Send your cosy crime recommendations my way please!

Just before Christmas, one of our lovely customers told me that his collection of
Sherlock Holmes lives on his bedstand, precious stories to be kept close at all times.
I had to admit that I had never read them, but his passion convinced me that I
absolutely had to give them a go. My sister kindly obliged, and I received the whole
lot for Christmas. I have not been disappointed. My January days have been spent
counting down the hours, desperate to curl back up with the next mystery. There is
something incredibly comforting about being in Sherlock’s company- I feel safe in his
hands; I know that he will sort everything out. Miss Marple books were also under
the tree for me, and I can sense a theme emerging for my new year reading list. For
an avid reader, crime doesn’t often make it onto my radar, but now I am beginning to
wonder, have I been missing out?

Before you send any recommendations, I must warn you- start gently. I am a
massive wimp. I read Harry Potter as a young adult, and was frightened to go to the
bathroom in the middle of the night when reading Prisoner of Azkaban in case Sirius
Black was hiding behind the shower curtain. In university halls as a student, I read
Elizabeth Buchan’s story, Daughters of the Storm, set in the French Revolution. The
tension and fear of the guillotine were so vivid, I was frightened to leave my room to
go to the communal toilets in the night in case I was whisked away and arrested by
Robespierre. Having said that, on New Year’s Day, I read Val McDermid’s seasonal
memoir, Winter, and as a result, my dad and I were so taken with her writing that we
have decided to work our way through her crime series. I hear they are quite ‘gritty’.
This means scary, I just know it. Cosy crime definitely feels like an oxymoron, but it
seems like a good place to start.

I wonder what it is about crime mysteries that keep us so enthralled? Perhaps it is
that a problem solved by capable hands helps us to feel safe, even if something
terrible has happened originally. Or maybe it is the excitement of the puzzle that
allows us to fully escape our worries. It could be that we all have a little bit of Miss
Marple in us and share her hobby of observing human nature. I don’t wish to be
overly frightened, that’s for sure. My imagination is vivid, and can arrive at ghastly
outcomes on its own, thank you very much, but perhaps you differ from me and
enjoy a good old fright. They do say it’s good for one’s heart, don’t they? I am sure I
can use that as an excuse to buy some more books… so send me your
recommendations and I will get started!

Fran