Puzzle compiler and former Christmas sceptic Edie O’Sullivan returns in the newest seasonal mystery from bestselling author and ‘Queen of the Christmas Mystery’ Alexandra Benedict.

When Edie O’Sullivan wins a two-day Christmas break in a hotel on a remote Scottish island, she’s looking forward to a picture-perfect Christmas full of winter walks, roaring fires, good books and even better whisky.

But when a guest dies under mysterious circumstances, Edie realises that there is a killer amongst them. As more guests begin to die, it’s up to her to solve the strange riddles found in the victims’ Christmas crackers and stop the killing spree. But as she gets closer to the truth, she puts herself in the way of a devious and clever murderer.

Can Edie solve these Christmas killings before she becomes the next victim?

PRAISE FOR ALEXANDRA BENEDICT’S CHRISTMAS MYSTERIES:

‘The perfect gift for quizzers and mystery addicts’ VAL McDERMID  
‘Whatever you unwrap for Christmas, you had better hope it’s this book. This is 21st-century cosy Christmas crime that doesn’t shy away from the darkness’  JANICE HALLETT
‘A thrilling journey from start to finish. Highly recommended’ ELLY GRIFFITHS
‘It’s wonderful! A page-turning homage to the Golden Age, with a dash of Poirot and a dark, modern heart’ S J BENNETT

‘Sometimes, to solve the toughest crimes, you need to see the world differently?enter our group of ND supersleuths. Not since the London Eye Mystery has an author championed the beauty of difference so enjoyably.’ Phil Earle

‘A deliciously clever festive mystery, brimming with heart, humour, and a cast of sleuths you’ll cheer for on every page. I devoured it in one sitting.’ Jenny Pearson
 
 Every year, six local schools compete to win the Christmas Cup. Last year, the rival school to Brooke Parkin’s school won for the most crackers pulled in a minute! This year, the cup will be judged and awarded to the school with the perfect mince pie. But when a series of murders seemed to be linked to the very mince pies (each with a clue from a letter from the alphabet imprinted in the pastry) the five neuro-divergent children must turn detective and combine their skill sets to find the killer. Can they prevent another death and save their out-of-school club from being shut down forever . . .?

• Perfect for Christmas
• Intricately weaved murder-mystery series
• Authentic representation of  neuro-divergency featuring characters with ADHD, autism, dyslexia, dyscalculia

   

   

THIS CHRISTMAS, A KILLER TAKES FAMILY GAMES TO A MURDEROUS NEW LEVEL.

On 19th  of December, renowned puzzle setter, loner and Christmas sceptic Edie O’Sullivan finds a hand-delivered present on her doorstep. Unwrapping it, she finds a jigsaw box and, inside, six jigsaw pieces. When fitted together, the pieces show part of a crime scene – blood-spattered black and white tiles and part of an outlined body. Included in the parcel is a message: ‘Four, maybe more, people will be dead by midnight on Christmas Eve, unless you can put all the pieces together and stop me.’ It’s signed, Rest In Pieces.

Edie contacts her nephew, DI Sean Brand-O’Sullivan, and together they work to solve the clues. But when a man is found near death with a jigsaw piece in his hand, Sean fears that Edie might be in danger and shuts her out of the investigation. As the body count rises, however, Edie knows that only she has the knowledge to put together the killer’s murderous puzzle.

Only by fitting all the pieces together will Edie be able to stop a killer – and finally lay her past to rest.

Praise for Alexandra Benedict’s Christmas mysteries:

‘The perfect gift for quizzers and mystery addicts . . .’ Val McDermid
‘Whatever you unwrap for Christmas, you had better hope it’s this book  This is 21st-century cosy Christmas crime that doesn’t shy away from the darkness’ Janice Hallett
‘A thrilling journey from start to finish. Highly recommended’ Elly Griffiths
‘It’s wonderful! A page-turning homage to the Golden Age, with a dash of Poirot and a dark, modern heart’ S J Bennett

THIS CHRISTMAS, A KILLER TAKES FAMILY GAMES TO A MURDEROUS NEW LEVEL.

