Christmas Books (& more) Extravaganza

 

I hope that all the folks on my Block have had/are having a very Merry Christmas or are celebrating their own holiday traditions in the very happiest way. Once again all the Santas in my life have been very generous and have provided me with more of my favorite things (primarily books!) Below is a run-down of the goodies that came my way this year. It looks like I was a very good girl again. 

The first to arrive was my Secret Santa from Michelle's True Book Addict's Bookish Secret Santa group on Facebook. Ryan sent me a box full of treats (including Tribble Kibble mints) and...

...The Big Book of Christmas Mysteries edited by Otto Penzler

Next up was our departmental staff and administrators holiday party.

My director went for my love of classic Star Trek and got me the "beaming" mug which sends Kirk, Spock, McCoy, & Uhura beaming from the ship's transporter room to the planet's surface and back again via the wonders of hot and cold temperatures. I've looked at it longingly for ages, but could never justify getting it for myself...Thanks, Jesse!

And in our Secret Santa exchange, Robert gave me a 3-in-1 Detective Book Club edition with Alias Basil Willing by Helen McCloy, Accident by Design by E. C. R. Lorac, and  The Watch Sinister by Marie Blizard as well as a reprint copy of Obelists at Sea by C. Daly King.

Christmas from my parents:

A Treasury of Great Recipes 50th Anniversary Edition by Mary & Vincent Price

What Cannot Be Said by C. S. Harris

Appointment with Death by Agatha Christie (audiobook read by Hugh Fraser)

The High Kings (self-named music CD)

The World of Miss Marple jigsaw puzzle

From my son:

The Cipher Garden by Martin Edwards

The Chief Inspector's Daughter by Sheila Radley

The Knife by Herbert Adams

And from my most generous Santa Hubby:

Hanged for a Sheep by Frances & Richard Lockridge (hardback w/DJ!!)

A Pinch of Poison by the Lockridges (a hardback I never thought to see...for a reasonable price)

Judas Incorporated by Kurt Steel (Dell Mapback!)

Death Plays Solitaire by R. L. Goldman

Murder Without Clues by Joseph L. Bonney

Slay Me a Sinner by Pierre Audemars

Tincture of Death by Ray Harrison

Season for Death by Harrison

Deathwatch by Harrison

Harvest of Death by Harrison

And a huge lot of Raven House books:

Death Audit by James A. Howard

Murder Takes a Wife by Howard

Clutterkill by Gary Paulsen

Dividend on Death by Brett Halliday

Deadly Legacy by Christina Blake

April Thirtieth by Bernard St. James

The Doria Rafe Case by Hilary Waugh

Crimes Past by Mary Challis

Rain with Violence by Dell Shannon

Where There's a Will by Anne Burton

The Cana Diversion by William Campbell Gault

They Love Not Poison by Sara Woods

Murder by Proxy by George Ogan

The Healthy Grave by Margaret Leake

Art for Keeps by C. Burke Block

Murder in Focus by Robert Julian

A Shroud for Mr. Bundy by James M. Fox

The Wheel Is Fixed by James M. Fox

The Bad Samaritan by William Campbell Gault

Send Another Hearse by Harold Q. Masur

Classified Death by Claire Taschdjian

The Cana Diversion by William Campbell Gault (alternate cover)

Run from Nightmare by Maxine O'Callaghan

The Ghost of an Idea by Mary Challis

Top Level Death by Hugh Zachary

And one 4-in-1 Unicorn Mystery Club Edition:

Savage Breast/Map of Mistrust/Paul's Apartment/Love Lies Bleeding

~Manning Long/Allan MacKinnan/Van Siller/Edmund Crispin

Christmas on the Block

 

I know I'm a little late and it's not Christmas anymore, but the last of Christmas happened on New Year's Day and then I had to go back to work...and, well, now here we are about a week later. So, here's my annual Christmas book (and more) update. Better late than never. As always, the various Santas in my life have indulged me in my book-collecting/book-reading ways. I'm very spoiled!

