It’s 1869 in the newly renamed capital of Tokyo, a year after the political revolution known as the Meiji Restoration overthrew the ruling Tokugawa shogunate that kept Japan in feudal isolation for over 200 years. It’s a time of rapid social change and political turmoil; not everyone is happy with the new government’s policy of Western modernization. Law enforcement, such as it is, is represented by five corrupt rasotsu (police officers) who are more interested in lining their pockets than in protecting the public. But they are reluctantly enlisted into the services of two chief inspectors from the Imperial Prosecuting Office as they investigate government corruption and a string of impossible-seeming murders. One inspector is the elegant and handsome Keisherō Kazuki, who cuts an odd figure in his old-fashioned clothes that make him look like “a courtier who had stepped out of the Heian period.” He is also obsessed with making the new government a just one and has imported a French guillotine as a more humane means of execution. His older colleague,Toshiyoshi Kawaij, is more down to earth, but he too is an outsider. The two men share a friendly rivalry as they probe several gruesome, supernatural-like killings. They are aided by Esmeralda, a beautiful Frenchwoman who followed Kazuki back to Japan (much to the dismay of Kazuki’s fiancée and her father) and who now is studying to become a miko, a Shinto shrine maiden with shamanistic powers that enable her to speak for the dead. How these crimes connect to the book’s title is resolved surprisingly and cleverly in the final section. Although the plethora of Japanese names can at first be confusing (a glossary of Japanese terms would also have been helpful), Karetnyk’s stylish and witty translation (there’s a lot of humor in this dark, bloody tale) quickly draws readers into Yamada’s atmospheric world. And Kazuki and Kawaij (a historical figure considered the father of the modern Japanese police force) make for a memorable sleuthing duo. Noted for his ninja novels, Yamada has written an engrossing, twisty tale that will appeal to fans of well-designed puzzle mysteries and international crime fiction with a fascinating historical setting.
Cozy
Thirty-something Winter Snow—yes, that’s her real name—is self-employed as an obituary writer, a pretty genius career for a cozy hero and a nice break from bakeries, cafes, and fromageries. Based in posh Ridgefield, Connecticut, Winter is no stranger to loss, and believes that her obituaries “facilitate acceptance for the grief-stricken.” But when Leocadia Arlington—one of Ridgefield’s grand dames, and very much alive—asks Winter to compose her obituary by the week’s end, Winter is surprised but agrees to take her on. But surprise turns to horror when Winter finds Mrs. Arlington dead, and Winter, naturally, is the prime suspect. When reading a new cozy, I’m on the lookout for two things: character and community. I’m happy to report that Winter is a wonderful leading character: quirky, disarmingly frank, with a touch of irony. The delightful community includes Winter’s foodie Uncle Richard; journalist Scoop; Officer Kip, “tall, good-looking in a brooding way, with dark wavy hair and a trim fit body”; Mrs. Arlington’s family members; a corrupt book club (it happens!); along with neighbors and friends. Lewis has created a fun, playful world—despite a murder—that many cozy readers will love to return to. And did I mention Diva, the Great Pyrenees puppy? Totally adorable.
In Blackburn’s latest cozy, Summer Merriweather, owner of the Beach Reads bookshop, has a special Valentine’s Day event lined up, and invites Lana Livingston, a famous author who has reimagined Romeo and Juliet with a happy ending, to lead the festivities. Summer doesn’t realize that Lana recently became a widow and is being investigated for the murder of her husband. Things worsen when Lana has tea during her bookstore appearance and is later found dead of poisoning in her hotel room. The main suspect is Glads, the woman who served the author tea during the event. A ruthless detective wants answers, and to save her friend from being railroaded, Summer gathers a group of amateur detectives, including her ex-boyfriend, to solve not only who killed Lana but maybe even who murdered the author’s husband. Fans of cozy mysteries will find everything they love here, and even though this is the third book in the series, both newcomers and readers of the previous entries will find it worthwhile.
Very British, very country, and a whole lot of fun. Back in 1965, when she was 17, Frances was told by a fortune teller that her future “contains dry bones. Your slow demise begins when you hold the queen in the palm of one hand. Beware the bird…But daughters are the key to justice.” While most teens would shrug it off, Frances became obsessed with the prediction, and devoted much of her life to warding off the prophecy. Jump to today—the story flips back and forth—and meet 25-year-old Annie, an aspiring mystery writer and Frances’s great niece. She’s been summoned to the village of Castle Knoll for a meeting with Great Aunt Frances and a discussion about “the responsibilities that will come with being sole benefactor of her estate and assets.” So off Annie heads to Castle Knoll, meets up with a motley crew of relatives, and quickly manages to arm herself with Great Aunt Frances’s extensive diaries that she discovers in the library. This novel is marvelously well-balanced, humorous, and lighthearted while at the same time dark and macabre, with two great characters—Frances and Annie—who share the narrative from opposite ends. Fans of Anthony Horowitz and Richard Osman will find much to enjoy here
Dawna Carpenter runs a hardware store in downtown Pine Bluff, Oregon. She struggles to keep it going, especially after the death of her beloved husband, Bob. The building shares space with a boutique, and the woman who runs Lipstick and Lace is a real piece of work. A real-estate developer in town has bold plans to open a luxurious hotel, but when he’s found dead in the hardware store’s bathroom, Dawna’s life gets turned upside down even more than she thought possible. The quirky cast of characters, the slowly building mystery, and the light-hearted tone make Hammers and Homicide a terrific debut. Charles also does an outstanding job of addressing how people deal with the grief of losing a loved one, without being overly depressing. Readers will be fixing to read more mysteries of this series and Paula Charles.
