Lucy Stone

Lucy Stone is the protagonist of Leslie Meier's long-running cozy mystery series — a working mother, part-time journalist, and full-time community member living in Tinker's Cove, Maine, whose combination of local knowledge, investigative instinct, and juggling of family obligations while solving murders makes her one of the most recognizable figures in the American cozy mystery genre. Meier began the series in 1991 and has published over two dozen novels featuring Lucy and her New England town.

Meier writes Lucy with the specificity of someone who understands small New England communities — the town meetings, the local paper, the seasonal rhythms of a coastal Maine town, and the particular social dynamics of a place where families have lived for generations give the series its strong sense of place. Lucy's reporter job gives her legitimate access to local news and a professional reason to ask questions.

The series is one of cozy mystery's most enduring — Lucy's family (husband Bill, daughter Elizabeth, and the rest of the Stone clan) provides ongoing domestic plots alongside the mysteries, giving readers a continuing community to return to with each novel.

Begin with Mistletoe Murder (1991) and read in order.