On Our Shelves: Cozy Mysteries

November 13, 2015October 21, 2015 / Linda / Leave a comment

Grab your hot chocolate or hot tea, a blanket and curl up in your favorite chair with the latest cozy mysteries.

A Gala Event ( An Orchard Mystery) – Sheila Connolly
The Fall harvest may be over, but orchard owner Meg Corey is busier than ever planning her wedding to Seth Chapin. And even though the happy couple has invited most of Granford, Massachusetts, to the ceremony, they might have to make room for one more guest…Ex-con Aaron Eastman has unexpectedly reappeared, searching for answers to the tragic fire in his family’s past that put him behind bars twenty-five years ago. Moved by his sincerity, Meg vows to do everything she can to help him solve the cold case.

Floral Depravity ( A Bridal Bouquet Shop Mystery) – Beverly Allen
The daughter of a local historian is getting married in a medieval-themed, hand-fasting ceremony, and Audrey, co-owner of the Rose in Bloom Flower Shop, is responsible for providing period-accurate blooms. But making sure she gets her roses right turns out to be the least of Audrey’s problems. Shortly after the vows are exchanged, the father of the groom suddenly drops dead. When Audrey discovers the man’s death stems from monkshood poisoning, it’s a clear-cut case of murder.

Bread of the Dead ( A Santa Fe Cafe Mystery) – Ann Myers
Life couldn’t be sweeter for Tres Amigas Cafe chef Rita Lafitte, decorating sugar skulls and taste-testing rich, buttery pan de muerto in anticipation of Santa Fe’s Day of the Dead bread-baking contest. That is, until her friendly landlord, Victor, is found dead next door. Although the police deem Victor’s death a suicide, Rita knows something is amiss. To uncover the truth, she teams up with her octogenarian boss, Flori, the town’s most celebrated snoop.

Ghost of a Potion ( A Magic Potion Mystery) – Heather Blake
When her boyfriend’s mother is accused of killing architect Haywood Dodd during a costume ball, shop owner Carly Beth Hartwell employs her keen skills of detection to clear her name while dealing with a group of ghosts who need her help, including the deceased.

Death, Taxes and Chocolate Cannoli (A Tara Holloway Novel) – Diane Kelly
True crime doesn’t pay… taxes. IRS Special Agent Tara Holloway has risked her life to take down drug cartels and other dangerous tax frauds. But going after the mob is one offer she can’t refuse.

Faux Paw (A Magical Cats Mystery) – Sofie Kelly
Painted into a corner after stumbling upon the body of a visiting curator, librarian Kathleen Paulson, her detective boyfriend, Marcus, and her magical cats, Owen and Hercules, must track down a murderous art thief before someone else has a brush with death.

Flipped for Murder (A Country Store Mystery) – Maddie Day
Robbie Jordan is trading in her life on the West Coast for the rolling hills of southern Indiana. After paying a visit to her Aunt Adele, she fell in love with the tiny town of South Lick. And when she spots a For Sale sign on a rundown country store, she decides to snap it up and put her skills as a cook and a carpenter to use. Everyone in town shows up for the grand re-opening of Pans ‘n Pancakes, but when the mayor’s disagreeable assistant is found dead, Robbie realizes that not all press is good press.

Florist Grump (A Flower Shop Mystery) – Kate Collins
Stopping to smell the roses should be a must for flower shop owner Abby Knight, but stress has turned her into a major grump. While their house is under construction, Abby and her new husband, Marco, are living with her parents, who are driving her nuts. Not to mention that everyone has babies on the brain, and Marco’s mother is dropping hints that she expects a new sprout from Abby and her son—as soon as possible! But things get even thornier after a flashy former banker pushes up daisies.

The Silence of the Chihuahuas (A Barking Detective Mystery) – Waverly Curtis
Pepe, aspiring P.I. Geri Sullivan’s muy clever Chihuahua, has stopped talking. But why now, with Geri’s best friend Brad missing and her ditzy sister in grave danger? Geri’s lost without Pepe’s dogged detective work, especially when a client of Brad’s expires under very murky circumstances. Luckily, Pepe turns out to be an excelente blogger, and his nose for clues soon has the detective duo chasing down leads.

Famous People Make Great Fictional Sleuths

October 28, 2015October 23, 2015 / Mary / Leave a comment

I love it when well-known historical figures pop up in books I am reading. Since I could (and probably will!) write several posts on this topic, I thought I’d start with one of the most popular ways that famous people of the past get cast in novels: as amateur sleuths.

Let’s begin with Eleanor Roosevelt, who appears as the chief mystery-solver in the Eleanor Roosevelt Mystery series written by her son, the late Elliot Roosevelt. This enchanting series is a blend of fictionalized history and cozy mystery with a strong dollop of the atmosphere of the Roosevelt White House years as it can only be portrayed by an insider.

Going back in time to 18th century London, we encounter Benjamin Franklin in the mystery series by Robert Lee Hall. Books like, London Blood: Further Adventures of an American Agent Abroad, tell of Franklin’s detective experiences. His illegitimate son Nick, the narrator, is at Franklin’s side through the seven adventures that take place during the time Franklin was in England to intercede for the American colonies with the British government.

Who’s next? Jane Austen, of course, in the series by Stephanie Barron. Jane and the Unpleasantness at Scargrave Manor is the first in this series that depicts Jane as a sleuth with a subtle sense of humor and an eye for noticing, with excruciating exactness, nuances in the behavior of others.

And then there’s the ultimate real-person-as-fictional-sleuth genre in which famous authors cast themselves as the main crime solving character! Famous for this type of series are Steve Allen and Ed Koch. Allen penned a series featuring himself and his wife, Jayne Meadows. Books like Die Laughing are written with Allen’s trademark humor and wit. Former mayor of New York Koch also starred himself in stories such as The Senator Must Die, in which Hizzoner out-sleuths everyone around him.

I have to admit, though, my favorite mystery series that highlights the famous is Stuart Kaminsky’s Toby Peters mystery series. Although Toby Peters is a fictional character, his cases in the Hollywood of the thirties and forties bring him in contact with famous clients such as Joan Crawford, Clark Gable, Charlie Chaplin, Salvador Dali and many others. These famous people often help him solve the case. I especially loved To Catch a Spy featuring Cary Grant, who may or may not be spying for the U.S. government during the early days of World War II, and A Fatal Glass of Beer, featuring a hard-drinking, hard-talking, shotgun-wielding W.C. Fields.

Looking for more? Try these:

The Beatrix Potter mystery series by Susan Wittig Albert