aka J.J. Cook & Ellie Grant): Pumpkin Patch Mystery Series

Joyce and Jim Lavene (aka J.J. Cook & Ellie Grant): Purple Door Detective Agency Mystery Series

Gayle Leeson (aka Amanda Lee & Gayle Trent): Ghostly Fashionista Mystery Series – features the owner of a design shop and the ghost who has lived in the shop since the 1930s.

Ann McMillan: Civil War Mystery Series

Ann Ripley: Gardening Mystery Series

Susan Smily & Honora Finkelstein: Ariel Quigley Mystery Series

J.B. Stanley (aka Jennifer Stanley & Ellery Adams): Supper Club Mystery Series

Jennifer Stanley (aka J. B. Stanley & Ellery Adams): Hope Street Church Mystery Series

Gayle Trent (aka Amanda Lee): Daphne Martin (Cake Decorating) Mystery Series

LynDee Walker: Headlines in Heels Mystery Series

Please feel free to contact me if you see an author from the Cozy Mystery Site who belongs on this list, or if you have any comments.

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

M. M. Gornell, Nancy Lynn Jarvis, Tracey Kiely, Thomas Perry : Four New Authors to the Cozy Mystery Site…

Here is the latest “batch” of authors who you (the Cozy Mystery Site Readers) have recommended for me to add to the site. I know I must sound like a broken record (I guess that would be a broken CD or download now!) when I tell you (again!) that I haven’t yet read any of them. But, since you all think that they belong on the site, then they are all welcome additions for us!

M. M. Gornell: Gornell has written two Stand Alone mysteries so far. She is a high-fire stoneware potter who loves to garden and write mysteries.

Nancy Lynn Jarvis: Regan McHenry Real Estate Mystery Series… Jarvis has worked as a librarian, realtor, and business manager, and also in the newspaper advertising business. She now writes a mystery series which is set in California.

Tracy Kiely: Elizabeth Parker Mystery Series… Kiely has a degree in English and sets her mystery series in Cape Cod. The series combines Kiely’s love for Jane Austen with the British Cozies. 

Thomas Perry: Jane Whitefield Mystery Series… Jane Whitefield is a Seneca Wolf Clan member who hides people who need to disappear in New York.  AND Michael Schaeffer Series… Shaeffer is an international hit man. Perry’s books are not cozy.

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