Read every series in the right order
Golden Girls Cozy Mystery Books in Chronological Order – Complete Reading Guide
Table of Contents
Quick Answer (TL;DR)
Read Golden Girls Cozy Mystery Books in Chronological Order exactly as they’re published—the in-universe timeline matches:
- Murder by Cheesecake (2025)
- Death on the Lanai (2026)
That order preserves every punchline, clue drop, and escalating hijink—from a freezer-gate murder in Miami to a storm-lashed island party with suspects to spare.
Introduction
The Golden Girls are back—this time in a string of officially licensed cozy mysteries that whisk us to breezy, 1980s Miami: pastel sunsets, palm-fringed lanes, and a kitchen table that never runs out of coffee or cheesecake. The Golden Girls Cozy Mystery series by Rachel Ekstrom Courage captures the cadence, chemistry, and comic timing of Dorothy, Rose, Blanche, and Sophia while delivering page-turning whodunits that feel like a weekend visit to 6151 Richmond Street.
The two published/announced titles so far are:
- Murder by Cheesecake (Apr 15, 2025) — an instant New York Times bestseller, paperback/ebook/audiobook available now.
- Death on the Lanai (Jun 9, 2026) — a new island-estate locked-room style caper, available for pre-order.
Quick note for context: these novels are licensed tie-ins inspired by the original NBC sitcom The Golden Girls (1985–1992), not a TV remake. The series is a cultural icon with 180 episodes over seven seasons.
Quick Facts
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| Series | Golden Girls Cozy Mystery |
| Primary Setting | Miami, Florida (1980s ambience preserved) |
| Author | Rachel Ekstrom Courage (NYT & USA Today bestselling author; literary agent) — Pittsburgh, PA |
| Book 1 | Murder by Cheesecake (Hyperion Avenue), 336 pages, Pub: Apr 15, 2025; formats: paperback, Kindle, Audible. |
| Book 2 | Death on the Lanai (Hyperion Avenue), 320 pages, Pub: Jun 9, 2026; paperback/ebook (pre-order). |
| Genre | Cozy Mystery; TV/Movie Tie-in; Humorous Mystery |
| Reading Difficulty | Easy (accessible prose; character-driven; light to moderate sleuthing) |
| Estimated Read Time | Book 1: ~6–7 hours; Book 2: ~5.5–6.5 hours (typical reading speeds) |
| Content Warnings | On-page murder investigation; off-page death; mild language; flirty innuendo; alcohol references; no graphic violence |
| Media Adaptations | None for the books (to date). Novel series is inspired by/connected to the TV sitcom The Golden Girls. |
| Ideal Age Range | Adult & older teens (14+) comfortable with non-graphic murder mysteries |
| Reception Snapshot | Goodreads rating for Murder by Cheesecake is ~3.6/5 as of Oct 2025; strong nostalgia notes in mainstream coverage. |
About the Golden Girls Cozy Mystery Book Series
This line of cozy mysteries puts the Golden Girls front and center as amateur sleuths. Rachel Ekstrom Courage and the Hyperion Avenue team keep the 1980s Miami milieu intact rather than modernizing the world with smartphones and social media—a deliberate creative choice that turns each mystery into a warm bath of nostalgia with fresh plots.
Each novel functions as a standalone case but rewards series reading with callbacks: St. Olaf lore, Blanche’s couture romances, Dorothy’s wisecracks, and Sophia’s Sicilian side-eye. The tone skews breezy rather than zany, and early trade and mainstream coverage emphasizes how the books echo the show’s voices while embracing a contemporary cozy feel.
Golden Girls Cozy Mystery Books at a Glance
| # | Title & Year | Amazon Buy Link |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Murder by Cheesecake (2025) | Buy On Amazon |
| 2 | Death on the Lanai (2026, pre-order) | Buy On Amazon |
Golden Girls Cozy Mystery Books in Chronological Order
1) Murder by Cheesecake (2025)
Hook: Rose is hosting a St. Olaf–themed wedding week (expect herring, tea, and ceremonial confusion), Blanche is managing hot flashes and hotter dates, and Dorothy—ever the realist—signs up for a VHS dating service to secure a plus-one with adequate banter. Then her selected suitor turns up dead in a hotel freezer, face-planted in a cheesecake. Talk about ruining dessert and a wedding.
