If for you, Valentine’s Day is not a merely a commercial construct, but rather is a holiday that provides a chance to express, even if only superficially, affection and a desire for romance, then have I got three mysteries for you! All involve protagonists who are romance-conflicted, possibly even romance -impaired.
In the interest of variety, it’s always fun to compare what is somewhat similar but is really so not. Why not examine two rather traditional cozy mysteries about rather traditional mothers---Mother’s Day is May 12, you know--and then look at Robert Bloch’s masterpiece about a different kind of mother altogether?
We can thank the bawdy Geoffrey Chaucer and the not-so-bawdy tradition of courtly love for our modern celebration of Valentine’s Day--when couples become the focus of attention. As for St. Valentine himself, church historians have martyrs named Valens, Valentin, or Valentinin but the favorite attribution is that of a Christian priest, Valentine. In the third century AD, he performed marriages for soldiers, all of whom were forbidden to marry by Rome.
If it is true that readers of mysteries are the last true romantics (because we believe that justice is still possible in the world), then reading a mystery set in the American West must be a double pleasure. To evoke the American West is to long for what we think were simpler times, with clearer choices and life in the modern West still seems more simple a way of life to the urban sensibility.
For your continued Christmas mystery reading pleasure Sharon Tucker shares with us this week reviews of 3 very different kinds of Christmas mystery novels! Rest You Merry By Charlotte MacLeod, The Redeemer by Jo Nesbo, and The Fat Man: A Tale Of North Pole Noir By Ken Harmon. Use the included links to purchase these Christmas mysteries and you help support KRL and our ability to keep bringing you great mystery articles!
