Warm Reads for the Cold Months

Gosh, it's freezing outside! What better time than now to curl up with a good book? Here are some cozy mystery series for the winter months to while away the time until the world thaws out.

Aunt Dimity's Death (Aunt Dimity series #1) by Nancy Atherton - Summoned from her latest dreadful temp job by her lawyers, Lori Shephard discovers that Aunt Dimity--her mother's favorite bedtime story heroine--was a real person who has left her millions and the challenge to solve an eerie mystery.

Agatha Raisin and the Quiche of Death (Agatha Raisin #1) by M. C. Beaton   - In order to introduce herself to the picturesque English village where she has just retired, Mrs. Agatha Raisin enters a quiche in a local competition and promptly finds herself a murder suspect when the judge dies from her poisonous pie.

The Body in the Transept (Dorothy Martin mysteries #1) by Jeanne M. Dams - Dorothy Martin, an American widow living in the English town of Sherebury, stumbles upon the body of an unpopular cleric, and she turns her talents to amateur sleuthing.

The Sunday Philosophy Club (Isabel Dalhousie mysteries #1) by Alexander McCall Smith - The editor of "The Review of Applied Ethics" and a curious lover of puzzles, Isabel Dalhousie decides to investigate when she witnesses the fatal fall of a young man and discovers that he had been probing misdeeds at his brokerage firm.

HISTORICAL
Death at Wentwater Court (Daisy Dalrymple mysteries #1) by Carola Dunn - During the Roaring 20's in England, the Honorable Daisy Dalrymple, the daughter of a Viscount, makes a decision shocking to her class: rather than be supported by her relations, she will earn her own living as a writer.

The Darling Dahlias and the Cucumber Tree (Darling Dahlias #1) by Susan Wittig Albert - The Depression-era women of a Darling, Alabama, garden club get to the bottom of a mysterious buried treasure and a young woman's murder.

Miss Dimple Disappears (Miss Dimple mysteries #1) by Mignon Franklin Ballard - Life in small-town America during World War II springs vividly to life as schoolteacher Miss Dimple and her fellow townspeople battle valiantly against worry, rationing, and crime at home as well as abroad.

FOOD-THEMED
The Chocolate Cat Caper (Chocoholic mysteries #1) by JoAnna Carl - After accepting a job supplying chocolate from her aunt's luxury chocolate business to a party for unpopular defense attorney Clemintine Ripley, Lee McKinney takes on a new job as detective when someone adds cyanide to a chocolate confection eaten by the hostess.

A Slice of Murder (Pizza Lovers #1) by Chris Cavender - Discovering the murdered body of one of her customers while making a pizza delivery, Eleanor Swift realizes that her public argument with the victim will place her on the suspect list.
Eggs in Purgatory (Cackleberry Club #1) by Laura Childs - When they open the Cackleberry Club café, three widows and best friends--Suzanne, Toni, and Petra--find their first customer to be murder when Suzanne's lawyer is found dead with a secret on his lips and egg on his face.

Death by Darjeeling (Tea Shop mysteries #1) by Laura Childs - When a guest turns up dead at a tea for the annual historic homes garden party she is catering, Theodosia Browning, the owner of Charleston's Indigo Tea Shop, turns sleuth to save her reputation, clear her name, and track down the real killer.
On What Grounds (Coffeehouse mysteries #1) by Cleo Coyle - Clare Cosi, the manager of The Village Blend, finds a murder mystery percolating in her very own store when the assistant manager is found dead in the back and the police believe it to be an open-and-shut case of robbery, but certain clues lead Clare to believe otherwise.

