Best Cozy Mystery Christmas Anthologies
If you're looking for the perfect literary companion to cozy up with this holiday season, anthologies of Christmas-themed cozy mysteries might just be your ideal match.
These collections bring together heartwarming whodunits and festive capers, offering a delightful mix of holiday cheer and intriguing puzzles. Whether you’re curled up by the fire, sipping on hot cocoa, or sneaking a few moments of peace amid the holiday bustle, these anthologies are sure to add a sprinkle of mystery and a dash of Christmas magic to your reading list.
1. Christmas Scarf Murder
by Carlene O'Connor, Maddie Day, & Peggy Ehrhart
They’re coziest of wintertime accessories…unless, of course, they become accessories to murder! USA Today bestselling author Carlene O’Connor teams up with Maddie Day and Peggy Ehrhart for a holly jolly Christmas collection of seasonal stories, as their beloved series sleuths each solve cases revolving around handknit Christmas scarves.
CHRISTMAS SCARF MURDER by CARLENE O’CONNOR
When grinchy thefts steal the good cheer at a local nursing home, Siobhan O’Sullivan manages to identify one missing item before Kilbane, Ireland’s Christmas tractor parade—a hideous shamrock scarf wrapped around a very dead body. Now, with her holiday farmhouse bash approaching, Siobhan must dash to stop a deadly Secret Santa from gifting another unwanted surprise.
SCARFED DOWN by MADDIE DAY
It’s beginning to taste a lot like Christmas at Pans ‘N Pancakes, as twelve days of menu specials dazzle hungry locals. But the festivities go cold the instant a diner dies while knitting a brilliant green scarf. With Aunt Adele tied into a murder investigation, it’s all on Robbie Jordan to find out who’s really been naughty or nice in South Lick, Indiana.
DEATH BY CHRISTMAS SCARF by PEGGY EHRHART
Suspects pile up faster than New Jersey snow when frosty-tempered Carys Walnutt is found strangled by a handmade scarf auctioned at Arborville’s tree-lighting ceremony. Between a winning bidder hiding behind the alias “S. Claws” and a victim who deserved coal in her stocking, can Pamela Paterson and the crafty Knit and Nibble ladies freeze a killer’s merry murder plot?
2. Christmas Mittens Murder
by Lee Hollis, Lynn Cahoon, & Maddie Day
Lee Hollis headlines a new Christmas collection alongside New York Times bestselling author Lynn Cahoon and Agatha Award-winning author Maddie Day, with three cozy mysteries featuring handknit mittens made for murder…
DEATH OF A CHRISTMAS MITTEN KNITTER by LEE HOLLIS
The church’s annual Christmas bazaar is an unqualified success until the local jeweler cries out that a valuable diamond ring has been stolen. Food writer Hayley Powell joins the search for it but discovers something decidedly more shocking—the dead body of a local knitter with a homemade mitten stuffed in her mouth. With only days to spare before the holiday, Hayley must unravel the mystery of Bar Harbor’s crafty killer before someone else receives a deadly gift.
TWO CHRISTMAS MITTENS by LYNN CAHOON
Magic Springs, Idaho, is decked out in its sparkling best for the season, but Mia Malone is almost too busy to notice. Taking a second job at the Lodge to save Mia’s Morsels doesn’t leave her much time for festivities—until she finds a dead body near one red mitten in the snow outside the Lodge during the holiday party. Learning that an ancient curse is at play, Mia must find the missing mitten and solve the murder before someone she loves is the next victim.
MURDEROUS MITTENS by MADDIE DAY
A quiet Christmas in Colinas, California, at her twin sister’s charming B&B is exactly what Cece Barton needs during the holiday hustle of Los Angeles. But the morning after a lovely evening at the local wine bar, Cece learns that the bar’s proprietor, who sells mittens in her spare time, has been found dead. With her horrified twin one of the main suspects, can Cece unmask the merry murderer before this becomes a holiday from hell?
