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A review by serendipity_viv
A Christmas Guest by Anne Perry
4.0
I had imagined Anne Perry to be from the Catherine Cookson brigade, who I avoid like jellied eels. Alas I admit to be so wrong. Anne Perry writes a brilliant Victorian crime novella in the style of Agatha Christie. I really enjoyed reading this book and watching as the main character followed the clues to work out who committed the crime.
Mariah Ellison has been forced to spend Christmas with ex daughter in law and new husband, whilst her granddaughter goes to France for Christmas. She is not at all happy about the situation and makes herself the most inhospitable guest that she can be. Until another unexpected guest is forced upon the couple which changes everything. Mariah dislikes her straight away and only really begins to see what a wonderful person she was after she is found dead the following morning. Mariah is convinced that she was given some kind of poison and sets off to the house of her relatives who rejected her at Christmas to tell them the sad news and secretly find out who killed her.
Anne Perry draws upon the hidden lives of many Victorians as they try to keep their secrets away from scrutiny. Mariah herself suffered intensely during her marriage, but has never let anyone know the truth. It was not the way to create a scandal. Whilst searching for the killer and helping the family come to terms with their loss, she finds a way of coming to terms with her own past and finds herself mellowing with time.
From what I can gather Anne Perry uses a lot of the same characters in her other books. Mariah is the grandmother to Charlotte from the Charlotte and Thomas Pitt mysteries which I might just have to investigate. Mariah comes across as a stuffy, prudish old boor to begin with but by the end she has blossomed through my rose tinted glasses into a rather lovable and cuddly grandmother.
It was a lovely Christmas read, especially being able to view how the Victorians seem to wholeheartedly throw themselves into the Christmas preparations. Perry has done a remarkable job of bringing the Victorian traditions to life. I will definitely be including another one of Anne Perry's Victorian Christmas novellas in my reading pile next December.
Mariah Ellison has been forced to spend Christmas with ex daughter in law and new husband, whilst her granddaughter goes to France for Christmas. She is not at all happy about the situation and makes herself the most inhospitable guest that she can be. Until another unexpected guest is forced upon the couple which changes everything. Mariah dislikes her straight away and only really begins to see what a wonderful person she was after she is found dead the following morning. Mariah is convinced that she was given some kind of poison and sets off to the house of her relatives who rejected her at Christmas to tell them the sad news and secretly find out who killed her.
Anne Perry draws upon the hidden lives of many Victorians as they try to keep their secrets away from scrutiny. Mariah herself suffered intensely during her marriage, but has never let anyone know the truth. It was not the way to create a scandal. Whilst searching for the killer and helping the family come to terms with their loss, she finds a way of coming to terms with her own past and finds herself mellowing with time.
From what I can gather Anne Perry uses a lot of the same characters in her other books. Mariah is the grandmother to Charlotte from the Charlotte and Thomas Pitt mysteries which I might just have to investigate. Mariah comes across as a stuffy, prudish old boor to begin with but by the end she has blossomed through my rose tinted glasses into a rather lovable and cuddly grandmother.
It was a lovely Christmas read, especially being able to view how the Victorians seem to wholeheartedly throw themselves into the Christmas preparations. Perry has done a remarkable job of bringing the Victorian traditions to life. I will definitely be including another one of Anne Perry's Victorian Christmas novellas in my reading pile next December.