Male Protagonists in Cozy Mysteries

I saw a post the other day on one of the cozy mystery pages I follow. It was from a male cozy reader who was wondering about male protagonists in cozy mysteries. The majority of cozy mysteries are written by women and feature female protagonists. However, some female authors have male protagonists, and there are male cozy authors who have both male and female protagonists.

So who are some of these male leads?

One of my favorite series is The King Harald Mystery series by Richard Audry. King Harald is actually a dog (male at that) and the human protagonist is Andy Skyberg. Andy is a laid back, ordinary guy whose lovable dog keeps finding trouble in Minnesota. Grab some Biberschwanz Pilsners and settle in for a fun time.

Jeffrey Cohen writes a few mystery series using a few names. I first was introduced to him via his Double Feature Mystery series. Elliot Freed owns the Comedy Tonight cinema in New Jersey where he only shows comedy films. I loved this laugh out loud series, which sadly, is only comprised of three books. Some of his other series feature female protagonists, but he has another male protagonist in his current Asberger's Mystery series.

Tim Myers is another prolific mystery writer. Writing under the names Time Myers, Elizabeth Bright, Melissa Glazer, Casey Mayes, Jessica Beck, and Chris Cavender, Tim features both male and female protagonists. The Lighthouse Inn Mystery series (Tim Myers) first introduced me to this author. I really enjoyed Alex Winston. I also liked both his Candlemaking series with Harrison Black, and Soapmaking Mystery series with Benjamin Perkins.

I love John J. Lamb's Bear Collector's Mystery series. It features retired homicide detective Brad Lyon who now makes collectable teddy bears with his wife.

Miranda James in actually Dean James who pens a few mysteries. As Miranda James he features librarian Charlie Harris and his Maine Coon cat, Diesel, in the Cat in the Stacks Mystery series while as Dean James he has the Simon-Kirby Jones Mystery series set in England.

Terry Ambrose writes a few series including the Seaside Cove Bed and Breakfast Mystery series. These feature single dad Rick Atwood and his precocious 10 year old daughter. Jeffrey Allen writes the Stay at Home Dad Mystery series set in Texas with Deuce Winters. Tim Cockey's protagonist is undertaker Hitch Sewell, featured in the Hitch Sewell Mystery series while Stephen Kaminski has Damon Lassard in his Damon Lassard Dabbling Detective series.

There are several female authors who chose male protagonists for their series. Of course, we have our founding traditional mysteries which include Agatha Christie's Hercule Poirot and Ellis Peters' Brother Cadfael. Lilian Jackson Braun features Jim Qwilleran, a journalist, in her long running Cat Who Mystery series. The Barnabas Tew Mystery series features a male Victorian private investigator who investigates in the Egyptian Underworld in his first outing by female author Columbkill Noonan. Nupur Tustin features Kapellmeister Joseph Haydn in her historical mystery series while Sheri Cobb South features bow street runner John Pickett in her Regency Mystery series.

I haven't really touched on the traditional mysteries, many with well known male protagonists such as Father Brown and Hamish Macbeth, and I'm sure I've left out many other male cozy protagonists. Have you read any of these mysteries? Do any of these men rank as a favorite protagonist for you? Feel free to share your favorites in the comments below.

Love is in the Air and Winner Announced

While the mystery is the reason for the cozy mystery, it's not the only thing. Reading cozy mysteries is like traveling to places you want to go to visit with friends. Good cozy series develop characters you want to care about. More than that you want to learn about them. Love is such an integral part of real life, whether good or bad, and it stands to reason it finds its way into cozies.

Almost all cozies have a touch of romance in them. Sometimes it's hints, sometimes it's more obvious. It's never explicit and sometimes it's never even acted upon. The "will they or won't they" is a common theme. The cozy mystery embraces all types of romance.

Probably the least common romance in cozy series are those that start with a couple already married. There are married couples involved in many series, but it's not that common for our protagonist to start off married. The Bear Collector's Mysteries by John J. Lamb feature a happily married couple as does the Clay and Crime Series by Melissa Glazer. While I'm sure there are others, these are the only two series that pop into my head. What I find interesting is that both of these authors are men!

