Crimson Snow: Winter Mysteries

by Martin Edwards (editor)

Genres: Crime, Mystery, Short Stories
Pages: 317
Series: British Library Crime Classics
Rating:

Synopsis:

Crimson Snow brings together a dozen vintage crime stories set in winter. Welcome to a world of Father Christmases behaving oddly, a famous fictional detective in a Yuletide drama, mysterious tracks in the snow, and some very unpleasant carol singers. There's no denying that the supposed season of goodwill is a time of year that lends itself to detective fiction.On a cold night, it's tempting to curl up by the fireside with a good mystery. And more than that, claustrophobic house parties, with people cooped up with long-estranged relatives, can provide plenty of motives for murder.

Including forgotten stories by major writers such as Margery Allingham, as well as classic tales by less familiar crime novelists, each story in this selection is introduced by the leading expert on classic crime, Martin Edwards. The resulting volume is an entertaining and atmospheric compendium of wintry delights.

Crimson Snow is one of the British Library Crime Classic collections themed around mysteries set at Christmas. The back copy says the theme is “stories set in winter”, but I think all of them featured Christmas specifically in some way.

There’s a fun range here, and I think it was one of the earlier ones, since they had a Margery Allingham one to include as well. They range around a bit in tone, with “The Carol Singers” feeling particularly dark and unpleasant (an old woman is victimised by carol singers who tie her up, covering her mouth with sticking plaster, ultimately leading to her death).

I’ve read a bunch of these collections, but I think this was one of the better ones. Or maybe I’ve just had a bit of a break from the format since last Christmas!

Rating: 4/5