by Verity Bright (Author)
Wrapping presents and singing at midnight mass on a frosty night... Lady Swift is determined to enjoy Christmas at home this year, until another body turns up!
Winter 1925. Eleanor and Hugh are decking the halls for their first married Christmas together when butler Clifford arrives with a mysterious telegram. A lucrative case awaits their new detective agency... but in the most remote county in England. The note insists they must be there by midnight to accept the job.
After a snowy journey, they arrive at the tiny hamlet of Yorelow to find their client, Osmund Unwin, dead in the churchyard as midnight mass ends. They realise they are now in the absurd situation of having to solve the murder of their client - who they never met - to solve a case they know nothing about and officially never accepted!
There is very little festive goodwill to go around, as it seems half the village had a grudge against the rich man. Was it one of the Frisham sisters, owners of the tavern and rumoured to be in a love triangle with Unwin? Or perhaps his maid, who never had a nice thing to say about him?
When another body is found in the ruins of the castle overlooking the town, Eleanor is baffled. Clearly there's more to this nightmare before Christmas than the gang first thought...
A totally unputdownable historical murder mystery set in an English village at Christmas, perfect for fans of Agatha Christie, T.E. Kinsey and Catherine Coles!
Readers love Verity Bright:
'MY FAVOURITE BOOK... Had me hooked... I absolutely devoured this brilliant read in one sitting as I just could not put it down... I was gutted when I came to the end... Amazing!!!' bookwormwhitlock86, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
'I absolutely LOVED this!... Had me hooked from the beginning and I kept flipping through the pages because I could not put it down!' @bookishbri_, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
'Unputdownable... Had me hooked immediately... Filled with suspense, mystery, laughter... Absolutely perfect... I devoured it in one sitting as I just could not put it down and gave up on lying to myself saying just one more chapter as that never happened!!' Bookworm86, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
'LOVE... I finished this book in one day!' DianeLikesToRead, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
'Fabulous... Charming... A nail-biting page-turner... Fabulous... I gobbled it up in a single sitting.' Bookish Jottings, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
'The most fun I have had reading a historical mystery! I loved... had me laughing out loud before the tenth page!... I can't recommend this book enough!' Too Fond of Books, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
'Fabulous!... I absolutely adored this!... If you are a fan of Poirot, Miss Marple and Downton Abbey then this book is definitely for you... Kept me guessing right up to the very end.' my_reading_narnia, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Number of Pages: 322
Dimensions: 0.72 x 7.81 x 5.06 IN
Publication Date: December 08, 2025
