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Today’s topic is all about food, which brings me back to one of my very favorite genres: cozy mysteries.  So many of them are focused on food or mention food often.

Tita Rosie’s Kitchen Mysteries by Mia P. Manansala.  These are set in a Filipino family restaurant.  I’ve only read the first in the series, but I enjoyed the characters, the recipes, and the family togetherness.

Tea and Read Mysteries by Joy Avon.  While not fully food-related, this series is set in a tea room, with lots of fabulous teas and pastries.

French Bistro Mysteries by Daryl Wood Gerber.  Set in a French Bistro in Napa Valley, there is plenty of food and wine – and murder – in this series.

Deep Dish Mysteries by Mindy Quigley.  This series takes place in a mobster-themed pizza parlor, which made it an instant winner for me.   Add in Delilah’s sassy, fat cat, and I couldn’t ask for more.

Cheese Shop Mysteries by Korina Moss.  I stumbled into this series accidentally, but you had me at cheese.  I love all the interesting tidbits you learn about cheese and cheesemaking in this series, even if it did cause me to go out and buy a bunch of blue cheese at one point.

Pancake House Mysteries by Sarah Fox.  These take place in a pancake house in a small coastal town.  Breakfast is my favorite meal of the day, so I loved reading about all the various crepes.

Java Jive Mysteries by Caroline Fardig.  I loved this series mainly because it’s set in a coffee house in Nashville, but also due to the friendships Juliet has and forms throughout the series.

Spice Isle Bakery Mysteries by Olivia Matthews.  This was a new setting for me. Although it’s centered around a family run restaurant, I’d never read about a Caribbean family or food before.  All I can say is that it sounded delicious.

Pies Before Guys Mysteries by Misha Popp.  I love a bit of magic with my mysteries, so this was the perfect series for me.  I’m not a big pie baker, but this series wants me to pull out the pie pans and dive in.

Noodle Shop Mysteries by Vivien Chien.  While I haven’t started this series yet, it’s been on my TBR for a long time now. I’m a sucker for noodles of any kind so this series is a longtime draw for me.

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Whenever I’m in the mood for a long read, I love digging into family sagas and ideally following the same individuals and their descendants for decades if not even longer than that. With that being said, shorter periods of time are okay, too.

It doesn’t matter if the characters are fictional or based on real people. Either way there is nothing like getting to know a large extended family well and seeing what happens to their children and grandchildren.

Here are some fantastic family sagas which is my topic of choice for this week’s relationship freebie post.

1. One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez

2. The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini

3. The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan

4. The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck

5.Like Water for Chocolate by Laura Esquivel

6. A Thousand Acres by Jane Smiley

7. Roots: The Saga of an American Family by Alex Haley

8. A Place for Us by Fatima Farheen Mirza

9. The Good Earth (House of Earth, #1) by Pearl S. Buck

10. Legends of the Fall by Jim Harrison

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I love spending time on and near bodies of water. It’s such a relaxing way not only to enjoy your free time but also, when possible, to travel around.

Here are ten books that include scenes with boats, ships, and/or other vessels you can use on lakes, rivers, and oceans.

1.Life of Pi by Yann Martel

2. The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway

3. Scuffy the Tugboat by Gertrude Crampton

4.The Wind in the Willows by Kenneth Grahame

5. Jamrach’s Menagerie by Carol Birch

6. The Light Between Oceans by M.L. Stedman

7. The Sailor Who Fell from Grace with the Sea by Yukio Mishima

8. A High Wind in Jamaica by Richard Hughes

9. Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier

10. The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (Chronicles of Narnia, #3) by C.S. Lewis

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This was kind of a tough one for me because I tend to read more series than anything.  And, because I’m a creature of habit, I tend to continue those series rather than seek something new out.  However, I have read some pretty good debut novels recently, several of them leading me to new series.

Arsenic and Adobo by Mia P. Manansala.  I love cozy mysteries but food themed ones are my favorite.  Lots of strong, family connections in this story.

A Spell for Trouble by Esme Addison.  Another cozy, but this time paranormal.  Bonus: mermaids and magic!

Magic, Lies, and Deadly Pies by Misha Popp.  Okay, so maybe I read more cozy mysteries than I thought, because here we have another.  More magic, but with pies this time!

Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree.  I didn’t even know that cozy fantasy was a genre until I picked up this book.  And now? I need to read them all.  This, and it’s sequel, Bookshops & Bonedust, is one of the best books I’ve read this year.

