Welcome to Day 7 of #12booksofchristmas!!

In case you have missed any here is the list of the first 6 books;

• Day 1 - Winter Solstice by Elin Hildebrand
• Day 2 - Murder After Christmas by Rupert Latimer
• Day 3 - Under the Christmas Tree by Heidi Swain
• Day 4 - Miracle on Ebeneezer Street by Catherine Doyle
• Day 5 - Keeping a Christmas Promise by Jo Thomas
• Day 6 - I Wish it Could be Christmas Every Day by Milly Johnson

Today's book was a completely random spot in a supermarket, by an author who is much beloved but I have completely managed to never read. Epic fail on my part!

But first of all, how are you doing? Christmas can be a bit crackers, and people sometimes put vast amounts of pressure on themselves to have the perfect Christmas. Wherever you are and whatever you are doing, I hope you are taking the time to relax (maybe with a good book) and enjoy the season. I'm typing this the Thursday before, and already I am looking forward to a lie-in, a face-mask and a bath. Heaven! Well this post has taken a strange turn. I'm reviewing a crime novel and talking about face masks. There are no links here.

The Plot

Val McDermid is a master of the dark and sinister story and these powers are in full force in Christmas is Murder, a featured collection of chilling tales.

From an irresponsible Baron whose body is discovered beneath a silver birch tree to a classic detective duo solving a historic case as the lights go out across Europe, and an exclusive Tony Hill and Carol Jordan story, the characters McDermind conjures are enigmatic and dangerous.

My Thoughts

When I started to think of #12booksofchristmas, I'll be honest this was not even on my radar. Spotting it in a local supermarket, I decided to treat myself. And I'm very pleased I did as it turned out to be a real little gem of a book.

Apart from 2 stories, all the of the short stories in the book are about Christmas. They cover a wide range of genres. I loved the Sherlock Holmes story and the Jordan and Hill as well. There was no sameness of story; some modern, some old, many covering characters from different classes. I also enjoyed Four Calling Birds - a story about a group bingo caller women trying to make ends meet during the miner's strike. McDermid touches on the works of Conan Doyle, the golden age of crime and even her own novels.

I very much enjoyed this book and it made me want to read more Val McDermid. All in all, this is a fab collection of crime stories, perfect for any reader of crime. It has definitely made me want to discover more about this author's works, and it strikes the perfect balance of Christmas spirit.