Christmas from my Golden Age Book Group Secret Santa:

Murder at Government House  by Elspeth Huxley (1937; reprint)

Detective Ben by J. J. (Jefferson) Farjeon (1936; Collins White Circle edition)

The Hanging Captain by Henry Wade (1932; reprint)

Picture Miss Seeton by Heron Carvid (1968; reprint)

Murder Fantastical by Patricia Moyes (1967; reprint)

From the Facebook Secret Santa group sponsored by Michelle:

Death of a Bookseller by Bernard J. Farmer (1956; reprint)

The Edinburgh Mystery & Other Tales of Scottish Crime by Martin Edwards (ed)

~~plus a Dr. McCoy bookmark and a library checkout card Christmas ornament

Christmas from my parents:

Making It So by Sir Patrick Stewart (2023)

Murder on the Orient Express: the Graphic Novel by Agatha Christie & Bob Al-Greene (2023)

The Gutenberg Murders by Gwen Bristow & Bruce Manning (1931; reprint)

~~plus Sherlock Holmes puzzle, beaver socks, beaver ornament, and a nostalgia Shaun Cassidy CD

From my inlaws:

Recipes for Murder by Karen Pierce (cookbook based on Agatha Christie stories)

These Names Make Clues by E.C.R. Lorac (1937; reprint)

~~plus a Hercule Poirot puzzle; a mystery puzzle (picture has clues to solve the mystery); and a new case/wallet for the fancy new phone

From my son:

The Listening Walls/The Girl Who Wouldn't Talk/A Key to the Morgue by Margaret Millar/Roy Vickers/Robert Martin (3-in-1 Detective Book Club)

The Pale Horse/The Well-Dressed Skeleton/The Lady Finger by Agatha Christie/Brad Williams/George Malcolm-Smith (3-in-1 Detective Book Club)

Death in the Mind/Jethro Hammer/The Scarlet Button/Appointment in Manila by Richard Lockridge & George H. Estabrooks/Michael Venning/Anthony Gilbert/Elinor Chamberlain (4-in-1 Unicorn Mystery Club)

Wicked Water/The Cat Wears a Mask/The Innocent/The Leaden Bubble by MacKinlay Kantor/D. B. Olsen/Evelyn Piper/H. C. Branson (4-in-1 Unicorn Mystery Club)

And from my husband--who couldn't resist buying all the things I put in his Ebay watch file:

The Evil That Men Do/The Cat Who Could Read Backwards/No Peace for the Wicked by Hugh Pentecost/Lilian Jackson Braun/E. X. Ferrars (3-in-1 Detective Book Club)

The Case of the Lazy Lover/Untidy Murder/Let the Tiger Die by Erle Stanley Gardner/Frances & Richard Lockridge/Manning Coles (3-in-1 Detective Book Club)

The Case of the Spurious Spinster/The Killing Strike/Encounter with Evil by Gardner/John Creasey/Amber Dean (3-in-1 Detective Book Club)

At Bertram's Hotel/A Business of Bodies/Conceal & Disguise by Agatha Christie/Stanton Forbes/Henry Kane (3-in-1 Detective Book Club)

Brothers of Silence/And One Cried Murder/Old Students Never Die by Frank Gruber/Lee Thayer/Ivan T. Ross (3-in-1 Detective Book Club)

The Noose by Philip MacDonald (1930; reprint)

Suspense Stories selected by Alfred Hitchcock  (1945; this edition 1949 Dell Mapback #367)

The Farmhouse by Helen Reilly (1943; this edition 1950 Dell Mapback #397)

Lament for the Bride/The Cat & Capricorn/Blood Will Tell (aka Mrs. McGinty's Dead) by Helen Reilly/D. B. Olsen/Agatha Christie (3-in-1 Detective Book Club)

Lady, Be Careful!/Bones of Contention/So Young a Body by Christopher Reeve/Rae Foley/Frank Bunce (3-in-1 Detective Book Club)

The White Dress/The Silent Speaker/The Hollow by Mignon G. Eberhart/ Rex Stout/Agatha Christie (3-in-1 Detective Book Club)