Millions of fans of Molly—“the maid”—Gray will be delighted with this wonderful second installation, which features returning characters (such as Mr. Preston, the congenial doorman, and Detective Stark, the grouchy cop) along with a handful of new characters. But most important is J.D. Grimthorpe, renowned mystery author, who chooses Molly’s five-star Regency Grand Hotel to make a most important announcement. No sooner does he mount the stage in the perfectly appointed tea room (expect nothing less from Molly, the head maid) than he suddenly drops dead. Very, very dead. And not from a medical condition. J.D. Grimthorpe was murdered. The path to finding the murderer is a long and twisted one, taking Molly back into her childhood and her early days working alongside her beloved Gran. But as guests and employees start looking at each other with accusation in their eyes, the pressure for Molly to solve the case mounts. In the first volume, The Maid, there was much discussion about Molly being autistic or otherwise neurodivergent. Not qualified to make such an assessment myself, I prefer to think of Molly as eccentric. As this tale draws to a close, several secrets are most satisfyingly revealed, and one major opportunity presents itself, which will leave me in a state of wonder until the next Molly mystery. Pronto, please.
In cozies, we often meet our hero when they are in a state of flux, and Death by Demo is a classic example. Jaime is recently divorced—her husband was having an affair—and the prenuptial she signed without reading has left her nearly broke. She and her ne’er-do-well ex-husband ran a highly successful construction and interior design firm in Charlotte, NC, but now all she’s left with is a dilapidated Queen Anne style house and her best friend’s couch. While everyone expects Jaime to sell the house, she takes a certain liking to it and decides to renovate it on her own. That’s part of what makes this book so interesting, watching Jamie—who’s a real carpenter—put the historic home back together while she ruminates on how her life fell apart. But in the midst of some serious demolition, she comes across a body walled up in her new home. Tragic, for sure. But also annoying, as the house is now declared a crime scene and Jaime is forced to abandon the one thing that’s keeping her sane. Until it dawns on her that maybe law enforcement needs a little help. Well-written, nicely plotted, with great insights into the renovation industry and a cute and sensitive next door neighbor. Cozy readers will delight in this discovery.
A classic—but in no way cliched—cozy that features a great lead, a best friend, murder(s), two uniformed love interests, a good dollop of gossip, and a bloodhound that pretty much steals the story. Priscilla (aka Pris) is a former teacher who just published her first children’s book, The Adventures of Bailey the Bloodhound, which has landed on the bestseller list. She’s now in the process of moving back to her hometown of Crosbyville, Indiana to finish the series when she comes across the mean girl to end all mean girls, Louboutin- and Givenchy-clad Whitney Kelley. Whitney is on the school board, and she can’t help but mouth off about everything she’s planning to cut—like social programs and art—and Paris’s favorite: a pet-assisted reading program (guess who stars in that?). Have no doubt, words are exchanged! Flip to the next morning, when Bailey and Pris are off on their walk, although Bailey won’t stop pulling Pris over to the begonia bed…and a very dead Whitney, face-down in the plantings. Readers will love this down-to-earth lead, big-time problems in a small town world, and the consistently fast pace of the narrative. Cozy fans may know Kallie E. Benjamin as V. M. Burns, the author of the Mystery Bookshop Mystery, Dog Club Mystery, RJ Franklin Mystery, and Baker Street Mystery series.
The perfect introduction to the delightful Berenson, this volume brings together two previously published novellas—and five standard poodles!—set during Christmas in Connecticut. Narrated by the funny yet tough Melanie Travis, the first novella, Wagging Through the Snow, features Melanie’s brother, who spontaneously purchases a deserted Christmas tree farm without discussing the sale with anyone, including his business partner. When the family goes to check out the farm, they stumble across a corpse tucked into a drift of snow. Could things get any worse? Yes, and when Melanie, assisted by the ever-present curmudgeon Aunt Peg, starts to ask questions, motives abound. In Here Comes Santa Paws, Melanie gets a call from Claire, her good friend (and wife of Melanie’s ex-husband…it’s complicated), asking her to meet up at a client’s house. Melanie arrives at the home only to find the client, dead, lying in a pool of blood, and Claire waiting to be interrogated by the cops. Claire is acting weird—not that she doesn’t have every right to be upset—but once the cops are done with her she jumps in her car and races away without a word to Melanie. What’s going on? Leave it to Melanie and Aunt Peg to get to the bottom of the mystery. Lucky readers just discovering Melanie, her dogs, and her family have several armfuls of books to enjoy.
Rudolph, New York is one of those unique places where the holidays are celebrated 24/7/365. In fact, the town has branded itself as America’s Christmas town, and nearly every shop in the bustling downtown caters to some type of holiday need, including Mrs. Claus’s Treasures, the gift shop owned by our narrator, Merry Wilkinson. This holiday season, the town is in a lather over the local amateur production of the musical version of “A Christmas Carol,” with Aline, Merry’s mom, a retired opera singer, taking the lead role. From the leadership down to the cast and crew, rivalries abound and nearly everyone has an ax to grind. But when one of the cast members is found dead in Merry’s shop, everyone starts to look guilty, including Aline. This is an expansive cozy—with quite a number of characters floating about—but Delany never allows the reader to become overwhelmed. Fans of Donna Andrews will love this sixth installment in the series.