March 20, I read a blog post by, author Mary Kennedy, on the Cozy Chicks blog entitled

WHY I LOVE READING COZIES.

I don't always leave comments on other's blogs because I always seem to be rushing for time.

(Not a good excuse, because I love when people take a few minutes to comment on my blog, as I hope you will today.)

That being said, I did stop and comment this time.

I was not prepared for how long my answer would be.

I'm going to share it with you here today.

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Why I Love Reading Cozy Mysteries

by Lisa A. Kelley

 

I love Cozies for many reasons . . . 

1) Cozies led me back to reading. I had been reading suspense/thrillers for years. Suddenly I found excuses not to read. I didn't read a book for well over a year. My sister, also an avid reader, was concerned about me. She handed me a cozy mystery and told me to give it a try. I devoured it! That was over 5 years ago, and I haven't looked back since. The suspense/thrillers had become too dark for me. They had literally stolen my love of reading. 

The very first cozy mystery I ever read.

After reading BUTTERCREAM BUMP OFF, book two in the Cupcake Bakery Mysteries, I went back and read book one, then the rest of the series. After that, I read every book, in every cozy series, under every pin name Jenn McKinlay had published. I even had to buy a few used ones that were out of print. (This is a big deal to me because I am a germaphobe and I do not read used books. Only if I knew the person who read it before me.)

2) I love that I can read a well written mystery without darkness, cursing (most of the time), heavy sex scenes, or gruesome descriptions of murder or crime. (I'm kind of sad that some cozy authors are pushing the envelope a bit in some of these areas. Cozies are perfect as is, but I guess I see the author's need to try). 

These are the first two cozies that I walked into a bookstore, picked out and purchased for myself. All of the Jenn McKinlay books (other than the few I had to order used) belonged to my sister. THAT OLD FLAME OF MINE by J.J. Cook (the late Joyce and Jim Lavene) and HEARSE AND BUGGY by Laura Bradford are the I could call mine. I was concerned that all of the books I had read up to that point were by Ms. McKinlay. What if it was just her writing I liked? But the books by the Lavenes and Ms. Bradford showed me I was just starting my cozy mystery journey.

3) I learn so many new things! Occupations, and hobbies and crafts that had no appeal to me, I now find fascinating! I love when the book spends a lot of time in a character's shop. 

Bakerys, deep fried food restaurants, blueberry farms, food trucks, libraries, book clubs, scrapbooking, tea shops, knitting, sewing, needlepoint, glass bead making, yard sales . . I could go on and on about the different occupations and hobbies found in cozies. I learn so much!

4) Because of cozies, I have started my own blog, and found out...I'm good at it! I have never felt good about anything in my life. But people enjoy my blog and my reviews. They tell me so! 

I started reading cozies for enjoyment (I still do of course), then started writing reviews, and that led to blogging, and that led to having the best time of my life. No, seriously . . . blogging and reviewing have literally been the best part of my life. I have a feeling of achievement I've never had before. 

5) And because of the first four, #5 is the most important of all. I have made so many friends! The cozy community is full of kind, loving, goodhearted, creative, intelligent, supportive people. The authors, readers, reviewers, and bloggers in the cozy mystery community are like a family to me. I cheer for them as they do for me, I cry for them, as they do for me, I pray for them, as they do for me. This may sound corny to many, and I don't care if it does, cozy mysteries have given me a new life. One I was searching for without even knowing it. 

  

With some of the lovely authors I've been blessed to meet. 

Honestly, I have come to know the most amazingly good and kind people, all because of reading cozies. While I have had the chance to meet some of the authors, and a couple of sweet friends . . . other readers, reviewers, and bloggers I only know from online. They are some of the most wonderful people I've ever known. These people, this cozy community I have become a part of, they don't care what you look like. A lot of us have never even seen photos of each other. We get to know each other from the inside first,where it truly counts. No one cares that I am overweight. I have been all my life, and I have been very shy and backward because of it. Uncomfortable in my own skin. But those I have had the chance to meet, they made me forget while I was with them, that I was "fat" Lisa. To them, I am friend Lisa. 

There you go. 

The five reasons I read cozy mysteries. 

Truth be told, I could come up with many more, but I think I touched on the most important ones. 

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A big thank you to Mary Kennedy for her original post. It gave me the opportunity to express what I have been wanting to say for a very long time. You can find Mary's post here. . . 

WHY I LOVE READING COZIES

Check out the Cozy Chicks blog here. . .

www.cozychicksblog.com

Nancy Drew. . . Technically my first cozies. 

Please leave a comment and tell me,

why do you read cozies?