Stream Sinister/Murder on Angler's Island/Payoff for the Banker by Kathleen Moore Knight/Helen Reilly/Frances & Richard Lockridge (3-in-1 Detective Book Club)

Evidence of Things Seen/ Dark Duet/Lady in a Million by Elizabeth Daly/Peter Cheyney/Susannah Shane (3-in-1 Detective Book Club)

You Can Die Laughing/Guilt Is Where You Find It/Reservations for Death by A. A. Fair/Lee Thayer/Baynard Kendrick (3-in-1 Detective Book Club)

Tell Her It's Murder/Coffin for Christopher/Don't Hang Me Too High by Helen Reilly/Delano Ames/J. B. O'Sullivan (3-in-1 Detective Book Club)

Girl Meets Body by Jack Iams (1947; this edition 1950 Dell Mapback #384)

Hanged for a Sheep by Frances & Richard Lockridge (1942; this edition 1948 Bantam #305)

Give Up the Ghost by Margaret Erskine (1949; reprint)

A Taste for Cognac by Brett Halliday (Dell 10 Cent)

You'll Never See Me Again by William Irish (Cornell Woolrich) (Dell 10 Cent)

Slay Bells

 Slay Bells (written ca1956; published posthumously 2021) by Eunice Mays Boyd with Elizabeth Reed Arden

Christmas is coming to the Big Five and a Half. Santa has surprises in his bag of goodies...but not all of them are good. When the Big Five and a Half, a group of high school students--five young men and one young woman--who were all voted "Most Likely to Succeed," were leaving high school for bigger and better things, they met for a farewell picnic in Mariposa. They and their influential teacher Mr. Northcliffe expect to see great success in the very near future and they decide to have a reunion party on Christmas Day ten years down the road to see if their expectations have been met.

Christmas Day ten years later isn't quite the festive occasion they expect. Only three of their number are doing well. There have been divorces and affairs. One of the group is in prison and the one who started with the most is nearly broke. Even their teacher has met with hard times. His application for a premier post was turned down--apparently because at least one of his references (all from the Big Five and a Half) was less than glowing.

As the members of the group prepare for the party they are all dreading, Santa Claus begins making the rounds. He has a little heart-to-heart talk with them--reminding them of all the ways they have been naughty during the last ten years. At the end of his visit, he offers a chocolate treat...laced with poison. At least three will be dead before Santa is dragged off to an icy jail cell instead of the North Pole.

A short--more novella than novel--mystery with thrillerish overtones. Overall the plot is a good one  and I wish that Boyd had left a full-length manuscript that explored the characters and action a bit more. As I followed Santa to the next visit, I kept having to change my mind about who was hiding behind those snowy-white whiskers. The tension level is good and the story works well as a morality play--just what is the cost of success? And is success really measured in dollars and cents or the size of your house or the clothes that you wear?  I did find the ending a bit abrupt, otherwise I might have given a slightly higher star rating. ★★★ and 1/2

First line: Through the doorway to the hall (Honduras mahogany--how much had that door cost per square foot when he built the house three years ago?), Irving Pluit hear the strains of "Noel."

Last line: "I'm Cecil Northcliffe, and I taught them all."

**********************

Deaths = three poisoned

Small Things Like These

 Small Things Like These (2021) by Claire Keegan

When Bill Furlong's unwed mother became pregnant, the good-hearted Mrs. Wilson did not turn her servant out like so many employers in the 1940s would have...and did. She didn't mind what the neighbors might say about the situation. It didn't matter that the more openly religious villagers might think she was condoning sin. She simply did what she considered right according to her own moral code. 

Bill has never forgotten how kind Mrs. Wilson was to him and his mother. Nor has he forgotten how she gave him a start in life when he became engaged to be married. Here and there, he's managed to give a few coins to those less well off than himself and his little family--and his friends and his wife think he's too soft-hearted. Just as Christmas is getting close, he gets an up close and personal look at what goes on at the local convent's laundry business and he's not sure his conscience will let him forget what he's seen. He has to decide if he will follow in Mrs. Wilson's footsteps and do what's right--even if it means the nuns at the convent and his own family will be angry. 

