Okay fellow travellers, what's your take on a ‘Cozy Story’, who writes them, what qualifies them?

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An amateur sleuth and no blood!
And no on-stage sex.
A closed crime scene with a finite number of suspects, such as a country manor house with a group of weekend guests. Or a similar setup. Sleuth may be amateur, like Miss Marple, though not necessarily. Inspector Alleyn wasn't exactly an amateur. A minimum of blood, yes.

I don't know who writes them these days---but they're still out there for readers who want a little caper, an amusement for a long weekend at the beach, or a plane trip. Nothing wrong with that.

Of course even writers who don't write cozies can still use some of those elements from time to time. I can think of several offhand, including P.D. James.
Admittedly I don't read many cozies so I have no idea how may good ones are being written these days, but Louise Penney's novels are very good and would likely qualify - they take place in a small village with a limited number of suspects and usually the killer and the victim knew each other.
Louise Penney's novels are very good and would likely qualify -

Most definitely. Probably why I only got all the way through one of them.
Amen, brother.
All of those things plus a very old-fashioned format, and there is a big market for them.

I should add that authors of cozies believe that their mysteries are the only ones that are "character-driven."

Admittedly, I don't like cozies (also called traditional mysteries by those who believe they are character-driven), and I cringe when people call my protagonist an amateur sleuth.
A cozy always features an amateur woman sleuth working in a small, picturesque location and every page gives off the unmistakable smell of camphor balls and old, wet wool.
LOL.
camphor balls and old, wet wool.

I beg your pardon, young man! That's the lavendar water you smell! :)
Young man? May fortune always smile upon you, Caroline.
Very funny guys!!

Hey, do you think some '4711 Eau de Cologne' or 'Lily of the Valley' talcum powder would make the list – LVL

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