A Catered Murder (Mystery with Recipes #1) by Isis Crawford - When Libby and her sister Bernie cater a vampire-themed high school reunion in honor of bestselling author Laird Wrenn, they find themselves knee-deep in murder when Wrenn drops dead after dinner and Libby is accused of the crime.
Catering to Nobody  (Goldy Bear mysteries #1) by Diane Mott Davidson - Catering a wake for her son's teacher leads Goldy Bear into the detective business when rat poison turns up in her food and the police, except for investigator Tom Schulz, begin to treat her like a suspect.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder (Hannah Swensen mysteries #1) by Joanne Fluke - Cookie-baking sleuth Hannah Swenson must protect her reputation when a popular delivery man is found murdered
behind her bakery with Hannah's cookies scattered around him.

Mistletoe Murder (Lucy Stone mysteries #1) by Leslie Meier - While moonlighting during the Christmas rush for a trendy mail-order house, Lucy Stone stumbles upon the body of the company's founder and turns sleuth to find a killer in the small town of Tinker's Cove, Maine.

PET-CENTRIC
A Pedigree to Die for (Melanie Travis mysteries #1) by Laurien Berenson - Thinking her life could not be worse after a disastrous summer peaks with her uncle's death, Melanie Travis realizes that she is in for more trouble when the disappearance of her uncle's prize-winning poodle suggests that murder has taken place.

The Cat Who Could Read Backwards  (Cat Who mysteries #1) by Lilian Jackson Braun - Jim Qwilleran and his newly found partner, Koko the brilliant Siamese, are back in their element--sniffing out clues and confounding criminals intent on mayhem and murder.

Wish You Were Here (Mrs. Murphy mysteries #1) by Rita Mae Brown - Mary Minor Haristeen, postmistress of Crozet, Virginia, joins forces with her willful cat, Mrs. Murphy, and her Welsh corgi, Tucker, to investigate a series of bizarre postcards sent to the town's inhabitants that forecast impending death.

CRAFTY DETECTIVES
Keepsake Crimes (Scrapbooking mysteries #1) by Laura Childs - Carmela Bertrand, owner of a New Orleans's scrapbooking shop, becomes involved in a murder investigation after one of the city's elite is found dead during Mardi Gras and her estranged husband, Shamus, is the chief suspect.
Crewel World (Needlecraft mysteries #1) by Monica Ferris - When her sister Margot turns up dead in her own needlecraft store in Excelsior, Minnesota, Betsy Devonshire launches her own investigation into the murder, uncovering an array of suspects ranging from an ambitious former employee to a greedy landlord. 

Hooked on Murder (Crochet mysteries #1) by Betty Hechtman - When Molly Pink, a bookstore event coordinator, is accused of murdering the leader of the weekly crochet group at Shedd & Royal Books and More, she, while unraveling the clues, decides to take up crocheting to catch the real killer.

Knit One, Kill Two (Knitting mysteries #1) by Maggie Sefton - Finding a killer becomes an all-too-personal quest for Kelly Flynn when she returns to Colorado from Washington, D.C., to uncover the truth about the death of her beloved Aunt Helen, turning to the knitting regulars at the House of Lambspun for a few lessons in knitting and in capturing a murderer.

Zombie Invasion

One could say that the second decade of the Millennium is the age of the zombie. Seems like the latter half of the 2000's was all about vampire books-turned-movies/TV. Examples: 30 Days of Night (2007), True Blood (2008), Twilight movies (starting in 2008), Vampire Diaries (2009), Cirque du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant (2009). The Twilight phenomenon especially got fans amped up about vampires -- and werewolves, but mostly vampires. But such raging fandom burned itself out and the glut of vampire movies gave way to another monster-of-choice: zombies.

The zombies have invaded our TV/movies: Zombieland (2009), The Walking Dead (2010), Warm Bodies (2013), and World War Z (2013). This indicates that zombies have evolved since Night of the Living Dead scared our parents in 1968. Zombies can be, by turns, humorous as well as terrifying. So I attempted to classify some young adult books dealing with zombies.