Some cozy protagonists start out single, but eventually marry their love interest. I'll only give one example of this type as I don't want to spoil anyone's reading-but since the first book in the series was published in 1975 I'll risk this one, The Amelia Peabody Series by Elizabeth Peters.

A lot of times the love interest is a member of the police force. The romance oftentimes starts as a conflict, with the protagonist being a suspect. Sometimes she's not a suspect, but she's poking her nose in police business. This was the case with Jessie Hewitt in the Cueball Mysteries by Cindy Blackburn, Sophie Winston in the Domestic Diva Mysteries by Krista Davis, Sunny Meadows in the Fortune Teller Mysteries by Kari Lee Townsend, and many more.

Sometimes our protagonist has multiple romances throughout the series. Josie Marcus in the Mystery Shopper series by Elaine Viets is a single mom who is unlucky in love. We get the romance, but as oftentimes happens in real life, we discover he's Mr. Wrong.

Sometimes there's more than one love interest. Katie Lightfoot has feelings for two men in the Magical Baking Mysteries of Bailey Cates. This series has only just begun, so we'll have to see if she'll choose either of these men. There are currently 16 books in the Hannah Swenson Mysteries by Joanne Fluke and, unless something happened in the newly released Red Velvet Cupcake Murder, which I haven't read yet, our baker still hasn't decided which of the two men she's seeing is Mr. Right.

In life, love and romance isn't always easy. The same goes for our cozy mystery romances. But some people have it trickier than others. I so want Penelope Thornton-McClure to find happiness with Jack Shepard. Author Alice Alfonsi makes it difficult for these two in the Haunted Bookshop Mysteries as Jack is a ghost! One of my favorite characters is Lily Ivory in the Witchcraft Mysteries by Juliet Blackwell. I'm not sure which of the possible love interests is best for her, and that makes the reading even more interesting.

What do you think about romance in cozy mysteries?

Now for the winner of the e-book A Charming Wish by Tonya Kappes: Cricket! Cricket, please send me your e-mail address so that we can get your prize to you. You can message me on Facebook at my Cozy Up With Kathy page or e-mail me at cozyupwithkathy @ gmail dot com. Thanks to everyone who entered.

Sew What

I admire those people who can sew. While I consider myself creative, sewing is not one of my talents. I am certainly no seamstress. This lack of skill does not completely stop me, however. I have a sewing machine. It's a green Hello Kitty machine...that I've never used. Now I can't find the instructions. I sew everything I need to sew by hand. It takes me forever, it's not pretty, but fabric is held together by thread...well, embroidery floss. "What on earth does she sew?" I can hear you asking. Certainly not clothes! I make hammocks and tubes for my pet rats and fabric books. I admire those people that can sew-a friend of mine in England makes amazing plush creations. I also admire those fictional characters that sew. Believe it or not, sewing and other needlecrafts can be found in many cozy mysteries. I consider these mysteries a subgroup of the Crafting Cozy.

Melissa Bourbon writes the Magical Dressmaking Mysteries. Harlow Jane Cassidy, after working as a fashion designer in NYC,  moves back to small Texas town and opens a dressmaking shop when her great grandmother dies. There is a paranomal aspect to the series as well as we discover that all of the Cassidy women, descended from Butch Cassidy, have special gifts.

The Southern Sewing Circle Mysteries by Elizabeth Lynn Casey introduces us to librarian Tori Sinclair who, in order to fit in, joins the sewing circle of her small South Carolina town. It helps that Tori is quite adept at sewing! Sewing tips are included in the books.

Betsy Devonshire owns Crewel World, a needlework shop in Minnesota in the Needlework Mysteries by Monica Ferris. The patrons here generally don't make clothes, but do other needlecrafts, such as counted cross stitch and crewel. Patterns from various needlecrafts are included.

If you're interested in quilting try the Benni Harper Mysteries by Earlene Fowler. Benni is the curator of a folk art museum in California. The titles in the series are the names of quilt patterns.

I love stuffed animals, so imagine my delight when I found the Bear Collector's Mysteries by John J. Lamb. Former homicide inspector Brad Lyon collects and creates teddy bears!

