Murders solved by senior citizens? How 'cozy mystery' books combine crime with comfort
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A murder at a retirement village solved by the residents? Sounds like a great plot for a mystery book. Several murders at a retirement village solved by the residents? Even better.
These plots are examples of âcozy mysteries,â a genre that's seen a boom in recent years. Nicole Lintemuth, the owner of bookstore Bettieâs Pages in Lowell, Michigan, first noticed an uptick during the pandemic when readers gravitated toward more lighthearted books. She's hosted readers every month at her virtual "Cozy Mystery Book Club" since 2021.
âTheyâre always kind of slightly ridiculous and I love that the genre leans into it,â Lintemuth says. âIt doesnât take itself super seriously.â
What is cozy mystery?
"Cozy mystery" is a subgenre of mystery books. In a cozy mystery, youâve got the classic elements of the sleuth and the caper, but the blood and violence happen off the page. The person solving the crime is also not a seasoned detective â they're more likely to be a bookseller, baker or even a senior citizen. They also often have animal sidekicks and the stories take place in small towns, which adds to the oddity of the murders.
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Many cozy mysteries are series, letting the reader fall in love with these eccentric detectives through several escapades. And as the âcozyâ suffix suggests, the books are meant to leave the reader feeling warm and fuzzy even if the plot involves murder.
âMurder doesnât sound cozy,â says Michelle Vega, an executive editor at Berkley, an imprint of Penguin Random House. âYou can know that something horrible happens but then things will be put right again by the end and that youâre going to laugh along the way, youâre going to be charmed, youâre going to enjoy that journey.â
What makes cozy mysteries so loveable
Cozy mysteries make a great read for anyone who loves a traditional mystery but also wants to be able to sleep at night.
âI love mysteries, but Iâm a giant baby,â Lintemuth says.
The genre is particularly character-driven. Because they arenât in law enforcement, the protagonists' amateur detective skills make them loveable and endearing. Youâre along for the ride with a character who knows probably as much about solving a murder as you do (in the first book, at least). And in recent years, casts of characters have become more popular than a singular lead.
âWhen I first started (editing), it was a lot of this singular amateur sleuth going about and solving crimes, but now youâre seeing more of this âfound familyâ of sleuths, these people from different backgrounds or nosy neighbors that all come together and solve a crime together,â Vega says.
Popular examples include Richard Osmanâs band of retirement village investigators in âThe Thursday Murder Clubâ or even television's âOnly Murders in the Building.â Notice a through line? Octogenarian operatives.
âYouâre getting the wisdom and the experience that is comforting and is wonderful, but youâre also turning it on its head,â Vega says of the old-people-solving-murder trend. âThe quiet grandma â she can come out and piece together why this person was killed.â
Cozy mysteries are also becoming more diverse. Lintemuth and her book club are prioritizing books by young, queer and BIPOC authors in a genre that older white women have long dominated. The audience for cozy mysteries is growing, as are the genreâs offerings.
âWeâre getting younger authors who are more diverse ⊠and weâre also starting to see them in more traditional trade paperback versus mass market,â Lintemuth says. âItâs really nice to see it being taken a little bit more seriously as a genre.â
Best cozy mystery books
Ready to dive into the cozy mystery genre? Here are some titles that Vega, Lintemuth and BookTok recommend:
- âArsenic and Adoboâ by Mia P. Manansala, part of the âTita Rosieâs Kitchen Mysteriesâ series
- âVera Wongâs Unsolicited Advice for Murderersâ by Jesse Q. Sutanto
- âThe Thursday Murder Clubâ series by Richard Osman
- âNosy Neighborsâ by Freya Sampson
- âRoyalSpynessâ series by Rhys Bowen
- âA Brushstroke with Deathâ by Bethany Blake
- âGeared for the Grave,â by Duffy Brown, part of the âThe Cycle Path Mysteriesâ series
- âThe Plot is Murderâ by V.M. Burns, part of the âMystery Bookshop Seriesâ
- âA Half-Baked Murderâ by Emily George, part of the âCannabis Cafe Mysteriesâ series
- âMagic, Lies, and Deadly Piesâ by Misha Popp, part of the âPies Before Guysâ series
- âA Bakeshop Mysteryâ series by Ellie Alexander
- âMollythe Maidâ series by Nita Prose
- âThe Marlow Murder Clubâ series by Robert Thorogood
- âNoodle Shop Mysteryâ series by Vivien Chien
- âCheese Shop Mysteryâ series by Korina Moss
- âFlower House Mysteryâ series by Jess Dylan
- âBookmobile Cat Mysteryâ series by Laurie Cass
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