Was it possible to carry on along through all the years, the decades, through an entire life, without once being brave enough to against what was there and yet call yourself a Christian and face yourself in the mirror?

A small book that packs a big punch. It shows the reader how one person can stand up against what is morally wrong--even in the face of a monolithic presence like the Catholic Church in Ireland of the 1940s. And how that act of kindness can affect future generations. Bill has to decide if it's worth it to keep on behaving "respectably," keeping one's head down and not making any waves to make sure he keeps getting by and yet be morally bankrupt. It is sometimes very difficult to go against convention and do the right thing. Bill makes his choice and we have to hope that his family will support him. ★★★★

First line: In October there were yellow trees.

Before long, he caught a hold of himself and concluded that nothing ever did happen again; to each was given days and chances which wouldn't come back around.

Last line: Climbing the street toward  his own front door with the barefooted girl and the box of shoes, his fear more than outweighed every other feeling but in his foolish heart he not only hoped but legitimately believed that they would manage.

Christmas at the Block

 Christmas is almost over here at the Block. We've opened all the wrapped presents under the tree....but I do have some Christmas cash to spend. I'm not quite sure how soon I'll get the Christmas cash presents delivered so we'll display any bookish purchases in all their glory at a later date. For now let's see what the Santas in my life have added to the Hankins Library...

Up first (in order of opening), a Secret Santa gift from Lisa LaPlante at work--a collection of book-themed Golden Age short stories reprinted by the British Library Crime Classics:

Next Secret Santa gifts from Michelle's True Book Addict Bookish Secret Santa exchange. A lovely Golden Age mystery reprint and an Agatha Christie jigsaw puzzle as well as a light-up, musical "Nutcracker" card from Lucy Pollard Gott.

From my own personal Santas--husband and son--I received three pulp-era, digest-sized mysteries, a collection of Zebra Puzzlers (mysteries designed so readers have clues in both the text and in illustrations which should allow them to solve the mystery before the big reveal) and five Unicorn Mystery Book Club editions with four stories each.

These two are from Kyle

And, finally, from my Golden Age Detective Secret Santa (aka the other Brad), a Christmas-themed Joan Coggin, a Carter Dickson with Christmas Red in the title, an Inspector West mystery by John Creasey, and a trio of pulp-era, digest-sized books (including a Mapback!).

The Last Noel

 The Last Noel (1997) by Jean Hager

It's time to get ready for the annual Christmas pageant at the Community Church in Victoria Springs. Tess Darcy, owner of the Iris House Bed & Breakfast, is delegated to let the church's usual director, Claire Chandler, know that she's being repaced by an out-of-town drama professor. That's enough to make Claire furious, but it doesn't help that Sherwood Draper was recommended by her least favorite person in the world, Lily Brookside. It isn't long before the womanizing professor has most of the pageant personnel up in arms at the first meeting. His wife knows Lily wanted him to come direct the pageant so she could try to get her hooks into him and is giving them both the evil eye.. Denny Brookside isn't at all pleased at how his wife looks at this Noel Coward wannabe. The organist, Elizabeth Purcell, is incensed that she's being replaced by taped music; the children's director, Pam Yoder, can't believe he plans to ditch the children's portion of the program all together; and the choir director, Mike Tandy is so outraged that the choir has been reduced to three little Christmas songs that he gets up and leaves the sanctuary. 

The afternoon session doesn't go any better. In fact, it gets worse when Draper gets caught a little too cozy with one of the ladies in the dressing room. Sometime later he's found in that same dressing room with a pair of shears sticking out his back. The local police chief is out of town and his eager stand-in thinks he's got it all sewn up when a witness claims to have seen Draper's wife with shears that afternoon. But Tess isn't convinced he has really investigated all the angles and she's determined to be sure it's truly the guilty behind bars. 