Even if you never pick up a needle and thread, be sure to pick up one of these sewing mysteries, you'll be glad you did!

Who-Dun-It?

            Reading is a passion of mine. Delving into a book opens up a new and exciting world for me. While I read all sorts of books, fiction and nonfiction alike, my favorite genre is the mystery.

            The detective story, the who-dun-it?, the mystery has been a popular genre since the mid 1800s. People were fascinated as they read about C. Auguste Dupin who solved The Murders in the Rue Morgue written by Edgar Allen Poe in 1841. In 1868 Wilkie Collins published The Moonstone, whose detective was based on a member of Scotland Yard. The love of a good mystery has never died and those first stories are just as fascinating today as they were over a century ago.

            When it comes to the mystery there are several genres and even subgenres. At times, these subgenres even cross. The basic genres of the mystery novel are the hard boiled, the police procedural, and the cozy.

            The police procedural novel is self descriptive. The novel follows a police officer, or entire department, as he or she follow police procedure to solve the crime.

            The hard boiled mystery is the “tough guy” mystery. This genre was actually developed in the United States in the 1920s when pulp magazines were all the rage. A lot of times the protagonists are tough talking private investigators such as Sam Spade. In general, these books often depict graphic violence and don’t shy away from gore or sex. The hard boiled mystery shows us a gritty, dark, earthy world.

            The cozy mystery is a more gentle mystery. The hero or heroine is often an amateur detective, a regular person who stumbles onto a murder. She could be a soccer mom, a chef, a glassblower. She then gets involved in solving the murder, sometimes to save herself. Even when the hero is a professional, a private investigator or police officer, the cozy mystery has softer edges. It’s more of a puzzle, more cerebral, and oftentimes, more humorous.

            The cozy mystery has a multitude of subgenres. There are culinary mysteries, animal mysteries, craft mysteries, historical mysteries, gardening mysteries, paranormal mysteries, and more. There’s something for everyone. If you don’t believe me, try the Simon Kirby-Jones Mysteries by Dean Jones. The hero is a Southern gentleman who moves to the English countryside. He’s a writer who happens to be gay and a vampire. This series alone gives us 5 diverse subgenres: paranormal, Southern US, English Village, gay/lesbian, and writers!

I’ve noticed a recent trend in mystery novels. If you read several new mystery series you’ll discover a lot of them are what I call “How-To Mysteries”. No, they don’t tell you how to commit crimes or give tips on murdering people, but they will give information and how-to advice on almost any project or hobby you may have.

The How-To Mystery is still a mystery novel with plot, protagonists, victims, criminals, and such. Usually it will fall into the category of cozy mystery and the protagonist will generally be a professional or enthusiast of a certain hobby. It is this hobby about which the reader will learn. Are you in the mood to try a new hobby, but not sure if you really want to get involved? Perhaps you’d like some new techniques for a hobby you already pursue. If so, reading a mystery novel may be your answer.

How these tips are given differs. Usually readers will learn things in the storyline itself as the characters talk about and describe their hobby or work. The real How-To Mystery, however, will also set this information aside from the story. Sometimes the information is contained as one feature and placed at the end of the book, like an addendum. Other times the information is divided into smaller chunks and interspersed throughout the book. A lot of times these pieces will be placed between chapters, sometimes it’s right in the midst of the story itself.

The information available out there is as varied as the mysteries themselves. You can get gardening tips from many series including a Peggy Lee Gardening Mystery by Joyce and Jim Lavene. Need a new knitting or embroidery pattern?  Try a Needlecraft Mystery by Monica Ferris. The Soap Making Series by Tim Myers will give you information on soap making and The Bear Collector’s Mysteries by John J. Lamb will take you into the world of teddy bears and the artisans who create them.

So go ahead and try reading a How-To Mystery. You’ll not only enjoy the story, but learn some tricks of the trade as well. If TV shows like Law and Order or CSI are more your style, try a police procedural. Interested in the nitty gritty of crime? Go for that hard boiled story. Whatever your preference, whatever your interests, I’m sure there’s a mystery for you out there-just go find it!

This article was originally published by The Spartan Opinion as Anatomy of the Mystery Novel.