More and more people are reading cozy mystery books. A growing trend in the cozy mystery subgenre is holiday theme cozies.
Some authors of the cozy mystery book subgenre specialize in holiday and special occasion mysteries. These books are often written in a series, with each covering a different holiday.
The following is a list of a few authors whose mysteries take place during major holidays and other special occasions, like birthdays and weddings.
Kate Borden (aka Kate Grilley)
The Peggy Jean Turner series is written by Kate Borden. Borden’s mystery books are holiday theme mysteries which take place in a quaint, small New England town, and feature the mayor of the town as the person who solves the mysteries, along with her life-long best friend.
Mary Higgins Clark
Most of Mary Higgins Clark’s works haven’t been set in holiday settings, but several have taken place during the Christmas season. Several of these Christmas theme mystery books are co-authored with her daughter, Carol Higgins Clark.
Jane Haddam (aka Orania Papazoglou)
Retired FBI agent Gregor Demarkian solves mysteries in Haddam’s main series. Along with his partner, author Bennis Hannaford, Demarkian solves mysteries during a variety of holiday settings such as Thanksgiving, Halloween, and Christmas.
Lee Harris
Lee Harris writes a mystery book series which features Christine Bennett, an ex-nun. Harris sometimes includes unusual holidays in his lineup, such as a Cinco de Mayo themed book.
Kate Kingsbury (aka Rebecca Kent)
The Pennyfoot Hotel series is written by Kate Kingsbury. This particular mystery book series takes place in Great Britain, during the early 1900s. Only recently have Kingsbury’s books begun to focus on the holidays, especially Christmas.
Leslie Meier
Leslie Meier writes the Lucy Stone series, which stars a housewife with several children who also finds time to solve mysteries. Unlike many holiday themed writers who concentrate on the “big three” of Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas, Meier includes “lesser” holidays such as the Fourth of July and Mother’s and Father’s Days.
Livia J. Washburn
Washburn writes the Fresh Baked mystery book series. This holiday theme mystery series features a Texan who leaves the teaching profession and then becomes a baker, with a penchant for sleuthing.
Valerie Wolzien
Wolzien writes the Susan Henshaw mystery series. Wolzien’s series includes several books that take place during the holiday season, especially Christmas.
These are just a few of the authors who have begun to feature holiday themes in their works. Holiday themed mystery books appear to be an increasingly popular field, one that will be present in cozies for years to come.
Taylor writes on a variety of subjects, including mystery books and Christmas mystery books.
