October 12, 2018 | kasarak
An amateur sleuth, an unsuspecting victim, a quirky supporting cast, and a trail of clues and red herrings are the main ingredients of a cozy mystery. The term “cozy” was coined in the late 20th century and, in a cozy, it is not that person alone who fights the battle for justice. Many times, the protagonist is surrounded by a group of family and friends (and animals!), who are cheering her on to solve the crime. Source.
Below are a few cozy mysteries that feature animals as integral characters...
Mary Minor "Harry" Haristeen and her friends and animal companions pursue the threads of a mystery dating back to Virginia's post-Revolutionary past, when their 18th-century predecessors struggled with the challenges of the fledgling country. In the present day, Harry's new friendship with Marvella Lawson, doyenne of the Richmond art world, leads her to rediscover her own creative passions-- and reveals evidence of an all too contemporary crime.
It’s February, prime foxhunting season for the members of Virginia’s Jefferson Hunt Club, when a shocking event alarms the community. A woman is found brutally murdered, stripped naked, and meticulously placed atop a horse statue outside a tack shop. The theft of a treasured foxhunting prize inside the store may be linked to the grisly scene, and everyone is on edge.
With few clues to go on, “Sister” Jane Arnold, master of the Jefferson Hunt Club, uses her fine-tuned horse sense to try to solve the mystery of this “Lady Godiva” murder. But Sister isn’t the only one equipped to sniff out the trail. The local foxes, horses, and hounds have their own theories on the whodunit. If only these peculiar humans could just listen to them, they’d see that the killer might be right under their oblivious noses–and that Sister could become the killer’s next victim.
Times are a-changin’ in Pickax, giving Jim Qwilleran some newsworthy notes for the “Qwill Pen.” A new senior center is in the works—as well as a frisky production of Cats. And a local mansion is being converted into a charitable museum. Good thing there’s lots to keep Qwill busy because Polly Duncan is off to Paris, temporarily leaving him without his lady companion. But when a mysterious death from a bee sting leaves everyone but Koko the Siamese in a state of confusion, the kitty with sixty whiskers will need to stop pussyfooting around and let Qwill in on the deadly secret...
Melanie Travis thought her sleuthing days were behind her. She has a new baby to take care of—not to mention five Standard Poodles. These days, the closest Melanie gets to detective work is scoping out the scene at the local doggie day center for her friend Alice Brickman. As Melanie learns, it's a dog's life at the Pine Ridge Canine Care Center—and life is good. Everyone seems blissfully happy. Everyone canine, that is, as Melanie soon discovers there are some simmering resentments among the Pine Ridge staff. And when Steve Pine, the center's charming, good-looking co-owner, is found shot to death on the floor of his office, there's no shortage of suspects. With the police at a loss for leads, it's now up to Melanie to go undercover and sniff out a killer whose secrets lie buried in a dog's paradise that's proving to be anything but.…
When her old friend Karen drops by with her two-year-old son, Meg Langslow reluctantly agrees to mind him for a few hours. The next morning, when Karen is still MIA, Meg retraces her friend's footsteps and starts to suspect that her disappearance is linked to at least one serious crime. Has Karen been killed or kidnapped? Is she on the run? What's the story with her ex-husband Jasper? The police don't seem to care…So now it's up to Meg to crack the case―no small task when you consider she's also dealing with a house full of reptilian guests courtesy of Dad and Grandpa, thinking about starting a family of her own with new husband Michael, and chasing after a two-year-old who doesn't understand that the bad guys might be after him next.
Christmas is just around the corner and Sarah Booth and Tinkie are preparing for a festive holiday season. After a turbulent season of solving cases, they’re ready for some holiday cheer. Sarah Booth and Sheriff Coleman Peters have finally gotten together, and this is the first holiday they’re celebrating as a couple. Sarah Booth busies herself with decking the halls and daydreaming about romantic Christmas nights with Coleman.
Then her friend Cece Dee Falcon shows up needing Sarah Booth’s help―right now. She shows Sarah Booth a box that was delivered by courier and left at Cece’s front porch. It contains a lock of hair, a photograph of a pretty young woman, very pregnant, and a note demanding ransom for the return of the teen. Cece reveals that this is her cousin’s daughter, Eve Falcon, and that she’d lost touch with this part of her family years ago. Eve and Cece had been close, until the family had a terrible falling out, and banished Cece from their lives. The countdown begins as the kidnapper pushes for payment―or else, he threatens, Eve will meet her maker. It’s up to Sarah Booth and her friends to find the girl before something terrible happens on what should be the merriest day of the year.
Charlie Harris and his Maine Coon cat, Diesel, are busy decking the halls for the holidays when an unexpected delivery and a shocking murder conspire to shake up the season in this all new installment of the New York Times bestselling series. December twenty-fifth is right around the corner, and Charlie is making his list and checking it twice. He is doing his best to show some peace and goodwill towardhisnosy neighbor Gerry Arbitron,a real estate agentwho seems to have designs on his house (and maybe onhim, as well), while preparing for a very important role, indeed--his first Christmas as a grandfather. The last thing Charlie expects is to gain several new additions to his family. Charlie finds a box on his doorstep with five kittens inside and a notebegging him to keep them safe. With Diesel's help, Charlie welcomes the tiny felines into the Harris household just as Gerry decides it is time to throw a lavish holiday party. Determined to make her mark on Athena, Gerry instead winds up dead at her very own party. Though attempts to dig into her past come up empty, Charlie and his girlfriend, Helen Louise, witness twoheated exchanges involving Gerry before her death: one with a leading citizen and another with the wife of agood friend. Will one of these ladies wind up on the sheriff's naughty list? Charlie and Diesel have to wrap up the case before the special season is ruined by a sinister scrooge.