Backlist books need love too! For this series, each bookseller is shouting out a few backlist titles (as opposed to recent frontlist books) that you should put at the top of your TBR. This week’s recommendations come from Lindsay, a champion for historical fiction and cozy mysteries.

It is just one of the facts of life that cozy murder mysteries pair perfectly with blustery winter nights, and I am here to prepare you and your TBR for the upcoming season. Ashley Weaver is an automatic recommendation from me whenever a customer is looking for a fun, engaging mystery that will keep them guessing until the final big reveal! And if you’re a historical fiction fan like me, Weaver’s books will consistently hit the spot. After a recommendation from an old coworker, I picked up Weaver’s first book during quarantine in 2020 and I quickly ordered every book in the series, powering through them within days. With outrageous characters, quirky whodunnits, and satisfying endings that wrap up the story in a clean bow, Weaver’s books are the perfect treat.

Murder at the Brightwell by Ashley Weaver

Set in the 1930’s English seaside, Murder at the Brightwell kicks off the Amory Ames series with a classic holiday resort murder. Amory’s ex-fiance, Gil, shows up unexpectedly at her posh home and asks her help in convincing his sister to break off her engagement with disreputable womanizer, Rupert Howe. But soon after Amory and Gil arrive at the Brightwell resort, Rupert is murdered! (Gasp!) Weaver captures the beloved tropes of classic murder mysteries, but adds her own spin to them in this Agatha Christie-esque setting.

Death Wears a Mask by Ashley Weaver

In the next book of the series, Amory pairs up with her dashing, but enigmatic, husband, Milo, to solve a second mystery. Another figure from Amory’s past emerges to ask for her help in uncovering who has stolen some priceless jewelry (and, as the cover art promises, there is a glamorous masquerade ball at the end.) This book dives more deeply into Amory and Milo as characters, and specifically their marriage. Weaver’s plot and characters really start to take on a distinctive arc that propels the story throughout the following books. And if you absorb these two as quickly as I did, you can rest easy knowing there are seven books full of Amory and Milo’s adventures for you to enjoy!

A Peculiar Combination by Ashley Weaver

While I was devastated to say goodbye to Amory and Milo, Weaver’s new series sucked me in just as quickly as the first. In A Peculiar Combination, we are transported to World War II era England where we meet Electra McDonnell as she and her uncle are caught breaking into a home and stealing the family’s fortune. As an alternative to jail, Major Ramsey offers them a job: to lend their lock picking skills to the British war effort and retrieve confidential blueprints. Electra and Ramsey have a new relationship different to Amory and Milo’s more familiar relationship, but their chemistry and banter is just as entertaining. The next book in this series, The Key to Deceit, is out May 10, 2022. Hit me up if you want to book club!