This is the third Christmas-themed book I've read in a row--and the second to feature a Christmas a pageant (or it's rehearsals) as the venue for the crime. I have to say that I immediately spotted the primary reason Draper was killed--though I didn't see the way it shook out coming. I got completely confused about who could have been involved in the primary reason and then Hager shook the kaleidoscope a bit and changed the view of the pieces anyway. It also didn't help that life happened in the middle of my read and I may have lost my original train of thought. All told, it was an enjoyable holiday read and The Last Noel is my favorite Christmas mystery so far this season.  ★★★ and 1/2.

First line: "You're the last person I expected to stab me in the back, Tess Darcy!" stormed Claire Chandler as soon as the phone was picked up, without even giving Tess a chance to say hello.

Last line: She made a U-turn at the next corner and headed for Luke's house.

***************

Deaths = 4 (one stabbed; one car accident; two natural)

Death Beneath the Christmas Tree

 Death Beneath the Christmas Tree (1991) by Robert Nordan

Miz Mavis Lashley, a pleasant Southern widow, is looking forward to her church's Living Christmas Tree pageant. Her favorite (only) nephew Dale is escorting her and she's wearing her best Christmas finery. It will be lovely to listen to the choir and watch the little shepherds and wise men in the procession to the manger. What she doesn't expect is for one of the choir members to come tumbling out of the tree after being killed by a rifle shot from the balcony. 

Mavis and Dale are mystery fans and are quick to help Detective Charles Morgan (long ago member of Mavis's Sunday School class and more than willing to accept any help he can get). But it's difficult to see why anyone would have wanted to kill Frances Sedbury. No one at church seems to know much about her--except that she was quite, kept to herself, was faithful in attendance, and choir singing was apparently her only real interest. Fortunately, Mavis has this quality that just gets people to talk to her and before long she's learning all kinds of things about Frances and other members of the choir and church family. Then the choir direct is shot outside his home and folks begin to wonder if someone has it in for church singers. Mavis's instincts tell her that something deeper is behind it.

There are several things to like about this one. First--Mavis. I just fell in love with her and her Southern charm. And she's fairly forward-thinking for an older woman written in the early 1990s. She has a way of being interested in people without being downright nosy. I also like her relationship with her nephew Dale and how she deals with the neighborhood kids. The book is short, but Nordan is able to present the atmosphere of the south in the brief sketches he gives of the town and townspeople. The plot has an interesting twist...though I do have difficulty with what prompts the first murder. Not that I don't understand the motive or think it's realistic--it just touches on one of the topics I really don't care to read about. Any more specific than that and I'll be spoiling the ending. The other thing that prevents the book from garnering a higher rating is the lack of clues--there is one big clue that Mavis spots (and I didn't until she told us), but most of the revelations come from conversations that Mavis has with folks. And there's no mystery about the conversations. It's not like someone says something that tips Mavis off and maybe you, the reader, will spot it and maybe you won't. No--you know right then and there what the meaning of everything is, so there's not a lot of tension and mystery.

Good atmosphere and appealing main characters. I'd like to try another in the series with (hopefully) a less touchy motive for me. ★★★

First line: Well, she was ready.

Last line: To think what she had been missing all these years!

****************

Deaths = 6 (two shot; one hit by car; three natural)

Wrapped Up in Crosswords (slightly spoilerish)

 Wrapped Up in Crosswords (2005) by Nero Blanc (Cordelia Frances Biddle & Steve Zettler)

Rosco Polycrates, private detective, is in search for the perfect Christmas present for his partner Belle. He stops, entranced, before a shop window and his canine companions are convinced that he's decided that what Belle needs is a pair of live lovebirds. The dogs are not in favor of avian competitors for their humans' affections (besides birds are prey...not housemates). So, they decide that the best way to show their displeasure is to shred feather pillows and destroy the crossword puzzle clues that Rosco is planning for the big Christmas present reveal.