On 19th  of December, renowned puzzle setter, loner and Christmas sceptic Edie O’Sullivan finds a hand-delivered present on her doorstep. Unwrapping it, she finds a jigsaw box and, inside, six jigsaw pieces. When fitted together, the pieces show part of a crime scene – blood-spattered black and white tiles and part of an outlined body. Included in the parcel is a message: ‘Four, maybe more, people will be dead by midnight on Christmas Eve, unless you can put all the pieces together and stop me.’ It’s signed, Rest In Pieces.

Edie contacts her nephew, DI Sean Brand-O’Sullivan, and together they work to solve the clues. But when a man is found near death with a jigsaw piece in his hand, Sean fears that Edie might be in danger and shuts her out of the investigation. As the body count rises, however, Edie knows that only she has the knowledge to put together the killer’s murderous puzzle.

Only by fitting all the pieces together will Edie be able to stop a killer – and finally lay her past to rest.

Praise for Alexandra Benedict’s Christmas mysteries:

‘The perfect gift for quizzers and mystery addicts . . .’ Val McDermid
‘Whatever you unwrap for Christmas, you had better hope it’s this book  This is 21st-century cosy Christmas crime that doesn’t shy away from the darkness’ Janice Hallett
‘A thrilling journey from start to finish. Highly recommended’ Elly Griffiths
‘It’s wonderful! A page-turning homage to the Golden Age, with a dash of Poirot and a dark, modern heart’ S J Bennett

CAN  YOU SOLVE THE CASE?  

‘Whatever you unwrap for Christmas, you had better hope it’s this book. This is 21st-century cosy Christmas crime that doesn’t shy away from the darkness. Eighteen passengers, seven stops, one killer Christmas read’ JANICE HALLETT
‘The perfect book to read on a train . . . A thrilling journey from start to finish. Highly recommended’ ELLY GRIFFITHS
‘It’s wonderful! A page-turning homage to the Golden Age, with a dash of Poirot and a dark, modern heart’  S J BENNETT
   
Eighteen passengers. Seven stops. One killer.

In the early hours of Christmas Eve, the sleeper train to the Highlands is derailed, along with the festive plans of its travellers. With the train stuck in snow in the middle of nowhere, a killer stalks its carriages, picking off passengers one by one. Those who sleep on the sleeper train may never wake again.

Can former Met detective Roz Parker find the killer before they kill again?

All aboard for . . .  Murder on the Christmas Express.

‘Whatever you unwrap for Christmas, you had better hope it’s this book  This is 21st-century cosy Christmas crime that doesn’t shy away from the darkness. Eighteen passengers, seven stops, one killer Christmas read’ JANICE HALLETT, THE TIMES
‘The perfect book to read on a train…A thrilling journey from start to finish. Highly recommended’ ELLY GRIFFITHS
‘It’s wonderful! A page-turning homage to the Golden Age, with a dash of Poirot and a dark, modern heart’ S J BENNETT
‘Magnificent! A smart, suspenseful and snow-covered mystery with plenty of heart and more than a few quiz questions. A total must read for Christmas’ STEPH BROADRIBB
‘I absolutely loved it! Such a clever and pacy read with a glorious nod to classic Christie’ JO JAKEMAN
‘An engrossing and heart-warming mystery.  Like a glorious Christmas chocolate – beautiful on the outside with a richly dark centre.  Perfect to curl up with on cold winter nights’  MARION TODD
‘A genuine Christmas Feast. It’s traditional wrapping conceals a fiendish mystery, a heart of darkness and – in Roz – a wonderfully flawed heroine that you will absolutely fall in love with. If you like your Christmas murderous and melancholy, it’s going to keep you very happy over the Festive Period’ DEREK FARRELL
‘A thought-provoking modern take on a Golden Age mystery. Set on a sleeper train racing into the snow y darkness, this atmospheric tale features a tight cast of vividly-drawn characters, and piercing observation. Expertly crafted, the story kept me glued to the pages until the mystery was finally – and satisfyingly – revealed. A great read – I loved it’ AMANDA JENNINGS
‘It’s an absolute cracker (not sorry…). Many try to emulate Christie but this is the real atmospheric deal’  SINEAD CROWLEY
   
Eighteen passengers. Seven stops. One killer.

