Guest Blogger ~ CB Wilson

~ patyjag ~ 5 Comments

Beyond the Teacup: Cozy Mystery in the Modern World

Maybe it’s just me, but I’ve always been the one asking, “What if?” What if the rules could bend just a little? What if the story ventured further than expected? What if a cozy mystery—beloved for its comfort and familiarity—could also genuinely surprise you?

My relationship with mystery began early and rebelliously. I was the kid who read her first Nancy Drew book, then promptly rewrote the ending. Not because I disliked the story, but because I craved something sharper, deeper, perhaps a touch more dangerous. Nancy opened the door to mystery, but Agatha Christie sealed my fate. Once I discovered intricate puzzles, layered motives, and the quiet brilliance of intelligent women navigating hostile worlds, my reading preferences were forever transformed.

That tension between comfort and risk? That’s exactly why cozy mystery resonates so powerfully. At its heart, cozy mystery has always rested on a solid foundation: an amateur sleuth; a close-knit setting; quirky, memorable characters; and a crime that disturbs but doesn’t overwhelm everyday life. Readers seek that familiarity, that sense of place, and the reassurance that justice will ultimately prevail. But here’s what excites me: cozy mystery is evolving.

Today’s cozy readers welcome more complexity. They want adventure that challenges their protagonists. They appreciate emotional depth that reflects genuine human experiences. They enjoy romance that feels real to the characters rather than formulaic. Most importantly, they’re drawn to strong female protagonists who think critically, adapt resourcefully, and sometimes make mistakes while holding their ground.

When I created The Gem Hunters Mysteries, I deliberately chose to push beyond the traditional cozy framework while honoring its essentials. My protagonist isn’t a baker or bookstore owner who stumbles into crime—she’s a diamond investigator whose job is to recover stolen gems. She operates in a world where money, power, and obsession collide, where the stakes carry genuine weight. She’s smart, she’s tough, and she’s navigating a dangerous, high-stakes environment typically reserved for thrillers while maintaining the heart and accessibility that cozy readers cherish.

For me, this isn’t about breaking the rules. It’s about expanding them.

Diamonds, much like mysteries themselves, are inherently layered. They carry history, symbolism, and powerful motives. They inspire obsession, loyalty, betrayal, and sometimes murder. Using gemstones as the driving force behind a cozy mystery allows me to explore global intrigue, family secrets, and personal risk while keeping the focus squarely on character development, relationships, and puzzle-solving.

The response? Readers have enthusiastically embraced this expanded vision. What I’ve learned about the genre is thatcozy mystery isn’t fragile. It doesn’t collapse when you introduce international travel, genuine danger, or a heroine carrying emotional scars. Instead, the genre shines brighter when writers trust both the framework and their readers enough to ask challenging questions. What if the amateur sleuth brings professional expertise to her investigations? What if the small-town setting connects to a much larger, more complex world? What if comfort doesn’t require predictability?

I still love the classics, and I honor the genre’s roots every time I write. But I also firmly believe cozy mystery has room to grow, stretch, and reflect the realities of modern women—women who simultaneously juggle careers, relationships, fears, courage, and insatiable curiosity. While the cozy mystery genre has always celebrated intelligence, community, and justice, I’m discovering that it can also celebrate ambition, expertise, and courage in the face of genuine danger. These additions don’t diminish what makes cozies special. They enhance it.

So yes, perhaps it’s simply who I am: the explorer, the one who rewrites endings, the one who views cozy mystery not as a restrictive box but as an invitation. After all, isn’t that where the real mystery begins? In the space between what is and what could be? In the questions we dare to ask and the boundaries we’re brave enough to test?

The beauty of cozy mysteries is that they welcome us home while encouraging us to venture a little further each time. That balance—between the familiar and the unexpected—is exactly what keeps readers turning pages and writers like me pushing the envelope.

And I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Every diamond has a story… but some are worth killing for.

When Sunset Peak’s legendary Peak Diamond disappears during the town’s glittering centennial gala, Taylor Hunter knows one thing: this was no ordinary theft. As a renowned “Diamond Detective” and reluctant heir to a family legacy of jewel thieves, Taylor has solved high-profile cases around the globe—but this time, it’s personal.

The stakes spiral when a perfect replica of the diamond is found, a notorious diamond broker turns up dead, and her twin sister Hope’s fingerprints are discovered at the crime scene. With Sunset Peak’s future—and her sister’s freedom—on the line, Taylor must partner with the one man she swore she’d never trust: Police Chief Rocky Rockman, her ex-husband’s dangerously charming best friend.

