Dorothy St. James books

Dorothy St. James is an American cozy mystery author known for the White House Gardener Mystery series, the Southern Chocolate Shop Mystery series, and the Beloved Bookroom Mystery series.

Aloha Pete Mystery

Title Published Buy on Amazon
Birds in Paradise 2011 Buy

Beloved Bookroom Mystery Reading Order

Title Published Buy on Amazon
The Broken Spine 2021 Buy
A Perfect Bind 2022 Buy
A Book Club to Die for 2022 Buy

Raven’s Run Romantic Mystery

Title Published Buy on Amazon
Ms. Starr’s Most Inconvenient Change of Heart 2020 Buy

Southern Chocolate Shop Mystery Reading Order

Title Published Buy on Amazon
Asking for Truffle 2017 Buy
Playing With Bonbon Fire 2018 Buy
In Cold Chocolate 2018 Buy
Bonbon with the Wind 2019 Buy

White House Gardener Mystery Reading Order

Title Published Buy on Amazon
Flowerbed of State 2011 Buy
The Scarlet Pepper 2012 Buy
Oak and Dagger 2013 Buy

Dorothy St. James writes cozy mysteries with distinctive settings. Her White House Gardener Mystery series (2011-2013) puts a groundskeeper on the White House lawn and gives her murder cases to solve alongside her flowerbeds. The Southern Chocolate Shop Mystery series (2017-2019) moves to a small Southern town where a chocolate shop owner keeps finding bodies mixed in with her bonbons.

Her most recent series, the Beloved Bookroom Mystery (2021-2022), follows a librarian who creates a secret book room after her library goes fully digital, only to stumble into murder. St. James clearly enjoys building her cozies around specific workplaces and hobbies, giving each series a distinct flavor while staying within the genre’s conventions.

She’s also written a standalone romantic mystery, Ms. Starr’s Most Inconvenient Change of Heart (2020), and a Hawaiian-set mystery, Birds in Paradise (2011). The range of settings shows a writer who likes variety in her backdrops, even if the cozy formula stays consistent.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many books has Dorothy St. James written?

Dorothy St. James has written 12 books across 5 series.

What was Dorothy St. James's first book?

Dorothy St. James’s first book is Birds in Paradise(As: Dorothy McFalls), published in 2011.

What are Dorothy St. James's most popular series?

St. James is best known for the White House Gardener Mystery series, which follows a groundskeeper solving crimes on the White House grounds, and the Southern Chocolate Shop Mystery series, set in a small Southern town. Her Beloved Bookroom Mystery series about a secret library has also gained a following.

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