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“It’s winter and it’s too cold outside. Stay inside and read a book.” This is a paraphrase of a meme I saw recently, which rang true. Yes, it is too cold to be outside for a lot of us. Why not stay inside with a book, a soft blanket, and a cup of tea? Add a dog or cat on your lap to make it sublime.
Of course, the meme went on to note that every season was either too wet, too hot, or too windy—why not stay home and read? But winter feels particularly like a good time to get cozy. It’s a time for reflection, resting, and recharging. So reading seems like the perfect activity to go along with that. And since we’re being all cozy, doesn’t it seem perfect to pair it with a cozy mystery about winter?
Here is a list of eight cozy mysteries that take place in winter. I will say that it was hard to find cozy mysteries that take place in winter that are not Christmas-themed. I can totally understand why cozies would include Christmas given how much it dominates the end of the year and all the traditions. But I hope to see more books that focus on other parts of winter. A few are books in the middle of a series, but cozies can usually be read out of order. Enjoy cozying up to these cozies!
Cozy Winter Mystery Novels to Curl Up With
A Deadly Inside Scoop by Abby Collette
Things haven’t quite gone to plan for Browyn “Wyn” Crewse and her dream to transform her family’s ice cream business. First of all, she reopened it in the middle of winter, and ice cream is not exactly a hot commodity when there’s snow and ice. Then she stumbles over a body in the snow, which leads to the cops suspecting that her family was somehow involved. Now, she’s got to drum up business and solve the crime, or her dream will start to melt. It’s the first in three books of the Ice Cream Parlor Mystery series.
Death by Dumpling by Vivien Chien
Vivien Chien’s Noodle Shop Mystery series is one of my absolute favorites, and many of its books are set in winter. In Death by Dumpling, the first book in the series, it’s November and Lana Lee is in a slump. She’s working at her family’s restaurant, a place she wanted to escape for so long. She’s trying to figure out what’s next after a failed relationship and quitting her job. Little does she know she’ll have to clear her name and her family’s restaurant after a delivery she makes leaves their customer, Mr. Feng, dead from a shrimp allergy.
If you like Death by Dumpling, there are 10 books and a novella in the series, and book 11, The Chow Maniac, is coming out in 2025.
Without A Brew by Ellie Alexander
Brewmaster Sloan Krause is enjoying the winter season in the Bavarian-themed town of Leavenworth, Washington. She works at nano-brewery Nitro, where everyone is getting ready for the IceFest, a big festival of all things ice and winter. Those preparations include opening a Bed and Breakfast, and what sounded easy on paper proves a lot harder in practice. When one of their first guests is murdered, Krause has to figure out who is responsible. This is the fourth in the Sloan Krause series with a total of six books and two novellas.
Peril & Prayer by Olivia Matthews
Okay, so this one is about Advent, but not specifically about Christmas! The Congregation of the Sisters of St. Hermione of Ephesus has decided to spend its retreat at Briar Coast Cabin Resorts. What should be a time of reflection and prayer is troubled with friction between the owner of the resort and Sister Marianna. Worse still, the owner is discovered dead with Sister Marianna’s missing scarf as the murder weapon. The police think Sister Marianna is behind the murder, so Sister Lou and her trusty investigators, her nephew, and a friendly reporter have to find the real culprit to keep Sister out of prison and keep the Congregation afloat. It’s the second book of three in the Sister Lou Mystery series.
Cry Wolf by Lark O. Jensen
There’s a husky named Sasha. That’s enough to make me swoon at this second book in the Alaska Untamed Mystery series. Sasha’s owner, Stacie Calder, is joining the Juneau Wildlife World, a wild animal sanctuary. She’s thrilled about the new opportunity, but her new boss, Oliver Browning, appears to really dislike her. So when he’s found dead in the section of the sanctuary with the wolves, people suspect that Stacie may be behind his untimely death. With a giant storm brewing and a killer with unfinished business on the loose, Stacie has to find the murderer before it’s too late.
Bookmarked for Murder by Valerie M. Burns
Bus rides can be murder…on your back and legs. But no one expected someone to actually die on the ride back from a post-Christmas shopping expedition with writer and bookshop owner Sam Washington and her grandmother and her rambunctious friends. They decide that they have to figure out who ended his journey too soon. This is the fifth in the delightful Mystery Bookshop series, with book 10 out next year.
The Burning Pages by Paige Shelton
It was supposed to be an evening of poetry, whiskey, good food, and good friends. American-born bookseller Delaney Nichols and her coworker Hamlet get to attend Burns Night, a celebration of Robert Burns at the renowned poet’s actual house. But instead of a night of fun and Scottish traditions, Delaney’s boss Edwin’s feud with his former friend rears its ugly head when he’s accused of having burned down his friend’s bookshop 20 years ago. Worse still, someone takes Burns Night literally and burns the house down with a body inside. When Hamlet is accused of the murder, Paige has to use her skills to get him off scot-free. This is the seventh book in the nine-book Scottish Bookstore series.
Arya Winters and the Cupcakes of Doom by Amita Murray
I’m a huge fan of baking competition shows, with a soft spot in my heart for the bakers with a bit more morbid point of view. So this book fits so well for folks like me. Ayra Winters is a baker with gruesome cakes as her specialty. She gets invited to bake at a two-week art retreat in the middle of winter and jumps on the opportunity. But the art retreat is teeming with drama. It is only amplified when someone finds a corpse covered in her cupcakes. Now she’s got to mix the clues and secrets together to find out who is behind the ghastly deed. It’s the second in the Ayra Winters duology.
Hopefully these will help you get through the dark and cold nights of the winter! If you want to read more about how Vivien Chien’s Noodle Shop Mysteries rekindled my love of cozies, check out this article. If you need some summer in your life, check out this list of summer cozy mysteries.