Armed with her expertise, her sharp instincts, and Glimmer, her diamond-sniffing dachshund, Taylor races to unravel a tangled web of stolen gems, buried secrets, and hidden betrayals stretching far beyond her small Arizona town. But someone is willing to kill to keep the truth buried—and if Taylor’s not careful, she could be their next target.

Perfect for fans of Janet Evanovich, Ellery Adams, and Jenn McKinlay, The Fire Diamond is a fast-paced cozy adventure mystery where family secrets cut deep, small-town gossip hides deadly truths, and every diamond comes with a price.

BUY links:

Amazon: https://mybook.to/TheFireDiamond

Barnes & Noble:https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-fire-diamond-cheryl-wilson/1148442601

Apple: https://books.apple.com/us/book/the-fire-diamond/id6753361681

Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/the-fire-diamond

Award-winning author, CB Wilson, writes two beloved cozy mystery series: the Gem Hunters Mysteries—beginning with The Fire Diamond—and the Barkview Mysteries, set in the dog-friendliest town in America. A GIA-trained gemologist and lifelong dog lover, she fills her books with sparkling clues, warm humor, and unforgettable canine sidekicks. She lives in Arizona, where she writes stories rich with diamonds, danger, laughter, and loyal dogs.

Facebook page: www.facebook.com/cbwilsonauthor

Goodreads:  https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/137800079

Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/c-b-wilson

Instagram: www.instagram.com@cbwilsonauthor

Linktree. https://linktr.ee/cbwilsonauthor

YouTube:  https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC1HfOVqN7aBccTW70_wlL0w

tikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@author.cb.wilson

Pets in Books

~ Nancy Lynn Jarvis ~ 4 Comments

In the course of my life, I’ve shared my home with four dogs, eight cats, and one dog in a cat’s body. I don’t know if that makes me a dog person or a cat person, all I know is that I live in the country where coyotes, mountain lions, and other dangers mean that to have a pet now I would need to take supervised outdoor walks with them which my knees no longer let me do. And it’s even questionable if that would be enough to ensure my fur-babies safety; one of the cats was taken in broad daylight in a lightning-fast snatch as she preceded my husband out to the back patio where he routinely enjoyed morning coffee while she enjoyed napping on warm sunlit bricks.

It’s not bad living petless in the country as I do, though. I share my country home with scurrying bluebelly lizards, hummingbirds that sip water as I sprinkle my garden, foxes who bring their babies to visit, ravens who recognize me and perform arial shows as synchronized as the Blue Angels, and even a bobcat who is so friendly she lets me sit outside with her while she baths. Those creatures are special, certainly, but I do still miss my dogs and cats and I have many deep recollections of their quirks, foibles, and some of the adventures we shared.

To honor them, I have found a way to keep those memories alive by introducing lost pets in my books. In my Regan McHenry Real Estate Mysteries series, Sophie and Granite are mentioned regularly and some of the other cats make cameo appearances.

But I decided that wasn’t enough for me, so when I began to write the PIP Inc. Mysteries series, I made my Dalmatian Freckles (she was part of a long line of show dogs and her official registered name was Dama Pecosa) my protagonist Pat Pirard’s Dalmatian Dot while my real ginger cat Lord Peter Wimsey became ginger cat Lord Peter Wimsey in the books.

Those of you who have shared your lives with furry critters know they all have distinctive personalities; it didn’t take much for me to use my pets as characters in the books. Freckles came to my rescue more than once. In my younger years, I worked in a small library that, except for one two-hour overlap, was staffed by one librarian. We were open nights and I often worked alone until 9:00. A man started coming into the library whenever there weren’t any patrons inside complaining about the heat. He would start to disrobe and suggest that I should, too.

I was told if I was ever in trouble I was to call the main library, identify where I was and tell the person on the other end, “Tell Mercedes her book is here.” That was code for call the sheriff and send help immediately. Unfortunately, when I tried it, all I got in response was, “Who is Mercades and which book do you mean?”

My two-hour job share person was married to a deputy sheriff who tried to stake out the library, but the disrober remained elusive. Finally, in desperation, I decided to take Freckles to work with me. The librarian on duty sat behind a high counter on a bar-height chair. I looped Freckles’ leash handle under one of the legs of the chair and told her to lay down. She behaved perfectly, mostly napping as patrons came and left. That is until the man came in.

I still don’t know if she picked up on a vibe from him or sensed my fear, but within seconds, she was on top of the counter, teeth bared, snarling at him, and tugging at the leash. He never came back.

Usually, she was a sweet dog. Neighborhood kids would ask if she could come out to play. I knew what she was capable of, though, and wrote her into “The Funeral Murder” as the hero/defender she was under her spotted coat.

