Why am I passionate about this?

Born in Ohio, transplanted to Northern California, I’ve played many roles in life, including college teacher, environmental writer, urban planner, political activist, and mom. In the evening, when my body aches with tiredness, but my brain won’t stop churning on whatever subject I wrestled with that day, I love a good but “meaty” little cozy—one with a clever puzzle, something to make me smile, and a secondary theme that goes a bit into an important, really engaging topic. Then I snuggle down and enjoy my kind of decompression reading. After retirement, I started to write my own “cozies plus.” I hope you enjoy my picks.  


I wrote

Terroir: A Morgan Kendall Wine Country Mystery

By Linda Howe-Steiger,

Book cover of Terroir: A Morgan Kendall Wine Country Mystery

What is my book about?

When Kit asks Morgan to help him investigate some “strange events” at a winery owned by his ex-wife’s Uncle Jules,…

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The books I picked & why

Book cover of The Madness of Crowds

Linda Howe-Steiger Why did I love this book?

I have liked all the Gamache books, but this one blew me away.

Not just another clever puzzle-solving entertainment (which it is). It’s also a compelling meditation on the ethics of free speech in our world today as we struggle with a pandemic and elect autocrats into seats of power.

And this isn’t just any free speech, but speech coolly advocating for euthanizing the elderly and disabled, because caring for them is too expensive, and a waste—they’ll die anyway and leave society with much-reduced ability to care for those with a real chance to survive.

This speaker is a reputable academic, popular, and with hard data to support her position. Which is why someone wants to kill her. Which is why Gamache is brought in.

By Louise Penny,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Madness of Crowds as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The incredible new book in Louise Penny's #1 bestselling Chief Inspector Gamache series.

When Chief Inspector Armand Gamache is asked to provide crowd control at a statistics lecture given at the Universite de l'Estrie in Quebec, he is dubious. Why ask the head of homicide to provide security for what sounds like a minor, even mundane lecture?

But dangerous ideas about who deserves to live in order for society to thrive are rapidly gaining popularity, fuelled by the research of the eminent Professor Abigail Robinson. Yet for every person seduced by her theories there is another who is horrified by…


Book cover of Murder Must Advertise

Linda Howe-Steiger Why did I love this book?

A bit dated, but fun.

“Advertising” used to be considered a good field for English majors, because they have “a way with words.” But advertising has morphed. It’s become “marketing” or “public relations” or “publicity”—more about graphics now, than words. Different.

Lord Peter Wimsey however still has “a way with words” in this cozy, so he goes undercover in a London advertising agency to investigate a suspicious death. With PG Wodehouse-like verbal hi-jinks, he ingratiates himself into the copywriting department, composing jingles about cleansers and such.

Silliness ensues. Then an interesting question arises: are there ethics in this business where people are rewarded for telling lies to sell what nobody actually needs? In such a culture, can Peter discover the truth? Can the words of any advertiser be trusted? 

By Dorothy L. Sayers,

Why should I read it?

4 authors picked Murder Must Advertise as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

'Think MadMen in prewar London' The Guardian

The tenth book in Dorothy L Sayers' classic Lord Peter Wimsey series, introduced by bestselling crime writer Peter Robinson - a must-read for fans of Agatha Christie's Poirot and Margery Allingham's Campion Mysteries.

Victor Dean fell to his death on the stairs of Pym's Advertising Agency, but no one seems to be sorry. Until an inquisitive new copywriter joins the firm and asks some awkward questions...

Disguised as his disreputable cousin Death Bredon, Lord Peter Wimsey takes a job - one that soon draws him into a vicious network of blackmailers and drug…


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Book cover of Edge of the Known World

Edge of the Known World By Sheri T. Joseph,

Edge of the Known World is a near-future love and adventure story about a brilliant young refugee caught in era when genetic screening tests like 23AndMe make it impossible to hide a secret identity. The novel is distributed by Simon & Schuster. It is a USA Today Bestseller and 2024…

Book cover of The Last Death of Jack Harbin

Linda Howe-Steiger Why did I love this book?

Shames’s fiction should be better known.

This book wasn’t what I expected, given its set-up in a small west Texas town filled with testosterone-laced popular imagery of today—a fundamentalist cult smelling of illicit sex, anti-feminism, and gun show economics; bored adults insanely consumed by high-school football rivalries; a chain-rattling motorcycle crowd; and far too many sour, flag-waving vets.

Take your pick about important themes to follow in this well-crafted cozy featuring Sam Craddock. Sam is asked to stand in as policeman while the one local cop dries out. He’s cranky, flawed but likable, persistent, competent.

The puzzle mysteries are tricky enough to be interesting, no overwhelming thriller-type fight scenes or chases. I thoroughly enjoyed this surprisingly gentle read. 

