Joined in 2023 
82 
63 About this deal
I felt they passed the time nicely, but apart from the Conan Doyle and the Chesterton, I found them tidy but rather workaday. I really enjoyed Mr Pontings Alibi by the latter, twistingly clever, designed to fox the reader and just great fun to read!
The seasonal murder book market is flooded and there’s a whiff of barrel scraping here but, despite that, some major authors are included. So bundle up, grab a glass of mulled wine, and get ready to be puzzled, astonished and entertained by these festive stories of murder and mayhem. Whilst there are now much fewer instances of stories set at Christmas, all the stories are set in the cold or snowy winter months. The Michael Innes story is also great - less wordy than his full-length Appleby novels, and very clever.The Chesterton was a bit boring and since most of the action was set in South America, seemed a weird inclusion. I liked the vast majority of this collection and there are some authors in here that I will definitely read from again. This series of books, being a collection of murder stories by well known authors, is a regular Christmas present for my wife. I would have like a little biographical section about each author and some mention as to why each story was chosen.
A reasonable selection of classic crime stories, but there is no editor's introduction and it is disappointing that no sources or dates of publication are given. Here are ten classic crime stories for the winter months, from the greatest minds of the mystery genre. I'll just repeat what I said from that review: in which a fall from a roof in November turns out to be more sinister than originally thought. An enjoyable quick read, it's just 182 pages, the stories all work, some better than others, of course.I enjoyed some of these tales, but it seemed quite an uneven and random collection and not really very wintry at all. Sadly, a couple are more meandering, as told by one colourful character from the past to another equally colourful character from the past, without ever creating much sense of mystery or suspense. Perfect to dip in and out of between other festivities and I am building my collection of this joyous series! Austin Freeman - not a name I knew - whose 'Mr Ponting's Alibi' was long enough, like the Doyle and the Chesteton, to develop a neatly attentuated investigation by lawyer Thorndyke whose relations with the local detective, Superintendent Miller are similar to Holmes and Lestrade. It begins with the description of the cushy and immoral life of an international gigolo and ends with justice being dealt out on a cold, snowy Christmas Eve in freezing London.
Unbelievably, this is the seventh seasonal collection in this series of cosy crime short stories edited by Cecily Gayford. Austin Freeman - in which a woman is murdered and finding her killer may hinge on finding a cat, a dog and a monkey. Some of the stories are a little obscure, but I really enjoyed The Chopham Affair, The Adventure of the Abbey Grange and The Mystery of Felwyn Tunnel. Some have what I consider to be the prerequisite of a really good short story, namely a beginning, a middle and an end with a sting in the tail which, however mild, leaves me with pause for thought.These are mainly set in the last century but I love the old fashioned settings, the way people spoke, the simplicity of life and the hardship of it before the health service, before the welfare state. Following the workings of the great mind of Sherlock Holmes is always enjoyable, and here we have The Adventure of Abbey Grange, a satisfactory case that allows Holmes to display his superiority and magnanimity, and Dr Watson his common sense and general dullness. A quick and easy read - while some were interesting most we pretty mediocre, no real twists or turns, they seemed to get more lame as the book went on - the best stories being at the front of the book. Haunted House by Gladys Mitchell - in which a woman's murder on a snowy night in her supposed haunted house is resolved to be all too human.
Great Deal 
New Comment