The most chilling read of Christmas 2020.
As the snow begins to fall, the body count begins to climb… surprise, and a promise – twelve days, twelve murders. Not long after, the first body is found, half frozen in the snow.
As the blizzards descend, panic spreads through the remote Cumbrian village – there’s a killer amongst them, and with eleven more victims to go, anyone could be next….
Can James stop the killer before they strike again?
The first in a new series, Alex Pine has written a dark, atmospheric crime novel, set in a snowed-in Cumbrian village, for fans of Val McDermid, Ross Greenwood and LJ Ross.
more
Full of twists and turns – I do like a really well written seasonal crime thriller!
A little slow, but lots of twists and turns.
A good mystery book for the Christmas season.
It sounds interesting an have me wanted to hear more
Who doesn’t love a snowed in murder mystery set at Christmas? Here is a good one to get you through some of these cold nights. DI James Walker has moved from the big city to village life in Kendal. Coming home one night he finds a package that he thinks is a present and gets a gross surprise instead. There’s also a card inside saying that 12 people will be killed in 12 Days. Can he find the killer before all of these people die? Oh and did I mention that there is a blizzard coming? There are lots of twists and turns in this wonderful whodunit. This is a very atmospheric read. And I recommend it.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book that I received from NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
“The Christmas Killer” (DI James Walker series, book one) by Alex Pine
A London detective bows to his wife’s wishes and moves to her small hometown in Northern England to get out of the crime-infested big city. During a spot of bad weather and blizzard, bodies and Christmas cards promising more of the same drop all over the place. Panic spreads and innocent small-town folk prove to be not so innocent at all. The characters are interesting and the plot complex. I really enjoyed the story and for once my guess as to who the bad guy was turned out to be right.
A really good whodunit! Lots of characters and plenty of red herrings. A small village with virtually no crime is suddenly a target for a serial killer. Who could possibly be killing in this sleepy place without getting caught even with police patrolling? And why is someone taunting police with Christmas cards? Can’t wait to read more in this (hopefully!) series.
I received a free copy of this book from Netgalley and the publisher and voluntarily chose to review it.
I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. First of all, I would like to say that as excited as I was about this book, (Christmas and Killings), it did not hold my interest and I found myself only being able to read a chapter or two at a time. I don’t know if that is specifically the book, or if it was me, so I cannot honestly say if this is a fast-paced or a very slow book. What I will say is that once I buckled down and read more than a couple chapters at a time, I did enjoy it.
DI James Walker and his wife Annie move back to her hometown, a small village in northern England. DI Walker receives a Christmas card stating that there will be one murdered villager, who deserves to die, for each of the twelve days of Christmas. DI Walker and his team try to find the murderer, amidst a blizzard that cuts them off from the rest of civilization.
If you find yourself bizarrely struggling like I did, do stick with it, it is worth the outcome.
This is the first book in a new series.
The Christmas Killer is a slow burn detective novel following Detective James Walker and his wife Annie who recently moved to Annie’s hometown, the very small village of Cumbria, from London. I particularly enjoyed the setting, as well as that the author included short one time only chapters from the victims perspectives.
Content Warnings: racism; pedophilia (not on page)
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the ARC. The opinions in this review are honest and my own.
DI James Walker and his wife have recently relocated to a small remote village. It’s a big change from London, but they’re both working on fitting in. There’s not much crime here and Walker finds himself a little bored … he’s used to all the ‘big’ crime in London. But when someone from their past gets out of prison prematurely, they are threatened and in order to appease his wife, they leave, and don’t bother with a change of address note.
It’s almost Christmas and Walker’s thoughts are about decorating, buying presents, and his wife has invited his whole family to spend Christmas with them. Returning home after another long day, he finds an early Christmas on his front porch.
What he finds when he opens the box, inside is a grisly surprise with a note attached.
Think 12 days of Christmas … promising a body for every day until Christmas. This was just the first. It’s not too long before another body is found, buried in the snow.
How many more bodies will be found before the killer is caught? Is this connected to the reason they left London? Is there somewhere in their new home town who has taken issue with him and/or his family?
A new crime series is always welcome… especially when it begins with a lot of suspense that steadily increases until the very end. (No cliffhangers here). This is action packed and will keep you riveted from start to finish. The characters are solidly drawn lending credibility to the story. I look forward to more adventures of DI Walker.
Many thanks to the author / Avon Books / Netgalley for the digital copy of this crime fiction. Read and reviewed voluntarily, opinions expressed here are unbiased and entirely my own.