Wimsey gets his due in the books as well. The live Wimsey was a defender of his harem and took care of and older, smaller male, too. I never doubted he would defend me should he need to, never mind how aloof he might seem most days. He got his chance to defend my protagonist in “The Funeral Murder,” too.

 So live on, my furry friends, as I get to remember you in more of the PIP Inc. Mysteries series.

Riding the Camel

~ Janet Dawson ~ 7 Comments

I rode the camel. Of course I did. It’s one of those touristy things I just had to do. I was in Egypt, after all, visiting the pyramids at Giza and contemplating the Sphinx.

This once-in-a-lifetime trip to Egypt was fabulous, marvelous, wonderful. It was a Road Scholar program called “Up the Nile and Into History: Sailing Through the Stories of Egypt.” There were twelve of us on the tour, a manageable group and what’s more, we all got on famously.

Our guide, Ahmed, was personable and knowledgeable, with a sense of humor and lots of stories. He also had a face like that of the Pharoah Khafre, whose statue is displayed in Cairo’s Egyptian Museum.

Khafre built the Great Pyramid in Giza. That’s where I rode the camel. The camel wore a saddle cloth with a number and the words Ali Bob Marley. I guessed this was the camel’s name, but I’m not sure. Now, I’m quite short and the camel was tall, even while kneeling. It took Ahmed plus the camel handler to get my foot in the stirrup, let alone get me into the saddle. And once I was up there I felt quite precarious, as I wasn’t seated quite right in the saddle.

I felt like I was going to fall off, especially when the camel got to its feet. The camel handler shifted me into the proper position and off we went. Two or three minutes of riding the camel was plenty for me. The camel knelt, I scrambled off, and Ali Bob Marley and I parted company.

Cairo is overwhelming, full of energy, chaos, all sorts of images. The city is home to about 22 million people and it sprawls on both sides of the Nile, a juxtaposition of ancient and contemporary. Traffic is crazy. Ahmed told me that local drivers view traffic lights and travel lanes as suggestions only. As we navigated the streets in our bus, we saw minivans used as public transit as well as three-wheeled conveyances known as tuk-tuks. And motorbikes, everywhere.

Then there’s the City of the Dead, a huge and ancient cemetery complex that in the 21st century is home to thousands of people. It’s jarring to realize that people are living in those abandoned tombs, some of them with satellite dishes on the roofs.

We visited the recently opened Grand Egyptian Museum, which is vast. Ahmed told us the museum contains over 100,000 artifacts and that it would take a whole week to see everything. As it was, we hit the highlights, including the large gallery devoted to King Tutankhamun.

We left Cairo for Luxor, where the Queen of Egypt served as our hotel. It’s a dahabeya, a traditional flat-bottomed boat, which was towed by a tugboat, though one afternoon there was enough wind for us to sail. I spent plenty of time on deck, reading, making notes, but frequently just staring at the scenery on both sides of the Nile. As we passed villages, children gathered on the riverbank, waving and calling “Hello.”

The names of the temples unwind—Karnak, Luxor, Dendera, Esna, Edfu, Kom Ombo, Philae. And El Kab, the location of a cracking good mystery by my blogmate Janis Patterson. The Valley of the Kings, where tomb KV 62 once held the grave goods of Tutankhamun. I was surprised at the small size of the tomb.

Most awe-inspiring? So many wonderful sites, almost overwhelming. The Great Pyramid, the Sphinx, the Step Pyramid, the island temple at Philae. And definitely Abu Simbel.

Two enormous rock-cut temples carved out of a mountainside in the 13th century BC, one temple for Rameses II and the second for his wife Nefertari. I am old enough to remember the heroic efforts to move the temple complex to higher ground so it wouldn’t be submerged by the rising waters of Lake Nasser when the Aswan High Dam was built and put into service. The temples were cut into over 1,000 pieces and transported to their new site, above the level of the lake. Being there and seeing the temples makes me realize what a remarkable feat this was.

I’m home now, recuperating from jet lag and getting back to my routine. And thinking about the stories I can tell, with ideas gleaned from my travels. After all, some of Ahmed’s stories about the adventures of a travel guide provided some interesting plots that need to be explored.

Travel is wonderful for a writer. Ideas abound. And one should always ride the camel.

Guest Blogger ~ Rob Bates

~ patyjag ~ 3 Comments

I’ve been a journalist covering the diamond industry for 30 years, and I’ve always had a creative outlet in addition to my day job. For a while, I did sketch comedy and stand-up. But when I got married and had a son, I knew I couldn’t spend my free time running around to clubs.

