Murder After Christmas
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4.0 • 11 Ratings
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- $14.99
Publisher Description
"[Murder After Christmas] supplies cheerfully calculating relatives, decorously brutal dialogue, and a fiendishly intricate set of Chinese boxes before the surprising reveal...no, they don’t make them like this anymore."—Kirkus Reviews, Starred Review
"A war's on and a murder has been committed—and we sit here talking nonsense about almond whirls and mince pies!"
Good old Uncle Willie—known for an insatiable sweet tooth and being an epic pain in the rear—has come to stay with the Redpaths for the holidays. As luck would have it, he's found dead in the snow, in a Santa suit on Boxing Day. It seems as though someone may have poisoned his chocolate...or was it the mince pie? As the police flock to the house, Willie's descendants, past lovers and distant relatives are drawn into a perplexing investigation to find out how the old man met his fate, and who stands to gain by such an unseasonable crime.
First published in 1944, Murder After Christmas is a lively riot of murder, holiday desserts, and misdirection, cleverly twisting the tropes of Golden Age detective fiction to create a pacey, light-hearted package admirably suited for the holiday season. Featuring an introduction by CWA Diamond Dagger Award-winning author and series editor Martin Edwards.
“Full of eccentric relatives, oddball events and screwball dialogue, the book is a dizzy delight.”— Tom Nolan, Wall Street Journal
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
First published in 1944, this entry in the British Library Crime Classics series from the virtually forgotten Latimer (1905–1953) offers some festive Christmas trimmings, if little else. Frank and Rhoda Redpath have decided to invite Rhoda's stepfather, Sir Willoughby Keene-Cotton (aka Uncle Willie), to spend Christmas at their country house, because Mussolini's decision "to take sides in the current European unpleasantness" has made it impossible for the old gentleman to occupy his villa in San Remo. Having such a "scandalously wealthy" houseguest makes the Redpaths popular indeed during the holiday season, with neighbors and distant relatives showing up en masse for their Christmas party. Shortly after Father Christmas, played by Uncle Willie, delivers his gifts for the guests, his body is found on the lawn, lying near a capsized snowman. Superintendent Cully's investigation into the death is hampered by the compulsive need of everyone concerned to lie to the police. The book overflows with too many running gags (one regarding mince pies) and too many suspects, motives, and secrets—both old and new. This creaky old chestnut is no classic.
