There’s nothing like snuggling up with a good cozy mystery to get you in the mood for fall. This list of eight new books will get you hooked on the genre. From amateur sleuths to small-town secrets, these new cozy mysteries will have you turning pages until the very end. So curl up by the fire and get ready to solve some crimes!
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First, what are cozy mystery books?
Cozy mystery books also called “cozies,” are a sub-genre of crime fiction in which sex and violence are downplayed or treated humorously. In contrast, the mystery is usually played up. Cozies aim to please an audience that enjoys being scared occasionally but doesn’t want gore, explicit content, or extreme violence.
Cozies can be conventional whodunit murders with red herrings and suspenseful sequences, or they can incorporate supernatural elements such as ghosts, zombies, and even vampires! At the center is an amateur sleuth who sometimes uses unconventional methods to solve crimes, quirky characters, and several twists, and they usually feature small-town or village settings.
Our New Cozy Mystery Book List
If you’re looking for some new cozy mystery books to read that are the first in a new series, here are some books to get started.
The Windsor Knot by SJ Bennett
The first book in a highly original and delightfully clever crime series in which Queen Elizabeth II secretly solves crimes while carrying out her royal duties.
Fresh Brewed Murder by Emmeline Duncan
With its entrepreneurial, 20-something protagonist, focus on a hipster-run food truck pod in Portland, Oregon, and real-world issues involving homelessness and gentrification.
Arsenic and Adobo by Mia P. Manansala
The first book in a new culinary cozy series full of sharp humor and delectable dishes–one that might just be killer.
Dead Dead Girls by Nekesa Afia
The start of an exciting new historical mystery series set during the Harlem Renaissance from debut author Nekesa Afia.
It Takes Two to Mango by Carrie Doyle
Paradise isn’t as perfect as it seems: the slow pace of island life, the language barrier, and a cutthroat office rival make Plum question leaving her old life behind. But when a client is found dead in the jacuzzi of Casa Mango–a property Plum manages–she knows she’s really in a jam.
Much Ado about Nauticaling by Gabby Allan
The bubbly fun of a rom-com meets the irresistible quirkiness of a cozy mystery in this buoyant new series set off the coast of Southern California, where 30-something Whitney Dagner has moved home to help with her family’s boat tour business. Living in a Pacific paradise isn’t always smooth sailing, but things really get rocky when Whit’s brother is accused of murder and it falls on her – with the help of her ex-boyfriend Felix and police dispatcher roommate Mirabel – to clear his name…
In the Crypt with a Candlestick: A Mystery by Daisy Waugh
A wonderfully comedic mystery full of sharp drama, sly wit–and a smidgeon of murder–in the vein P. G. Wodehouse, Julian Fellowes, and Agatha Christie.
Murder at Mallowan Hall by Colleen Cambridge
Colleen Cambridge’s charming and inventive new historical series introduces an unforgettable heroine in Phyllida Bright, fictional housekeeper for none other than famed mystery novelist Agatha Christie. When a dead body is found during a house party at the home of Agatha Christie and her husband Max Mallowan, it’s up to the famous author’s head of household, Phyllida Bright, to investigate…
Are you looking forward to any of these new cozy mysteries books?
Have you read any of these cozy mysteries? Are any of them on your TBR? What cozy mysteries would you add to the list?
Are there others in the Phyllida Bright series? How do they stack up? Are they sequential stories where characters reappear? This one looks really good but I’m wondering if there are others to read first for context.
Hi Lauren, that’s a great question! So all the books on this list, including Murder at Mallowan Hall, are the first book in the series. So there are currently no other books out there, you will be meeting Phyllida Bright for the first time.