Why I Chose to Write a Cozy Mystery

Why I Chose to Write a Cozy Mystery

As a writer, I’m often asked: why did you choose to write a cozy mystery?
In the Netherlands, this genre doesn’t always get the respect it deserves. It’s sometimes dismissed as too light, too tame, or too trivial — as if literature only counts when it’s heavy and serious. But that’s exactly the misconception I want to challenge.

A cozy mystery is so much more than a lighthearted whodunit. It’s a genre that blends suspense with warmth, where human relationships and psychology are just as important as the puzzle itself. It’s about secrets, small communities, simmering tensions — and the question of who you can truly trust.

What makes a cozy mystery both suspenseful and heartwarming?

• The setting: usually small and familiar, drawing the reader close to the characters. The danger doesn’t come from organized crime, but from the intimate world of family, neighbors, or a tight-knit community.
• The tone: there’s tension, but it never turns cold or gory. The reader feels safe enough to keep guessing without having nightmares about brutal scenes.
• The characters: they carry the heart of the story. Their relationships, pasts, and choices create as much suspense as the question of who committed the crime.

In May the Best Sister Confess, I’ve embraced and personalized this genre. The story centers on two sisters wrestling with a family history full of secrets. Their father is suspected of causing a deadly accident in 1983 — and decades later, history seems to repeat itself. Through the eyes of a young journalist, old wounds are reopened.

The tension doesn’t just lie in whether someone has killed again. It’s in the unspoken doubts, the rivalry between sisters, the pain of memories, and the unease of the lockdown during which it all unfolds. Yet there’s also warmth — in the care for family, in the love that persists despite everything, and in the small moments of humanity that glimmer through the cracks.

Finding my way to this genre wasn’t easy. For a long time, I struggled to claim space for stories that were emotional, layered, and female-centered without being dismissed as “not serious enough.” The Dutch literary field can be surprisingly rigid — genres that appeal to or are created by women are often considered less important, as if emotional intelligence and psychological depth don’t count as literary value. That attitude made me question my own voice more than once.

But discovering the tradition of the cozy mystery in English-speaking countries changed everything for me. In Britain and the United States, this genre is celebrated — not shunned. It was born from writers like Agatha Christie and Dorothy L. Sayers, women who proved that subtlety and suspense could coexist. In those traditions, I found freedom. Freedom to explore human nature without cynicism, to write about love and loss and guilt, and to wrap it all in a story that invites rather than intimidates.

Why does the cozy mystery deserve more respect?

Because it’s a genre that combines accessibility with depth. It invites readers into a compelling story without the distance that heavy literature can sometimes create. And in that accessibility lies its strength: it can move readers who might not otherwise pick up a book.

With May the Best Sister Confess, I want to show that a cozy mystery is more than “a quick, easy read.” It’s a story that balances tension and warmth — one that invites readers not only to guess the culprit but also to reflect on themes like family, trust, and memory.