By Terry Shames,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Last Death of Jack Harbin as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Small town mystery and veteran's issues collide as retired police chief Samuel Craddock investigates a murder. Right before the outbreak of the Gulf War, two eighteen-year-old football stars and best friends from Jarrett Creek signed up for the army. Woody Patterson was rejected and stayed home to marry the girl they both loved, while Jack Harbin came back from the war badly damaged. The men haven't spoken since. Just as they are about to reconcile, Jack is brutally murdered. With the chief of police out of commission, trusted ex-chief Samuel Craddock steps in--again. Against the backdrop of small-town loyalties and…


Book cover of Burying Ben

Linda Howe-Steiger Why did I love this book?

I discovered Kirschman through her non-fiction—a book called I Love a Cop: What Police Families Need to Know—when I was working on my first mystery.

Later I discovered she also writes a darned good story herself. Like this one, featuring Dot Meyerhoff, newly hired police psychologist. Dot’s job? Help the police cope better with their stress—those daily dangers, risks, uglinesses.

First client—Ben Gomez, a rookie who just encountered his first corpse. He strikes Dot as a little too sensitive. When Ben becomes a corpse himself, it looks like another cop suicide. Shouldn’t Dot have seen this coming? But she didn’t.

The secondary theme is significant and well handled: the prevalence of police suicide. I learned a lot. Hint: it’s a cozy, not a police procedural.

By Ellen Kirschman,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Burying Ben as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Dot Meyerhoff has barely settled into her new job as a psychologist for the Kenilworth Police Department when Ben Gomez, a troubled young rookie that she tries to counsel, commits suicide without any warning and leaves a note blaming her. Overnight, her promising new start becomes a nightmare. At stake is her job, her reputation, her license to practice, and her already battered sense of self-worth. Dot resolves to find out not just what led Ben to kill himself, but why her psychologist exhusband, the man she most wants to avoid, recommended that Ben be hired in the first place.…


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Book cover of Black Crow Cabin

Black Crow Cabin By Peggy Webb,

A small town in the grips of evil... a single mom with nowhere to turn... and a madman who will stop at nothing to get what he wants.

He is the Collector, and he's taking prized possessions, pets, and children, keeping what he wants, and burying his rejects in shallow…

Book cover of Murder in G Major

Linda Howe-Steiger Why did I love this book?

A well-done comic cozy. Now, I don’t usually fancy paranormal mysteries, for which there is still some fashion.

Many authors respond by conjuring up creepy spooks and vampires. Gordon conjures Noel Coward’s play Blithe Spirit, with that annoying, wise-cracking dead first wife.

I don’t believe in ghosts, perhaps you do. But I loved Gordon’s ghost of a dead Irish composer, who, wearing his colorful aura, turns up inside his own cottage where Gethsemane Brown is staying.

She’s arrived for the only gig offered her—she’s a black, classical violinist—tune up this brat-filled schoolboy orchestra to win the competition. The boys definitely need her help, but so does Eamon McCarthy.

The plot gets complicated from here, but there are both laughs and opportunities to think seriously about matters spiritual.

By Alexia Gordon,

Why should I read it?

4 authors picked Murder in G Major as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

“The captivating southwestern Irish countryside adds a delightful element to this paranormal series launch. Gethsemane is an appealing protagonist who is doing the best she can against overwhelming odds.” – Library Journal (starred review) With few other options, African-American classical musician Gethsemane Brown accepts a less-than-ideal position turning a group of rowdy schoolboys into an award-winning orchestra. Stranded without luggage or money in the Irish countryside, she figures any job is better than none. The perk? Housesitting a lovely cliffside cottage. The catch? The ghost of the cottage’s murdered owner haunts the place. Falsely accused of killing his wife (and…


Explore my book 😀

Terroir: A Morgan Kendall Wine Country Mystery

By Linda Howe-Steiger,

Book cover of Terroir: A Morgan Kendall Wine Country Mystery

What is my book about?

When Kit asks Morgan to help him investigate some “strange events” at a winery owned by his ex-wife’s Uncle Jules, Morgan knows it spells trouble. Uncle Jules is practically Kit’s own uncle. After all, he married Jules’s favorite niece Indie. Now Kit wants to parachute into Jules’s 80th birthday celebration. The whole self-consuming family will be there. Food. Wines. Tuscan traditions. A magical weekend? Hah! Half the County in attendance. Indie too. Morgan hates Indie. Talk about awkward! Talk about combustible conflicts of interest! Kit won’t back off. “I need you,” he wheedles. “You’ll keep me honest.” Finally, reluctantly Morgan agrees. Perhaps she can stave off Indie... or a death. Then, as predicted, all hell (and the goats) break loose.

Book cover of The Madness of Crowds
Book cover of Murder Must Advertise
Book cover of The Last Death of Jack Harbin

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