Which "series first" have you just read?

[Stephanie]

As someone who is still relatively new to the cozy genre, I found myself completely overwhelmed by the selection at my local library. I thought this would be a nice thread for only the first book in the series to be mentioned so new cozy fans can easily find titles that might be of interest.

When you post, please include the cover and a link to the title.

For example:

Tempest in the Tea Leaves

[Sally906]

I haven't read these recently - but they are all firsts of series I am still reading and enjoying:

One for the Money by Janet Evanovich

Abby Cooper, Psychic Eye by Victoria Laurie also her other series -

What's a Ghoul to Do? by Victoria Laurie

The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith


The Quiche of Death by M.C. Beaton

Her Royal Spyness by Rhys Bowen

That should keep you busy chasing up if you're new - covered a range of cosy sub- genre there too :)

[LynnB]

oh, oh, Stephanie, bad question - I actually have a book where I track my cozies. I check them off as I read them and add new titles as I hear about them. Rather than bore you to death with a huge list, here are the first books of some of my favorites:

by Susan Wittig Albert
by Donna Andrews
by Lorna Barrett
by M.C. Beaton
by Claudia Bishop
by Sheila Connolly
by Mary Daheim
by Jo Dereske
by Earlene Fowler
by Joan E. Hess

I told you I had them in a book (you'll notice they are alphabetized by author). How sad is that?? ;)

[Tasha]

I've only read a few but here they are (first in series):

by Ann Purser
by Karen E. Olson

I actually went on to read 2 more in the series by Ann Purser but didn't move on from the first in the series by Olsen. I may continue them now that I'm here. :)

[Stephanie]

@ Lynn -

I just checked out Murder with Peacocks from the library after completely raiding your cozy bookshelf last week.

I also really liked One Bad Apple.

I am planning on featuring both of those as monthly reads at some point. I would like to stick to the cozies with higher ratings and good reviews. There are certainly enough to choose from. This genre seems to be growing like mad.

[LynnB]

Stephanie wrote: "@ Lynn - I just checked out Murder with Peacocks from the library after completely raiding your cozy bookshelf last week."

Glad you could find something interesting on there! Someday I'm going to search down all the cozies I've read and update that shelf. I'm also thinking about re-reading all the Agatha Christie books in order. I read them many, many years ago and Miss Marple is who started me on cozies.

[Stephanie]

I also want to read the first Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple books. Soooo many to choose from! It's going to be hard to pick each month!

[Hettie]

Stephanie wrote: "I also want to read the first Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple books. Soooo many to choose from! It's going to be hard to pick each month!"

Hercule and Miss Marple are both on my to read lists. Maybe you should group the type of books with the genre and get us to vote on that first and then specific books. If there are few enough types of cozy then they could just be rotated.

I would love to read some of the more classic cozy as I have got hold of some of both and
Mary Stewart and Dorothy L. Sayers.

[[deleted user]]

Some firsts that I'll add:
, , , , , , and

[Kimberly]

Evans Above which I just finished was a cute first in the series
Real Murders was good to but I read that last year. I really liked it.

[Michelle]

I have probably read more cozies than I realize without knowing the name of the genre! Two I can think of are:
A is for Alibi
One for the Money
I have read through 7 of the Stephanie Plum books and only 1 of the Kinsey Millhone books. I own a bunch more of these on my bookshelf and need to find time to read these nice, light, fun reads!

[Karen]

is the first of my fave cozy series

[Karli]

I just started Gunpowder Green today - but honestly I don't like it much so far. It seems self-absorbed if that's possible. I'm hoping it gets better...

[Stitchywoman]

Wow, so many new books for me to explore. Thanks everyone for your input. Here are some of my favorites:
The Ghost and Mrs. McClure
Crewel World
Grime and Punishment
Murder On Monday

[Karen]

Stitchywoman wrote: "Wow, so many new books for me to explore. Thanks everyone for your input. Here are some of my favorites:
The Ghost and Mrs. McClure
[b..."

I rather fancy The Ghost & Mrs McClure (I like a bit of supernatural with my mystery) onto my TBR pile it goes! Thanks

[LynnB]

I haven't read this one yet, but I just bought Buried in a Book, #1 in series, which has few ratings, but they're all good so far.

[Heidi]

I'm reading my first cozy mystery right now. I'm about 3/4 of the way through and I love it. I'm going to try some of the recipes, too.

[Nell]

I'm new to the group and just reading this thread. Recently I've been reading Rhys Bowen's Constable Evan Evans series. I've read her other mystery series but had not tried this one. The first in the series is: Evans Above I've read up to #6 and enjoyed them all.

btw - Rhys Bowen has two other mystery series:
Molly Murphy
and Lady Georgiana

[Jane(Janelba)]

I've just completed Secondhand Spirits which I really enjoyed and will definitely read more in this witchcraft series.