Meanwhile, three escaped convicts have gotten their hands on Santa suits and have descended on Rosco and Belle's town of Newcastle Massachusetts. They hold up a gun shop owner--stealing weapons--and break into a local diner. Rosco and two of his pals from the police department (where he served before becoming a private eye) are also running around in Santa suits, collecting toys and other presents for needy children. Confusion ensues when State Troopers mistake our heroes for the bad guys. Of course, all's well that ends well and the costumed convicts will be back behind bars by the end of the story and our heroes will get the presents to the kids. But will Kit and Gabby (the dogs) have to make room in their inn for a couple of wandering lovebirds? We'll just have to see...

A very light piece of Christmas fluff with a hint of mystery thrown in--though there is very little detecting going on. Two of the crooks are caught off-stage by the "Staties" (State Troopers) and the third pretty much falls into NPD Detective Al Lever and Rosco Polycrates' laps. I'd just like to know what the escaped convict was doing in the greenhouse. Not exactly an ideal hideout in the middle of a Massachusetts winter. The book is very sweet and seems to be more focused on the relationships between all of the ongoing characters. I wasn't terribly keen on the talking dogs--that is, they talk to each other and other dogs and not to the humans (do they do this in all the stories? I don't remember animals having conversations in the others I've read in the series). But it was a pleasant day's read. ★★ and 1/2

First line: Rosco Polycrates entered the Newcastle Police station through the side door on Cabot Alley.

Last line: "I guess it's going to be cold enough for my gift after all."

Yuletide Spirit Reading Challenge & Readathon

 

Michelle at Seasons of Reading is once again sponsoring her holiday challenge & readathon. The rechristened Yuletide Spirit Reading Challenge & Readathon. In short, the challenge runs from November 21, 2022 through January 6, 2023. The books read for the challenge must be Christmassy in nature--novels, short story collections, books of poems, etc. Readathon books need not all be holiday-oriented.

 

Three ways to participate:

1. Challenge: Pick a level
      ~Candy Cane: read 1 book
      ~Mistletoe: read 2-4 books
      ~Christmas Tree: read 5-6 books (this is the fanatic level...LOL!)

2. Readathon: read as much (or as little as you want)

3. Participate in both!

Additional levels for watching Christmas movies and reading children's books with your kids--but you must complete one of the main reading levels to fulfill the challenge.

For more details and to join up, follow the link above.

As usual, I am joining at the Mistletoe level for Christmas books and the Readathon as well since I can also count non-Christmas books for that:

1. Wrapped Up in Crosswords by Nero Blanc [Christmas] (11/27/22)
2. Death Beneath the Christmas Tree by Robert Nordan [Christmas] (11/29/22)
3. The Last Noel by Jean Hager [Christmas] (12/3/22)
4. Holmes for the Holidays by Martin H. Greenberg, Jon L. Lellenberg, & Carol-Lynn Waugh [eds] (12/21/22)

Mistletoe Level 

5. The Longer the Thread by Emma Lathen [readathon] (11/25/22)

6. Murder in Black Tie by Sara Rosett [readathon] (11/26/22)

7. The Clue of the Velvet Mask by Carolyn Keene [readathon] (12/12/22)

8. Where Two Ways Met by Grace Livingston Hill [readathon] (12/12/22)

9. Murder at the College by Victor L. Whitechurch [readathon] (12/17/22)

10. The Hanover Square Affair by Ashley Gardner [readathon] (12/23/22)

11. The Candle Shop Mystery by Eileen Hill [Christmas] (12/25/22)

12. Sweet Poison by Douglas Clark [readathon] (12/26/22)

13. Murder Impossible by Jack Adrian & Robert Adey, eds [readathon] (12/30/22)

14. The Triple Hoax by Carolyn Keene [readathon] (12/31/22)

15. A Nameless Coffin by Gwendoline Butler [readathon] (12/31/22)

16. Mrs. Frisby & the Rats of NIMH by Robert C. O'Brien (1/1/23)

17.

And...that's a wrap. I did really well with reading in December and then fell off the reading wagon in the New Year. Not as many Christmas books as I might have liked, but I did meet my goal. Happy New Year, everyone!

