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Liturgical Mystery is a series of cozy mystery novels written by Mark Schweizer. The books follow one of the most unusual detectives the genre has ever seen.
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Order of Liturgical Mysteries Series
| # | Read | Title | Published | Details |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Alto Wore Tweed | 2002 | Description / Buy | |
| 2 | The Baritone Wore Chiffon | 2004 | Description / Buy | |
| 3 | The Tenor Wore Tapshoes | 2005 | Description / Buy | |
| 4 | The Bass Wore Scales | 2006 | Description / Buy | |
| 5 | The Soprano Wore Falsettos | 2006 | Description / Buy | |
| 6 | The Mezzo Wore Mink | 2008 | Description / Buy | |
| 7 | The Diva Wore Diamonds | 2009 | Description / Buy | |
| 8 | The Organist Wore Pumps | 2010 | Description / Buy | |
| 9 | The Countertenor Wore Garlic | 2011 | Description / Buy | |
| 10 | The Christmas Cantata | 2011 | Description / Buy | |
| 11 | The Treble Wore Trouble | 2012 | Description / Buy | |
| 12 | The Cantor Wore Crinolines | 2013 | Description / Buy | |
| 13 | The Maestro Wore Mohair | 2015 | Description / Buy | |
| 14 | The Lyric Wore Lycra | 2017 | Description / Buy | |
| 15 | The Choir Director Wore Out | 2018 | Description / Buy |
When Hayden Konig is first introduced to readers in The Alto Wore Tweed, the first novel in the series, the eccentric fellow is faced with a dead body in the choir loft.
Dead bodies are Konig’s problem because the man is the police chief of St. Germaine, a small Appalachian town in North Carolina.
Konig is also the only police officer in his entire town. However, anyone who thinks that Hayden Konig is just another badge that broods his way through the many mysteries and murders that plague St. Germaine is sadly mistaken.
Konig is a man of many talents. When the detective isn’t out detecting, Konig can be found at St. Barnabas, the local Episcopal Church from where he acts as the choir director and organist.
If that wasn’t enough, Konig is also an aspiring author who won’t quit until he writes the next great hard-boiled novel.
Konig does what he can to balance all his roles. However, things are far from easy. For one thing, Konig cannot write, and everyone he has ever met has told him as much.
And then there’s St. Barnabas, a church that is constantly mired in controversy, either because the congregation simply refuses to behave or because every new minister that graces the halls of the church is determined to shake things up.
Konig’s only saving grace is his wealth which allowed him to buy Raymond Chandler’s 1939 Underwood typewriter, a feat Konig erroneously believed would turn his publishing dreams around.
Each installment in the Liturgical Mystery series finds Hayden Chandler dealing with a mystery, a scandal at the church, and a new novel that he won’t stop writing regardless of the obstacles he encounters.
These books are more cozy mysteries than police procedurals. In fact, Mark Schweizer is one of very few successful male cozy mystery writers.
While Schweizer always endeavors to craft engaging mysteries for each one of his novels, greater emphasis is placed on the interactions between the characters.
All the titles are taken from the actual novels that Hayden Konig writes in each volume.
The author has been praised for his writing style which even Schweizer has described as being so bad it’s good.
Schweizer said in an interview that he didn’t even know that the cozy mystery genre existed when he wrote the first Liturgical Mystery series.
When he was first developing the concept, the author simply knew that he wanted to write fiction that would appeal to a simple audience, the kind that goes to church and sings in choirs.
His fans will tell you that he more than succeeded.
Liturgical Mystery Awards
The Tenor Wore Tapshoes, the third novel in the series, was nominated for a Dilys Award in 2006.
Best Liturgical Mystery Books
Even though these books are categorized as mysteries, the humor is almost always elevated above the mystery and suspense aspects, an element that Mark Schweizer’s fans appreciate, with some of the best books in the series including:
The Maestro Wore Mohair: St. Germaine in North Carolina has so much murder. Fortunately, they also have Hayden Konig, a detective who spends his free time volunteering at the local church.
Konig is good at his job. So when a skeleton is found in the woods, and then another dead body appears, this after the Maestro and her minions come to town, Konig and his cohorts immediately jump on the case.
The Lyric Wore Lycra: Hayden Konig is the police chief of his small town. Konig is also the church organist. When he isn’t polishing the choir or diffusing tensions among the congregation, Konig can be found writing his novel.
As is often the case, the police chief is forced to put his busy life on hold when the only religious holiday for the horizontally challenged in St. Germaine brings murder.
Other Book Series You May Like
Be sure to check out the “Cherringham” Series by Mathew Costello. Sarah is a divorced mother of two kids. Jack Brennan is a former NYPD homicide detective. Together, the unlikely team solves mysteries and murders in Cherringham, a peaceful town in the Cotswolds.
You may also like the “Lady Hardcastle Mysteries” Series by T.E. Kinsey. Lady Hardcastle is an eccentric widow whose past is shrouded in mystery. Her closest friend is Florence Armstrong, a maid who knows martial arts.
Together, they solve the mysteries that abound in their quiet country home in the 1900s.
What Is The Next Book in The Liturgical Mysteries Series?
There doesn't seem to be an upcoming book in The Liturgical Mysteries Series. The newest book is The Choir Director Wore Out and was released on October, 22nd 2018.