[Cheryl]

There are several excellent series already mentioned, but here are a few more.

I really like the Bibliophile series by Kate Carlisle. She's got a great range of characters. Homicide In Hardcover

Krista Davis writes the Domestic Divas series which is excellent. The first book is The Diva Runs Out of Thyme

P.J. Alderman is a fairly new author and only has 2 books out in her Port Chatham series, but I rated both highly. The first book is Haunting Jordan

Finally, Maggie Barbieri's Murder 101 is a series that improves steadily. The 1st book made me want to slap the heroine because she couldn't stop crying, but over time she develops nicely.

[Barb, Co-Moderator Challenge Expert]

I hope I'm not duplicating any that have already been posted, but here are the firsts in some of the cozy series I enjoy:

A Spoonful of Murder     The Baker Street Letters

Candy Apple Dead     'Scuse Me While I Kill This Guy

Sprinkle with Murder     Invisible

Mama Does Time     Murphy's Law

The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie     Eggs in Purgatory

On What Grounds     You've Got Murder

Murder on a Girls' Night Out     The Good Friday Murder

Aunt Dimity's Death     Mistletoe Murder

Grime and Punishment     Just Desserts

The Unexpected Mrs. Pollifax     A Crafty Killing

Just Desserts     Miss Zukas and the Library Murders

Murder is Binding     The Crossword Murder

Backstage Murder     A Peach of a Murder

Miss Julia Speaks Her Mind     Death at Wentwater Court

Alpine for You     Maisie Dobbs

[Karen]

I recently finished Barbara D'Amato's Hardball, the first in the Cat Marsala series. I'm reading the second one now and have the next two in the series ready to go next. There are nine total to date; I only have the first four at this time. (I'll be hitting Half-priced Books or the library!!)

[jaxnsmom]

I don't think of the Cat Marsala books as cozies, but I do love the series.

[Julie]

I just finished Cookie Dough or Die. This was a really good cozy. I recommend it.

[Ann]

Yes, I read Cookie Dough or Die during this year some time and I enjoyed it tremendously! Have to get some more in that series to add to my pile!

[[deleted user]]

I just read The Long Quiche Goodbye

I very much liked the plot and mystery ;D

[Moonlight]

I recently finished Murder on the Mind
and liked it very much.

[Diane]

I just finished and . I will definitely continue these series.

[AngryGreyCat]

I just finished The Blue Rose and I will definitely read more by this author. The book was great!

[Alison]

I just finished Sworn to Silence by Linda Castillo Sworn to Silence this book was recommended by this thread in this group. I truly enjoyed it, and look forward to more books like this!

[Susie]

LynnB wrote: "oh, oh, Stephanie, bad question - I actually have a book where I track my cozies. I check them off as I read them and add new titles as I hear about them. Rather than bore you to death with a huge..."

I loved your list! The only one I haven't read is the book by Jo Dereske :)

[Karen]

jaxnsmom wrote: "I don't think of the Cat Marsala books as cozies, but I do love the series."

Just wondering why not? She's not a detective, though she has friends on the force. She's a freelance newspaper writer who winds up near the bodies then works to find the killer. They're not hard boiled stories.

Anyway... I'm into my third one and like the series so far. The second entry, Hard Tack: A Cat Marsala Mystery, was a locked door mystery. All the characters were trapped on a yacht and someone winds up dead in a locked stateroom.

I'll definitely look up the rest of the series.

[jaxnsmom]

Karen wrote: "jaxnsmom wrote: "I don't think of the Cat Marsala books as cozies, but I do love the series."

Just wondering why not? She's not a detective, though she has friends on the force. She's a freelance ...

There are lots of mysteries that I don't consider cozies, but a lot of other people do. It may be partly because I read them so long ago, before "cozy mystery" became part of my vocabulary, and some, like the Cat Marsala series, didn't seem as light as others I was reading.

It's a very subjective decision on whether you think of a series as a cozy or not. I think of cozies as being more lighthearted, entertaining and fun. I can't describe exactly where the dividing line is for me, but when I read a mystery, it seems to fall on one side or the other, partly based on the definition of a cozy, and partly by the overall feeling I get from it.

How do you decide if a book is a cozy or not? I find it interesting how we all interpret the definition of a cozy differently, and have our own *if, and, or, but* qualifications :)

[Cheryl]

Cozies have very specific parameters in their purest sense. There are genre mysteries - legal/medical/newsroom - and the Cat Marsala series would fit into the newsroom genre.

I took two different classes in detective fiction in college so I probably know way more about it than I should.

[Penny]

do you think we could make a top ten of the best cozy series? I am finding many of them are unavailable in my library here in England and dont buy very often. If there was a top ten I might feel more like paying out on Amazon or somewhere if lots of people said they were good!

