The Cozy Mystery List Blog

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

It Looks Like the Holiday Season is Here!

I guess that it’s official! The December holidays are upon us.

I still haven’t done much about decorating the house, although I did manage to have my husband and son bring the big bins in from our garage. Unfortunately, that’s about as far as I have gotten… except that I did pull my Corelle Winter Holly holiday dishes out>>> I simply could not wait to use those doggone dishes!

And, today was the first day that I had my morning coffee in my “official” Christmas coffee cup. It’s a lot smaller than my regular mug, but that’s OK>>> I love it anyway.

My college roommate wrote and told me that they just got their first snowfall of the season today. We may not be blanketed in a snowy, white wonderland down here in San Antonio, but with holly leaves and berries on my coffee cup, I feel like the “winter season” has finally started.

Manor House Miniseries…

Manor House To those of you who have read some of my other TV & Movie reviews>>> you probably have guessed that It was only a matter of time before I reviewed yet another of Sir Derek Jacobi’s works. Manor House is a departure of sorts, as he is the narrator, not actually one of the stars of the show. But his narration is a true joy to listen to… especially if you’re one of his many fans.

The premise of this six part miniseries: People from 2002 are transplanted back in time – the Edwardian period (early 1900s) – to a manor house in Great Britain. This was a time with vastly differing social classes. Upon entering the grounds of this particular manor house world, the twenty first century inhabitants lost all of their twenty first century technology. YOW! Have we improved our circumstances since then!

For those participants of the televised experiment who were lucky enough to portray (as in LIVE!!!) the aristocratic family>>> bravo for you! For those participants who were “lucky enough” to live the parts of scullery maids, stable boy, butler, cook, ETC>>> YIKES! Times were tough! (I don’t personally know anybody who could survive, let alone flourish, in the life of a scullery maid!) And, of course, as expected, the family living the aristocratic family’s part becomes…. Oops! No spoilers here!

My husband and I enjoyed this show immensely and looked forward to each and every episode. The one big draw back for us: we would have enjoyed spending even more time with the inhabitants of this particular Manor House!

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

Sheryl J. Anderson, Margaret Dumas, Elizabeth Eagan-Cox, and Diane Setterfield: Four New Authors to the Cozy Mystery Site

I hope to eventually get most of the recommended Cozy Authors posted, and again thank all of you for the recommended authors… I have to rely on your judgment when I add the newly recommended authors since I (obviously) haven’t had the chance to try every one of them before posting them. But, I can’t think of a better way to get new Cozy Authors on the site than to ask Cozy Mystery Site Readers to help by letting the rest of us know about new Cozy Mystery Authors!

Sheryl J. Anderson: Anderson has a very varied background: She has worked as a screenwriter, a television producer and writer, and is now teaching screenwriting, as well as writing the Molly Forrester Mystery Series which features an advice columnist (¿Dear Abby-type?) who also solves mysteries.

Margaret Dumas: Dumas writes the Charlie & Jack Fairfax Mystery Series which has been compared to Nick & Nora Charles by no less than Donna Andrews! That’s quite an endorsement!

Elizabeth Eagan-Cox: Eagan-Cox has just started the Shannon Delaney Mystery Series which features a writer in San Diego with ghostly encounters…

Diane Setterfield: Setterfield became a bestselling author when The Thirteenth Tale (her first novel) was published. She has been compared to the likes of Charlotte Brontë and Daphne du Maurier… classic/Gothic mystery…

Thankful at Thanksgiving

I have been somewhat remiss in blogging… My husband and I have been enjoying the past few days immensely. We have both of our grown children at home, and the holidays make us more aware of how seldom in the future we will all four be under the same roof.

Our son will be graduating with his accounting degree this December, and hopefully will be finding a job soon. He is planning on working while taking the courses he will need in order to take the CPA exam. So, my husband and I are all too aware that he might be moving out of town (let alone out of the state!) very soon. Obviously, we are hoping that he is able to find something right here in San Antonio.

Our daughter will be graduating this May with her degree in aerospace engineering, and has just been accepted by one of her top three choices of law schools… So, she will be moving out of state for her three years of law school. Going so far from home for the three years reminds me of when I attended a college that wasn’t close to my parents’ home. Luckily, I had my beloved grandmother with whom I could spend the shorter college breaks. Our daughter won’t have that luxury. Hopefully the school gives a whole week off for Thanksgiving, rather than the traditional two days. That way she will be able to fly home.

For those of you with young children… ENJOY!!! Remember, they grow up all too soon… It sometimes literally feels like they go from the excitement of watching an ant hill to the excitement of their first driver’s license, to the excitement of going off to college. ENJOY all of the precious moments that will make up your lifetime’s catalogue of memories!

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