The Crime in a Cozy Mystery
Cozy mysteries hold an interesting position in crime fiction. These charming tales offer an inviting escape into small-town settings with quirky characters and clever puzzles.
What they don’t do is describe the crime in detail. Unlike almost every other form of mystery fiction, there’s no blood, no gore, no description of the body which makes the reader want to close their eyes.
It is the desire of the cozy reader, and the task of the cozy writer, to discuss the crime in a way which keeps those details to a minimum, while still exposing the clues necessary to figure out what happened.
The Types of Cozy Crime
When crime takes on a gentle, quaint demeanor, it is difficult to imagine the most brutal of events. And yet, murder is by far the most common crime seen in cozy mysteries. Without anything other than intuition, I’d guess that nine out of ten cozies involve murder. But there are others, so let’s take a look:
Murder Most Cozy
The early days of classic mystery featured murder in all its forms. Open any Agatha Christie and there’ll be a dead body somewhere. Her style, and those of her contemporaries, was to find a body in a bathtub or on a study floor, usually in a locked room. From there we get the investigation, but descriptions of how the victim died are minimal, almost always related to a clue of some kind.
That style has come down to us from those days. Most modern cozies follow that exact same pattern: a dead person, but very little description other than what is necessary. There are no pools of blood, no lovingly crafted descriptions of bullet wounds that you might find in a different subgenre.
Stealing the Scene
Theft and burglary are probably the next most common crimes in cozies. If you have valuable heirlooms, priceless artwork, or even family recipes, you might find them missing in a cozy mystery. Usually having sentimental value, they’ll also play a pivotal role in the mystery. And, as before, a murder might ensue to cover up the crime.
Cons and Frauds
A medium who isn’t really psychic? A con artist who pretends to be someone they’re not? Scams and swindles are part and parcel of the cozy mystery game. Although they’re not common, this type of crime adds an element of surprise and misdirection to a plot.
Sabotage and skullduggery
The village is having a bake-off at the fair? A perfect opportunity to tamper with a cake and ruin the reputation of a local baker. Or perhaps you can mess with the wool being used in the knitting competition. Often these crimes can lead to murder, but they’re just as likely to cause chaos and pit neighbor against neighbor.
Describing Crime Scenes
There’s a delicate balance between describing a scene and keeping it cozy. Descriptions of blood and gore are the easy way out. Telling the reader what has happened without going into those details is a tricky concept performed by a skilled author. Plus, you have to sneak in some clues along the way!
The setting of the crime itself can help the author. They may contrast the blood to the pristine white floor. They may choose to make the crime bloodless, or have the wound be small enough to be hardly noticeable. Many a cozy victim has looked like they are sleeping, until the sleuth notices a tiny drop of blood somewhere.
Or perhaps we don’t even look at the body itself. The writer may acknowledge the dead body, but quickly pivot to the clues scattered around. The book laying beside the body (the title may be very important), a spilled glass of wine on the table, or perhaps a chill in the air because a window is open somewhere. Everything is a clue—but remember, not every clue is going to help solve the mystery.
As you see the list of items in the room, you will automatically go to cataloging them as clues. Remember some of them will have been placed by the author to guide your thinking away from the actual criminal. It may cause you to blame the wrong person for the crime, an outcome which is the very goal for the author.
The Police response to a crime
Law enforcement isn’t usually involved in cozy mysteries, at least not in the way you might think. The typical response is dismissive, incompetent, or downright ignorant.
Bumbling and endearing
A lot of cozy cops are written as bumbling detectives. They miss clues, ignore what’s in front of them, and quickly come to a conclusion which the protagonist can’t accept. This leads the protagonist to have to investigate for themselves, discovering clues which point to the real killer.
One and done
Another trigger for the amateur sleuth is the sloppy job the police have done. They take a look and make a snap judgment, which the sleuth cannot accept. The sleuth then does their own investigation which again points out the flaws. This usually happens with the police either deciding the case was a suicide, or quickly assuming a friend of the sleuth was the criminal. Either way their rush to close the case is unacceptable to the sleuth.
The love interest
There’s always the possibility of the police working on the case and not doing it well enough for the sleuth’s liking. The two sides have a number of conflicts, which of course turn into sparks as they clash. If done properly, it will end up with the sleuth and the local constable in a relationship, perhaps half a dozen books down the line, as they solve crimes together.
So what is the catalyst for the sleuth?
Believe it or not, most shop owners don’t stumble over bodies in small villages across England every day. There is an accepted route for an amateur sleuth to get into solving a crime. It may involve some suspension of disbelief, but if we’ll-written, can easily be glossed over as part of the genre’s mystique.
Curiosity killed the cat
Every amateur sleuth is driven by curiosity. It doesn’t matter if it’s a mysterious noise in the night or a secret whispered over coffee, it will get their juices flowing to solve the crime in front of them.
A personal connection
Cozy mysteries always show a connection between the sleuth and the crime. It might have happened in their store. It could be their friend who is falsely accused. It may be their own cooking which is to blame. Something acts to ensure the sleuth is dragged into the crime and cannot let it go until they have solved the puzzle.
Conclusion
The crime we see in a cozy mystery has to fit several criteria. It may be one of several types, although murder is most popular. The crime scene itself will be full of clues, whether you notice them or not. And the police response will force the amateur sleuth into action to clear their name or the name of their friend.
What matters in the cozy mystery genre isn’t the crime itself. That’s a big part of why we see it only tangentially (the other part is why it’s called ‘cozy’). What makes it interesting is the response, from both the authorities and the amateur sleuth. These are what makes it interesting, and what keeps the genre going.
Do you have anything to say about this article? Agree or disagree with what we have to say? Let us know in the comments below.
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