Xmas Children and Murders–Part 2

In last year’s collection of special Xmas entries I commented on the lack of children in Christmas crime stories, and the lengths that authors have to go to in order to explain their absence – and yesterday’s entry examined a prime example of the genre.
I stand by my contention – but there is an exception.  A year ago blogfriend Daniel Milford-Cottam * suggested this book as a counter-example – and indeed it is a most rare find, with the children well to the fore during all kinds of Christmas crime.

* yes, the same one who has suggested quite a few of this year’s other seasonal entries

Mistletoe and Murder by Carola Dunn



published 2002



Children Mistletoe and Murder

[Christmas 1923: a festive house party has collected in a country house in Devon]

[Derek said] ‘We’re going to have a ripping Christmas. Nanny packed a big box of crackers and gummed paper for making paper chains. And Captain Norville said there’ll be a Christmas tree and carols and mince pies, and plum pudding with sixpences in if he has to put them there himself. And if we hang up stockings tomorrow night, Father Christmas will come, only he’ll have a grizzledy grey beard instead of white.’…

Everyone helped with the Christmas decorations. Even Lady Dalrymple.

Once she accepted the impossibility of leaving in a huff, she had descended to the hall. In her best grande dame manner she thoroughly enjoyed supervising the decking of it, as far as Daisy could see. Captain Norville was the moving spirit, nominally in charge, but the dowager sent him and Alec, his able assistant, rushing back and forth with ladders: this paper chain (turned out by the dozen by Derek and Belinda, with Miles sorting the rainbow colours for them) hung not quite symmetrically; that bunch of mistletoe was not perfectly centred over the doorway. The captain accepted her ladyship’s corrections with unfailing good humour.

Children Mistletoe and Murder 2


The old house was full of interesting things, but it was a bit eerie by lantern-light. There were shadows everywhere, and the people in the tapestries seemed to jump out at you when you went into the room. They kept moving, too, because it was windy outside now and the draughts made the tapestries ripple and rustle.

‘It’s sort of like being in a house full of ghosts,’ Belinda said.

‘Real ghosts moan and rattle their chains,’ Derek objected.

commentary: The book is part of a series of lightweight murder stories featuring a sleuth called Daisy Dalrymple, and there is a continuing story about her personal life, and apparently several continuing characters.

The plot is the usual thing: families, secrets, scandal, inheritances (I have to say that the eventual motive didn’t seem to make any sense whatsoever) and mysterious goings-on. And so half the book reads like the Famous Five, as the children Derek and Belinda stomp around the estate trying to find secret tunnels, treasure maps and important clues. The other half follows Daisy and her husband (a policeman) as they interview witnesses and suspects. This actually works better than you might imagine, and I enjoyed the book as a good seasonal read: there is plenty of description of the Christmas celebrations and events – something that is often missing from Xmas crime books, and another aspect I have complained of before. (Agatha Christie’s Hercule Poirot’s Christmas is a great favourite of mine, but you would be hard put to find much festive detail in it.)

And well-done Daniel – this really is Exhibit A in the case for children in Xmas mysteries.

Top picture is from the NYPL’s collection.

Second picture is from a girls’ annual of the era.




















Comments

  1. I like the Daisy Dalrymple stories, Moira. As you say, they're light entertainment, And they do give an interesting picture of life at that time. I'm glad you found some things to enjoy about this one. I'd be really interested in what you think if you read others in the series.

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    1. This was my first encounter with them, and I liked it - very good at what she set out to do I thought. I would certainly read more of them.

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  2. I was interested to see what you thought of this book. I have read the first in the series, and have the 2nd one and this one, and an even later one. I wasn't sure I wanted to continue on the series or not. Still undecided.

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    1. I just checked and you don't seem to have done a post on Carola Dunn? I need you to read another one and give me a recommendation!

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    2. I read the first one in 2007, well before my blogging began. As you noted, this is lighter fare, although I do remember liking that she was a photographer (I think) and trying to live her own life.

      My quandary is that I agree with Daniel that reading in order is best but I am pretty sure I am not going to try to acquire all of them. I have #2, #11 (this one), and #17, and that is a lot of hopping around. But who knows, maybe I will.

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    3. Oh my goodness- there's 17 of them? or more? Not sure I can embark on that. But perhaps follow Daniel's recommendation and try no. 1.

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  3. Sounds like fun - I do enjoy a Christmas setting. So interesting that children so rarely figure when it is all supposed to be about children.

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    1. You won't be surprised to hear that this is very much a light-hearted cozy, but I did enjoy it, and I very much liked the way she used the children in fact. It always seemed to be teetering on the edge of a jarring change of tone, but I think she avoided that....

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  4. I read one or two of these a few years back, and haven't really been bothered enough to read any others. It's interesting to compare her books with Catriona McPherson's, which have surface similarities (female sleuth, the time period). The difference is that McPherson can write. I haven't read this one, but one of the ones that I did was about a series of murders connected with WWI. It's a fairly charged subject, and you can imagine a story where you could mix a clever plot with interesting characters and a fascinating, emotive background. Unfortunately the book that I read was none of the above, being badly researched with dull plot and uninteresting characters.. Sorry to be so down on this, but that other book by Dunn made me grind my teeth so much that I almost needed dentures! Grrrrr!!!

    ggary

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    1. Oh dear... I was hoping someone would tell me which one to read next...
      When Catriona McP first started writing, I didn't rush to read her because I thought I knew what kind of book it would be, ie like this one. I can still remember my surprise and delight that it was something very different...

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  5. As I said at the time of recommendation I hadn't kept my Dunns, having given them all to charity prior to moving to another place. They are very readable but let's be honest, not great books. However they are definitely fun, lightweight and diverting for a couple of hours, and I did find them pretty charming.

    I'm glad I'd remembered the child presence in this one correctly and that it turned out to be such a good example for your quest. Sometimes it's not about whether or not a book has literary merit, it's about whether it answers a question or addresses new ground....

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    1. Yes, very well done. And as a light Christmas-y read, excellent.
      You recommended quite a few to me, so you'll be getting a number of namechecks over the Xmas season.

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  6. I'd say they work best when read in sequence because of the ongoing narrative (she and Alec don't get married until around book 10 or something like that)

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    1. OK, well, helpful info for Tracy and me, Daniel. Thanks...

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  7. Hmm....not really feeling the Christmas books I'm afraid.

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    1. I really don't think this one is for you Col - far too cozy.

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