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Cosy Reads for Christmas
These 10 Christmas-themed murder mysteries and meet-cutes are a good way to decompress from holiday stress / BY Nathalie Atkinson / December 16th, 2022
Gold, frankincense and murder: I don’t know what it is about the holidays, but there’s nothing more comforting to me than a good old-fashioned whodunit. (Preferably at a remote country house cut off from the outside world by a winter storm.) For the in-between days before ringing in the New Year, enjoy our picks of the latest Christmassy crime novels, heartwarming cozies and festive romantic comedies.
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1A Merry Little Meet Cute In this engaging rom-com written by a pair of American librarians-turned-novelists, an actress who has a second, pseudonymous career as a popular plus-size adult film star gets the chance to make a mainstream Christmas movie for a family-friendly conservative network. When she and her co-star (a former boy band crush) fall for each other while filming on location in Vermont, complications around her other identity ensue.
In this engaging rom-com written by a pair of American librarians-turned-novelists, an actress who has a second, pseudonymous career as a popular plus-size adult film star gets the chance to make a mainstream Christmas movie for a family-friendly conservative network. When she and her co-star (a former boy band crush) fall for each other while filming on location in Vermont, complications around her other identity ensue.
2All I Want for Christmas Best friends with successful careers, Canadian authors Karma Brown and Marissa Stapley teamed up last year to write the holiday rom-com, The Holiday Swap, under the same pen name. This year’s follow-up plays with the tried-and-true enemies-to-lovers romance trope, when Sadie and Max (country singers and rival reality show contestants) fake a relationship to capitalize on fan approval, and find themselves in the push-pull of real feelings.
Best friends with successful careers, Canadian authors Karma Brown and Marissa Stapley teamed up last year to write the holiday rom-com, The Holiday Swap, under the same pen name. This year’s follow-up plays with the tried-and-true enemies-to-lovers romance trope, when Sadie and Max (country singers and rival reality show contestants) fake a relationship to capitalize on fan approval, and find themselves in the push-pull of real feelings.
3Cassoulet Confessions This memoir from the New York-based food and travel writer is built around an obsession with the complex and quintessentially French dish (the book is subtitled: Food, France, Family, and the Stew That Saved My Soul). It’s a satisfying culinary travelogue about finding deeper meaning in ancestral cuisine, family history and discovering one’s true self.
This memoir from the New York-based food and travel writer is built around an obsession with the complex and quintessentially French dish (the book is subtitled: Food, France, Family, and the Stew That Saved My Soul). It’s a satisfying culinary travelogue about finding deeper meaning in ancestral cuisine, family history and discovering one’s true self.
4Dalziel and Pascoe Hunt the Christmas Killer & Other Stories Hill, an English crime writer who died in 2012, may be remembered for his unforgettable investigating duo of Andy Dalziel and Peter Pascoe, but as Scottish crime writer Val McDermid extols in her foreword: “He was one of the most accomplished short story writers in the genre. That this collection has been rescued from oblivion is something to be grateful for.” The 11 stories include Hill’s non-series work set in First World War-era Germany.
Hill, an English crime writer who died in 2012, may be remembered for his unforgettable investigating duo of Andy Dalziel and Peter Pascoe, but as Scottish crime writer Val McDermid extols in her foreword: “He was one of the most accomplished short story writers in the genre. That this collection has been rescued from oblivion is something to be grateful for.” The 11 stories include Hill’s non-series work set in First World War-era Germany.
5Murder After Christmas This new golden age discovery from the British Library Crime Classics series was written by English author Algernon Vernon Mills under a pseudonym and originally published in 1944. Cue the cosy snowy village and suspicious group gathered at a wealthy relative’s house party over Christmas – although that’s the only element that’s even remotely predictable here, as mystery historian Martin Edwards points out in his intro.
This new golden age discovery from the British Library Crime Classics series was written by English author Algernon Vernon Mills under a pseudonym and originally published in 1944. Cue the cosy snowy village and suspicious group gathered at a wealthy relative’s house party over Christmas – although that’s the only element that’s even remotely predictable here, as mystery historian Martin Edwards points out in his intro.
