Q: EVERYTHING AUTHOR FROM A – Z

Kwei Quartey

Darko Dawson Mysteries.

This series is a bit darker than my normal reads, but they’re full of rich details about the setting—which is Ghana—and age-old customs.

Detective Inspector Darko Dawson is a somewhat rebellious protagonist.

The stories are interesting to me as they introduce a culture I know little about.

P: EVERYTHING AUTHOR FROM A – Z

Leigh Perry

Family Skeleton Mysteries.

Set in New England, Georgia Thackery is an adjunct college professor. She moves around from college to college throughout the series.

Her sidekick is Sid, the Skeleton. Yep—a skeleton. Sid is a moving, walking, talking skeleton who lives in the old Thackery homestead (usually in the closet). When he’s out and about, he’s trying to avoid the family dog who considers him a snack!

Georgia has a good relationship with her teen-aged daughter, Madison and the trio solves crime like the pros.

Goofy premise—but a wonderous, loveable, heartwarming series.

O: EVERYTHING AUTHOR FROM A – Z

Kathryn O’Sullivan

Colleen McCabe Mysteries.

Fire Chief Colleen McCabe’s domain is Corolla, North Carolina (on the Outer Banks).

The author paints a beautiful picture of Corolla including its beaches and its famous wild horses.

Her sidekicks include sixty-five year old, feisty Myrtle Mae Crepe—a former teacher who’s very opinionated—and her friend, Sheriff Bill Dorman.

Jennifer Oberth

Ella Westin Mysteries.

Set in Maine in the early 1800s. The protagonist Ella, is a government agent. She works cases in spite of the help from her family members.

Her marriage to Joe Westin (also a government agent) brings her to live in the Westin mansion built by Joe’s pirate dad, Jaspar. Add in Joe’s thieving sister, Doris, and Ella’s friend, Annie and the cook—every character comes to life in this cozy series.

The plots are well-planned and clever, but humor drives the stories along with Ella’s sarcastic wit.

Carlene O’Connor

Irish Village Mysteries.

Set in a small village in County Cork, Ireland, Siobhan O’Sullivan runs the family pub and takes care of her five siblings. She should be heading off to college, but the death of their parents nixed that plan.

The author paints a picturesque Irish village with all the quirks and secrets of a small community. Love all the details and the characters.

N: EVERYTHING AUTHOR FROM A – Z

Shelley Noble

Lady Dunbridge Mysteries.

Philomena (Phil) Amesbury (Lady Dunbridge) is a widow turned sleuth in New York in the early 1900s.

Another fun romp in historical times. Her butler, Preswick and maid, Lily add to the ambiance.

M: EVERYTHING AUTHOR FROM A – Z

Alyssa Maxwell

A Lady and Lady’s Maid Mystery.

Set in England in the post World War I era. Lady Phoebe Renshaw and her maid, Eva Huntford are the protagonists. It’s a kind of ‘upstairs/downstairs’ situation and the period details are appealing. 

The Renshaws and their servants live on their beloved Foxwood Hall estate and murder abounds throughout the series.

The books alternate between Phoebe’s and Eva’s point of view. Charming, cozy, well done.

J.J. Murphy

Algonquin Round Table Mysteries.

I love this look at famous people from the Roaring 20s set in New York—a time when writers and editors were as famous as Broadway stars.

Murphy uses real people in his novels, starting with the protagonist, Dorothy Parker. She was well known for her wit and wisecracks and those characteristics flourish throughout the pages.

Dorothy Parker, Robert Benchley and Robert Sherwood lunched at the Algonquin Hotel on a near-daily basis and became founding members of what became known as the Algonquin Round Table. Murphy uses this as his plot device.

Douglas Fairbanks, Mary Pickford, Houdini, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle--all make appearances.

A fun, entertaining series.

L: EVERYTHING AUTHOR FROM A – Z

Kylie Logan

League of Literary Ladies series.

B & B proprietor Bea Cartwright (our protagonist) is thrown together with a hippy and a winery owner into a court-ordered library-book discussion group (what a great punishment!)

The titles are fun – they’re a play on words of well-known books (ex-Mayhem at the Orient Express, A Tale of Two Biddies, Gone With the Twins, etc) and the book is woven into that story’s plot.

And it's a refreshing twist as to why Bea left New York and settled on an island in Lake Erie.

Laura Levine

The Jaine Austen Mysteries are set in L.A.

Jaine is a freelance writer and usually makes ends meet by penning ads for her clients. She’s scraping by and lives with her cat, Prozac. Jaine constantly talks to the reader in a tongue-in-cheek manner. 

Clever plots and well-placed clues pair perfectly with the sarcasm and wit running throughout. Hilarious!

Catherine Lloyd

Kurland St. Mary Mysteries.

Another series set across the pond in England. These historical books take place in the early 1800s.

Lucy Harrington, the rector’s daughter, becomes a frequent visitor to Major Sir Robert Kurland, the lord of the manor (and the lands) who is recovering from injuries he received during the war.

The flavor of life in an old-time English village is delightful and watching the relationship develop between Lucy and Robert is enjoyable.

K: EVERYTHING AUTHOR FROM A – Z

Diane Kelly

Paw Enforcement Mysteries.

Police officer Megan Luz patrols Fort Worth with her K9 partner, Brigit. The point of view switches from the bad guy(s) to Megan and even to Brigit.

I love police dog books and this series comes through. Good solid plots and a lot of humor make them great reads.

Vaseem Khan

The Baby Ganesh Agency Investigation series is set in India.

Inspector Ashwin Chopra’s heart attack is the catalyst for his early retirement. But the man can’t sit still and let life pass by.

Take an honest man who is passionate about the many social ills of his country and pair him up with an intelligent baby elephant—Baby Ganesh—and the author has the makings of an extremely fun and entertaining series.