Christmas
Is Murder
A
Rex Graves Mystery
C.
S. Challinor
Midnight
Ink (Trade Paperback)
ISBN-10: 0-7387-1359-7 (0738713597)
ISBN-13: 978-0-7387-1359-5 (9780738713595)
Publication Date: September 2008
List Price: $13.95
Synopsis (from
the publisher): Christmas in the English countryside — what
could be more charming? Not even a blizzard can keep Rex Graves away
from Swanmere Manor, a historic hotel in East Sussex. But instead of
Christmas cheer, the red-haired Scottish barrister finds a dead guest.
Was it a stroke that killed old Mr. Lawry? Or an almond tart laced with
poison?
When more guests die, all hopes for a jolly holiday are dashed. Worst
of all, the remote mansion is buried under beastly snow. No one can
leave. Confined with a killer, no one can enjoy their tea without
suspicion and scrutiny. Rex takes it upon himself to solve the mystery,
but the most intriguing evidence — a burnt biography of
President George W. Bush — offers few clues. Could the killer
be the sherry-swilling handyman? The gay antiques dealer with a biting
wit? The quarreling newlyweds? Surely, it's not Helen D'arcy, the
lovely lass Rex seems to be falling for ...
Review:
C. S. Challinor introduces Scottish barrister Reginald (Rex) Graves,
Q.C. who turns amateur sleuth to solve the murders of three guests
staying at a Sussex hotel during a raging snow storm in Christmas Is Murder.
Rex has trudged through an unexpected blizzard to reach the Swanmere
Manor where he had hoped to relax, maybe play some tennis, but who is
now using his racquets as snow shoes. The inn is owned by Dahlia
Smithings, an old family friend, who converted her family home into a
hotel following the death of her husband and her son, the latter killed
in action in Iraq. Other guests had already checked in, including a
WWII disabled veteran, a New York literary agent, a nosy
divorcée and her friend, an antiques dealer and his partner,
and a young couple, newlyweds. When the guests sit down to tea, Henry
Lawdry, the veteran, takes a bite of an almond tart and slumps over,
dead. The newly wedded Charley Perkins, a paramedic, examines him and
determines that he didn't die of natural causes, but was poisoned. Soon
thereafter, Miriam Greenbaum, the agent, is hit over the head with a
candlestick and pushed down the basement stairs. Then Wanda Martyr, the
divorcée, is smothered in her sleep. There doesn't seem to
be any common relationship between the victims, yet with the guests
snowbound, with no way for anyone to arrive or leave, it seems one of
them must be a murderer. Unable to reach the police, Rex, with the help
of Charley, uses his skills as an observant barrister to try to solve
the mystery of these seemingly unrelated murders before another life is
lost ... or before the snow melts and the murderer packs up and leaves.
Christmas
Is Murder is an engaging
whodunit populated with an interesting and imaginative mix of
characters and a very appealing and charming sleuth in Rex Graves. The
story effortlessly combines elements of a classic country house mystery
with an Agatha Christie-style denouement to great effect. With some of
the guests concealing secret objectives for being present, this
quick-reading mystery will keep readers guessing until the end.
Special thanks to guest reviewer Betty of The Betz Review for contributing her review of Christmas Is Murder and to Midnight Ink for providing a copy of the book for this review.
Review Copyright © 2008 — Hidden Staircase Mystery Books — All Rights Reserved
Have you read Christmas Is Murder? How would you rate it?
Mysteries in this series …
Christmas Is Murder
Midnight Ink (Trade Paperback), September 2008
ISBN-10: 0-7387-1359-7 (0738713597)
ISBN-13: 978-0-7387-1359-5 (9780738713595)
Murder
in the Raw
Midnight Ink (Trade Paperback), May 2009
ISBN-10: 0-7387-1439-9 (0738714399)
ISBN-13: 978-0-7387-1439-4 (9780738714394)
Omnimystery
keywords for Christmas Is Murder
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Location(s) referenced: England.