Humor -- Where's your funny bone?
Zombies vs. Unicorns
Pride and Prejudice and Zombies: the classic Regency romance -- now with ultraviolent zombie mayhem! by Jane Austen and Seth Grahame-Smith
The Infects by Sean Beaudoin
Brains: a Zombie Memoir by Robin Becker
Apocalypse Cow by Michael Logan
Allison Hewitt is Trapped by Madeleine Roux
My Life as a White Trash Zombie by Diana Rowland
Generation Dead by Daniel Waters

Kids vs. Adults -- The ultimate generational conflict
Contaminated by Em Garner
The Enemy series by Charles Higson
Quarantine: The Loners by Lex Thomas

Magic Girl -- I have special powers. Really icky ones.
Something Strange and Deadly by Susan Dennard
Unforsaken by Sophie Littlefield
Beautiful Dead series by Eden Maguire
Strange Angels series by Lili St. Crow
Undeadly by Michele Vail
Dead Beautiful by Yvonne Woon

OMG, Zombies! -- Bringing the ditz back to the undead
Zombie Queen of Newbury High by Amanda Ashby
Zombie Blondes by Brian James
My So-Called Death by Stacey Jay (also author of the Megan Berry series)
I Kissed a Zombie, and I Liked It by Adam Selzer
Never Slow Dance With a Zombie by E. Van Lowe

Post-Post-Apocalypse -- What do you do after the end of the world?
Z by Michael Thomas Ford
Rot & Ruin series by Jonathan Maberry
The End Games by T. Michael Martin

Zombies, with a Twist -- Unique takes on the undead uprising
Dead Reckoning by Mercedes Lackey and Rosemary Edghill (Wild West zombies)
Dearly, Departed by Lia Habel  (Steampunk and zombies)
Warm Bodies by Isaac Marion (zombie P.O.V. -- male)
Zombies Don't Cry by Rusty Fischer (zombie P.O.V. -- female)
Ninja Versus Pirate Featuring Zombies by James Marshall (also features a unicorn)
Fiend by Peter Stenson (meth addict vs. zombies)

My 2 Cents:
Zombie popularity has also been linked to times of economic downturn. The crash of 2011 brought the American financial struggles of the Millennium to a crescendo and dropped us into a pit from which we are still struggling to climb out. The struggle to survive financially in a barren economic landscape of ever-dwindling resources and few "shelters" (i.e. job security, benefits, etc.) for the common man puts our primal survival instincts in an uproar. Prime material for zombie obsession, don't you think?

Got your cape and tights ready?

I'm excited about Kick-Ass 2 coming out today! Since I've caught the superhero fever, I put up a display of superhero books to go with the whole vigilante theme.

Here are the titles currently up on display (descriptions taken from NoveList unless otherwise noted):

Teen Fiction

Hero by Perry Moore - Teenager Thom Creed's father is an ex-superhero who was disgraced in a terrible tragedy, so when Thom begins to develop superhuman powers, he doesn't tell his dad. Thom has something else he's afraid to tell his father: he's gay. When the prestigious League of superheroes invites Thom to join, he secretly begins training with a group of oddball recruits. But after a series of hero-murders threaten not only the League but world security, Thom and his team realize it's up to them to save the day.

Nobody Gets the Girl by James Maxey - Richard Rogers awakes one morning to find himself transformed into an invisible man. Suddenly thrust into a new life as a superhero called Nobody, he fights alongside two stunningly sexy superheroines -- Rail Blade and the Thrill -- in an effort to save the world. A one-hundred-foot baby doll with a gun for a head is just one of the obstacles in his path. The real drama lies in his quest to regain his identity. But the door to that plane of his existence may be closed forever... (taken from back cover)

Rise of Renegade X by Chelsea Campbell - Expecting to become a supervillain on his sixteenth birthday, Damien Locke, son of one of Golden City's most notorious supervillains, is horrified to discover that he may instead be destined to become a superhero.

Adult Science Fiction

After the Golden Age by Carrie Vaughn - Forensic accountant Celia West is the powerless and estranged daughter of two of Commerce City's great heroes, Captain Olympus and Spark. When the city prosecutes the evil Destructor for tax evasion, Celia gets pulled in to track down evidence. As a new crime spree creates tension between the city's heroes and the police force, Celia's investigation uncovers long-buried secrets about her family and the city.

