February: The month for reading romance - or better yet: Romantic Cozy Mysteries.
February is a month of love, which often puts people in the mood to read a good romance. But cupid's arrow flies in cozy mysteries, too. How so? Let’s take a look, shall we?
The Heroine
Since cozies feature female protagonists, it’s usually a case of girl-meets-boy instead of the typical boy-meets-girl. “Girl” is misleading since the cozy heroine is usually in her late 20’s, 30’s or, more rarely, the mature, saavy sleuth. The strong, independent, jump-into-danger type, these women are fearless: crushing their jobs, owning businesses, or being generally as brainy as they are beautiful. But for all their merits love just hasn’t swept them off their feet yet. Enter the hero.
The Meet-Cute
Who doesn’t love a good meet-cute? For those unfamiliar with the term, in romance the hero and heroine generally meet by chance and as the story goes on it’s clear that these two are meant-to-be. There might be a few misunderstandings on the way to love, some trip, some stumble, and some fall in love, but there it is: Love, eventually.
In a cozy, the meet-cute sometimes starts over a dead body. Corpses tend to kill the romantic vibe, but that doesn’t stop the heroine from feeling some heat before the mystery runs cold. Speaking of mysteries, who doesn’t like a mysterious man?
The Hero
Meeting in a mystery often means not knowing whether your prince charming is a villain in disguise. One thing I love about cozies is things aren’t always what they seem. There’s the "sleuth falls for the police officer' trope, "the villain turns out to be the hero" trope, the troublesome love triangle, and so many more.
In general, though, the hero is the strong, silent type the sleuth can lean on, or turn to, when she needs help solving a case. She might not be sure of him until the second or third novel, but inevitably his heroic nature shines through and again, we’re met with a happy ending.
What makes Cozy Love Stories Different?
Other than the corpse and the mystery, what makes a cozy, well, cozy, is that the connection isn’t supposed to be just a fling or something physical. It isn’t even a common emotional attraction alone that brings the hero and heroine together. The characters bond over the mystery and over the many smaller mysteries about one another that leads the heroine to to discover their Mr. Maybe is actually Mr. Right. And the heroine and hero both spend their time trying to find “the one,” but that usually refers to the one suspect they’ve caught together.
My Takeaway? February might be the perfect time to read a romance. But, why not make it a romantic cozy mystery instead?