In the early hours of Christmas Eve, the sleeper train to the Highlands is derailed, along with the festive plans of its travellers. With the train stuck in snow in the middle of nowhere, a killer stalks its carriages, picking off passengers one by one. Those who sleep on the sleeper train may never wake again.

Can former Met detective Roz Parker find the killer before they kill again?

All aboard for . . .  Murder on the Christmas Express

Praise for Alexandra Benedict’s Christmas books:

‘The perfect gift for quizzers and mystery addicts  . . . A  delicious locked room mystery  crammed with  cryptic clues, secrets in sonnets and a deadly game. But it’s more than a series of puzzles, it’s also an entertaining exploration of relationships and  a riveting read’ VAL McDERMID  

‘Perfectly pitched for cold nights and warm fires. A lovely Golden Age tribute’ SINEAD CROWLEY  

‘A perfectly plotted festive mystery’ SUSI HOLLIDAY

‘Clever and twisty’ CRIME MONTHLY  

‘One for book lovers that can’t get enough of mystery fiction – even during Christmas’ THE SUN

‘Packed with riddles, anagrams and puzzles, this is an  engaging murder mystery that will grip you until the end’ DAILY MIRROR

‘This is the perfect Christmas book. Get it for yourself to read when the nights are cold and dark and give it as a present. To everyone!’ MARTYN WAITES

‘Curl up by the fire (and lock all the doors) for this Christmas cracker of a book’  C.S. GREEN

‘Utterly original and breathtakingly intriguing . . . A must-read this Christmas’  STEPH BROADRIBB

‘The perfect updating of the classic Christmas Country House mystery . . . Fabulous festive fun’  DEREK FARRELL

‘The perfect Christmas read . . . and puzzles galore for both readers and the players of the game’  W.C. RYAN

‘Atmospheric and pacy’ BEST

‘A DELICIOUS LOCKED ROOM MYSTERY’ VAL MCDERMID

Twelve clues.
Twelve keys.
Twelve days of Christmas.
But who will survive until Twelfth Night?

Lily Armitage never intended to return to Endgame House – the grand family home where her mother died twenty-one Christmases ago. Until she receives a letter from her aunt, asking her to return to take part in an annual tradition: the Christmas Game. The challenge? Solve twelve clues, to find twelve keys. The prize? The deeds to the manor house.

Lily has no desire to win the house. But her aunt makes one more promise: The clues will also reveal who really killed Lily’s mother all those years ago.

So, for the twelve days of Christmas, Lily must stay at Endgame House with her estranged cousins and unravel the riddles that hold the key not just to the family home, but to its darkest secrets. However, it soon becomes clear that her cousins all have their own reasons for wanting to win the house – and not all of them are playing fair.

As a snowstorm cuts them off from the village, the game turns deadly. Soon Lily realises that she is no longer fighting for an inheritance, but for her life.

This Christmas is to die for . . . Let the game begin

READERS LOVE THE CHRISTMAS MURDER GAME:

‘I could not be more in love with this book if I tried’
‘An absolute must read’
‘Poetic, immersive and imbued with heart as well as an icy bite’
‘the perfect read to snuggle up with in the bleak midwinter!’
‘A wonderful read on a cold snowy winters day, sit back and enjoy the ride’
‘Cluedo in a book!’
‘An absolutely brilliant read for this time of year!’
‘My favourite book of this year so far!’