August is the month to celebrate food. With National Chocolate Chip Cookie Day (August 4th), National Raspberries and Cream Day (August 7th), National Peach Pie Day (August 24th), and National Cherry Turnover Day (August 28th) as well as a host of others, many of us will be thinking about sweet treats. Why not turn that thinking into reading and revel in a comfy Culinary Mystery?
Culinary Mysteries are a subgenre of Mystery fiction where food and drink are a major focus. They feature chefs, bakers, and sommeliers as amateur sleuths. The murder in these mysteries often involve food in some way. These novels are considered cozies, where the murder takes place “off the page” and do not include descriptions of graphic violence.
Popular Culinary Mystery authors include Diane Mott Davidson, who writes the Goldy Bear series; Ellie Alexander, who writes the Sloane Kraus series; Joanne Pence, who writes the Angie Amalfi series; and Joanne Fluke, who writes the Hannah Swensen series.
Fans of Culinary Mysteries often like them because they are character-focused stories. If you get drawn into the world of your favorite character you’re in luck, as many if not most, Culinary Mysteries are series.
I’ve long been a favorite of this subgenre and can highly recommend the following. Make sure that you start with the first book in the series, so you can follow the development of the characters over time!
Vivien Chen pens the delightful Noodle Shop Mysteries, featuring Lana Lee, who returns to Cleveland after a very bad break-up. There, she starts working in her parent’s restaurant, Ho-Lee Noodle House. The first book in the series is Death by Dumpling. When their property manager, who suffers from a shellfish allergy, is found dead after receiving a delivery of shrimp dumplings from Ho-Lee, Lana is on the trail of a murderer. This is an intricately plotted novel. If you’re interested in “own voices,” Chen is one you don’t want to miss.
Joanne Fluke’s series features Minnesota Baker Hannah Swensen. The novels take place in the fictional town of Lake Eden. Hannah is often roped into figuring out crimes by her sister, Andrea, and her mother, Delores. In the Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder, the Cozy Cow Dairy delivery driver is found dead in the parking lot of The Cookie Jar, Hannah’s Chocolate Chip Crunchies scattered all around him. Hannah starts researching suspects in order to save the reputation of her crunchies and her bakery itself. The novels in this series are warm and humorous. Readers will laugh at Delores’ antics as she tries to get Hannah to marry one of her two suitors.
Tamar Myers Pennsylvania Dutch Mysteries featuring Magdelana Yoder, who runs the PennDutch Inn with Amish cook, Hernia. These novels are laugh-out-loud funny and feature recipes. Start with Too Many Crooks Spoil the Broth.
For those times when I’m looking for something with a little more cultural flair, I turn to the Carribean Kitchen series by Raquel V. Reyes. Set in Miami, Florida, they feature Cuban-American cooking show star Miriam Quiñones-Smith. The first book, Mango, Mambo, and Murder, finds Miriam moving from New York to Florida, where she gets a part-time gig as the cooking expert on a Spanish language morning cooking show. When a socialite dies at a luncheon Miriam is attending, and then a second woman dies, Miriam is asked to use her knowledge of the Spanish cultural scene and food to solve the murder.
Last, but not least is the Coffeehouse Mysteries. I’m a Diet Coke gal myself, but if coffee is more your speed, check out On What Grounds by Cleo Coyle, which is the pen name for husband and wife writing team, Alice Alfonsi and Marc Cerasini. In the first book in the series, barista Clare Cosi has returned to work after a ten year hiatus. She’s back at the Village Blend Coffeehouse and thrilled with the job and the rent-free apartment above it. It’s smooth-sailing until the assistant manager is found unconscious in the back of the store, with coffee grounds everywhere. The police rule it an accident, but Clare is not so sure.
With so many subgenres of mysteries to choose from, why not sit back and relax and enjoy a fun story with great characters and no violence? The Boston Public Library offers a tantalizing menu of Culinary Mysteries for every reader. Murder and Mayhem has posted a list of 17 More Culinary Cozy Mystery Books for People with a Taste for Sleuthing. If you want to be able to recreate the dishes that are mentioned in what you read, check out CrimeReads, where you’ll find a list of Cozy Mysteries Featuring Delicious (and Doable) Recipes.
Check out our post next month on Sports Romances.
by Nanci Hill