I've read the Father Tim series and the Ladies of Covington series as well. Good easy reads. Another of the same sort is the Miss Julia series by Ann B. Ross. If you are a quilter the Elm Creek series by Jennifer Chiavirini (sp??) is good too.

I have read and enjoyed many of the books mentioned here. I wonder if the James Herriot series, "All Creatures Great and Small", "All Things Bright and Beautiful", etc., might be included in this group? If you don't know of them, they are about a vet's life in the Yorkshire Dales in the 1940's. The stories include life at Skeldale House (the home of the vet where Herriot begins his practice), the local pubs and their patrons, as well as the stories of the villagers and farmers whose animals Herriot cares for. Truly wonderful writing, and a marvelous way to get to the Yorkshires.

Thank you so much for all the recommendations. I'll be traveling a lot soon and I'm sure I'll read a lot of these. I have Aunt Dimity queued up to read, along with the first Ngaio Marsh book. I'll probably try Miss Read next and/or Major Pettigrew's Last Stand. Many of those mentioned I have read. Rhys Bown mysteries, Amelia Peabody mysteries, Georgette Heyer, Mitford books, etc. But it was helpful to have those recommendations because it was lovely to see there are others who enjoyed those books as well. And I will try the audiobook of the Amelia Peabody mysteries because I often fall asleep to an audiobook, so it's helpful to have a good recommendation. I tried A Man Called Ove and I'm sure I'll finish it, but it is unbearably sad to read it right now so I laid it down. I have a friend who has cancer and also a suspicious spot on her liver and she is the light of her husband's life. I want to escape from pain and loss right now. A murder mystery like Agatha Christie writes should be sad, I guess. It's murder, but somehow that doesn't reach out and snatch my heart out like the pain of Ove losing his wife. Another time in my life I would probably have liked A Gentleman in Moscow and A Man Called Ove. So thank you so much to all of you for taking the time to respond. It will be nice to have this thread to check when I finish the stack of books I have now.

Now that you say it, it does ring a bell that AL was Queen Victoria's grandmother. Marrying one's cousin - or whatever they were - is one way of keeping the crown in the family. I did see your daughter's Putz houses on the other thread. I love them and have a few myself; not many are antiques, but some good repos. I used to decorate to the hilt in every room, but the last few years mostly use fresh greens and pinecones and such. I do more if the kids are coming. The Old World Christmas German ornament factory and outlet is in Spokane, and I have stacks and stacks of boxes of those. It's a fun store to go through. Ornaments that retail for $30 to $50+ can be bought at the outlet for under $10, often $5. The check out line sometimes wraps around the store. They also have the real old fashioned feather trees, and those go fast. I've read all the Mitford series except the last two. I have them, but haven't been in the Mitford mood. I did not know the snowman decorations existed. They're all darling, but the one with the candle is exceptional! The first books in the Mitford series were the best, but the later ones are more about the children of the original characters. I do like Jan Karon's writing style. She draws you into the story and makes the characters real. Your daughter has done a terrific job creating a Christmasy atmosphere with the houses and villages and snowmen, and all the other Christmas decorations.