Portrait of Cozy Mystery Heroes and Their Readers

Readers of cozy mysteries come in all shapes and sizes. We have much in common, but we have major differences too. Most of us are women, but a few men like to read and even write cozies. Mostly, we are above the age of thirty, but some are younger. However, we all like a good mystery with a happy ending, a protagonist who is witty and personable, and a story line that keeps us guessing. Generally speaking.

Some cozies are grittier than others. I think profanity blurs the story line and puts a shade of ugliness in an otherwise all right story. Neither do I care for a leading lady who is so smart and pretty and gifted that she leaves the other characters in the shade. I like for the characters to be human and likable.

Most of the heroes are women, but I’ve found a series that has a man protagonist, the Hidden Springs series by A. H. Gabhart.  I am about to begin the third and newest in this series and can hardly wait to get into it. Ms. Gabhart has the ability to draw the reader into the story and it’s always a shock to put the book down and find I’m here in NWArkansas instead of Hidden Springs.

The four Darcy and Flora and the two Ned McNeil cozies I’ve written have the elements I like to read about. The protagonists are not super-women but they have the gift of curiosity. They are friendly, warm people but they are not afraid to go it alone into situations that could turn deadly. They have much in common, but they are unique. One is certainly unlike the other. They do, however, enjoy a warm fire in winter, a friendly cat or dog to make a house a home, and, for some reason, they all drink Folgers coffee.

Cozy mysteries are like the people who read and write them: unique. We have a lot in common and we have major differences. Of all the genres of fiction that abound in the world of books, my favorite to read and to write is a satisfying, thrilling, exciting cozy mystery.