 

Christmas on the Block

 Christmas is finally, really over here at the Block. We returned from a visit to my parents in Wabash, loaded with the last of the Christmas presents. Well...I say that, but I do have some Christmas cash and a bookstore Christmas gift card to spend. So, maybe Christmas isn't finished after all. But--the actual gift-opening part is finished and here are the (primarily) bookish goodies that have been added to the Hankins family.

Up first (in order of opening), a Secret Santa gift from Michelle's True Book Addict Bookish Secret Santa exchange. It truly is from a Secret Santa--no name was attached to the gift and so far no one from the group has fessed up. But they certainly did provide a delightful surprise:

The Great Hotel Murder by Vincent Starrett (a lovely reprint of a classic Golden Age mystery)--as well as a jigsaw puzzle and Godiva chocolates.

Next on the list, books from my husband on Christmas day:

Murder in Mink by Robert George Dean (Superior Reprints edition)

Mysterious Invitation by Bernice Bloom (2021 mystery)

Ghost Finders by Adam McOmber (2021 historical paranormal mystery)

The Mardi Gras Murders by Gwen Bristow & Bruce Manning (The Mystery League)

The Lonesome Badger/Sound an Alarm/Murder Will Out by Frank Gruber/Genevieve Holden/Roy Vickers (3-in-1 Detective Club edition)

The White Priory Murders by Carter Dickson (Pocket Books #156)

The Case of the Dead Shepherd by Christopher Bush (Dean Street Press reprint)

A Surprise for Christmas by Martin Edwards, ed. (reprint of vintage short stories)

Inquest by Henrietta Clandon (Dean Street Press reprint)

Cause for Alarm by Eric Ambler (Penguin Books #511)

Murder at Midnight by R. A. J. Walling (Avon Books #16)

Dead of Night by Stewart Sterling (Dell Mapback #583)

Within the Vault by Lee Thayer (Dodd, Mead, & Co; 1st edition)

A Corpse for Breakfast by Max Murray (vintage edition)

The Purple Onion Mystery by H. (Harriette) Ashbrook (Penguin Books #626)

Also on Christmas day, two 3-in-1 Detective Book Club editions (and a Star Trek puzzle) from my son:

The Case of the Hesitant Hostess/Murder by the Day/The Fence by Erle Stanley Gardner/Veronica Parker Johns/Hugh Lawrence Nelson

Out of Control/Too Many Suspects/An Eye for an Eye by Baynard Kendrick/John Rhode/Oliver Weld Bayer

From my Golden Age Detective Secret Santa. The customs paperwork made it impossible for this Secret Santa to remain anonymous:

Unreasonable Doubt by Elizabeth Ferrars

The Lake District Murders by John Rhode

Post Mortem by Guy Cullingford

And Christmas presents from Mom & Dad--a puzzle, a small beaver figure, Star Trek calendar, and an Irish music CD--as well as two books:

The Man Who Died Twice by Richard Osman (2021 mystery)

Murder on the Way! by Theodore Rosco (Bold Venture reprint)

Lots of good reading ahead--thanks to all the Santas in my life, both secret and known.

Bev's Bookish Christmas

 

I know you all will be shocked to know that I got a lot of new books for Christmas again this year...thanks to all the Santas in my life my TBR pile has grown by 42 books this Christmas (well...44, but two were duplicates; that's the perils of buying lots of books from Ebay). 

First up, Christmas from my parents which was magical: they gave me money and it miraculously turned into books:

Old Mrs. Camelot (black hard back) by Emery Bonnett; Murder Is Served by Frances & Richard Lockridge; Murder Goes to College by Kur Steel; A File on Death AND Death Among the Stars by Kenneth Giles; Dead by Now by Margaret Erskine; Payoff for the Baker, Death of a Tall Man, AND Mr. & Mrs. North Meet Murder by Frances & Richard Lockridge; She Died Because... by Kenneth Hopkins; House of Storm by Mignon Eberhart; Blood from a Stone by Ruth Sawtell Wallis; and Murder on the Purple Water by Frances Crane

From my husband and son:

