January

screenshot of a copy of Death Comes at Christmas, edited by Marie O'Regan and Paul Kane, face-down on a red, knitted surface, beside a white mug with toy soldiers on it. A living room decorated for Christmas is in the background, with twinkling lights on a Christmas tree, an armchair, and a TV at the back of the room

In the run-up to the big day last month, lots of people were posting their pictures of Marie and Paul’s anthology from Titan Books, Death Comes at Christmas, like @noirreadsandknits @lovetoread42 @shelf_ishly_lit @moremysteryplease and  @thebookpear (above and below).

photograph of a copy of Death Comes at Christmas, edited by Marie O'Regan and Paul Kane, on a wreath of holly leaves and red berries, against a cream background

photograph of someone dressed in black trousers and trainers, sitting on a window seat, holding a copy of Death Comes at Christmas, edited by Marie O'Regan and Paul Kane

display of three standing Christmas mysteries on a cream cloth in front of a Christmas tree. Titles are: The Christmas Guest, by Peter Swanson; Everyone This Christmas Has a Secret by Benjamin Stevenson, and Death Comes at Christmas, edited by Marie O'Regan and Paul Kane

photograph of a copy of Death Comes at Christmas, edited by Marie O'Regan and Paul Kane, on a green blanket decorated with twinkling lights and a gingerbread man with the head bitten off

It was also spotted in bookstores around the world, including Switzerland and Germany below (photos courtesy Fabienne Schwizer and Helen Fields).

photograph of a bookstore display featuring Death Comes at Christmas, edited by Marie O'Regan and Paul Kane, standing in front of a red paper Christmas tree

Display in a German bookstore, featuring Death Comes at Christmas, edited by Marie O'Regan and Paul Kane

Marie and Paul were busy doing more publicity for the book as well, including an interview on the US based Sirius XM Nemo radio show with a reach of about 2 million, they went on author Cavan Scott’s substack talking about their Perfect Sunday – see Marie’s here – plus they talked to Horror Tree here, all below.

screenshot from Radio Nemo. Text reads: 9:00am ET (30 min): New ot the Sleeper Cab Library: Death Comes at Christmas. Editors and couple Marie O'Regan and Paul Kane gather 18 festive stories of murder and mystery in the grand tradition of Christmas crime fiction.

screenshot of Cavan Scott newsletter: Marie O'Regan's Perfect Sunday. Crime novels, perfect Sunday rom-coms, and weekend lie-ins

image of Death Comes at Christmas, edited by Marie O'Regan and Paul Kane, against a dark, wooden background. Text reads: An interview with Marie O'Regan and Paul Kane on Death Comes at Christmas

While Town & Country magazine included Death Comes at Christmas in their ’21 Coziest Holiday Mysteries to Read This Festive Season’ alongside books by Agatha Christie, Janice Hallett and Louise Penny here.

screenshot from Town&Country. Text reads; The 21 Coziest Holiday Mysteries to Read This Festive Season

The book also continued being reviewed, including by the Peterborough Telegraph (below), who gave it 8/10 and said: ‘Here’s an 18-story anthology of murderous tidings from top crime writers taking slay rides with locked room mysteries, whodunnits and festive season tinsel-wrapped twists. Top contributors include Sarah Hilary, Liz Mistry, Claire McGowan, Belinda Bauer and Vaseem Khan - so, no turkeys!’

Banner - Peterborough Telegraph

screenshot from Peterborough Telegraph - Books reviews, including Death Comes at Christmas, edited by Marie O'Regan and Paul Kane

Colin Steele of the Canberra City News (below) said: ‘It opens with the CL Taylor story, “How to Commit Murder in a Bookshop”, which Taylor says was inspired by a Christmas party she attended at Waterstones bookshop in Swindon… The second story, “Christmas Yet To Come” by Helen Fields, spins off the characters Charles Dickens created in A Christmas Carol. It begins on Christmas Eve 1899 when Marley, the nephew of Jacob Marley, who had inherited his wealth, is walking through the corridors of the Marley Memorial Workhouse… Vaseem Khan, the award-winning author of the Malabar House series, sees in “Indian Winter”, his main character Persis, India’s first female police detective, collaborating once more with Archie, an English forensic scientist. This time they are investigating and ultimately solving an intriguing locked room murder in a Bombay mansion on Christmas Day, 1950…And in Liz Mistry’s “Secret Santa”, in which the Christmas office party has a deadly outcome.’

screenshot from Canberra City News - text reads Nothing says Christmas like murder and mystery

