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pn_hinton's review
5.0
I ordered this last year since it was on sale and portions of the proceeds went to Toys for Tots which was a win/win for me. I decided to read it this year around the Christmas season since I have gotten decidely more Grinch-like over the last few years and thought it would help get me in the holiday mood.
I really enjoyed all the stories in here. They were good little snippets and ways to get introduced to other authors and characters I haven't experienced yet even though I have most of them in my massive TBR pile. Most people may not enjoy short stories but it is a good test to see if you could handle these characters and the way an author writes for longer periods of time. Since if you don't like the short story it is likely you will enjoy the longer one.
Overall they were all what you would expect from a cozy; nothing too profound but cute and a great way to pass the time. The most inventive one, setting wise, was "Sleighed at Castle Rock" since it did a Christmas in July spin. I also liked how all of the mysteries were not necessarily violent ones and it was a nice little mixture. The humor in all the stories was well done and Iam looking forward to reading about alll of the characters I got introduced to in a longer format.
I really enjoyed all the stories in here. They were good little snippets and ways to get introduced to other authors and characters I haven't experienced yet even though I have most of them in my massive TBR pile. Most people may not enjoy short stories but it is a good test to see if you could handle these characters and the way an author writes for longer periods of time. Since if you don't like the short story it is likely you will enjoy the longer one.
Overall they were all what you would expect from a cozy; nothing too profound but cute and a great way to pass the time. The most inventive one, setting wise, was "Sleighed at Castle Rock" since it did a Christmas in July spin. I also liked how all of the mysteries were not necessarily violent ones and it was a nice little mixture. The humor in all the stories was well done and Iam looking forward to reading about alll of the characters I got introduced to in a longer format.
carolsnotebook's review
3.0
Like most anthologies, it has its ups and downs. Each of these short stories fits into a series, but the only series I had read before is the Southern Pasta Shop mysteries. I will say that each story gave a good feeling for the main character and style of mystery and I’d like to read more of a few of them.
Most of the mysteries were cute and fun, but I did have a few favorites. I didn’t really hate any of them, but there were a couple that I wasn’t fond of.
Favorites:
“Have Yourself a Deadly Little Christmas” by Leslie Langtry – The Bombay family may be assassins, but they are funny, pragmatic, inventive and really care about each other. And I loved the spin they took with And Then There Were None.
“A (Gingerbread) Diorama of Death” by Gin Jones – Helen, the main character, seems like an interesting lady, even though she’s one of the people who seem to attract murders. I loved some of the descriptions of the gingerbread houses and even though the mystery was wrapped quickly and maybe too easily, it was a short story so that’s forgivable.
“Motion for Mistletoe” by Kelly Rey – I just loved the characters in this one. And the bit of Christmas magic.
Least Favorites:
“Rosario Red” by Tracy Andrighetti – Grandma’s missing and of course her granddaughter the PI comes home to investigate. I just didn’t like where the plot went, it all seemed a bit silly.
“Sleighed at Castle Rock” by Anne Marie Stoddard – This one actually took place in the summer, with a “Christmas in July” theme. I didn’t care for the characters and the mystery was blah.
Overall, this collection was a good Christmas read. The mysteries are light and easy to read and I liked the little sparks of romance in several of them. They are short stories, so the plots are not overly involved and a couple are barely mysteries, but I enjoyed it.
Most of the mysteries were cute and fun, but I did have a few favorites. I didn’t really hate any of them, but there were a couple that I wasn’t fond of.
Favorites:
“Have Yourself a Deadly Little Christmas” by Leslie Langtry – The Bombay family may be assassins, but they are funny, pragmatic, inventive and really care about each other. And I loved the spin they took with And Then There Were None.
“A (Gingerbread) Diorama of Death” by Gin Jones – Helen, the main character, seems like an interesting lady, even though she’s one of the people who seem to attract murders. I loved some of the descriptions of the gingerbread houses and even though the mystery was wrapped quickly and maybe too easily, it was a short story so that’s forgivable.
“Motion for Mistletoe” by Kelly Rey – I just loved the characters in this one. And the bit of Christmas magic.
Least Favorites:
“Rosario Red” by Tracy Andrighetti – Grandma’s missing and of course her granddaughter the PI comes home to investigate. I just didn’t like where the plot went, it all seemed a bit silly.
“Sleighed at Castle Rock” by Anne Marie Stoddard – This one actually took place in the summer, with a “Christmas in July” theme. I didn’t care for the characters and the mystery was blah.
Overall, this collection was a good Christmas read. The mysteries are light and easy to read and I liked the little sparks of romance in several of them. They are short stories, so the plots are not overly involved and a couple are barely mysteries, but I enjoyed it.
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