3. Christmas Card Murder
by Leslie Meier, Lee Hollis, & Peggy Ehrhart
Join bestselling authors Leslie Meier, Lee Hollis and Peggy Ehrhart for a collection of the coziest Christmas capers! Everyone dreams of a picture-perfect small-town Christmas, but when murder is in the cards, some holiday greetings are addressed to kill...
Christmas Card Murder by Leslie Meier
In the midst of holiday home renovations, Lucy Stone accidentally unwraps a murder mystery decades in the making when she discovers an old Christmas card with a nasty message belonging to one of her farmhouse's previous residents. The case may be colder than a New England Christmas, but Lucy's determined to sort it out before Santa comes to town.
Death of a Christmas Carol by Lee Hollis
The Island Times Christmas soiree gets off to a scroogey start when Hayley Powell, Mona Barnes, and Rosana Moretti receive a Christmas card from the town flirt, Carol Waterman, who threatens to run off with one of their husbands! The ladies chalk it up to an imprudent prank...until they find Carol mistletoe-up under her tree...
Death of a Christmas Card Crafter by Peggy Ehrhart
Slay bells ring when the body of Arborville High School's beloved art teacher (and annual Christmas card designer), Karma Karling, is discovered on the first day of the Holiday Craft Fair. Now, Pamela Paterson and the Knit and Nibble crew must swap swatching for sleuthing in order to put a Christmas killer on ice.
4. The Big Book of Christmas Mysteries
Edited by Otto Penzler
The most complete collection of Yuletide whodunits ever assembled • The Edgar Award-winning editor collects sixty of his all-time favorite holiday crime stories—from Arthur Conan Doyle and Thomas Hardy to Sara Paretsky and Ed McBain.
“Anyone who cares about the best mystery writing of the past century and beyond would be lucky to receive this thick volume during the holidays." —The Washington Post
This collection touches on all aspects of the holiday season, and all types of mysteries. They are suspenseful, funny, frightening, and poignant.
Included are puzzles by Mary Higgins Clark, Isaac Asimov, and Ngaio Marsh; uncanny tales in the tradition of A Christmas Carol by Peter Lovesey and Max Allan Collins; O. Henry-like stories by Stanley Ellin and Joseph Shearing, stories by pulp icons John D. MacDonald and Damon Runyon; comic gems from Donald E. Westlake and John Mortimer; and many, many more. Almost any kind of mystery you’re in the mood for--suspense, pure detection, humor, cozy, private eye, or police procedural—can be found in these pages.
FEATURING:
• Unscrupulous Santas
• Crimes of Christmases Past and Present
• Festive felonies
• Deadly puddings
• Misdemeanors under the mistletoe
• Christmas cases for classic characters including Sherlock Holmes, Brother Cadfael, Miss Marple, Hercule Poirot, Ellery Queen, Rumpole of the Bailey, Inspector Morse, Inspector Ghote, A.J. Raffles, and Nero Wolfe.
5. Christmas Sweets
by Joanne Fluke, Laura Levine, & Leslie Meier
Gathered in one volume for the very first time, here are three yuletide tales of mystery, murder, and romance, featuring your favorite sleuths . . .
THE TWELVE DESSERTS OF CHRISTMAS by JOANNE FLUKE
It’s the perfect mix of naughty and nice when two lovestruck boarding school teachers watch six kids over Christmas break. But when someone wants the cozy couple’s romance to burn out faster than a scorched fruitcake, it’s Hannah Swensen to the rescue, armed with her sleuthing
skills—and twelve deliciously festive recipes . . .
NIGHTMARE ON ELF STREET by LAURA LEVINE
Aside from the mortifying costume, how bad can a gig as a mall Santa’s elf be? Jaine Austen finds out when she’s teamed up with the Santa from Hell. But things go from bad to worse when he’s found murdered on the job—and Jaine is a suspect. Now all she wants for Christmas is to find the real killer . . .
