Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Amateur Sleuth Occupations & Tell Me Something Tuesday: Which made-up thing do you badly wish was real?

Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together. 

Happy Tuesday, y'all! So great to see you again. This week's Top Ten Tuesday is a genre freebie, so we pick a genre and come up with a topic. It's been a while since I've read a cozy mystery, despite this genre being one of my favorites. Let's take a peek at my list of...

Top Ten Amateur Sleuth Occupations

1. Real estate agent: You knew this one would make the list. Though there are more mystery series than Karen White's Tradd Street, this was the first time I had read a mystery with an amateur sleuth who sells real estate. 
2. Event planner: The main character of Avery Daniels's Resort to Murder Mysteries series is an event planner. What I love is that this creates a way to have new characters and situations all the time, even when the series is mostly set at the resort where Julieanne works. 
3. Consignment shop owner: The minute I heard about Duffy Brown's Consignment Shop Mystery series, I knew I would love it. Reagan Summerside gets a rundown Victorian and her designer clothes in a divorce, but nothing else, so she opens a consignment shop. Then her ex-husband's new girlfriend is found dead, which means Reagan is trying to keep the lights on, running a business, and solving crimes. 
4. Writer: Who would ever have thought that a middle-aged mystery writer would be able to solve crimes in her small coastal New England town? But doesn't it make sense that someone like Jessica Fletcher, who had to perform research for her novels and make up heinous ways for someone to be murdered, could know a thing or two about crime solving?
5. Clergy: In the Amish Bishop Mystery series by Vannetta Chapman, Bishop Henry Lapp not only tends to the spiritual needs of his congregation; he also uses a God-given talent to solve crimes. 
6.  Vampire: In the Accidental Vampire PI Mystery series by Avery Daniels, Misty is a secretary for a private investigator who goes on the worst date of her life and is changed into a vampire. She winds up using her new skills to follow up on a missing person's case. 
7. Urban planner: In Marty Damon's Cate MacLeod Mystery series, Cate moves back to her hometown of Calvin after losing her job as an urban planner. She works part-time at her mother's shop, but gets drawn into the investigation when a local real estate agent is murdered. 
8. Lifestyle Blogger/Influencer: You know someone had to write a mystery novel with an influencer in it. Little did we know in the early days of blogging how influential we would become. I haven't read Instagoner by Sydney Leigh, but it sounds amazing that the main character can use her skills to help solve a crime. 
9. Librarian and Ghost Tour Guide: How have I not discovered the Haunted Tour Guide Mystery series until now? The main character is a librarian by day and a ghost tour guide by night in her Kentucky hometown. Two jobs and solving crimes, too. Impressive!
10. Beekeeper: The Josiah Reynolds Mystery series by Abigail Keam, which I will never catch up on, features a middle-aged beekeeper trying to keep the lights on by selling honey at the farmer's market. 

Thanks to Freepik for the image

Tell Me Something Tuesday (TMST) is hosted by Jen Twimom at That's What I'm Talking About. TMST is a weekly discussion post where bloggers discuss a wide range of topics from books and blogging to life in general. Participation is optional, and you can leave your comments in the weekly post when you participate. Check it out if you're interested in joining.

Well, it seems we have a pickle. Last week's Wednesday Weekly Blogging Challenge asked me to share fictional things I wish were real, which is similar to this week's Tell Me Something Tuesday. Now, I will really need to dive deep into my brain to figure out something to talk about. Hmmm...

I will go with something silly: Inspector Gadget's hat. It has...

• Extra hands (we moms always need those),
• A propeller (who needs drones, just fly above everyone to get a good view),
• Binoculars (always handy for birdwatching or spying),
• An umbrella (never get caught without one again),
• A mallet (you can tenderize meat and have a non-lethal weapon with you at all times),
• A magnifying glass (never worry about losing your reading glasses again),
• Sub-zero refrigerant (you will never need air conditioning, even in the worst heat),
• A spring (to avoid hurting your head if you fall),
• A jackhammer (in case you feel like tearing up your driveway one day),
• Radar (be able to see in even the most challenging dust and snow storms),
• A gas mask (protection is only seconds away),
• A bouquet of flowers (because you never know when you might need to impress someone).

Hope you had a good chuckle. Enjoy your day!