Most of my mysteries fall somewhere on a humor continuum from laugh-out-loud to edgy. Because of the tone and lack of graphic sex or violence, they are often labeled as “cozies.” But all humorous mysteries are not cozies. To explain the different types of humor, I developed a matrix of five categories—kooky, comic, amusing, edgy, and dark. I’ve done numerous guest posts on my matrix, identifying authors from each category and discussing why readers are drawn to different types of humor based on brain dominance profiles and personality types. I also refer to my matrix and the nature of branding when discussing the function of humor in mysteries.
I’ve read quite a few books by Cindy Sample. They are reliably funny, have interesting plots, and happy endings. In this book, Sierra Sullivan, an aging entertainer, swallows her pride and agrees to do a children’s birthday party.
When she discovers a corpse, becomes a suspect, and then wants to help her police detective daughter find the killer, I knew it was going to be a smile-filled journey filled with quirky characters until the killer was apprehended.
FROM CINDY SAMPLE, NATIONAL BESTSELLING AUTHOR AND FIVE-TIME FINALIST FOR THE LEFTY AWARD FOR BEST HUMOROUS MYSTERY COMES A NEW SERIES - SPINDRIFT COVE MYSTERIES
After Sierra Sullivan is furloughed from her cruise director position, she moves to Spindrift Cove, Washington, to be closer to her married daughter. She soon discovers that gigs for middle-aged entertainers are scarcer than good hair days in the Pacific Northwest. With her bank account sliding toward zero, she swallows the indignity of donning a ten-pound wig and elaborate costume to perform at a child’s birthday party.
I appreciate the lighthearted tone and well-informed information about gardens and gardening in this series. I started with the first in the series.
In this book, the gardener protagonist moves to London and takes a job where she, of course, finds a body. The nice thing about this book is that it combines a complex mystery with fully developed characters, an interesting location, and a touch of romance. These three characteristics are also true of the other books in this series that I’ve read.
What Happened to Frank? is the first book in the Meg Sheppard Mystery Series. Meg is an amateur sleuth who owns racehorses and lives on a horse farm. Her beloved border collie, Kelly, is usually at Meg's side as she investigates murders and solves other mysteries. The books are action-packed…
The opening scene in this first in the series is one of the funniest I’ve ever read. I also like the character of “Izzy” Spellman, a twelve-year-old with attitude issues and a need to prove herself.
Although their dysfunctional family would drive me crazy if I were a part of it, I find the Spellman Investigations the perfect vehicle for occasionally dark humor and twisted plots.
From the award-winning author of The Passenger comes the first novel in the hilarious Spellman Files mystery series featuring Isabel “Izzy” Spellman (part Nancy Drew, part Dirty Harry) and her highly functioning yet supremely dysfunctional family of private investigators.
Meet Isabel “Izzy” Spellman, private investigator. This twenty-eight-year-old may have a checkered past littered with romantic mistakes, excessive drinking, and creative vandalism; she may be addicted to Get Smart reruns and prefer entering homes through windows rather than doors—but the upshot is she’s good at her job as a licensed private investigator with her family’s firm, Spellman Investigations. Invading people’s privacy…
I particularly like Weidner’s plots, which are always driven by interesting settings. Unlike many cozies, the settings don’t fall into traditional categories. For instance, her glamping series involves tiny houses whose renters often have short life spans. All sorts of strange—and deadly—people/groups can be renters, so the possibilities for interesting characters are huge.
In spite of the deaths that occur, there’s plenty in her books to make me smile. I’m also a fan of her Delanie Fitzgerald Mysteries because I find her strong female protagonist appealing.
Hollywood has come to Fern Valley, and the one stoplight town may never be the same. Everyone wants to get in on the act.
The crew from the wildly popular, fan favorite, Fatal Impressions, takes over Jules Keene's glamping resort, and they bring a lot of offscreen drama and baggage that doesn't include the scads of costumes, props, and crowds that descend on the bucolic resort in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Added security, hundreds of calls from hopeful extras, and some demanding divas keep Jules's team hopping.
When the show's prickly head writer ends up dead under the L. Frank…
In the harrowing aftermath of Chornobyl's meltdown in 1986, the fate of Eastern Europe hangs by a thread.
From Beijing, American radiation scientist Lara, once a thorn in the Russian mob's side, is drawn back into the shadows of the Soviet Union on the Trans-Mongolian Express. She isn't alone. Anton,…
I like the protagonist—burglar Junior Bender. He’s a good-hearted crook who finds himself entangled in strange situations that are often laugh-out-loud funny. I appreciate that he isn’t just another amoral crook but has his own moral code that fits his lifestyle and profession.
In addition, although he’s a fairly successful thief, he manages to do some pretty inept things, which only add to his likeability. I’ve read books in several other series by this author and find them consistently amusing.
Quick-talking burglar Junior Bender gets blackmailed into starting a new career as a private investigator for crooks in this hilarious Hollywood mystery
Junior Bender, a burglar with a magic touch, is being blackmailed into taking on a new freelance job. One of LA’s biggest crime bosses is producing a porn movie that someone keeps sabotaging; Junior’s job is to figure out who’s responsible and keep the movie on track.
The trouble is, he’s not sure he can go through with the job, blackmail or no blackmail. The actress lined up to star in the film, Thistle Downing, is an ex-child…
Bryn Baczek, a Seattle consultant who lives on her sailboat, is vacationing in Scotland. Hiking alone in a downpour, surrounded by midges, she discovers a body at the bottom of a ravine. Before she can get help, the body disappears, along with a laptop containing the biotech scientist’s cutting-edge chimera research.
Advocates of chimera research hope for potential medical breakthroughs, but opponents claim it creates moral dilemmas by breaching the line between humans and animals. Both want to find the dead man’s laptop and assume that Bryn took it back to Seattle. Her boat and office are searched, and her family is threatened. A handsome Scot with mysterious connections and her cantankerous cat Macavity keep Bryn from becoming the second victim.
This book is a literary historical novel. It is set in Britain immediately after World War II, when people – gay, straight, young, and old - are struggling to get back on track with their lives, including their love lives. Because of the turmoil of the times, the number of…
My book is fantastical historical fiction about two characters who're wrestling with the monstrosity of their grief.
It takes you into London high society, where Ambrose tries to forget about how much he misses Bennett and how much he dreads becoming as cold as their Grandfather. It takes you to…