THE CHRISTMAS THIEF by LESLIE MEIER
Elizabeth Stone is ready for a white Christmas in Tinker’s Cove, Maine—until a fancy Yule ball at the Florida hotel where she works dumps snow on her plans. The sponsor’s jewels have gone missing and the police are asking about her ties to a cute mystery guest. Good thing Elizabeth’s mother, Lucy Stone, flew down to surprise her. ʼTis the season for a little investigating . . .
6. Holiday Favorites: Six Mysteries from Your Favorite Series
by Summer Prescott, Patti Benning, Carolyn Q. Hunter, Gretchen Allen, Thea Cambert, & Allyssa Mirry
Six holiday tales from some of your favorite Summer Prescott Books series!
These timeless whodunits will bring you hours of joy and reminiscing during the holidays.
Summer Prescott - Chocolate Fudge Murder - Frosted Love, Book 20
It’s holiday time, there’s no room at the Inn, and Missy's friends are still at each other’s throats. Could things get more stressful? Yes, they absolutely could, when a murder is thrown into the mix.
In the midst of it all, Missy’s Innkeeper, Maggie, comes down with the flu and is knocked out of commission. Torn between her overwhelming set of responsibilities, and her insatiable need to get to the bottom of the mystery that involves her very own Inn, Missy has to work fast to try and save the day!
Patti Benning - Gourmet Holiday Murder
Papa Pacelli’s Pizzeria, Book 6
Eleanora Pacelli is thrilled to finally be the official owner of Papa Pacelli’s Pizzeria. In an effort to make it feel more real, she decides to make some small changes to the pizzeria, and hires a contractor to install a pickup window in the back.
Ellie’s holiday cheer comes to an abrupt halt when a terrible tragedy occurs during construction. All of her plans for the pizzeria expansion, as well as holiday festivities, get put on hold as she and Russell race to find the killer before someone else gets hurt, but the killer is closer than she ever imagined.
Carolyn Q. Hunter - Killer Christmas Pie
Pies and Pages, Book 5
It's Christmas time and pie shop owner, Bertha Hannah, is gearing up with a brand new Gingerbread Pie and a little holiday shopping.
Off on their festive adventure, the ladies run into Detective Mannor--a man Bert recently turned down for a date—and the day heads rapidly downhill when a body is discovered in one of the mall's most popular shops. A cheerful season of peace and goodwill has turned blood red with homicide and it's up to Bert to figure out the mystery before Santa can say Ho-Ho-Ho.
Gretchen Allen - A Flurry of Murder
Sundae Afternoon, Book 6
In the quaint and cozy town of Heritage, Massachusetts, the annual Holiday Weekend event means pancake breakfasts, the Jingle Bell Bazaar, and the highlight, a tree lighting ceremony.
Drama ensues from the start of the yearly event, and as usual, ice cream shop manager, Yvette Lockhart, becomes wrapped up in the intrigue faster than you can say melted ice cream.
Thea Cambert - Murder Sets the Stage
Rooftop Garden, Book 2
It’s holiday festival time in picturesque Blue Valley, Tennessee, which means there’ll be plenty of fun, and an onslaught of tourists coming to town. This year, Paper Owl owner, and amateur sleuth, Alice Maguire, is helping out with organizing the Hometown Holidays Festival.
Life is good in the quaint little town, and it's shaping up to be a perfectly wonderful holiday, but when a body is discovered at the 5K, it’ll be up to Alice, Owen, and Franny to make sure that Blue Valley’s Hometown Holidays Festival gets back on track—and that means they’ll have to catch a murderer.
Allyssa Mirry - Cocoa Chaos
Parties on the Pier, Book 1
Event planner, Penelope Wilks stays busy with parties, even throughout the Jersey shore’s often blustery winter. Her business, Parties on the Pier, manages to thrive, with holiday celebrations and other occasions keeping her on her toes.
A tragic accident occurs during the peak of the holiday party season, and Penelope just can’t shake the idea the something feels ‘off’ about the whole set of circumstances. Her inquisitive nature takes over, and she digs deeper, finding an astonishing maze of intrigue and sabotage.