Emperor Mollusk Versus the Sinister Brain by A. Lee Martinez - Emperor Mollusk, ex-warlord of Earth, comes out of retirement to save the planet from the sinister brain's control.

Santa Olivia by Jacqueline Carey - Loup Garron, the daughter of a man with superhuman strength and a human female, risks her freedom and the exposure of her ancestry when she fights for justice in her village as Santa Olivia, a patron saint.

Soon I Will Be Invincible by Austin Grossman - When Doctor Impossible, an evil genius and ambitious wannabe world dominator, launches a new plot to seize control of the world, Fatale, a woman built by the NSA to be the next generation of weaponry, joins a group of misfit superheroes in their quest to destroy Doctor Impossible.

Short Stories

Masked, edited by Lou Anders - Anders (Fast Forward) delivers an ambitious collection of superhero tales that provide top-notch plots and characterizations while honoring their four-color roots. In Daryl Gregory's superbly metafictional "Message from the Bubble Gum Factory," a former sidekick finally realizes the broader implications of superheroes. Stephen Baxter nicely applies hard science to the futuristic "Vacuum Lad." Gail Simone's "Thug" and Mike Carey's "The Non-Event" bolster predictable plots with solid characters and prose. Joseph Mallozzi's "Downfall" and Marjorie M. Liu's "Call Her Savage" embrace comics clicheÌüs and make them both more complex and more entertaining. Only Mike Baron's dull, heavy-handed, and predictable "Avatar" stands out as noticeably weak, though Peter and Kathleen David's witty "Head Cases" feels more like the opening of a novel than a complete story. Overall, Anders has assembled a solid anthology that provides first-rate entertainment. (Publishers Weekly)

Who Can Save Us Now? edited by Owen King - With mutations stranger than the X-Men and with even more baggage than the Hulk, this next generation of superheroes is a far cry from your run-of-the-mill caped crusader.

Unique Graphic Novels

The Helm by Jim Hardison - Matt Blurdy is an overweight loser who works at a video store, henpecked by dissatisfied customers, and still lives at home, henpecked by his eternally dissatisfied mother. But when picking through an antique shop, he is informed by an ancient and magical helm that he has a heroic destiny and all he has to do is claim it. Despite the helm’s growing doubts, Matt undergoes a crash course in heroism, as both the police and certain dark forces start sniffing him out. From this irresistible premise, Hardison crafts a tale that does not let up, either on humor or suspense, delivering a pitch-perfect take on both the power-fantasies of pathetic losers and the sneering contempt that people have for them. And he still manages to tug the heartstrings as the relationship between the pudgy slacker and his stern mentor develops, while Sears beautifully balances the tactile art between satire and heroism. With its jabs at comic-book culture and its deft fantasy elements, this has appeal to any reader interested in a laugh or an adventure. Grades 9-12. (Booklist)

Omega the Unknown: a New Interpretation by Jonathan Lethem - The story of a mute, reluctant super hero from another planet, and the earthly teenager with whom he shares a strange destiny - and the legion of robots and nanoviruses that have been sent from afar to hunt the two of them down! Created in 1975 by Steve Gerber and Mary Skrenes, the original Omega the Unknown lasted only ten issues, but was a legend to those who recall it - an ahead-of-its-time tale of an anti-hero, inflected with brilliant ambiguity. One of Omega's teenage fans was award-winning novelist Jonathan Lethem, who has used the original as a springboard for a superbly strange, funny, and moving graphic novel in ten chapters. (Publisher)

The Nobody (#1) by Jeff Lemire - The Nobody takes H.G. Wells's timeless character of "The Invisible Man" and brings him into a modern small town, using him as a cipher to explore themes of identity, fear and paranoia, and how they can turn a small community in on itself and destroy even the most pure of friendships.