6Something from Tiffany’s The Irish writer’s heartwarming novel about an engagement fiasco – popular more than a decade ago – has been republished to go with the new holiday rom-com adaptation on Prime Video. The overlapping stories are about a mix-up between two different men and their little blue boxes (bought from the fabled Fifth Avenue retailer on Christmas eve), which leads to entertaining relationship entanglements.
The Irish writer’s heartwarming novel about an engagement fiasco – popular more than a decade ago – has been republished to go with the new holiday rom-com adaptation on Prime Video. The overlapping stories are about a mix-up between two different men and their little blue boxes (bought from the fabled Fifth Avenue retailer on Christmas eve), which leads to entertaining relationship entanglements.
7The Christmas Murder Game Twelve keys, 12 clues and the 12 days of Christmas – no wonder this clever crime conundrum was a hit when it was published in the U.K. last year. Finally in Canada, it tells the tale of estranged cousins at the annual Armitage family’s scavenger hunt at Endgame House, the grand manor that’s also the prize. Adding another layer of complexity: The whodunit is also a word game. (Benedict’s other throwback holiday mystery, Murder on the Christmas Express, is available in Canada as an eBook.)
Twelve keys, 12 clues and the 12 days of Christmas – no wonder this clever crime conundrum was a hit when it was published in the U.K. last year. Finally in Canada, it tells the tale of estranged cousins at the annual Armitage family’s scavenger hunt at Endgame House, the grand manor that’s also the prize. Adding another layer of complexity: The whodunit is also a word game. (Benedict’s other throwback holiday mystery, Murder on the Christmas Express, is available in Canada as an eBook.)
8Nosy Parker Crewe, a Cape Breton author who didn’t start writing until she turned 50 (she’s now 67), has been making up for lost time. This historical novel is her 14th and it’s about precocious 12-year-old Audrey, an inquisitive kid on the trail of her late mother’s history. It’s a nostalgic read set in the author’s childhood Montreal neighbourhood of Notre-Dame-de-Grâce, where the summer International and Universal Exposition – a.k.a. Expo 67 – is imminent.
Crewe, a Cape Breton author who didn’t start writing until she turned 50 (she’s now 67), has been making up for lost time. This historical novel is her 14th and it’s about precocious 12-year-old Audrey, an inquisitive kid on the trail of her late mother’s history. It’s a nostalgic read set in the author’s childhood Montreal neighbourhood of Notre-Dame-de-Grâce, where the summer International and Universal Exposition – a.k.a. Expo 67 – is imminent.
9 What Child Is This? This short but satisfying Christmas puzzle novel is the fifth Sherlock Holmes adventure from McBird, the Emmy-winning American producer and Hollywood scriptwriter (of the original TRON movie) who also wrote the acclaimed Holmes and Watson pastiche Art in the Blood. She’s so deft at evoking Victorian London and the legendary Baker Street sleuths – in this case about a child kidnapped at Christmastime – that it’s almost like reading the real thing.
This short but satisfying Christmas puzzle novel is the fifth Sherlock Holmes adventure from McBird, the Emmy-winning American producer and Hollywood scriptwriter (of the original TRON movie) who also wrote the acclaimed Holmes and Watson pastiche Art in the Blood. She’s so deft at evoking Victorian London and the legendary Baker Street sleuths – in this case about a child kidnapped at Christmastime – that it’s almost like reading the real thing.
10You Must Remember This An accidental slip through the ice on Christmas Eve changes the fortunes of a rich family. But was it an accident? The 85-year-old matriarch who died had dementia and wandered onto the frozen river near their Maine mansion for reasons unknown. Bookmark this gothic thriller from pop culture writer (and Edgar-nominated young adult author) that’s set at a spooky seaside estate and takes its cues from Knives Out as your first read of 2023. (Jan. 3)
An accidental slip through the ice on Christmas Eve changes the fortunes of a rich family. But was it an accident? The 85-year-old matriarch who died had dementia and wandered onto the frozen river near their Maine mansion for reasons unknown. Bookmark this gothic thriller from pop culture writer (and Edgar-nominated young adult author) that’s set at a spooky seaside estate and takes its cues from Knives Out as your first read of 2023. (Jan. 3)