Top 10 cosy crime novels

I’m not surprised that the humour and gentle escapism of cosy crime is having a moment. The books themselves are not a response to what we’re living through: most were written before lockdown show more or Cop26. But while noir profits from exploring our deepest anxieties, cosy taps into a need for self-protection that many readers are feeling right now. It doesn’t mean that a well-constructed cosy mystery is light or meaningless.

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There is no such thing as a cosy crime, of course. Murder is murder. However, while there may be sex and violence in these stories, it is usually off-stage. In the following books, we spend our time with detectives who have somehow managed not to become drink-addled loners, who inhabit places we would like to live or visit, among communities who, despite their differences, ultimately trust each other and get along. It makes a change from the papers. What’s not to like?

SJ Bennett – LT author page show less