I always thought if I was going to write fiction, it would probably be about the diamond industry, because, as they say, you write about you know, and this is one of the few fields I feel I really know. I guess I could write about being a middle-aged writer who lives in New York City, but that’s pretty well-trod territory. 

I wanted to write a mystery because they have a specific formula that makes them enjoyable to both read and write. If I was just going to write a regular novel about the industry, I’d be a little lost. But with a murder mystery, it’s much simpler. You know there’s going to be a murder, and you know the hero will solve it. I think readers enjoy that familiarity as well. 

Before I started the series, I knew I wanted to have an amateur sleuth, and that it shouldn’t have a lot of violence (as I’m squeamish and kind of a wuss), and that it should be funny. Which, it turns out, is almost the exact definition of a cozy mystery. The only difference between my books and traditional cozies is that my books are set in New York’s Diamond District (47th Street), whereas the traditional cozy is set in a small, tight-knit town (or a bookstore, with a cat). However, 47th Street is definitely a tight-knit community. Maybe I’ve invented a new genre: the urban cozy. Also, murder mysteries tend to have punny titles, and as you can tell, I like punny titles.

After writing three books, I wasn’t sure I was going to write another one. I knew if I was going to continue this series, I’d have to write about lab-grown diamonds, because they are the big issue in the diamond industry right now, and I’ve probably had hundreds of conversations about them. 

I decided to write a fourth for two reasons. First, I was relatively happy about how the third book, Slay It With a Diamond, came out, and hoped that it would be my breakthrough. Which it wasn’t. Not sure what I was thinking.

But I also became interested in ChatGPT, and resultant freak-out from the creative community. It made me consider how the diamond industry’s recent travails mirror what’s happening in other sectors. Just like a diamond grown in a lab is just as “real” as one from the ground, a song written by ChatGPT is just as real as one written by a person. But does that matter? Should it? I thought those were all interesting questions, which I explore in the book. 

So while the book is mostly about diamonds, I also wanted to reflect on bigger questions about disruption, technology, and how we define what is  “real.”  

I read a lot of sci-fi—mostly classic sci-fi—while writing the book; it turns out authors have been thinking about these things for a long time! I wanted the book to have some sci-fi elements, just like the third book incorporates some gothic elements. Not everything I write about in the book is possible. There’s a tech company in it that I made up, with the goal of coming up with the stupidest idea for a business possible. And the funny thing is, people asked me if it was real.

As far as my writing “process”—and I use the term lightly—first I come up with an idea, then I write an outline, then I disregard most of the outline, and spend the next year or so writing and procrastinating and worrying about the deadline (not necessarily in that order).   

I also listen to music while I write—generally, songs with lyrics, which everyone tells me not to do, but at this point I’m so used to it, I can’t help it. (In fact, I have music with lyrics on while I’m writing this.)

I give myself a goal of writing an hour a day, though that’s not always possible. I try to do it early in the morning but sometimes end up doing it late at night, because of the procrastination thing.

A lot of my best ideas come when I’m reading other stuff; it will give me an idea that I’ll think is great and jot it down. Then, the next day I have to decipher my handwriting, and wonder why I thought that idea was so great. 

My process is not particularly disciplined or thought out and I don’t recommend it to anyone. 

MAKING A KILLING IN DIAMONDS

DIAMONDS SO REAL, NO ONE KNOWS THEY’RE FAKE

Journalist-turned-sleuth Mimi Rosen is back with another fun and exciting mystery set in New York City’s Diamond District.

A brilliant scientist has discovered a way to produce synthetic diamonds so close to the real thing, not even incredibly sophisticated equipment can tell them apart from natural gems. But then, the scientist disappears, just as these high-tech imitations begin to turn the diamond market upside down.

As Mimi tries to locate the scientist and his mysterious formula, she uncovers a trail of murder and intrigue, where executives double-cross each other and use people as pawns in a deadly game of money and power.

A fast-paced adventure ripped from today’s headlines, Making a Killing in Diamonds is both a clever, twist-filled mystery as well as a heartfelt look at the ways humans try to hold onto what’s true and meaningful in an increasingly fake-filled world.