Death of a Bullionaire by A. B. Cunningham; The Black Mountain by Rex Stout; Bloom County: Brand Spanking New Day by Berkeley Breathed; The Lyttleton Case by R. A. V. Morris; The Mystery of the Merry Magician by Ellery Queen, Jr; The Door Between by Ellery Queen; The Case of the Sulky Girl by Erle Stanley Gardner; Murder in the Calais Coach by Agatha Christie; The Thin Man by Dashiell Hammett; The  Mystery of the Vanished Visitor by Ellery Queen, Jr; Murder in Pug's Parlour by Amy Myers; The Queen & the Corpse by Max Murray; Murder Secretary by William Beyer; The King Is Dead by Ellery Queen; There Is a Tide by Agatha Christie; The Court of Last Resort by Erle Stanley Gardner; Tickets for Death by Brett Halliday; A Thief in the Night by Thomas Walsh; Shadow of a Lady by Holly Roth; The Burning Court by John Dickson Carr; The Talking Bug by the Gordons; The Problem of the Wire Cage by John Dickson Carr; Underdog by W. R. Burnett; Kill Joy/Speak of the Devil (Ace Giant Double Novel) by Elizabeth Sanxay Holding; Seeing Red by Theodora Du Bois; and The Kennel Murder Case by S. S. Van Dine [plus a bookish puzzle and a Shaun Cassidy CD to fulfill the nostalgia factor]

Christmas from my Golden Age Secret Santa:

Sealed Room Murder by Rupert Penny: Dead Mrs. Stratton by Anthony Berkeley; The Whisper in the Gloom by Nicholas Blake; and Murder Secretary by William Beyer (I thought I got this cleared off my wish list in time...but apparently not)

And my True Book Addict's Bookish Secret Santa:

The Shakespeare Murders by A. G. MacDonell plus other bookish & chocolatey goodies.

I am blessed to have so many people in my life to indulge my bookish wants and needs. I hope you all have had a wonderful holiday and have had the pleasure of giving and receiving much goodness.

Bookish Christmas 2019

Once again all the Santas in my life--from family to not-so-secret internet Secret Santas--have filled my Christmas stocking with literary delights.

From my Golden Age Secret Kate Santa (those customs forms make it awful hard to stay secret), I had a package of goodies that included:

An Academic Death by J.M. Gregson; The Cambridge Murders by Glyn Daniels; Dying Fall by Judith Cutler (all three academic mysteries--with the Daniels book being a double-bonus, a vintage-era academic mystery!); Happy Returns by Manning Coles; Drink to Yesterday by Manning Coles, and A Scream in Soho by John G. Brandon. Santa took her cue from my TBF list here on the blog and spoiled me good and proper.

I was also spoiled by the Santas nearer to home with several bookish boxes under the tree.

From Mr. & Mrs. Claus (Mom & Dad): Dorothy L. Sayers: Her Life & Soul by Barbara Reynolds and The Mystery at Orchard House by Joan Coggin (along with a mystery puzzle "Murder at the Museum" and a bit of mystery nostalgia in The (Almost) Complete Scooby Doo Movies with celebrity guests)

And from my very own personal Santa, Brad: Strong Poison by Dorothy L. Sayers (which wound up being a surprise because it was an edition that I don't own that I forgot I even put on my wish list); The Cat Saw Murder by D. B. Olsen; The Case of the Counterfeit Eye by Earl Stanley Gardner; Evidence of Things Seen by Elizabeth Daly; The Smell of Murder (aka The Gracie Allen Murder Case) by S. S. Van Dine; The Corpse Steps Out by Craig Rice (edition upgrade); The Avon Book of Modern Crime Stories by John Rhode (ed); Challenge for Three by David Garth; The Scarab Murder Case by S. S. Van Dine; The Mystery of Hunting's End by Mignon G. Eberhart (in an edition I've long been looking for); Unexpected! by Bennett Cerf (ed); and Death in a White Tie by Ngaio Marsh (again, an edition I've long been looking for). All but one of these are in those lovely little pocket-size editions that I adore.

I must have been a very good girl this year.

And...from my other internet Secret Santa, Rie:

A beautiful bookish puzzle, a monogram ornament, and chocolates!