Santa and Other Christmas Criminals

Think about it: Santa sneaks in during the dead of night. He steals cookies, drinks some milk, maybe tracks ashes all over the living room. Yeah, he leaves presents, but maybe that’s just a cover for more nefarious behavior. Who knows…besides Santa himself? The darker side of Santa shows up in two of the Christmas stories in this collection, “Doubting Thomas” and “Rehabilitation.” Real criminals—the scary kind—make an appearance in “Snow Angels” and “Substitutions.” And just to add a bit of the proper Christmas sentiment, “Nutball Season” closes the volume—with a not-so-sinister Santa, a little boy, and a cop stamping his feet in the snow on Christmas Eve.

“Rusch is a great storyteller.”
—Romantic Times

“[Rusch’s] short fiction is golden.”
—The Kansas City Star

International bestselling writer Kristine Kathryn Rusch has published fiction in every genre. She has been nominated for three Edgar Awards, two Shamus Awards, and an Anthony Award. She has won the Ellery Queen Reader’s Choice Award twice. She has also won two Hugo awards, a World Fantasy Award, and three Asimov’s Readers Choice Awards. She writes mystery as Kris Nelscott, paranormal romance as Kristine Grayson, as well as the science fiction and fantasy that she’s known for under Rusch.