Buy Link: https://www.amazon.com/Killing-Diamonds-Diamond-District-Mystery/dp/1684923220/

Rob Bates is the award-winning News Director of JCK, a leading jewelry industry publication, and the critically acclaimed author of the Diamond District Mystery series. With over 30 years of experience covering the global gem and jewelry trade, Bates is widely recognized as one of the industry’s most trusted voices. His reporting has shaped conversations on conflict diamonds, sustainability, and technological disruption, earning him more than a dozen editorial honors, including the GEM Award for Media Excellence and the American Gem Society’s Triple Zero Award. As co-host of The Jewelry District podcast, he brings together leading thinkers from across the luxury and diamond worlds. Bates’s Diamond District murder mystery novels blend insider knowledge with page-turning suspense, offering readers a rare look into the power dynamics, ethical tensions, and facades of the jewelry world. He lives in New York City.

Social Media Links:

https://www.facebook.com/robbatesauthor

https://www.linkedin.com/in/rob-bates-4a14576/

https://www.instagram.com/robbatesauthor/

Website: https://robbatesauthor.com/ 

Go Away, Mr. Co-Pilot. You are Sooo Annoying by Heather Haven

~ Heather Haven ~ 9 Comments

In the past, I have embraced AI, not as a lover but as a fellow worker. It did the grunt work I didn’t want to do or couldn’t do as well. For instance, after decades of trying to figure out the “i” before “e” except after “c” scenario I am still at a loss. This is because it isn’t an exact science, this spelling game, as in the word “science.” It’s all very weird. And I rarely spell that one right, either.

Nonetheless, I’m afraid I have to declare open war on AI throughout the land. Not as a servant which it should be, but as an equal which it shouldn’t. Let’s face it, the out-in-the-world AI has no soul, and we have to be very careful about enticing, soulless tools. These tools are going to be as honest as the person using them. And I have found there aren’t as many Honest Abes around as there used to be. But I wax poetic. Or tried to. Let’s see what AI does with that.

Lately I have been wondering why so many businesses are virtually cramming AI down our throats. Successful companies tend to have a projected plan for the future. What is the one with AI? Do they see us in ten years’ time with no longer any thoughts or will of our own? Do we just open our wallets and shell out for yet another AI product that does everything including wipe our noses? If so that means we might wind up no longer thinking human beings but drooling, babbling idiots.  As my mother said, “use it or lose it.” And I’m taking a stand that the mind is a part of this loss.

My new Windows 11 computer came with AI, a Mr. Co-Pilot. He’s everywhere. He does not sleep. He noses his way into any part of my life he can get into. I have been dealing with Siri on my phone for years. Yes, she can be intrusive, but I know how to put her in her place. All it takes is a strong “oh, yeah?” then turning off my phone. When I turn it back on, she’s gone. But this Mr. Co-Pilot, he’s a different breed. Literally. He’s always lurking around inside my computer, waiting to butt in.

I am most offended when he tries to rewrite my books as I am in the very process of writing them. After years of developing a voice, which every writer has to have, he keeps trying to take mine away. Of all the fat nerve. That’s messing with my bread and butter, mister. And he has absolutely no sense of humor. Not a drop. I can write the funniest sentence ever and all he does is try to rewrite it into something bland, bland, bland albeit grammatically correct. Turning the computer off and on again does nothing. He pops up time after time. Unlike Siri, he just can’t take a hint.

I may have been lured in with spellcheck all those years ago, but now I wonder if AI has graduated to something more sinister. Has Mr. Co-Pilot been programmed to rip off the best of my work and send it to somebody directly from my computer? “They” say no. but “they” say a lot of things. Plus, I don’t even know who “they” are. Just some unknown enticing soulless – whoops, I already said that. Sorry.

Whether or not I am being paranoid – pardon me while I take a Valium – I have good reason to think the above could happen. Seven of my novels have already been snitched off the internet and uploaded into a program that offers to write anything for a client from a eulogy to an after-dinner speech to a full-fledged novel. The middleman could have already been eliminated – the internet – and now AI could be going directly into my personal computer fattening up the databanks. I can see the ads: Yes! You, too, can be another Shakespeare. No talent, time, effort, or work required. Don’t dawdle. Send us your $$$ now!

Regarding my pirated novels, there is an ongoing class action suit involving thousands of writers and millions of dollars. Should I live long enough, I might just receive some sort of restitution from these AI pirates. Whatever the sum – it could be a dollar ninety-eight – I’ll take it. It truly is the principle of the thing.

But back to Mr. Co-Pilot, my unwanted partner in nearly everything I do on the computer. I understand it is possible to disable him. As the instructions are several pages long, I suspect it will take many hours to do so. Also, it isn’t clear exactly what else gets disabled, but there is a huge warning there can be consequences. Is that a ruse? Or will other features take a powder as well? Got me. So, I have asked my IT guy to come over and help me out. It will take some time, effort, and $$$. but it would be grand – no, a relief – to get back to writing my stories solo.