The Fields by Erin Young.  A mystery/police procedural that was both graphic and intense.  There is a bit of brutality in this one, however, so if you’re sensitive, you might want to pass.  But I am anxious for the next in the series.

Off the Air by Christina Estes.  A local reporter looking into the murder of a radio personality uncovers something much larger than a murder.  I really enjoyed this one, despite the main character really losing her way at one point in the book.

Twenty-Seven Minutes by Ashley Tate.  A twisty psychological thriller told in two timelines.  I love stories about small towns with a secret and this fit the bill for me.

The Hacienda by Isabel Cañas.  In an effort to read more diverse authors, I found this.  And while I had never thought to intentionally seek out Mexican gothic horror, it’s now one of my favorite genres.  Her follow up novel, The Vampires of El Norte, is fantastic as well.

The Sanatorium by Sarah Pearse.  Another type of theme I like is stories set in old mental institutions, hospitals, etc.  So, this was right up my alley.  Really intense and gripping.  This is a fantastic series with a new book due out next month.

Sign Here by Claudia Lux.  A different sort of horror novel, this deals with the bureaucracy in Hell and how it affects those of us still on the mortal plane.

What debut novels have you read and loved?

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I love quotes and it doesn’t matter where they come from – books, TV, movies, song lyrics – they just stick in my brain and come out at the most random of times.  Having a Kindle really helps with this obsession since I don’t have to stop and write them down any longer – I can just highlight and save for later.  Neat, huh?  Also, you should see my Kindle Notes and Highlights.

Here are some of my favorites, and I hope I didn’t repeat any from the last time we did this topic.

“Don’t swim with the dolphins during a labor dispute. No matter how much they try to convince you otherwise” ― John Scalzi, Starter Villain

‘That’s the role of poetry, Ciri. To say what others cannot utter.’ – Andrzej Sapkowski, The Time of Contempt

“This is who I am. I can’t change. I don’t want to, really. But for once I’m gonna put this devil inside me to good use.” – S. A. Cosby, Razorblade Tears

“Guncle Rule number eight: Live your life to the fullest every single day, because every day is a gift. That’s why people die. To teach us the importance of living.” – Steven Rowley, The Guncle

I usually define fear as the thing I feel when the unexpected happens. Anxiety is when I’m doing something that I already know is stupid. – Andrew Mayne, Black Coral

A clever, thoughtless person is one of the most terrifying things there is. – Patrick Rothfuss, The Name of the Wind

Intimidation was a drug. But control was an illusion. – Meg Gardiner, Into the Black Nowhere

In her mind, where the line between fact and fiction is often blurred, murder is simply a solution to a problem. – B. A. Paris, Behind Closed Doors

Perhaps a heart was indeed like a piece of dry birchwood, and could only take fire and burn brightly once—that any fire that came after would be only an ember, smaller and cooler. – Tad Williams, Shadowmarch

“I’ve seen too much of the underside of life to have much confidence in people. I don’t really believe in happy endings.” I felt him swallow. “But I’ve come to believe in you.” – Kathy Reichs, Grave Secrets

I highly recommend all of the books I’ve quoted here, especially Starter Villain by John Scalzi.  He has this amazing way of taking the ridiculous and making it make sense.  Much like Douglas Adams did.  And, on that note, one last bonus quote for the road:

“There is a theory which states that if ever anyone discovers exactly what the Universe is for and why it is here, it will instantly disappear and be replaced by something even more bizarre and inexplicable.

There is another theory which states that this has already happened.” – Douglas Adams, The Restaurant at the End of the Universe

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All of the books in this week’s list are from the suspense and horror genres. This is a trend that I don’t quite understand as flowers feels so sweet and innocent to me.

Maybe they are being included as a juxtaposition to the frightening things that often happen in mystery or horror novels? What do you all think?

1. Toxic by Lydia Kang

2.House of Hollow by Krystal Sutherland

3. The Bone Orchard by Sara A. Mueller

4. The Undead Truth of Us by Britney S. Lewis

5. They Drown Our Daughters by Katrina Monroe

6. Black-Eyed Susans by Julia Heaberlin

7. The Depths by Nicole Lesperance

8. Ghosted: A Love Story by Jenn Ashworth

9.  Jar of Hearts by Jennifer Hillier

10. Almost Insentient, Almost Divine by D.P. Watt