The Cozy Mystery List Blog

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

Lady Minister Cozy Mystery Series…

The site just got a comment from a reader who needs help finding two authors. I am not sure how many site viewers read the comments after some of the blogs… so, just in case, I thought I would try to see if any of you are familiar with the two authors who are being sought.

The site viewer wrote:
“I’m trying to find 2 authors (series). First, an interior decorator, male, straight, who gets a female cop (or P.I.) to help him find the “bad guy”. ”

Do any of you have any suggestions? I am at a loss on this one.

“The other one is a lady minister, widow I think, who solves mysteries with a local policeman, married, (named George??). They fall for each other, but do very little about it since he is married.”

Now, this one I think I might have. I posted this answer to her comment:

“I’m glad you found the site, also. I know what you mean about trying to find a series you liked in the past but didn’t annotate… or if you did, your threw the scrap piece of paper away with the series’ details. I am going to write a blog about your mystery series which deals with the interior decorator, and hopefully someone will come up with the specifics… nothing seems to ring a bell for me at this time…

As for the series about the lady minister… I am guessing that the series is by Julia Spencer-Fleming. Her Reverend Clare Fergusson series has the main character working very closely with police chief Russ Van Alstyne. Could this possibly be the series you are thinking about?

Kate Charles writes the Callie Anson Mystery Series. Callie is a newly ordained Anglican Minister in England.

Another possibility would be Cristina Sumners‘ series about an Episcopalian priest named Kathryn Koerney. The police chief in this series is named Tom Holder, and apparently there is a romantic tension between them. I don’t have the series listed on my pages… but Crooked Heart is the first in that particular series.

Hopefully, one of those three series is the one you are looking for…

If any of you have an idea/inkling of who the first author is, please post a comment. As for the second author, I could be missing the boat completely, so if any of you have other suggestions on who that author could be, again, please post a comment. The comment button is just below each particular blog entry, under the faint line…

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

Fall Theme Mysteries, Halloween Theme Mysteries, & Thanksgiving Theme Mysteries…

Well, it’s right about the time of year when I start to try to get my holiday/seasonal mystery books accumulated… I live down here in San Antonio, Texas, and the weather just doesn’t cooperate with my seasonal cravings. I know from my past living experiences, that it is indeed the beginning of autumn… with leaves changing their colors, and a little chill in the air as you go about your morning activities. Not so here! We are experiencing upper 80s to low to mid 90s…. (I know it sounds like sour grapes that I would actually be brazen enough to “complain” about what people consider glorious San Antonio weather…)

I have already gotten out my fall candles that give the house an aroma of cinnamon apples and pumpkin spices… but sometimes that just doesn’t cut it! It’s about this time of year that I start relying on my cozy mystery authors to bring the “autumnal chill” into my life… since the only chill I feel around here is when I’m in the frozen foods section of my local grocery store.

We moved to San Antonio fifteen years ago, after having lived in places like Colorado, Virginia, Ohio, Connecticut, Iowa, Nebraska… (etc)  At the time of our “transplant” to this area, we were surprised by the lack of trees in the housing developments. It was as if the builders simply bulldozed down everything… so that they could put the houses as close to each other as they dared. So, it was left up to us to put the trees into our yards… We decided that the Monterrey Oaks were the way for us to go… they are basically an evergreen tree… only shedding their leaves for about three weeks each year. Unfortunately, I didn’t think about how much I would miss the different colors of “normal” trees. (At the same time, I do remember the raking that was the cost of that beauty!)

Anyway, long story… to say this… I now rely on many different sources to get the feeling of the seasons I miss so much. And, one of the ways I go about getting my “fall-fix” is to read books that are set in the autumn. I may still be wearing short sleeves while reading my fall (Halloween and Thanksgiving) cozy mystery, but with my scented candles permeating the house, I can almost feel the chill of the night…

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

Updating Author Lists, Authors by Profession

I have been trying to update my authors’ chronological lists these past few days, and I am also currently trying to sort "my authors" by their main character’s professions. I know that there are already many different sites that have the professions of the main characters already sorted out, but I just decided that I wanted to see what I came up with.  So far, I have a whole lot of professions… there are a lot of characters who are librarians, culinary specialists such as chefs, restaurant owners, caterers, and bakery owners. There are journalist, housewives, and teachers.

