Deanna Raybourn's Favorite Christmas Murder Reads

There’s something so delightfully cozy about Christmas murder in an English village. Crackling fires, roasting chestnuts, and a corpse on the hearthrug—what could be jollier? As soon as the Thanksgiving leftovers are packed in the fridge, mystery author Deanna Raybourn pulls out her favorite reads and settle in for a festive month of nostalgic crime.

8 books

A snowy death, a country Christmas, and Jane Austen at hand to solve the mystery. Perfection.

Jane and the Twelve Days of Christmas

Stephanie Barron

Deanna Raybourn

Paperback, 2015

$16.95$8.48 + Free shipping50% off your first book

There are heaps of holiday anthologies and these are two of my favorites. Perfect gifts for the mystery reader who may have overlooked some of the more elusive stories Edwards includes.

A Surprise for Christmas and Other Seasonal Mysteries

Martin Edwards

British Library Publishing

Paperback, 2021

$14.99$7.49 + Free shipping50% off your first book

Silent Nights: Christmas Mysteries

Martin Edwards

Deanna Raybourn

Paperback, 2015

$14.99$7.49 + Free shipping50% off your first book

For decades, “a Christie for Christmas” by the Queen of Crime herself was guaranteed holiday happiness for mystery fans.

Midwinter Murder: Fireside Tales from the Queen of Mystery

Agatha Christie

HIDEO_KOJIMA & Janet Emson

Paperback, 2020

$18.99$9.49 + Free shipping50% off your first book

Throw in a copy of 4:50 From Paddington as its post-Christmas setting rounds out the trio nicely.

4:50 from Paddington: A Miss Marple Mystery

Agatha Christie

Cory Doctorow @pluralistic@mamot.fr AFK 'til Sep 5 & BBC News (World)

Paperback, 2022

$18.99$9.49 + Free shipping50% off your first book

If that still isn’t enough—and your recipient enjoys non-fiction—wrap up Lucy Worsley’s new biography, Agatha Christie: An Elusive Woman, for a delightfully comprehensive present.

Agatha Christie: An Elusive Woman

Lucy Worsley

The New York Review of Books & Sara Benincasa

Hardcover, 2022

$29.95$14.98 + Free shipping50% off your first book

And perhaps the best gift of them all is that of preparation. Present the mystery lover in your life with a copy of Your Guide to not Getting Murdered in a Quaint English Village by Maureen Johnson and ensure they won’t fall victim to some dastardly deed in the hedgerows of Hertfordshire.

Your Guide to Not Getting Murdered in a Quaint English Village

Maureen Johnson

Maureen Johnson & Random House Group

Hardcover, 2021

$16.99$8.49 + Free shipping50% off your first book

And, don't miss: Deanna Raybourn's own book about four women assassins on the brink of retirement who are brought back into the game.

Killers of a Certain Age

Deanna Raybourn

They’ve spent their lives as the deadliest assassins in a clandestine international organization, but now that they’re sixty years old, four women friends can’t just retire – it’s kill or be killed in this action-packed thriller by New York Times bestselling and Edgar Award-nominated author Deanna Raybourn.

HIDEO_KOJIMA & Smart Bitches

Paperback, 2023

$17.00$8.50 + Free shipping50% off your first book