First In Series: A cozy mystery collection Kindle Edition, by Reagan Davis (Author)

 

What a delight. A chance to relive the beginnings of not just one but two excellent cozy mysteries. Rather than simply tell you "Read these!", which you certainly should, I thought I'd share a few observations and reasons to do just that.

First, both have strong, independent female leads. In the Knitorious series, Megan is in the process of getting a divorce. Her husband has cheated on her but they are in the midst of a remarkably civil divorce, their focus on their daughter rather than themselves. In the other series, we have strong, ambitious Karla, who is trying to grow her concierge business. She has a bit of an advantage over Megan, however, in the sleuthing department. She's able to quickly pick up on people's tells, the involuntary eye movement, blinks, turning of the head/body, or whatever, when they're lying. Her father is also the town police chief, not to mention her sister is a cop, too. Oh, and her best friend is the town coroner.

Both ladies have a strong circle of family and friends who have their backs and are there for them. Both ladies, despite the negative events in their lives, also seem to be largely positive forces, looking for the good in all. The supporting casts about them are all well-defined, with personalities of their own. They all strike me as people I'd love to have in my life. And, oh, yes, there are adorable dogs in their small town settings. Romance, too, of course, when it can sneak in between the intriguing murder investigations. The mysteries themselves are satisfying, with multiple suspects and twists and turns, not to mention red herrings. 

Bottom line, to shift back into my first instinct, read these introductory installments and be ready to dive into both series when you find you're hooked.