What to expect:
- Classic farce meets fair play. Every guest is a suspect, Dorothy’s alibi needs more frosting, and Rose’s event timeline is crumbling like day-old pastry.
- Culinary cozy delights. The St. Olaf “traditions” become both cultural backdrop and clue canvas—menus, table placements, and that infamous cheesecake.
- Voice-perfect humor. Dorothy’s withering asides, Sophia’s Brooklyn-razor wisdom, Blanche’s “muse” moments, and Rose’s earnest logic braid into a chorus that’s equal parts clue-work and comic timing.
Why it works first: It grounds us in Miami, in the house on Richmond Street, and in the show’s cadence—then layers on a satisfying whodunit with escalating stakes. You’ll close the book craving cheesecake and a suspect board.
2) Death on the Lanai (2026)
Hook: An opulent, cryptic invitation arrives at 6151 Richmond Street—destination: a secluded Biscayne Bay island to honor “the greatest artist of the century.” The hostess gift is a jewel-encrusted brooch; the dress code is glamour; the weather forecast? Tropical storm incoming. When the Girls meet their enigmatic host, Blanche recognizes him: the penniless artist she adored decades earlier, now a world-famous figure known as El Toro—and he still calls Blanche his muse.
What to expect:
- Island-locked mystery. When a storm knocks the power and El Toro ends up dead, the guest list becomes a tight suspect pool: an assistant, an art dealer, a cutthroat critic, and old rivals with shellacked smiles.
- Legacy and image. Portraits, provenance, and public myth collide with Blanche’s past—was she truly a muse or a convenient scapegoat?
- The Girls under pressure. Dorothy manages interrogations by candlelight, Rose compiles kindness into data points, and Sophia weaponizes hors d’oeuvres and sarcasm.
Why it works second: It takes the ensemble on the road (or ferry), ratchets tension with a closed-circle mystery, and deepens character beats—especially Blanche’s long history of romance and reinvention.
Series Timeline & Character Development
Dorothy Zbornak — The Prosecutor (without the courtroom)
- Function: Logic engine and interrogator. Dorothy’s skeptical mind cuts through theatrics—great in a VHS dating debacle, essential in a murder case.
- Growth: Cheesecake tests her judgment (and vulnerability); Lanai challenges her to balance compassion with cross-examination when friends are implicated.
Rose Nylund — The Heart (and Wildcard Almanac of St. Olaf)
- Function: Disarming empathy + organizational gusto (wedding week spreadsheets, anyone?).
- Growth: Cheesecake proves her kindness is a strategic asset; Lanai lets that empathy open doors the others can’t, even when the weather slams them shut.
Blanche Devereaux — The Charmer (and Reluctant Historian)
- Function: Social map and motive magnet. She knows half of Miami’s eligible (and ineligible) population—and they remember her.
- Growth: Lanai reframes Blanche’s past not as a punchline but as evidence—how memory, art, and desire can be curated (and exploited).
Sophia Petrillo — The Razor (and Snack-Tactical General)
- Function: Tactical truth-telling. The insults you need, right when you need them; the food you didn’t know was a clue.
- Growth: Across both books, Sophia evolves from comic relief to pattern spotter; her “Picture it…” stories hide more intel than the perps expect.
World & Stakes
- Cheesecake establishes the home base, social circles, and Miami event culture—public celebrations become crime scenes ripe for puzzle play.
- Lanai shifts to locked-room tension, forcing our quartet to rely on each other with no backup and no power, literally, while the storm howls.
Reading the Golden Girls Cozy Mystery Books in Chronological Order lets you watch those rhythms—home/away, open celebration/closed circle—alternate and amplify.
Novels Sorted by In-Universe Events
| # | Title & Year | Amazon Buy Link |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Murder by Cheesecake (2025) | Buy On Amazon |
| 2 | Death on the Lanai (2026, pre-order) | Buy On Amazon |
Same as publication order.
Novels Sorted by Publication
| # | Title & Year | Amazon Buy Link |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Murder by Cheesecake (April 15, 2025) | Buy On Amazon |
| 2 | Death on the Lanai (June 9, 2026 – pre-order) | Buy On Amazon |
Companion Works
These aren’t part of the mystery series but pair well for fans building a “Golden Girls” shelf:
TV Reference & Fandom Picks: Box-set re-watches, gift books, and fandom reads help set the tone for your cozy-mystery evenings. (For the TV series background, see the show’s page.)
