BlogMas Day Seven – Book Review – The Usual Santas: A Collection of Soho Crime Christmas Capers
So I thought I would share some of the festive books I have read and have been published lately which are wonderful for getting in the Christmas spirit.
The Usual Santas: A Collection of Soho Crime Christmas Capers is a collection of eighteen festive short stories by a range of authors. I haven’t read a short story book in a while but do really enjoy them from time to time. The cover looked fun, if a little like a children’s book but it certainly isn’t one! They were certainly some funny stories, some dark humour, some were lovely and some sad. It was a real mixed bag and there were only a couple I didn’t finish that didn’t seem to suck me in like the others did.
Description
Finally: the perfect stocking stuffer for the crime fiction lover in your life! With a foreword by CWA Diamond Award-winner Peter Lovesey, these eighteen delightful holiday stories by your favorite Soho Crime authors contain laughs, murders, and plenty more.
This captivating collection, which features bestselling and award-winning authors, contains laughs aplenty, the most hardboiled of holiday noir, and heartwarming reminders of the spirit of the season.
Nine mall Santas must find the imposter among them. An elderly lady seeks peace from her murderously loud neighbors at Christmastime. A young woman receives a mysterious invitation to Christmas dinner with a stranger. Niccolò Machiavelli sets out to save an Italian city. Sherlock Holmes’s one-time nemesis Irene Adler finds herself in an unexpected tangle in Paris while on a routine espionage assignment. Jane Austen searches for the Dowager Duchess of Wilborough’s stolen diamonds. These and other adventures in this delectable volume will whisk readers away to Christmases around the globe, from a Korean War POW camp to a Copenhagen refugee squat, from a palatial hotel in 1920s Bombay to a crumbling mansion in Havana.
Includes Stories By (In Order of Appearance):
Helene Tursten, Mick Herron, Martin Limón, Timothy Hallinan, Teresa Dovalpage, Mette Ivie Harrison, Colin Cotterill, Ed Lin, Stuart Neville, Tod Goldberg, Henry Chang, James R. Benn, Lene Kaaberbøl & Agnete Friis, Sujata Massey, Gary Corby, Cara Black, Stephanie Barron and a Foreword and story by Peter Lovesey
Favourite Stories
Chalee’s Nativity
This story is set in Bangkok and is about two street children, Chalee and Apple. It is a sweet story, if a little sad as it is never nice to think of children like this, especially at Christmas. The bond between the two is ever present though and it just shows what joy can be bought through the simplest of things.
Cabaret Aux Assassins
This was probably my favourite of all the stories and I wish there was more! The only problem with some short stories is that you wish they weren’t short at all, but full novels. This book has mystery, spies, Paris and even Sherlock Holmes. It was a fab read and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Supper With Miss Shivers
A heartwarming ghost story emerges after a couple are invited to dinner by a stranger. Although a strange situation, this is a lovely little Christmas story.
When The Time Comes
This is a good story, which shows that even the bad have some good in them. I enjoyed this one and had my fingers crossed through it all for the central character, hoping she would get her Christmas wish of where she wanted to be. And a baby is born which is always lovely!
I liked the fact that each story had an introduction to the author which also mentioned their other work. It is a good place to start looking when you read a story by an author you enjoy and want to find more.
If you are a short story fan, or haven’t read one before but enjoy dark humour, mystery and Christmas then I suggest you give this one a go. I really enjoyed it and I am sure you will too
Where To Buy
Waterstones
https://www.waterstones.com/book/9781616957759
Amazon
The Spoonie Mummy 
sounds fun – I was expecting it to be a kid book
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It looks like it from the cover doesn’t it! xx
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This cover is so cute! I need more Christmas reads, I might have to check these out!
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It is! But definitely not for kids! xx
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I think I must be the odd one out, I can never manage to bring myself to read holiday books during the holiday I usually find myself reading them in the middle of the summer when the heat is scorching down on me. So I’ll will save these for my Christmas in July.
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Ha ha I suppose it is nice to feel festive then too! I still watch Christmas films all year! xx
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I love christmas films, especially the lifetime and hallmark movies, I’m a sucker for them
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Yeah, they draw you in don’t they! I have put one on before to do the cleaning too and end up engrossed! x
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Hahaha, I have learned my lesson never before cleaning or before bed, otherwise nothing will get done and I’ll be up all night.
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Very true! I end up like that with a good book though mostly! X
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Heading to Amazon…
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Hope you enjoy it! X
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Sounds like an interesting read! Awesome review!
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Thankyou, it really was x
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Sounds charming!!!
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Thankyou Caroline x
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I’m not a big fan of short stories but this sounds kind-of interesting 🙂 Great review! Btw…what is Blogmas?
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I didn’t expect to be but now and again I like something a little different, Roald Dahl started me off with short stories! BlogMas is where you blog every day from December 1st to Christmas! Xx
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I like the sound of this book. Might have to look it up.
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It was something a little different but I enjoyed it! X
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