Cozy Mystery of the Month Reading Challenge

Monthly Reading Challenges for Cozy Mystery Lovers

A domestic striped tabby cat with green eyes sitting on an open book, covered with a cozy knit blanket, next to a cup and saucer, in a bright room with a window and soft textured pillow or blanket.

Let’s get cozy and read some books!

A cozy mystery reading challenge can be a fun way to shake up your reading habits or find something new to read. It’s also an excellent way to start a lazy book club. This 12-month cozy mystery reading challenge offers a new themed challenge for each month. You can start or stop anytime and pick it back up when you feel like it. A suggested cozy mystery is provided for each challenge, but you should feel free to choose any mystery that fits the monthly theme.

Book cover for 'Farm to Trouble' by Amanda Flower, showing a wheelbarrow filled with vegetables and a chalkboard sign, with descriptions of a farm-to-table mystery story, set in Northern Michigan, featuring well-developed characters, family dynamics, and an organic farm.

January

Read a mystery that is the first in a series. (New year, new beginnings.)

Suggested mystery: Farm to Trouble: An Organic Cozy Mystery (Farm to Table Mysteries Book 1) by Amanda Flower

Colorful book cover for 'Mimi Lee Gets a Glue' by Jennifer J. Chow, featuring a white cat, a woman, and tropical plants, with pink, yellow, and green background elements.

February

Read a cozy mystery with a cat on the cover. (Are there any without cats on the cover? Just kidding. Of course, there are!)

Suggested mystery: Mimi Lee Gets a Clue (Sassy Cat Mystery Book 1) by Jennifer J. Chow

Book cover for 'Heads Will Roll Cinnamon Roll' by London Lovett with annotations highlighting romantic and humorous themes, a cinnamon roll with icing and cinnamon stick, dark purple background with skull silhouette, and text indicating it's the first book in a series.

March

Read a cozy mystery off your To Be Read list that you’ve wanted to read forever but haven’t started yet. (A book lover’s version of spring cleaning.)

Suggested mystery: Heads Will Cinnamon Roll (Scottie Ramone Cozy Mystery Book 1) by London Lovett

Book cover for 'Mum's the Word' by Kate Collins with pink and blue background. The cover features a woman in a striped top and orange skirt looking at flower shop shelves, with a small yellow car and pink flowers depicted. Text highlights include review quote, author, and series information.

April

Read a cozy mystery with a flower on the cover. (Let’s celebrate the beauty of spring.)

Suggested mystery: Mum's the Word (A Flower Shop Mystery Book 1) by Kate Collins

Book cover titled "Hammers and Homicide" by Paula Charles, part of the Hometown Hardware Mystery series. The cover features a hardware store in Pine Bluff, Oregon, with a ladder, flower boxes, a cat, and a sassy senior sleuth. Descriptive annotations mention small town charm, humor, magic, a widow, and setting details.

May

Read a cozy mystery from an author with a new series or recent release or an author you have never heard of. (You “may” find a new favorite author.)

Suggested mystery: Hammers and Homicide (A Hometown Hardware Mystery Book 1) by Paula Charles

Book cover for 'Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder' by Joanne Fluke, part of the Hannah Swensen Mystery series, set in Lake Eden, Minnesota, featuring a tart, smart cookie heroine and recipes.

June

Read a cozy mystery that inspired a movie. And then, just for fun, watch the movie with a snack inspired by the cozy mystery book.

Suggested mystery: Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder (Hannah Swensen Mystery Book 1) by Joanne Fluke

Book cover titled 'Death on Windmill Way' by Carrie Doyle, part of the Hamptons Murder Mystery series, set in the Hamptons. The cover features a colorful scene with a lighthouse, a windmill, a drink with a cherry and straw, strawberries, and a car, with descriptions highlighting its quirky characters, fun descriptions, and glamorous setting.

July

Read a cozy mystery set in a resort town, on a beach, or aboard a cruise ship. (If you want to be kooky, you can switch the challenges for July and December.)

