A Killer Christmas by Jessica Fletcher
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
**3.5-stars rounded up**
I’m rounding up for nostalgia, but either way, this was still an enjoyable Cozy Mystery. It’s set in Cabot Cove in the festive days leading up to Christmas.
While A Killer Christmas didn’t contain the most compelling mystery for me, taking over half the book to get to our murder, I still had fun sitting front row to all the town drama. You know I’m always down for that!
This is the 59th-installment of my all-time favorite Cozy Mystery series. I cherish my time with Jessica Fletcher; always have, always will. If I’m counting correctly, this is the 48th-book that I have read in this series.
In case you are new to the Murder, She Wrote books, these can be read in any order and can really be divided into two types: the Cabot Cove mysteries, which are set in Jessica’s hometown and involve a recurring cast of local characters, and the ones that are set around the world during the course of Jessica’s travels as a best-selling mystery author.
It would be difficult for me to select my favorite type. I think I prefer the travel ones, because I like to go along with Jess to the various places, however, there is something to be said about the comfort of returning to Cabot Cove.
In this one, as Christmas approaches, the entire town is getting into the holiday spirit. In fact, for the first time, the town is competing in a state-sponsored competition to be voted the Christmas Town of Maine.
With cash for the town’s non-profits and local businesses on the line, the locals are ready to put on the most festive holiday events that the town has ever seen.
In the midst of all this, local realtor and friend of Jessica, Eve Simpson has a marlin on the line, by way of Boston-based businessman, John Bragdon, who is hoping to buy the old Jarvis homestead. Eve is in a tizzy trying to impress Bragdon and see the sale through.
Eve organizes a dinner where Bragdon and his wife will be able to rub elbows with the who’s-who of Cabot Cove. Of course, as one of the most successful authors currently in the Mystery biz, Jessica secures an invite.
Although she’s not crazy about the idea, Jessica does agree to help Eve. A few of her other friends will be there too, so it can’t be all bad.
Dinner is going well, when the party is suddenly interrupted by the long-missing, and assumed dead, Kenny Jarvis. He heard his sister was putting their family home on the market and has returned to stake his claim. He announces that the Bradgons will never live in his house.
When Rose Marie Bragdon, John’s wife, dies unexpectedly days later, Kenny is quickly the number one suspect.
He was witnessed by many threatening her, but Jessica isn’t so sure it’s as simple as all of that. Doing what she does best, Jessica digs in, determined to find out the truth about what happened to Rose Marie.
As mentioned above, this mystery wasn’t super compelling for me, but everything else going on in the town certainly made up for it, IMO.
The realtor, Eve, a recurring character, always drives me a little batty. She’s abrasive, frequently steam-rolling over those around her. It’s just her personality. Jessica puts up with her in good grace, and I always feel schooled in the patience department.
Why she is even friends with this woman, I will never know.
Eve needed this sale. She reeked of desperation and was willing to do anything to get the Jarvis property sold. Bless Jessica and the others for being willing to help her out.
More than the sale though, the Christmas competition was providing quite a bit of tension in town as well. People were divided on where the winnings should go, if they were actually to win, and the planning of the events themselves got stressful.
Overall though, I did love the holiday vibes pouring from the pages. And all this stuff that I’m talking about, the stress, the tension, it did succeed in pulling me in. It made me invested. I love these characters and this town. I mean, at this point, even I feel like a local, so I was into it. It made me ready to start my own Christmas planning.
Terrie Farley Moran has done a great job with her contributions to this series. This is her 6th, I believe. I’ve read them all and I have really enjoyed them all.
I love how she has kept the original tone of the series, and she for sure has Jessica’s character and mannerisms down. I love this series with my whole heart. I will never, ever stop reading them. If you are looking for a Cozy Mystery series, a true Cozy, I can’t recommend this one highly enough.
I know for me there is a level of nostalgia that others may not have, but even without that nostalgia, I think these are still highly enjoyable mysteries.
Thank you to the publisher, Berkley, for providing me with a copy to read and review. I always look forward to the latest Murder, She Wrote. Please keep them coming!