Murder Most Cozy: Mysteries in the Classic Tradition

Murder Most Cozy

by Cynthia Manson (Editor), Dorothy L. Sayers, Margery Allingham

A collection of mystery stories culled from the pages of "Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine" and "Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine" features the work of Dorothy L. Sayers, Margery Allingham, Julian Simons, and Michael Innes

Genres: Short Stories, Mystery, Cozy Mystery, Anthologies

254 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1993

About the author

Cynthia Manson is a literary agent, formerly Director of Marketing at Davis Publications, publishers of Ellery Queen and Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazines. She has also edited several anthologies.

Reviews

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

"THE BUTLER DIDN'T DO IT

"So whodunit? Find out in this quintessential collection of cozies ... the creme de la creme of mysteries whose wit, clever clues, and urbanity are the preferred taste of discriminating readers. Michael Innes presents a case of suicide at a Cornish coastal mansion which looks fishy indeed and makes a gloomy butler appear so very guilty. Dorothy L. Sayers sends Lord Peter to a castle stocked with intrigue and fine wines to test both his sophisticated palate and his powers of detection. And Amanda Cross challenges the intellect of sleuth Kate Fansler with a missing dog that may be, if the reader is quick enough to smell a rat, a red herring. So put out the tea and crumpets, settle into a favorite chair, and indulge in one-lump-or-two, plus nine irrestible tales of --

"MURDER MOST COZY"
~~back cover

This is one of the best mystery books I've read in ages -- I could hardly put it down. Superior writing and plotting, and characterization. And I especially enjoyed the parody of the last story in the book, by Julian Symons. I couldn't recommend it more highly!

[Yune · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked this up because I wanted to read more about Cassandra Chan's murder-solving duo, Bethancourt and Gibbons; her first short story about them was reprinted here, and I found it quite satisfying. Later I found myself fretting about not being able to find similar works, and returned to the rest of the anthology, hoping for more authors to pursue. I did find one other, but the Chan remains the highlight for me.

I confess the first story didn't feel particularly like what I think of as a cozy mystery, which might have been off-putting if I'd just picked it up based on the title, but there is a variety of styles and settings while still adhering to the general idea that the investigators can ultimately think their way to a solution (often with some help).

Notes on individual stories are in the status updates so as to avoid a mega-long review, but overall I'd say it's worth picking up a used copy if there's a story by a particular author you enjoy. Agreed that none of them are outright bad, but I think I need a more targeted selection.

[C-shaw · Rating 2 out of 5]

A paperback I've had forever, consisting of short stories by about nine cozy mystery writers. A good quickie read for the holidays.
* * * * *
I read this hit-and-miss in odd moments, found them all to be forgettable, second-rate stories. It's not a keeper, not recommended.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Most of these stories were pretty meh, but it did introduce me to Dorothy Sayers, who was clearly the best author in the book!

[Ginny · Rating 4 out of 5]

A delightful selection of cozy mysteries in short story form, by several authors.

[Serena · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cave, Hugh B - Mistress of Shadows ***
Moyes, Patricia - A Young Man Called Smith ****
Chan, CM - the Dressing Table Murder ****
Sayers, Dorothy L - A Matter of Taste ****
Cross, Amanda - Arrie and Jasper ***
Innes, Micahel - A Case of Headlong Dying ***
Allan, Alexandra - Cruise to Death ****
Allingham, Margery - the Danger Point ****
Symons, Julian - Holocaust at Mayhem Parva ****

My Rating System:
* couldn't finish, ** wouldn't recommend, *** would recommend, **** would read again, ***** have read again.

[Miss Lemon · Rating 4 out of 5]

The right kind of book to read during busy holidays when five minutes of quiet at a time might be all you get. Short mysteries - all cozy but very different from each other - location, timeframe, slueth. The nice thing about short stories is that if it doesn't get going to your satisfaction in the first few pages then it's on to the next chapter. But the con is that the really good mysteries finish all too soon. All in all a book worth having at arms reach for the 'only got 10 minutes' sort of days.

[Josue · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an omnibus of short stories, obviously, so not all the stories will appeal to everyone. But they were all very well-written and smartly selected. It has introduced me to some writers whose work I want to pursue in novel form. Even if I personally didn't especially like a character or style of story, not a single one was a clunker.

[Rose Depalma]

Amazing and entertaining. Would love to read more C. M. Chan but that person is an enigma.5-22-2015.