But, there are also some very nontraditional professions…  It seems like crafts of all sorts are starting to become very popular in cozy mysteries …  We have knitters, cardmakers, gourd artists, needlecrafters, quilters, soapmakers, candlemakers, beaders, and even milliners!

And, if you are trying to find a way to combine your love for gardening and cozies… you are in luck! We have herbalists, horticulturist, and gardeners of all types! If you love the sight of green grass… but not to tend/nurture it… rather to play on it…. we even have golfing cozies….

If you’re thinking of getting your hair cut…. but not quite sure what book to take with you to the salon…. well, there are even cozies that involve hair stylist with a penchant for solving crimes.

Are you working on your family tree, but want to take a break and read a cozy or two? Well, we have genealogy cozies that will take your mind off of your family searches…

Who doesn’t enjoy a seasonal cozy mystery… October is almost here, and that marks the starting time for Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years, followed of course, by Valentine’s…. right through to Easter…. I’m sure that by now you are aware of the holiday theme mysteries…

Now that I am finishing up on this task, I will start blogging about some of the cozy professions that "my authors" have… I know that I blogged on the Cat Mysteries and the Dog Mysteries not too long ago… but did you know that there are also at least two birdwatcher series? Some of the main mystery characters’ professions might not surprise you, but there are a few that just might! 

Anne George – Southern Sisters Cozy Mystery Series

I posed a question to myself the other day… If I was to try to convince a non-cozy "addict" (I’m afraid that the word "addict" does indeed describe some of us!) that the cozy mystery genre is worth pursuing, what would I do? Hmmm… I could give the person the definition of a cozy mystery novel and then try to convince the person that everyone who tries one goes back for another… sort of like potato chips. OR, I could try to liken cozy mystery books to books that the person had more than likely read. OR, I could pay the person a large amount of money to make it worth his/her while to read a cozy mystery novel, knowing that, again, the analogy with the potato chips. OR, I could give the person the first novel from Anne George‘s Southern Sisters cozy mystery series.

Now, I know that a lot of people prefer the ve-dy British types of cozy mystery series, and a lot of people prefer the cozy mystery series that feature… oh, say an older spinster aunt-type, or an unmarried, cerebral bachelor-type. But, if you haven’t yet tried "Murder on a Girls’ Night Out" (#1 in the series) then you should reserve your comments!

I read the first of the eight books of Anne George’s series as a monthly pick for one of my reading groups… I think it was the (now defunct) Mystery in the Morning… It was the chosen book of the month for all of us to read.

I might have "gone into" the book thinking… hmmm… another southern cozy… just what I need! Well, let me tell you, it was just what I needed! I cannot say enough good things about the Southern Sisters series of books.

The books feature Patricia Anne "Mouse" Hollowell, and Mary Alice "Sister" Crane. You can probably tell which one of the sisters is the ex-teacher and which one is the country western tavern owner…by their nicknames… If you guessed that "Mouse" didn’t own the tavern, you are right!

These two sisters actually talk and act like sisters. There is nothing false about their relationship… and, as a sister to my sister, I can vouch for that! Anne George based Mary Alice’s character on her cousin, and Anne shared the fact that she had been a school teacher with Patricia’s character… Hmmm….

The mysteries the two sisters solve involve a whole lot of fun for the reader, and the characters really are three dimensional, not flat cardboard personalities that lay flat on the paper. 

The next book in the series, Murder on a Bad Hair Day ( #2) continues with the fun… as do the rest of the books:
Murder Runs in the Family (#3)
Murder Makes Waves (#4)
Murder Gets a Life (#5)
Murder Murder Shoots the Bull (#6)
Murder Carries a Torch (#7)
Murder Boogies with Elvis (#8)

As I sit here typing this blog, I am smiling to myself as I remember how much enjoyment I got when I read these books. Also, I am thinking about a very good friend of mine who absolutely loves Anne George’s books. This particular friend found out that Anne George had been nominated for a Pulitzer for one of her poetry books. My friend wrote to Anne George and asked her where the book was available to buy. The very gracious Ms. George lost no time in sending my friend a signed copy of the particular poetry book. So, my friend and I found out that "Mouse" and Ms. George had more than just being school teachers in common… they were both very caring and generous.

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