[Cheryl]

Penny, this is a good recommendation list. That said, there are so many series and people have such diverse tastes that my top 10 are probably very different from someone else's.

http://www.criminalelement.com/blogs/...

[Penny]

Cheryl wrote: "Penny, this is a good recommendation list. That said, there are so many series and people have such diverse tastes that my top 10 are probably very different from someone else's.

http://www.cri..."

thanks cheryl

[jaxnsmom]

That's a very subjective list. Most of them wouldn't be on my top ten :) I think we'd all have different lists. First you have to pick categories you're interested in - culinary/beverage, crafting, historical, small business owners, single women/men, families (spouse and/or kids), paranormal, etc. And if you find some authors you really like (writing style, character depth, secondary characters, maybe we can recommend some similar ones. Actually, it would be very helpful to know what you don't like or aren't interested. I know I may not always know what I like, but I know what I don't :D

[jaxnsmom]

Another thing you can do is choose a few books that look good to you, and go to their GR page to check the number of ratings and what the average is. Also, read a few of the reviews, sometimes they give me an idea of the writer's style and the overall feel of the book.

[Penny]

jaxnsmom wrote: "Another thing you can do is choose a few books that look good to you, and go to their GR page to check the number of ratings and what the average is. Also, read a few of the reviews, sometimes the..."

good thoughts jaxnsmom
I really like Daisy Dalrymple but got a bit fed up with the Diva runs out of thyme. I guess I like small towns/village life, maybe a female lead who is a bit quirky, a little bit of knitting one or two cats!,not a load of baking and food in general. I tried one of the bookshop ones too and that bored me even though I thought I would like it. The mystery has to be more important than the setting even if the setting is great I need a good mystery too!!
Any thoughts anyone?

[jaxnsmom]

I found this at http://www.cozy-mystery.com/blog/
This first article is about Hazel Holt's Mrs. Malory Mystery Series, which sounds like something you might be interested in. I'll think about others to suggest.

Authors Who Are Similar to Carola Dunn:

Susan Wittig Albert: Cottage Tales of Beatrix Potter Mystery Series

Nancy Atherton: Aunt Dimity Mystery Series

M. C. Beaton (aka Marion Chesney): Hamish Mcbeth Mystery Series

Rhys Bowen: Molly Murphy Mystery Series AND Lady Georgiana Mystery Series

Emily Brightwell: Mrs. Jeffries Mystery Series

Marion Chesney (aka M. C. Beaton): Edwardian Murder Mystery Series

Jeanne M. Dams: Dorothy Martin Mystery Series

Dianne Day: Freemont Jones Mystery Series

Ann Granger: Markby & Mitchell Village Whodunit Mystery Series

Kerry Greenwood: Phryne Fisher Mystery Series

Kate Kingsbury (aka Rebecca Kent): Pennyfoot Hotel Mystery Series

Robin Paige (aka Susan Wittig Albert & Bill Albert): Kate Ardleigh Sheridan & Sir Charles Sheridan Victorian Mystery Series

Victoria Thompson: Gaslight Mystery Series***

Jacqueline Winspear: Maisie Dobbs Mystery Series

***At least you know what gaslighting is now. I laughed when I saw the series title :D

[Peggy]

Right now I am on book three of the "A Portrait of Crime Mystery" by Sharon Pape
1. Sketch Me If You Can
2. To Sketch A Theif
3 Sketch A Falling Star
I read so many series that I would be typing for an hour. If you go to my read books you will see what I read.

[Susie]

I just started and I'm really enjoying it!

[Melodie]

Susie in KS wrote: "I just started and I'm really enjoying it!"

I just read the 2nd in this series and liked it a lot!

[Iamabibliophile]

Just finished One For the Money by Janet Evanovich. LOVED it!

[Penny]

jaxnsmom wrote: "I found this at http://www.cozy-mystery.com/blog/
This first article is about Hazel Holt's Mrs. Malory Mystery Series, which sounds like something you might be interested in. I'll think about othe..."

thanks for all your recommendations - I have noted them!!
Am halfway through
which the library actually had - and I really like this one!!

[Penny]

jaxnsmom wrote: "I found this at http://www.cozy-mystery.com/blog/
This first article is about Hazel Holt's Mrs. Malory Mystery Series, which sounds like something you might be interested in. I'll think about othe..."

Hello Thanks for posting these up - I have found quite a few of them are stocked at the library - so many of the past reads have not been! Am loving
even though I am not really a knitter!

[jaxnsmom]

Penny, I'm so glad your library has so many!

[jaxnsmom]

I'm closing this topic and will archive it at the end of the week. It's now part of "What cozy are you reading?" which I finally got set up. You might have noticed GR has been acting very strange and I've had a lot of problems with it.