What Is A Cozy?

Jenny tackled this question a few months ago in her blog. She did a series of posts starting with this one.

But I don't know that I've ever answered that question in my own blog. If not, it's about time. The question seems straightforward enough but, as with any genre or sub-genre, not everyone agrees. The following is my take on what constitutes a "cozy" mystery.

-The protagonist is not a law enforcement professional. That is, the person who solves the murder is not who you would expect to do so. She (and it's most often a she) would not be a police office, a forensics expert, a private investigator, etc.

-Violence happens off-stage. This is especially true with regard to the murder(s). The reader doesn't get a lot of blood and gore. A protagonist or other character may be threatened with violence, but usually isn't seriously hurt. I have read a couple lately with our heroine being conked on the head or some such, but it's still pretty rare.

-Often the police are depicted as inept. I'm glad to see this trend changing in the newer cozies. It's not that the professionals don't know what they are doing, but they may not have the specialized knowledge of a certain job that the protagonist does, or they are hampered by the rules they have to follow. Rules that a tea shop owner or a housewife doesn't have to obey.

-Pets, particularly cats, seem to be involved a lot. Some books have them front and center, like Rita Mae Brown's The Cat Who series. Others are just pets. But it's unusual to find a protagonist in a newer cozy who doesn't own at least one pet.

-Bonus material, as Jenny calls it, has become de rigueur. It's hard to find a cozy published within the last two years that does not include at least one recipe. And depending on the protagonist's job, there can be patterns or how-to advice as well. These are fun little additions at the end of the book, but they can make a write want to shy away from career for her amateur detective that wouldn't easily lend itself to these bonuses.

-The tone is light. Even though we're dealing with murder, the overall tone of cozies is light. The murder itself is treated with seriousness, but the investigation often finds our protagonist in embarrassing, if not downright compromising, situations.

-(Addendum)Most are written in first person, so the reader only knows what the protagonist knows. This can be effective, but also annoying. As when the protagonist describes herself using terminology no woman I know would use.

-(Addendum) Titles are often puns on the job the protagonist holds. Curiosity Killed the Cat-sitter is one of the better ones.


That's about it. Are you familiar with cozies? Have I missed anything. Do those descriptions sound like anything you've read? Or would like to read?