Murder for Christmas

It's a rare book that takes me 387 days to complete. I got it after Christmas last year, read the first story (an old favorite) and then put it aside in favor or other books until I broke out the yuletide books this year.

And I don't have the book with me, nor can I find the contents online, so this is somewhat worthless as a meaningful consideration.

So, with that carton of salt: some of the stories hold up very well, some do not hold up at all*, although the writers are an impeccable group. There is a strong emphasis on British Country House murders, which I find charming. Some of the Gahan Wilson cartoons make no sense because they are so poorly reproduced, others are clear and morbidly funny.

It's an uneven collection, but for whatever show more reason I like my holiday full of blood and mayhem (Die Hard is so a Christmas film, and one of the best!)

*I'm looking at you, Nero Wolfe. Gah!

Personal copy. show less

This collection of short stories seeks to put readers in the Christmas spirit by offering "26 tales of seasonal malice." Most of the stories are mysteries, involving everything from murder to jewel theft, kidnapping to highway robbery. There are also a few suspenseful thrillers, a couple of comic tales, and even a ghost story or two. The collection predominantly includes works by extremely famous authors, including Agatha Christie, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Rex Stout, Ellery Queen, G. K. Chesterton, Woody Allen, and Charles Dickens. Interspersed throughout the stories are cartoons by illustrator Gahan Wilson, introductions to each story by editor Thomas Godfrey, and the occasional brain teaser.

I picked up this book because I couldn't show more resist a collection of mystery stories that contained so many authors that I love. By and large, I really enjoyed these stories, especially those of the murder-at-an-English-country-house variety. (What can I say, I'm a diehard Agatha Christie fan!) I was also able to expand my horizons quite a bit: for example, I'd never read anything by Rex Stout before, and now I'm interested in giving his Nero Wolfe books a try. I was also impressed by the Ellery Queen and Georges Simenon installments, and I look forward to reading some more of their works. All in all, while I liked some stories more than others, I can't remember any that I really disliked. I think this book would be a wonderful Christmas gift for any mystery lover, especially someone who enjoys the "classics" of the genre. show less

I finally read this whole book!! I have probably owned it for 25 years. My mom got this for me when I was about 10 or so and it was too much for me. The stories were written around the 30’s or earlier and a lot of English authors. Some of them were still hard for me to focus on but there were also some really good stories. It was a fun way to celebrate the Christmas holiday. I read it like an advent calendar.

I find it very difficult to find a collection of short mystery stories with more than one or two which I enjoy in it. This book exceeded my expectations, but then it was full of stories from authors I love. There were some I had not read, however, and of those I will pursue at least three to see if I enjoy their longer works. In addition to the stories, the introduction written by Thomas Godfrey was delightful. The illustrations and interesting Christmas "facts" between tales made for much amusement. All in all, a great Christmas read.

I’ve read these stories over the course of 2 Decembers. I liked some stories more than others which I’m sure everyone could say. It’s my December tradition to read Christmas Mysteries and Ghost stories

An anthology collection from mostly clasic mystery writers. I enjoyed soem of the stories but it got repetitive after awhile and I had only actually ehard of a few of the authors int he collection. the cartoons interspersed in between stories were just weird.

Gahan Wilson's illustrations add greatly to this fine anthology of Christmas-themed mystery stories. I read it so early because I was looking for read-aloud stories, didn't find any.