Some of you may wonder why I get so doggone excited when I find a new Cozy Mystery author to follow. Well, there’s a very simple answer…
From time to time, I go through a “try new authors” phase… I read cozies by authors with whom I’m not familiar. I check out what other people have to say about the author, but ultimately, I decide for myself if the author might be someone I would enjoy reading.
I am not swayed by people who never write a negative review about a book or author. I mean, when 4 stars is the very lowest Amazon rating you ever see by a reviewer, it sort of cheapens the person’s reviews. I don’t even read those comments. (And, unfortunately, I don’t like seeing those 4-star-or-over reviewers on the back of a paperback mystery or on an author’s site… I get the same “avoidance” feeling, which I am sometimes able to overcome.)
I actually saw a person post an entry once who admitted to “having to find positive things about a book” he/she was reading to review. What?!?!
I don’t post negative comments, but I do post positive, only when I truly feel positive about a book or author. Because of this, the authors/books that I truly do not like, I simply don’t mention. I don’t know if that’s fair, but that is what I choose to do. I won’t go out of my way “to find positive things about a book” just for that purpose.
Better to be positive than to have to find something positive…
Petie says
That’s exactly what I went through this last week-end. I had not heard of Nancy Atherton before but loved the sound of the Aunt Dimity series after seeing it on your site. So I bought the first 2 in the series to get started. I just know I’ll buy the rest! But like you said, that’s what happens: I usually try to get as many as I can in the series, either at Half Price Books or Paper Back Swap and enjoy the heck out of them! Petie
sandra says
i love when i read a good book. i have a medical eye problem and use/read large print. usually too expensive in book stores. our local dunedin, florida library has an excellent selection. i loved blaize clement’s curiosity killed the cat sitter. will hope to find more in this series next time i go to the library. all you authors keep writing and have books printed in large print. there are many of us with eye problems who love to read…
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Sandra, you’re lucky to have a local library that has a large selection of large-print books!
-V- says
If I am reading a book that just does not agree with me, I move on. I set it in the trade pile or the maybe get back to it when I might be in the mood for it pile. I do write negative reviews if a book I continued to read and it disappoints me, but I don’t slam authors or books. It’s a treasure hunt….sometimes that shiny stuff is fool’s gold….I love finding new to me authors. I tend to wander away from the ‘big names’ and keep to the midlist authors. I think the only ‘big names’ I follow still are Charlaine Harris and Kathy Reichs, they don’t disappoint.
Bernadette says
I love finding new authors – cosy or otherwise – it’s such a treat – especially if they have several books already written.
I write a review of every book I read on my blog – I don’t go out of my way to be negative but I have written negative reviews when I’ve had a bad reading experience. I always try to find a more positive review to link to and I never get personal about the author (my comments are always about my opinions about the plot/characters/setting etc). I like to see the good and bad when I read reviews as I understand that it’s all a matter of opinion so that’s what I write too.
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Hi ALL!
I appreciate it when someone writes a truthful review… be it positive or negative. I read both, and take both into consideration when I am deciding on whether or not to try a new author. Unfortunately, everyone’s barometer is different, so I try to weigh each review for what it is.
Maria BearMountainBooks says
Speaking of finding new authors–I just read the first Blaize Clement (Curiosity Killed the Cat Sitter). What a LOVELY, lovely read. I really enjoyed it. She will be added to my favorite’s list!!!
Jackie Z says
While I love Blaize Clement’s books, I advise all animal lovers not to read the “Dachsund” book. I wish I’d never read it. Having lost 5 cats and one dog in a single year, it was just too painful. How she could write what she did about abuse and neglect of animals is just beyond me.
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Jackie, I haven’t read the Dachshund book, but I doubt I would be able to finish a Cozy Mystery with abuse and neglect of animals OR children. I know what I am getting myself into when I read a NON Cozy Mystery, but I don’t want certain subjects in my Cozies. I have definite moods for different mystery genres…
linda says
I thought I had read all of Blaize Clement’s books but I can’t for the life of me think what this book is. I have a dachshund myself and I can’t think what this book is!
I feel that way though about the last Anna Pigeon novel that takes place in New Orleans concerning child prostitution and kidnapping. I love this series but this was a very dark, dark book. I do hope Anna gets to go back to her National Parks!!!!
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Thank you, Maria, for telling us about Blaize Clement.
Also, thanks for the idea for my next blog entry. I think that I’ll ask readers to let us know who they are currently reading… and enjoying!
Thanks, again……..
(Hopefully I’ll be able to sift through the “true” endorsements of authors VS those submitted by their agents!)
Edie Dykeman says
As I tend to be positive in my reviews, I’m probably one of those who you will see with only three or four stars or more on Amazon. That’s because I rarely write a review if I really don’t like the book, and then I try to find something positive about it. What I hate to see on Amazon are those that one or two star a book with a one line “dump” about the book or author. I’d rather know why they feel that way.
That said, I do try to be honest when I review. I’m wondering if those you find on Amazon who never have a review with less than four stars are just not posting if they don’t like the book.
Finding new cozy authors is a pleasure. I appreciate your lists and especially that you encourage your readers to let you know of any new-to-you writers. It’s great that someone goes out of their way to promote new writers.
Danna - cozy mystery list says
I totally agree with you, Edie, about people who post bad star ratings for books but don’t explain why they are giving those abysmal ratings. I sometimes wonder if those people are just playing around on the computer and think that it’s funny. It hurts a book’s standing, and today, with a lot of authors being dropped by publishers, it’s a shame!
linda says
I love the Susan Wittig Albert, China Bayles, series. But I could not get into the Robin Paige “A Victorian Mystery” series—until this morning. But I picked up “Death at Dartmoor” at the local library yesterday and I cannot hardly put it down. I love the way Conan Doyle and Sherlock Holmes are interwoven into the plot! I hope the story about Sir Conan Doyle is true. I have never read a Sherlock Holmes book. With this Robin Paige book I think I will start with the “Hounds of Baskerville.”
Plus, at this time of year what could be more intuned than an old English murder mystery set in an old English castle area!!!
This makes me want to try some other books by authors who use other names.
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Linda, I have put authors in my “YUCK” list, and then gone back and read the authors (after seeing a lot of the Cozy Mystery site readers say good things about theme) and found that I actually like those very same authors. Sometimes I think that the mood I’m in can determine whether I like an author or not, and if I see that I don’t like several new-to-me authors in a row, I try the authors again when I’m in a better mood, and find that sometimes changes my opinion about those authors…