Top Ten Tuesday - Eight Reasons I Love Cozy Mysteries + Two Recommendations

Today I'm linking up with Top Ten Tuesday hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl which is all about lists.  Since lists are one of my favorite things this is one of my favorite linkups!  Today's topic is Ten Things I Love About any book.  Since I couldn't think of 10 things for any particular book I'm taking a whole genre and adding a couple of recommendations.  Here are 8 reasons I love cozy mysteries and 2 recommendations.

1.  The Community Feel - Almost every cozy mystery involves a community setting.  A lot are set in small towns but even series that are set in cities - like Leslie Budewitz's Spice Shop series set in Seattle - involve a small area or group to provide a nice community.

2.  Not Too Violent or Dark, but Still a Murder to Solve - I love mysteries because the whole plot of the book is characters solving a puzzle of some kind but in some mysteries things get a bit too dark or violent for my escapist reading preferences.  However, cozies have all the mystery solving without ever making me want to double check the locks or have nightmares.

3.  The Variety of Hobbies or Jobs - If you're interesed in sewing, baking, organizing, genealogy, books, home decor, hiking or just about anything else there is a cozy mystery main character who either works in that field or is also interested in it.

4.  The Animal Sidekicks - Cozy mysteries win for the variety of dogs and cats with the occasional bird, turtle, lizard and even an armadillo that are present in the books to help the main characters figure out just who the bad guy is.

5.  The Humor - Not all cozies are funny but there are so many that have a lot of humor.  Some lean hard into the hilarious chaos that so many cozies do so well and some give me a laugh as the main character has just the right amount of snark.

6.  The Variety of Types - Want a nice historical English village murder?  Want something a bit more paranormal?  Want a nice beach setting?  How about the exact opposite and want a mystery that takes place in a snowed in hotel?  Whatever you're looking for cozies have you covered.

7.  The Seasons - I'm not the biggest seasonal reader but sometimes it's fun to read something that takes place during the Christmas season with all the holidy goodness or a book full of all the fun of Halloween.  Cozies excel at this kind of seasonal reading.

8.  All Series - When I finish a book that I've really enjoyed I'm always a bit sad to say goodbye to the characters but pretty much every cozy is part of a series so when you can always revisit communities and characters you love.

Recommendations

9.  The Meg Langslow series by Donna Andrews - Meg is a blacksmith which is one of the more unusual jobs in the cozy universe.  As well she has a large family that always has some kind of crazy chaos happening.  The books are funny and the mysteries are usually very solid.  This a long running series so start with the first book and you have a LOT of reading fun ahead of you.

10.  The Bakeshop Mysteries by Ellie Alexander - I've really enjoyed everything I've read by Ellie Alexander but the bakeshop series is a long running series with a lovely community feel, a fabulous setting, family connections, mouth watering food descriptions and interesting mysteries.  I also really enjoy her Sloan Kraus series about a brewer in Leavenworth, Washington.