Golden Girls Licensed Books (gift/humor/children’s): e.g., The Way We Met (The Golden Girls) (Golden/Disney), plus various licensed titles collected on PRH/Disney retail pages. Use these as palate cleansers between mysteries or for themed book-club nights.
Editions & Formats (hardcover, collector, audio)
Paperback & Kindle:
- Murder by Cheesecake — paperback and Kindle live now.
- Death on the Lanai — paperback available to pre-order; Kindle page typically follows closer to publication.
Audiobook:
- Murder by Cheesecake — Audible edition is available.
Collector vibes:
- While no sprayed-edge or signed limiteds have been widely announced as of October 13, 2025, keep an eye on publisher & bookseller pages for indie-exclusive finishes near release windows.
Why Read Golden Girls Cozy Mystery Books in Chronological Order?
- Character Continuity: You’ll meet the quartet at home first, then watch them apply that teamwork under isolated pressure.
- Escalating Puzzles: From public-event chaos to a storm-sealed island—the mystery architecture scales up smoothly.
- Running Jokes Pay Off: Dorothy’s dating misadventure, Rose’s ceremonial details, Blanche’s romantic resume, Sophia’s snack diplomacy—each sets up mini-arcs that land harder in book two.
- Nostalgia With New Tricks: Reading Golden Girls Cozy Mystery Books in Chronological Order threads sitcom warmth through modern cozy structure.
Author Spotlight: Rachel Ekstrom Courage
Rachel Ekstrom Courage is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author whose debut in this world, Murder by Cheesecake, hits the sweet spot between homage and originality. A literary agent by day, she brings a keen sense of pacing, commercial appeal, and voice fidelity to the page—critical for a property with as much fan love (and quotable DNA) as The Golden Girls. She lives in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania with her husband, children’s author Nick Courage, and their family.
Courage’s cozy voice is nimble: she keeps the jokes flying while planting fair-play clues you can circle back to on a re-read. That balancing act—tone, timing, twists—is why this series feels both fresh and instantly familiar.
Media Adaptations (films, TV, radio)
- Books: No direct adaptations announced for the novels as of October , 2025.
- Source TV Show: The novels are inspired by the classic NBC sitcom The Golden Girls (1985–1992). (If you saw claims that “there is no Golden Girls TV series,” that’s incorrect.) The show ran for seven seasons and remains a pop-culture touchstone, honored in 2025 40th-anniversary retrospectives.
FAQs
Is this an official, licensed series or fan fiction?
Official and licensed. The novels are published by Hyperion Avenue (Disney) with publisher listings and retailer infrastructure (PRH/Disney pages, Amazon, B&N).
Do I need to watch the entire TV show first?
No, but it’s a delight if you have. The books stand alone while rewarding fans with deep-cut references and preserved 1980s Miami vibes.
Is the humor as jokey as the sitcom?
Not quite—think warm, witty, and character-true more than gag-packed. Review coverage notes the voices feel right even as the novels choose cozy momentum over laugh-per-minute banter.
What’s the recommended order?
Read in publication order: Murder by Cheesecake → Death on the Lanai (pre-order). That’s also the in-universe order so far.
Are there audiobooks?
Yes—Murder by Cheesecake is on Audible. Lanai audio is likely to appear close to release.
Any special editions or signed copies?
None widely announced at this time; monitor publisher and major retailers as launch dates near for indie-exclusive or signed options.
Is the setting modernized?
No—the books deliberately retain the 1980s atmosphere, which is part of the charm.
Final Thoughts
If you’re craving a cozy that tastes like cheesecake and sounds like Dorothy’s dry comeback, this series is your new comfort read. It’s respectful of the original characters, nimble with mystery beats, and tailor-made for book clubs that like to pair sleuthing with snacks. Read the Golden Girls Cozy Mystery Books in Chronological Order to catch every wink, nudge, and narrative callback the author threads through Miami’s palms and into Biscayne Bay’s stormy night.
When you finish, tell us: which one-liner broke you, which clue you missed, and which cheesecake recipe made your suspect list. Thank you for reading—now pass the plates.
