Back in 2019 I posted an epic ranked list of Christmas mysteries. As and when I have found more to read, I have added these to the list, which currently features 40 books. Some years I may only have one or two titles to add, but this year it seems like I gathered or received a few more than usual, so I decided it might be fun to share those with you today. I am not sure how many of these I will review before the end of the year, but here are the possible Christmas mysteries I might read…
Possibility No. 1: Dramatic Murder (1948) by Elizabeth Anthony
Well technically this one should be called “Definite Read No.1” as it is the book I currently have on the go. Having survived Patricia Highsmith’s The Animal-Lover’s Book of Beastly Murder (1975), I decided that I needed something a little more soothing, so I began my Christmas mystery reading early.
Dramatic Murder was recently reprinted by the British Library, as part of their Crime Classics series and the plot features a ‘well-known playwright found dead [in a] Christmas tree’, which is certainly a crime fiction reading first for me.
Possibility No. 2: Together by Christmas (2020) by Karen Swan
I was gifted this title in the last couple of years and it seems to have two mystery aspects. Firstly, the protagonist Lee is a single mother, who finds a book left in her bicycle basket, which contains an unusual message. Secondly, whilst following up leads to discover the owner of the book, Lee’s own past resurfaces, and this puts her future happiness on the line. This is not an author I have tried before.
Possibility No. 3: The Crime and the Crystal (1985) by Elizabeth Ferrars
This is one of Ferrars’ Andrew Basnett mysteries. Andrew is a retired professor of botany and often finds himself in situations which require an amateur sleuth. In this story he is spending Christmas with a former student who now lives in Australia. I am interested to read this one, as being a reader in the northern hemisphere, a Christmas celebrated on the beach sounds quite unusual!
Possibility No. 4: Agatha Raisin and Kissing Christmas Goodbye (2016) by M. C. Beaton
Based on my reading of Beaton so far, I would say her books are easy readers and are therefore very good when you’re very poorly (not that I am planning on becoming unwell just so I can reinforce this point). This novel sees Agatha Raisin trying to solve a poisoning (via hemlock) whilst trying to plan the best Christmas for her friends. I envisage much chaos ensuing!
Possibility No. 5: Do Not Murder Before Christmas (1949) by Jack Iams
I have heard a lot of good things about this story from other bloggers, so I think this one is highly likely to get read in the runup to Christmas this year. The plot is centred on Uncle Poot, a toy maker who is murdered on Christmas Eve. A newspaper editor and a social worker decide to track down his killer.
Possibility No. 6: Who Killed Father Christmas? and Other Seasonal Mysteries (2023) ed. by Martin Edwards
This collection is part of my short story anthology reading challenge this year, so it is another one I am pretty sure I will read. It contains 15 stories from authors such as John Dickson Carr, Michael Gilbert Ellis Peters, J. J. Jefferson Farjeon, Patricia Moyes and Michael Innes. Some of the stories have quite intriguing titles such as: ‘Gold, Frankincense, and Murder’ and ‘Who Suspects the Postman?’.
Possibility No. 7: The 12 Murders of Christmas (2024) by Sarah Dunnakey
This is not your usual country house Christmas set murder mystery, as it is a novel which also includes actual puzzles for the reader to solve. It also includes an unusual will reading request, as those asked to attend are required to bring a festive mystery story to share with the others. Only by reading these mysteries and solving the puzzles, can the reader hope to figure out who the killer is, before they strike again.
Possibility No. 8: Crime at Christmas: ‘The Affair of the Black Carol’ by Gwyn Evans
I received Crime at Christmas a couple of years ago and it contains six issues of Union Jack magazine. In each issue is a Christmas-set Sexton Blake story, penned either by Gwyn Evans or Edwy Searles Brooks. The collection was published in 1974, but the original publication dates for the magazines begin in the mid-1920s. To date I have reviewed two of the magazines: ‘The Mystery of Mrs Bardell’s Christmas Pudding’ (1925) and ‘Mrs Bardell’s Xmas Eve’ (1926). Each magazine comes with other stories and non-fiction pieces as well and hopefully this year I will be able to tick the third magazine off my list.
Are you planning to read any Christmas mysteries this December? If so which ones?