THE NEXT DEADLY CHAPTER

A mystery writer probes the death of a cozy-mystery hater.

Addressing a mostly female crowd at the Pontolomas Senior Citizens Center in southern Michigan, Samantha Washington is confronted by a hostile man who interrupts her talk about her recently published Murder at Wickfield Lodge with a diatribe about why women shouldn’t write mysteries. Samantha responds with a brief history of the cozy mystery, complete with an explanation of the genre’s wide appeal. After the misogynist is ejected by Nana Jo, Samantha’s 5-foot-10-inch grandmother, Kai Strongbow—one of the Pontolomas tribal leaders—offers Samantha a weekend stay at the tribe’s Four Feathers resort as compensation. The posh Four Feathers is just the place for Sam to take her future mother-in-law, Dr. Camilia Patterson, for their first rendezvous. Unfortunately, the icy Dr. Patterson is not impressed with Samantha, although she unbends slightly when she sees the luxurious accommodations. Things go from bad to worse when a dead body turns up in Dr. Patterson’s suite, and then get worse still when Samantha recognizes him as her heckler. To prove to Kai Strongbow that his generous offer of hospitality wasn’t a mistake, Samantha sets out to uncover the murderer, taking breaks to work on the next installment of her World War II–era Wickfield Lodge series. Her real-life investigation and her fictional puzzle cross-pollinate, offering a novel insight into some of the processes that go into creating cozy mysteries.

A contemporary cozy, a historical cozy, and a tutorial on cozies all rolled into one.