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graciecat_mom's review against another edition
3.0
There is something for everyone in Mistletoe Mysteries, which is an collection of stories based around Christmas time. Some of my favorite stories from the collection include “That’s the Ticket”, by Mary Higgins Clark and by “The Live Tree” by John Lutz.
3 stars out of 5
Publication Date: 06 Dec 2016
Thanks to Open Road Integrated Media, Netgalley and Charlotte MacLeod for collecting the stories for this Advanced Reading Copy in exchange for an unbiased review.
3 stars out of 5
Publication Date: 06 Dec 2016
Thanks to Open Road Integrated Media, Netgalley and Charlotte MacLeod for collecting the stories for this Advanced Reading Copy in exchange for an unbiased review.
bplayfuli's review against another edition
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.0
Short story collection. A bit uneven in quality but most of the stories were decent. A lot of them revolve around regular characters of the different authors so familiarity with their works would certainly add to the experience.
jvilches's review against another edition
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
bev_reads_mysteries's review
3.0
Mistletoe Mysteries, a collection of short stories collected by Charlotte MacLeod made for a nice little holiday diversion and a nifty addition to my reading for the Christmas Spirit Reading Challenge. The book is made up of a variety of mystery story types by authors ranging from Mary Higgins Clark and Isaac Asimov to Marcia Muller and Aaron Elkins. It has everything from ghost stories to murders and robberies to missing teenagers. I enjoyed nearly all of the stories--there were just a few weaker tales hidden among the holiday gold. My favorite stories are "The Haunted Crescent" by Peter Lovesy and "Silent Night" by Marcia Muller.
In "The Haunted Crescent" we have one of the ghost stories in the collection. An ex-policeman is waiting in a reputedly haunted house on Christmas Eve. We are told that this is when the ghost is said to walk. Right on schedule, a pale young woman in white appears and the tale unfolds....but there is an unexpected twist at the end that makes this story more than your run-of-the mill ghost story. Lovesy does an excellent job of drawing the reader in and then pulling a clever bit of sleight of hand to change the perspective.
"Silent Night" finds Muller's detective, Sharon McCone, scouring the city on Christmas Eve for her run away nephew. The charm of this story isn't so much the mystery--there isn't much beyond the mystery of the nephew's location--but in what Sharon learns about her nephew and herself along the way. It is a nice, very short tale of redemption and how just a little attention to others can make a difference.
I give this collection three and a half stars out of five--with the two stories above rating four stars apiece.
In "The Haunted Crescent" we have one of the ghost stories in the collection. An ex-policeman is waiting in a reputedly haunted house on Christmas Eve. We are told that this is when the ghost is said to walk. Right on schedule, a pale young woman in white appears and the tale unfolds....but there is an unexpected twist at the end that makes this story more than your run-of-the mill ghost story. Lovesy does an excellent job of drawing the reader in and then pulling a clever bit of sleight of hand to change the perspective.
"Silent Night" finds Muller's detective, Sharon McCone, scouring the city on Christmas Eve for her run away nephew. The charm of this story isn't so much the mystery--there isn't much beyond the mystery of the nephew's location--but in what Sharon learns about her nephew and herself along the way. It is a nice, very short tale of redemption and how just a little attention to others can make a difference.
I give this collection three and a half stars out of five--with the two stories above rating four stars apiece.
carolsnotebook's review
4.0
I don't know why, but I am more likely to pick up short story collections in December than any other time of year. It's even better when they're mysteries. This collection, like most, has high points and low points. I have read several of the authors before and discovered a couple I'd like to read more of.
A couple of my favorites: (okay, more than a couple. There were a lot of good stories here.)
"The Haunted Crescent" by Peter Lovesey has a great twist at the end that I didn't see coming.
"Dutch Treat" by Aaron Elkins was fun. I tend to like when art and murder go hand in hand.
"The Touch of Koyada" by Edward Hoch was another good one. I love how some writers can just pack so much into so few pages. I think I'll read more of his Simon Ark stories.
Of course, Pronzini's "Here Comes Santa Claus" was enjoyable. I like his Nameless Detective.
A few misses:
Dorothy Salisbury Davis' "Christopher and Maggie" just didn't keep my attention. I kept having to re-read bits to remember what was going on.
"The Live Tree" by John Lutz took a bit of a paranormal turn that didn't work for me.
This is definitely a collection worth reading around this time of year. Overall, the quality was good; none of the tales were absolutely terrible. It's pretty clean and pretty non-violent. They are not all murder mysteries, although most are.
A couple of my favorites: (okay, more than a couple. There were a lot of good stories here.)
"The Haunted Crescent" by Peter Lovesey has a great twist at the end that I didn't see coming.
"Dutch Treat" by Aaron Elkins was fun. I tend to like when art and murder go hand in hand.
"The Touch of Koyada" by Edward Hoch was another good one. I love how some writers can just pack so much into so few pages. I think I'll read more of his Simon Ark stories.
Of course, Pronzini's "Here Comes Santa Claus" was enjoyable. I like his Nameless Detective.
A few misses:
Dorothy Salisbury Davis' "Christopher and Maggie" just didn't keep my attention. I kept having to re-read bits to remember what was going on.
"The Live Tree" by John Lutz took a bit of a paranormal turn that didn't work for me.
This is definitely a collection worth reading around this time of year. Overall, the quality was good; none of the tales were absolutely terrible. It's pretty clean and pretty non-violent. They are not all murder mysteries, although most are.
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