I do love a cozy mystery: as a kid I had my requisite Agatha Christie phase, and my sister introduced me to the Lord Peter short stories when I was a baby reader, though I didn’t get into the novels until high school. I’m looking for a new cozy mystery series to get into, to add to the half dozen or so series I’m working my way through. This week I’ve been scouring the web for new series to get into, and making lists of the series I’ve partially read, and the ones I’ve started and given up on. There is no list of mystery series I’ve read all of, because although there are series currently in publication that I’m all caught up on, I’ve never read all of a complete series. In fact, I kind of hate the idea of having no book left in a series, or by a particular author.
What’s more, when I’m reading a series, I’ll take years at it. I don’t like to read a series all in one go: I read one book, then take a break for several months or even years before picking it up again. Having examined and questioned this tendency a bit, I’ve decided I’d like to actually read every published book in a few series, just to feel I can do it. I think I’m going to go for Benjamin January and Sister Jane. So without further ado, here are the series I’d like to read, am currently reading, and have quit reading.
New-To-Me Series
The criteria in my search: I’m looking for series that are new to me, come well-recommended, and either have more than five books or are currently being updated. To fit the accepted definition of a cozy, they need to have an amateur sleuth and deal with a smaller-scale mystery, with not too much gore.
Singaporean Mysteries, by Ovidia Yu
Aunty Lee’s Delights
I’m excited about: the setting! I’m kind of hoping this will be Crazy Rich Asians: the murder mystery. That’s super White and reductive of me, but there you have it.
Iris Grey, by M. B. Shaw (Tilly Bagshawe)
Murder At the Mill
I’m excited about: the author! Tilly Bagshawe writes a mystery!? Too perfect.
Vicky Bliss, by Elizabeth Peters
Borrower of the Night
I’m excited about: the author, sort of. I never clicked with Peters’ Egyptian series, but it promised so much fun. I’m hoping this one might stick.
Sister Frevisse, by Margaret Frazer
The Novice’s Tale
I’m excited about: The setting. I’ve been on a research binge about medieval women, so this could be a lot of fun. Brother Cadfael, only with more women? Sign me up.
Oxford Medieval Mysteries, by Ann Swinfen
The Bookseller’s Tale
I’m excited about: Mostly just the Medieval setting. I’m a little worried it will be too male-centric, but I like the academic bent, so I’ll give it a try.
Victorian Mysteries, by Robin Page
Death At Bishop’s Keep
I’m excited about: First, I just love the old-school cover art. The description checks a lot of my boxes: “penny-dreadfuls…Order Of the New Dawn…archeological dig.” Is this book about a fictionalized Order Of the Golden Dawn? Count me in…
Countess of Harleigh Mysteries, by Dianne Freeman
A Lady’s Guide to Etiquette and Murder
I’m excited about: I’m a fan of the liberated widow subgenre (see Lady Julia Grey and Lady Emily), and this seems like a fun entry, what with the American heiress angle.
James Asher, by Barbara Hambly
Those Who Hunt the Night
I’m excited about: Barbara Hambly, who rocks. Her Benjamin January series is an all-time favorite, and this seems like a fun vampire mystery.
Series I’m “Currently” Reading
I’ve been working on some of these series for ten years or more.
Benjamin January
A Free Man Of Color
What I like:
The characters. Benjamin and his family and friends are drawn so beautifully.
The themes. as real as the characters are, Hambly also uses them to explore all the intricacies of race in the 19th century South.
The mysteries are usually exciting, entertaining, and just lurid enough.
Sister Jane
Outfoxed
What I like:
The talking animals. I know, I know, but Brown really does an amazing job with this, and the magical realism is just perfect. The mysteries are often not that fascinating and take a back seat (how many times can a member of Sister’s fox hunting set get killed?).
Lady Emily
And Only to Deceive
What I like:
The liberated widow subgenre, as noted above. I also enjoy the global settings.
Perveen Mistry
The Widows of Malabar Hill
What I like:
The main character. Perveen is such a wonderful creation. Her life on the tipping point of modernity and tradition is always interesting.
Lady Sherlock
A Study In Scarlet Women
What I like:
Genderflipped Sherlock. I’m a sucker for genderflipped classics, as well as for Sherlock Holmes reimaginings. AND I was already a fan of Thomas’ romance. Charlotte’s sexuality and over-the-top femininity are a joy.
Her Royal Spyness
What I like:
England between the wars. I can’t help but be a sucker for the Mitford vibe of the whole thing. The mysteries usually take a distant second place to the settings.
Kopp Sisters
Girl Waits With Gun
What I like:
The inspiration. These stories are all based on newspaper reports of the first female sheriff’s deputy in New Jersey, Constance Kopp. The early 20th century setting is drawn vividly, and the Kopp family dynamic, often tense and shifting but always loving, is compelling.
Series I’ve Given Up On
I’ve read the first book in these series, and sometimes begun the second, before giving up. They’re listed in order of my likelyness to pick them back up again. The second Flavia De Luce book is on my TBR!
- Flavia De Luce (The Sweetness At the Bottom Of the Pie)
- Charlotte and Thomas Pitt (The Cater Street Hangman):
- Brother Cadfael (A Morbid Taste For Bones)
- Marcus Didius Falco (The Silver Pigs)
- Maisie Dobbs
- Joe Sandilands (The Last Kashmiri Rose)
- Amelia Peabody (Crocodile On the Sandbank)
- Mary Russell and Sherlock Homes (The Beekeeper’s Apprentice)
Every Book, Every Reader 