The Cozy Mystery List Blog

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

On Sale Now – The Big Book of Christmas Mysteries

NOTE: It looks like the sale is already over – but I’d say that the normal Kindle price of $7.99 is still a good deal.

I don’t normally highlight this sort of book sale these days, but since it is immediately relevant to the upcoming holiday seasons, I thought I would just mention it here… I noticed that The Big Book of Christmas Mysteries is on sale in Kindle format, and I picked it up immediately.

This is an absolutely mammoth collection of Christmas mystery short fiction, by a widely ranging set of authors from Arthur Conan Doyle to Agatha Christie to newer authors like Mary Higgins Clark and Sara Paretsky. Other classic investigators included in the collection are Morse, Brother Cadfael, and Rumpole… I would say that overall the collection does skew toward the classic – but personally I love the classics! (I did notice that it both starts and ends with Christie tales… definitely a choice after my own heart!)

Admittedly, I haven’t read the whole thing yet – but with 59 stories, even if I do eventually run into a handful that I wouldn’t personally recommend, I’m still quite confident recommending the whole collection, especially considering the current Kindle pricing at $2.99.

Note that this sale is only for Kindles – the list price for the hardback and paperback editions are both quite high. I’ve also read at least one review stating that the text on the print editions might be quite small – which isn’t surprising considering the paperback is listed in at 672 pages while the Kindle edition is listed at 1289 (!!!). Fortunately text size isn’t a concern for Kindles, since you can adjust the text as you need.

This is a really great collection, and I strongly recommend it to any Kindle owner who is looking for some great holiday-themed short stories to get into that Christmas-y mood.

P.S. If you’re in the mood for more Christmas themed mystery books, be sure to check the books on my Cozy Mystery site’s Christmas Mystery Book List page.

December 5 to December 11, 2022

Here is the list of new releases for December 5 to December 11!

Emmie Caldwell (aka Mary Ellen Hughes): Knits, Knots, and Knives (3rd Craft Fair Mysteries)

Amanda Flower (aka Isabella Alan) Frozen Detective (This will be the 2nd in the Piper and Porter Mystery Series.)

Christopher Fowler: Bryant & May: Peculiar London (19th Peculiar Crimes Unit Mystery Series)

Victoria Gilbert: Death in the Margins (This is the 7th in the Blue Ridge Mystery Series.)

Paige Shelton: Winter’s End (This will be the 4th in the Alaska Wild Mystery Series.)

Victoria Thompson: City of Fortune (This is the 6th in the Counterfeit Lady Mystery Series.)

Hallmark Movies & Mysteries AND Hallmark Channels Christmas Lists for December 2022

This year has gone too fast! We’re already entering the last month of 2022!

I usually try not to comment about a particular Christmas movie on these lists, but, if you haven’t already seen it, I totally recommend Haul Out the Holly. It is a lot of fun to watch – with a lot of humor thrown into the family theme. Very cute Christmas movie, and the rapport between the two main leads (Lacey Chabert & Wes Brown) is terrific. [The Hallmark channel will be re-airing Haul Out the Holly on Friday December 2 6/5c, Saturday December 10 10/9c, Thursday December 15 8/7c, Wednesday December 21 2/1c, & Saturday December 24 8/7.](That’s not to say the other Hallmark Christmas movies aren’t enjoyable to watch, this one just really stood out for me.)

So, this is the final month of the NEW Christmas movies on the Hallmark Movies & Mysteries channel and the Hallmark channel. (As soon as I finish writing this entry I have to go set up my DVR for December 2022.}

HALLMARK MOVIES & MYSTERIES & HALLMARK Channels CHRISTMAS LIST for December 2022:

***** ***** ***** ***** *****

Friday – December 2, 2022

A Big Fat Family Christmas – Hallmark channel
***** ***** ***** ***** *****

Saturday – December 3, 2022

The Holiday Stocking – Hallmark Movies & Mysteries channel

A Fabled Holiday – Hallmark channel
***** ***** ***** ***** *****

Sunday – December 4, 2022

Undercover Holiday – Hallmark channel
***** ***** ***** ***** *****

Friday – December 9, 2022

The Most Colorful Time of the Year – Hallmark channel
***** ***** ***** ***** *****

Saturday – December 10, 2022 

The Gift of Peace – Hallmark Movies & Mysteries channel

Christmas Class Reunion – Hallmark channel
***** ***** ***** ***** *****

Sunday – December 11, 2022

The Holiday Sitter – Hallmark channel
***** ***** ***** ***** *****

Friday – December 16, 2022

Holiday Heritage – Hallmark channel
***** ***** ***** ***** *****

Saturday – December 17, 2022

‘Twas the Night before Christmas – Hallmark channel
***** ***** ***** ***** *****

Sunday – December 18, 2022

Hanukkah on Rye – Hallmark channel

***** ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** ***** *****

I believe this is it for the Hallmark Holiday movies. Let’s hope we’ll soon be seeing lots of new Cozy Mystery movies now! 

If you’re looking for Holiday movies that won’t be found on either of the Hallmark channels, here are some ideas:

Christmas: Favorite Classic Holiday Movies : Old, Black & White

Christmas: Favorite Holiday Movies – More Recent, In Color

Cozy Mystery Book Recommendations – November 2022

November is almost over, so it’s time to discuss our favorite Cozies that we’ve read last month!

If you read a Cozy mystery last month and want to recommend it to the rest of us, be sure to post it here! For this month, I read the first entry of Jane K. Cleland’s Josie Prescott Mystery Series. For the reasons I want to recommend it, be sure to check out the blog entry!

So, what have you been reading that you can recommend in November ? Please be sure to tell us why you liked these Cozies so much. I know we’re all always on the lookout for more particularly good Cozy Mystery authors! (If you have a lot of Cozies you think are great, please post the ones you like the most at the top of the list.)

As always, please do not tell us about the Cozy Mysteries you did not like.

What really good Cozy Mystery did you read during November 2022 that you want the rest of us to know about, and why did you enjoy it?

Rhys Bowen: Royal Spyness Mystery Series

J. C. Briggs: Charles Dickens Investigations Mystery Series (first entry The Murder of Patience Brooke)

Verity Bright: Lady Eleanor Swift Mystery Series (first entry A Very English Murder)

Catherine Bruns: Maple Syrup Mystery Series

Colleen Cambridge: Phyllida Bright Mystery Series (first entry Murder at Mallowan Hall)

Ann Clair: Christie Bookshop Mystery Series (first entry Dead and Gondola)

Jane K. Cleland: Josie Prescott Mystery Series

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

Earlene Fowler: Benni Harper Mystery Series

Caroline Graham: Chief Inspector Barnaby Mystery Series

Elly Griffiths: Harbinder Kaur Mystery Series (first entry The Stranger Diaries)

Fiona Leitch: Nosey Parker Mystery Series (first entry Murder on the Menu)

Liz Lipperman    (aka Lizbeth Lipperman & Liz Roth): Clueless Cook Mystery Series

Faith Martin: Hillary Greene Mystery Series (first entry Murder on the Oxford Canal)

Korina Moss: Cheese Shop Mystery Series (first entry Cheddar Off Dead)

Linda Reilly: Grilled Cheese Mystery Series 

Sara Rosett: Murder on Location Mystery Series

Annelise Ryan (aka Allyson K. Abbott & Beth Amos): Mattie Winston Mystery Series

I will list the authors and series that have been recommended, but I urge you to read the comments below so you can see the reasons other Cozy Mystery readers thought these were their best reads of the month.

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

P.S. I usually don’t comment on your recommendations since they speak for themselves.

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