The Cozy Owlet (below) had this to say: ‘A benefit of a short story collection like this one is that it doesn’t have to stick to one definition of “festive”. Authors can – and do – apply their own interpretation of crime at the holidays. The result is a delightfully diverse set of stories, from the creepy to the warm. You’ve got the Dickensian setting, and a historical Indian one. There are stories set in Victorian England and at an office Secret Santa. There are the snowed-in villages that turn dangerous, and the hotel Christmas crimes. And of course there’s the requisite bookshop crime story, almost required in this kind of collection. The stories are also ordered in a way that maximizes this feeling of diversity, bouncing from setting to setting, vibe to vibe. I personally love warm, cozy Christmas, and this ordering helped me get through the darkness of the thrillers. Knowing a cozy or heartwarming story would soon follow made it easier to sink into the creepier stories. If you’re a fan of modern crime writing, there is likely at least one short story here that will tickle your fancy.’ 

Read the full thing here.

photograph of a copy of Death Comes at Christmas, edited by Marie O'Regan and Paul Kane, standing between a robin and a penguin dressed in Christmas scarves and hats, behind pine leaves and in front of a white background with a red reindeer garland strung across it

Mat Coward over at Morning Star (below), said: ‘Crime stories have been a fixture at Christmas for well over a century now, and Death Comes At Christmas (Titan, £19.99), edited by Marie O’Regan and Paul Kane, is one of the best anthologies of its type I can remember. There’s not a single weak entry among the 18 pieces by as many authors, and several real winners, with a good variety of tone and type, from locked rooms reminiscent of the Golden Age to forensic techs wearing bloodstained paper suits. I won’t try and pick out highlights, for fear of slighting the others, except to say that Alexandra Benedict deserves a Best Punning Title prize for “The Midnight Mass Murderer”.’

screenshot from Morning Star featuring Death Comes at Christmas, edited by Marie O'Regan and Paul Kane

screenshot of Morning Star's review of Death Comes at Christmas, edited by Marie O'Regan and Paul Kane. 'One of the best anthologies of its type I can remember'

Finally, @travels.along.my.bookshelf called it: ‘A fabulous festive collection of short stories featuring a gathering of great writers and all in the tradition of Christmas crime. There’s something for everyone here.’ Steve Beresford said: ‘This is a great anthology of festive short stories, from locked-room mysteries to whodunits. All very Christmassy & murdery. Superb stuff!’ @thestucumminsreads stated: ‘I absolutely loved this book! I enjoyed every single story. There is quite a mix of themes, time periods, styles, and subject matters.’ And Lee Allen over on Goodreads offered: ‘From stories in the style of Golden Age classics to gritty modern thrillers, set in the snowy English countryside to the heat of Bombay, India, we are treated to a delightfully gripping mix of brutal crimes and complex puzzles, with flourishes of comedy, romance and creepy chills, all with a sprinkling of seasonal fun…Overall, this is a collection of well-written, thrilling tales, many in the tradition of much-loved and classic Christmas tales and mysteries, and a fantastic showcase of writers from the world of modern crime fiction, each tale an enjoyable slice of Yuletide magic. Highly recommended reading for these cold nights as we count down to Christmas.’ (All below)

photograph of someone holding a copy of Death Comes at Christmas, edited by Marie O'Regan and Paul Kane, against a white background and a green plant. Text reads: Review. This one hits the spot perfectly for Christmas crime reading

photograph of a hand holding a copy of Death Comes at Christmas, edited by Marie O'Regan and Paul Kane, up against full bookshelves

screenshot showing a copy of Death Comes at Christmas, edited by Marie O'Regan and Paul Kane, lying on a golden wreath

photograph of a copy of Death Comes at Christmas, edited by Marie O'Regan and Paul Kane, lying on a bed of pine leaves, red berries, golden pine cones

You can still keep the spirit alive and grab your copy here!

Cover for French edition of Twice Cursed, edited by Marie O'Regan and Paul Kane

Following on from last month’s news, here’s the exclusive cover reveal for the 404 Editions French version of Marie and Paul’s anthology Twice Cursed (above and below). We’re sure you’ll agree it looks stunning!

photograph of the French edition of Twice Cursed, edited by Marie O'Regan and Paul Kane

You can still pick up the UK edition here, however.

Banner image: Call for submissions - short stories. Flame Tree

A future anthology now, and a callout for stories has been posted for Marie and Paul’s follow up to Beyond & Within – Folk Horror from Flame Tree: Witchcraft! You can read the guidelines here, but hurry, because you don't have long...