Cozy Mystery News

New Tonya Kappes Mystery Series

Author Tonya Kappes is expanding the world of Normal, Kentucky (the setting of her popular Camper & Criminals Mystery Series) by launching a new mystery series that takes readers deeper into the world, featuring a new sleuth and other new characters. Characters from Camper & Criminals will also step into the story in all-new ways. The new series is titled The Boone Book Nook Bookstore Mysteries. You can read the first chapter on Tonya’s Patreon.

New Miss Marple Series

It’s been 50 years since the publication of Agatha Christie’s final mystery starring the world’s most famous female detective. And now Miss Marple is back!

Murder at the Grand Alpine Hotel, the first book in a new Miss Marple Mystery Series, is coming September 22, 2026. Written by bestselling author Lucy Foley, the book is set at a luxurious hotel high in the Swiss Alps, where a body is found, a blizzard cuts off any chance of escape, and only Miss Marple can connect the clues.

New Barnes & Noble Pricing

The Barnes & Noble distribution arm for self-publishing authors, Barnes & Noble Press, recently announced that all printed books must be listed at $14.99 or more. Existing titles below this price must be repriced by May 14, 2026, or they risk removal. According to Barnes & Noble, “these changes are designed to protect independent authors as well as maintain the quality of the content.”

Cozy Crime Reads Book Giveaway Program

Cozy Crime Reads has launched a Book Giveaway Program for authors and publishers who want to market their books and connect with more readers via giveaways. Readers can sign up for contests on the Book Giveaway page.

New Brewing Trouble Mystery

Joyce Tremel signed with Severn House for a fourth book in her award-winning Brewing Trouble Mystery Series. Holly, Hops and Homicide will be released in late 2027 along with ebook reissues of the first three books in the series.

Blue Ridge Library Books

Publisher Crooked Lane just closed a deal with Victoria Gilbert and her agent for two more Blue Ridge Library Mystery books: Murder in Circulation (Book 11) and Closing the Books on Murder (Book 12). Death on the Books, Book 10 in the Blue Ridge Library Mystery series, comes out August 4, 2026.

Amanda Flower Books

Amanda Flower has two new mystery series in the works. The first is the Amish Country Cafe Mysteries. This spinoff from the Amish Candy Shop Mysteries and the Amish Matchmaker Mysteries features Lois Henry’s granddaughter, Darcy Woodin, as the main character. The second is a new historical mystery series called The First Ladies Murder Club (coming November 24, 2026). This historical cozy mystery series, set in the Gilded Age in Washington, D.C., features the capital’s most influential women, including Nelly Grant, Julia Dent Grant, and Frances Cleveland, as they band together to solve the suspicious murder of the First Lady’s young maid.

Home for the Homicides

Hannah Morrissey and Elle Cosimano recently announced their upcoming rom-com-murder-mystery-mashup Home for the Homicides. In this book, Special Agents Holly Frost and Mark Shepherd report to the idyllic town of Christmas to investigate a very less than idyllic murder, and quickly discover they’re in for more than the average whodunnit. Home for the Homicides will be out on October 13, 2026 and is available for pre-order.

New Mindy Quigley Series

Author Mindy Quigley is launching a new series with a neuroscientist sleuth. In the first book, Winona Wild Has Killer Instincts, a buttoned-up neuroscientist becomes entangled in a murder investigation at her estranged family’s chaotic tiger sanctuary. The tentative release date is mid to late 2027.

Hannah Swensen Book Cancellation

Kensington Books confirmed the cancellation of Joanne Fluke’s Pumpkin Chiffon Pie Murder, book 30 in the Hannah Swensen Mystery Series. They did not provide a reason for the cancellation.

Golden Girls

Death on the Lanai, the second book in the NY Times bestselling Golden Girls Mystery Series by Rachel Ekstrom Courage will be released on April 28, 2026 and is available for pre-order. The Golden Girls accept a very strange invitation to a lavish party on a remote island estate and get embroiled in a murder mystery. See Death on the Lanai on Amazon. Advanced reader copies (ARCs) of Death on the Lanai are now available on Net Galley.

You Should Totally Write That

Award-winning authors LL Kirchner and Tara Lush (author of the Crescent Moon Mysteries) recently launched a new podcast on Substack called You Should Totally Write That. This weekly podcast dives into the unfiltered truth about DIY publishing. The first episode focuses on the biggest question every aspiring indie author needs to answer: Do you have what it takes to DIY publish?

Annual Cozy Mystery Book Market Report

The annual Cozy Mystery book market report was recently released by K-lytics. According to the report, there has been a steady rise in search interest for cozy mystery books for the first time since 2021. The report also indicates that indie authors are dominating the market—over 70% of authors in the top rankings are indies. The report includes distilled insights from more than 7,000 cozy mystery books and identifies the best categories, most popular themes and market niches, high-selling covers, top authors and publishers, trending keywords, best price points, and more.