stagasaurus's review
lighthearted
mysterious
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Enjoyable Christmas read of short crime stories set around Christmas.ย
Moderate: Murder
chelseamayxxx's review
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Such great little storyโs I really enjoyed 8 out of the 10 stories. Itโs such a quick read. But itโs not very Christmassy in my opinion xx
niamhsewell's review
3.25
๐
๐ผ The Snapdragon and the C.I.D by Margery Allingham - 2 stars
๐
๐ผ Let Nothing You Dismay by Ellis Peters - 3 stars
๐
๐ผ The Lionโs Tooth by Edmund Crispin - 4 stars
๐
๐ผ Rumpole and the Spirt of Christmas by John Mortimer - 3 stars
๐
๐ผ The Asassinโs Club by Nicholas Blake - 3 stars
๐
๐ผ The Ascham by Michael Innes - 2 stars
๐
๐ผ A Scandal in Winter by Gillian Linscott - 5 stars
๐
๐ผ Waxworks by Ethel Lina White - 5 stars
๐
๐ผ Twixt the Cup and the Lip by Julian Symons - 3 stars
๐
๐ผ Nebuchadnezzar by Dorothy L. Sayers - 4 stars
verityw's review
2.0
Not my favourite Christmas collection. A bit patchy and it struggled to hold my attention at times. Never mind. Short story collections can be a bit like that sometimes.
yasminsarah's review
2.0
I donโt know why I still bother with these kind of books. I never like short stories.
sandman_1961's review
3.0
A bit of a mixed bag in both the story content and the link to Christmas.
As others have sais some of the links to Christmas are very tenuous. The stories could be set in any time of the year as they are really just 'cosy' crime stories.
I enjoyed 'Twixt the Cup and Lip (Julian Symons) particularly and the Christmas element here was reasonably strong.
I'm sorry to say that Dorothy L. Sayers' Nebuchadnezzar was my least favourite. I just didn't get the point of it at all.
The other eight stories there were enjoyable tales, mainly winter, rather than Christmas specifically.
A nice little Holmes and Watson tale that is a sequel of sorts to 'A Scandal in Bohemia' by Gillian Linscott.
Overall a pleasant, light, read for the festive season, but not 'Christmassy'. All the tales are of the kind of the 'golden age' of crime fiction writing.
As others have sais some of the links to Christmas are very tenuous. The stories could be set in any time of the year as they are really just 'cosy' crime stories.
I enjoyed 'Twixt the Cup and Lip (Julian Symons) particularly and the Christmas element here was reasonably strong.
I'm sorry to say that Dorothy L. Sayers' Nebuchadnezzar was my least favourite. I just didn't get the point of it at all.
The other eight stories there were enjoyable tales, mainly winter, rather than Christmas specifically.
A nice little Holmes and Watson tale that is a sequel of sorts to 'A Scandal in Bohemia' by Gillian Linscott.
Overall a pleasant, light, read for the festive season, but not 'Christmassy'. All the tales are of the kind of the 'golden age' of crime fiction writing.
readabilitea's review
lighthearted
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
munyapenny's review
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.0
josie_baker's review
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
3.0