First Volumes of Cozy Series
Most cozy mysteries come in multi-volume series. Here is a list of forty-five cozy mysteries that are the first in a series.
A study of the first chapter of these books will give you an idea of what may catch an editor’s interest.
If all you want to do is look at the first page (which is how most agents and editors do when opening an unsolicited manuscript) you can make use of the “Look Inside” feature on Amazon.
Crocodile on the Sandbank, Eliz Peters
Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder, Joanne Fluke
The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie, Alan Bradley
The Unexpected Mrs. Pollifax, Dorothy Gilman
Murder at the Vicarage, Agatha Christie
The Quiche of Death, M.C. Beaton
Whose Body? Dorothy L. Sayers
The Secret Adversary, Agatha Christie
Her Royal Spyness, Rhys Bowen
Death on Demand, Carolyn Hart
Murder with Peacocks, Donna Andrews
Aunt Dimity’s Death, Nancy Atherton
Real Murders, Charlaine Harris
Borrower of the Night, Elizabeth Peters
The Eyre Affair, Jasper Fforde
The Thin Woman, Dorothy Cannell
The Ghost and Mrs. McClure, Alice Kimberly
Death at Bishop’s Keep, Robin Paige
The Secret of the Mansion, Julie Campbell
Glazed Murder, Jessica Beck
The Novice’s Tale, Margaret Frazer
Eggs in Purgatory, Laura Childs
The Cat, the Quilt, and the Corpse, Leann Sweeney
The Coroner’s Lunch, Colin Cotterill
Gin and Daggers, Jessica Fletcher
Truly, Madly, Heather Webber
The Body in the Belfry, Katherine Hall
Cloche and Dagger, Jenn McKinlay
A Clue for the Puzzle Lady, Parnell Hall
50% Off Murder, Josie Belle
A Potion to Die For, Heather Blake
Catnap, Carole Nelson Douglas
The Case of the Missing Servant, Tarquin Hall
Bubba and the Dead Woman, C.L. Bevill
The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency, Alexander McCall Smith
The Cat Who Could Read Backwards, Lilian Jackson Braun
Catering to Nobody, Diane Mott Davidson
Still Life, Louise Penny
The Secret of the Old Clock, Carolyn Keene
A Morbid Taste for Bones, Ellis Peters
Maisie Dobbs, Jacqueline Winspear
The Beekeeper’s Apprentice,Laurie R. King
On What Grounds, Cleo Coyle
Murder on a Girls’ Night Out, Anne George
Thyme of Death, Susan Wittig Albert