This past week was Mystery & Thrillers Week at Goodreads, and I took the opportunity to read one of the cozy mysteries from my Overdrive wish list, Hooked on Murder. My overall reaction to it was, "Meh." I could picture my husband's aunts enjoying it, though.
I was ready to say that cozy mysteries aren't for me but after some thought, I'm going to keep looking for just the right series. Although I didn't realize it at the time, Her Royal Spyness by Rhys Bowen is considered a cozy mystery series and I read and enjoyed five of those in rapid succession. I also read and enjoyed a couple of Barbara Bretton's books from her Sugar Maple series. Those are considered paranormal romance but the small town setting gave me a cozy mystery vibe. Perhaps the key to enjoying cozy mysteries for me is to circumvent all the books with punny titles that are set in bakeries and have recipes in the back in order to find a mystery that is historical and/or has a bit of magic in it. Any suggestions?
ABANDONED: I think it is time to admit that I am not going to read Jane Austen's Persuasion. I wanted to try the Serial Reader app and thought that starting with an Austen book would be a good way to ease myself into reading classics. There was also a retelling of this book that I was interested in reading (can't even remember the title now!). I've enjoyed many retellings of Pride and Prejudice without ever having read it but I'm starting to feel a little guilty about that, so I thought I should read the original first this time. That was a month ago and I'm still only 12% done. The language is more twisty than I expected. I realize now that the only other time I attempted Austen was in audio form and I understood it just fine. It sounds like I need to see if my library has Persuasion on audio or give Librovox a try.
CURRENTLY READING: I'm almost done with the Seven Brides for Seven Mail-Order Husbands Romance Collection, which I received as a digital ARC through NetGalley. To be honest, I have read better novella collections from Barbour Publishing, but it is a good book for me to have on the go. Even though I am trying to break out of my historical romance rut, I find myself craving it after I read one or two books from another genre. Novella collections like this are good to keep handy so I can get my fix and then move on.
UPCOMING: I took a detour for Mystery & Thrillers Week, but now it is time to get back to my ARCs. As I've written before, it weighs on me to have them sitting here unread. In addition to the one mentioned above, I have a graphic novel interpretation of The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck and The Little French Bistro by Nina George. I will probably read The Good Earth last because I'm hoping that it will put me in the mood to read the other four graphic novels that have been gathering dust on my bedside table for nearly a year.
So, what are you reading next?
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