Suggested mystery: Death on Windmill Way (Hamptons Murder Mysteries Book One) by Carrie Doyle

Book cover for 'Elementary, She Read' by Vicki Delany, part of the Sherlock Holmes Bookshop Mystery series, set on Baker Street in Cape Cod. The cover features a red armchair, a bust of Sherlock Holmes, a steaming cup, a book, a black cat, and bookshelves in the background.

August

Read a bookish cozy mystery. Try a cozy mystery set in a bookshop, library, or bookmobile. (The summer reading season is almost over.)

Suggested mystery: Elementary, She Read (A Sherlock Holmes Bookshop Mystery Book 1) by Vicki Delany

Book cover of 'A Doomful of Sugar' by Catherine Bruns, showcasing a fall scene with trees, a squirrel, and a house. Text around the cover describes it as a cozy family mystery, set in Sugar Ridge, Vermont, featuring an artisan maple syrup maker, with five surprises and recipes.

September

Read a cozy mystery with a brown, orange, yellow, or red cover. (Fall colors, cozy vibes.)

Suggested mystery: A Doomful of Sugar (Maple Syrup Mysteries Book 1) by Catherine Bruns

Cover of the book "Aunt Dimity's Death" by Nancy Atherton, featuring a pink stuffed bunny, an open book, a vase of white flowers, a teacup, and a window with curtains, set in the English countryside. The background includes a description of the book as a cozy, ghost story mixed with mystery and fairy tale elements, and notes it as Book 1 in a series.

October

Read a paranormal cozy mystery. (Celebrate Halloween with a spooky tale or ghost story.)

Suggested mystery: Aunt Dimity's Death (Aunt Dimity Mystery Book 1) by Nancy Atherton

Design promoting the book "The Quiche of Death" by M.C. Beaton, part of the Agatha Raisin mystery series. It features a bright yellow background with black and white sections, an illustration of a house with smoke coming from the chimney, and handwritten style text describing the book as a cozy series set in the Cotswolds. The cover of the book is centered, showing the title, author's name, and a red badge indicating it is the basis for a TV series.

November

Read a cozy mystery by an author you love. (Be thankful for their books!)

Suggested mystery: The Quiche of Death: The First Agatha Raisin Mystery by M. C. Beaton

Cover image of the book "The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year" by Ally Carter, featuring an illustration of a woman and a man in front of a Christmas tree with festive holiday themes, surrounded by text describing the book as a romantic holiday mystery with enemies-to-lovers storyline.

December

Read a winter-themed cozy or a holiday cozy mystery. (Tis the season.)

Suggested mystery: The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year by Ally Carter

12-Month Cozy Mystery Reading Challenge Lookbook

Every book shown below is the first book in a series.

Use the arrows to the left and right of each book to cycle through the twelve suggested books in this lookbook.

Click on the book to view it on Amazon.

January - Farm to Trouble: An Organic Cozy Mystery (Farm to Table Mysteries Book 1) by Amanda Flower

February - Mimi Lee Gets a Clue (Sassy Cat Mystery Book 1) by Jennifer J. Chow

March - Will Cinnamon Roll (Scottie Ramone Cozy Mystery Book 1) by London Lovett

April - Mum's the Word (A Flower Shop Mystery Book 1) by Kate Collins

May - Hammers and Homicide (A Hometown Hardware Mystery Book 1) by Paula Charles

June - Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder (Hannah Swensen Mystery Book 1) by Joanne Fluke

July - Death on Windmill Way (Hamptons Murder Mysteries Book One) by Carrie Doyle

August - Elementary, She Read (A Sherlock Holmes Bookshop Mystery Book 1) by Vicki Delany

September - A Doomful of Sugar (Maple Syrup Mysteries Book 1) by Catherine Bruns

October - Aunt Dimity's Death (Aunt Dimity Mystery Book 1) by Nancy Atherton

November - The Quiche of Death: The First Agatha Raisin Mystery (Agatha Raisin Mysteries Book 1) by M. C. Beaton

December - The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year by Ally Carter