Non-gory mysteries?

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Non-gory mysteries?

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amother

Lime

Thu, Aug 02 2018, 10:52 pm

I searched the reading room and I found an old thread on mystery recommendations, which is good. The only thing is that different people have different sensitivity levels, and I really can't handle anything gory (I'm ok with romance or light intimacy, but only in a good way).

Any recommendations for some mysteries that are not gory and have no descriptions of dead bodies, torture, etc?

Thanks!

amother

Mauve

Thu, Aug 02 2018, 10:54 pm

Agatha Christie
Peabody series

amother

Mustard

Thu, Aug 02 2018, 11:05 pm

Alexander McCall Smith's Isabel Dalhousie or No.1. Ladies Detective Agency Series

MC Beaton, either the Agatha Raisin or Hamish Macbeth series

Pretty much anything labelled "cozy" won't be gory. It's a popular genre.

Bsimcha

Thu, Aug 02 2018, 11:07 pm

Sue Grafton
Elizabeth George
I second Agatha Christie

John Grisham-not mystery per se, but I love his books. Generally cleaner and I don't think gory, I hate gory and can't recall anything off hand.

Would love more authors like ones I listed as I'm always looking for cleaner interesting books! but not boring! many clean ones are so boring!

amother

Lime

Thu, Aug 02 2018, 11:35 pm

Thanks so much for your replies!

To the amother who recommended cozy mysteries, would you have any specific recommendations? There seem to be thousands of cozies on Amazon. Thanks!

Also, I don't care if it's not squeaky clean, I'm only bothered by gore. Thanks!

amother

Mustard

Fri, Aug 03 2018, 1:01 am

amother wrote:

The two I mentioned are cozies. But as you say, there are thousands. Many have themes, like Diane Mott Davidson (I think that's her name) series about a caterer, Parnell Hall's series about a woman who constructs crossword puzzles, or Laura Childs' series about a tea shop in Charleston. There are quilting mysteries, antique shop mysteries, home improvement mysteries, you name it. So you can choose according to your interests.

PinkFridge

Fri, Aug 03 2018, 8:14 am

This isn't a mystery series but you might like the Mossy Creek series.

FranticFrummie

Fri, Aug 03 2018, 12:03 pm

Sherlock Holmes!

SixOfWands

Fri, Aug 03 2018, 12:07 pm

FranticFrummie wrote:

Sherlock Holmes!

Dorothy Sayers' Lord Peter Wimsey books

anon for this

Sat, Aug 04 2018, 11:52 pm

I like Sue Grafton's work, but some of her later mysteries (the series ended at Y when she died this year) are more gory.

Sebastian

Sun, Aug 05 2018, 12:23 am

Look for mysteries by Elizabeth Spann Craig.

1091

Sun, Aug 05 2018, 4:53 am

Joanne Fluke

https://www.cozy-mystery.com/j......html

I didn’t know there was such a thing as cozy mysteries but I googled her name and I guess that’s what she writes!

I used to like Ed McBain.

anon for this

Sun, Aug 05 2018, 5:27 am

The Burglar books by Lawrence Block would probably suit you well. They are not at all gory and are funny besides.

amother

Lime

Sun, Aug 05 2018, 8:52 am

Thank you so much for your suggestions! I've read Agatha Christie and Dorothy Sayers (absolutely love Dorothy Sayers), but I'm going to try your other suggestions.

Thanks again, very helpful.

PinkFridge

Sun, Aug 05 2018, 8:53 am

I stopped reading the Joanne Fluke books a few books ago because the relationship (torn between two beaus; clean, with a hint of something going on behind the scenes) was driving me crazy.

As far as the Burglar books go (I assume you mean Bernie Rodenbahr?) it flips the g-ay friend meme by having the woman be the friend. So ymmv. Plus the questionable ethics of the premise.

1091

Sun, Aug 05 2018, 8:57 am

PinkFridge wrote:

She finally got married - if that would peak your interest in reading the books again. And I do agree that part of the plot was just plain annoying.

PinkFridge

Sun, Aug 05 2018, 9:00 am

1091 wrote:

She finally got married - if that would peak your interest in reading the books again. And I do agree that part of the plot was just plain annoying.

No, because I know to who and that plot twist also bothered me.
I still take a look at them for the recipes.

Oh, I forgot someone: Donna Andrews' Meg Langslow series. You want to read the first few in order. She has another series about a computer with AI called Turing Hopper, I haven't got into those. Maybe when I run out of other stuff to read I'll give it a try.

Edited to put in an apostrophe.

Last edited by PinkFridge on Sun, Aug 05 2018, 12:35 pm; edited 1 time in total

Amarante

Sun, Aug 05 2018, 11:47 am

As posted above, the cozy mysteries are just what the word implies - intended for those who don't like the hard boiled style. Pick an interest or milieu and that's part of the fun - cooking, baking, Amish, dogs, cats, seashore etc. I used to like the Susan Conant dog trainer books.

On a slightly better written, I do enjoy the Nevada Barr books. Her "detective" is a forest ranger and even though I am the antithesis of an outdoor gal, I find learning about nature and the national parks fascinating.

I love the Sara Paretsky mystery series. Her private is V.I Warshawki. They are set in Chicago and

The Carlotta Carlyle are enjoyable - They are by Linda Barnes and her "detective" is a female cab driver and supporting characters are Dr. Lotty Hershel (a Holocaust survivor who runs a medical clinic and her downstairs neighbor who is an old feisty guy.

Of course the Sue Grafton books are a classic and she also has a feisty old guy who is her friend and neighbor who tut tuts about her.

Both Raymond Chandler and Dashielle Hammett - they wrote before stuff could get gory and s*exy even though they practically invented noir stories. I love them for their super classic evoking of an era gone by :-)

In the same type of old fashioned mystery, there is James Cain - Mildred Pierce is a great book as well as a great movie. If you have never seen Joan Crawford in the title role, you're missing out.

amother

Wheat

Sun, Aug 05 2018, 1:43 pm

Dianne Day has a series about a spunky young woman in San Francisco, I think around the turn of the century. Not 100% clean but not to graphic.

Ladies above, can you also mention the cleanliness for those of us concerned with that?

Laurie King's series about Sherlock Holmes and his young femail apprenctice is great, her other books less clean and a little gorier.

Lillian Jackson Braun's The Cat Who series. I've just finished collecting the whole series! I recommend reading them in order if possible.

PinkFridge

Fri, Aug 17 2018, 9:38 am

I just remembered someone else and this thread's not too old to bump.
Jo Dereske's Helma Zukas series.

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