{"product_id":"the-big-book-of-christmas-mysteries-isbn-9780345802989","title":"The Big Book of Christmas Mysteries","description":"\u003cb\u003eThe most complete collection of Yuletide whodunits ever assembled \u003cb\u003e• \u003c\/b\u003eThe 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.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“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.\" —\u003ci\u003eThe Washington Post\u003cbr\u003e \u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cbr\u003e This collection touches on all aspects of the holiday season, and all types of mysteries. They are suspenseful, funny, frightening, and poignant. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIncluded are puzzles by Mary Higgins Clark, Isaac Asimov, and Ngaio Marsh; uncanny tales in the tradition of \u003ci\u003eA Christmas Carol\u003c\/i\u003e 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. \u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003eFEATURING:\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e• \u003c\/b\u003eUnscrupulous Santas\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e•\u003c\/b\u003e Crimes of Christmases Past and Present\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e• \u003c\/b\u003eFestive felonies\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e• \u003c\/b\u003eDeadly puddings\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e• \u003c\/b\u003eMisdemeanors under the mistletoe\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e• \u003c\/b\u003eChristmas 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.INTRODUCTION \u003ci\u003eOtto Penzler \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA Traditional Little Christmas\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cbr\u003eTHE ADVENTURE OF THE CHRISTMAS PUDDING \u003ci\u003eAgatha Christie \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eGOLD, FRANKINCENSE AND MURDER \u003ci\u003eCatherine Aird \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBOXING UNCLEVER \u003ci\u003eRobert Barnard \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTHE PROOF OF THE PUDDING \u003ci\u003ePeter Lovesey \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTHE ADVENTURE OF THE DAUPHIN’S DOLL \u003ci\u003eEllery Queen \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMORSE’S GREATEST MYSTERY \u003ci\u003eColin Dexter \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMORE THAN FLESH AND BLOOD \u003ci\u003eSusan Moody \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTHE BUTLER’S CHRISTMAS EVE \u003ci\u003eMary Roberts Rinehart \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTHE TRINITY CAT \u003ci\u003eEllis Peters 91\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA Funny Little Christmas\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003eTHE BURGLAR AND THE WHATSIT \u003ci\u003eDonald E. Westlake \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eDANCING DAN’S CHRISTMAS \u003ci\u003eDamon Runyon \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eA VISIT FROM ST. NICHOLAS \u003ci\u003eRon Goulart \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTHE THIEVES WHO COULDN’T HELP SNEEZING \u003ci\u003eThomas Hardy \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eRUMPOLE AND THE SPIRIT OF CHRISTMAS \u003ci\u003eJohn Mortimer \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eA REVERSIBLE SANTA CLAUS \u003ci\u003eMeredith Nicholson \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA Sherlockian Little Christmas\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003eA SCANDAL IN WINTER \u003ci\u003eGillian Linscott \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTHE CHRISTMAS CLIENT \u003ci\u003eEdward D. Hoch \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTHE SECRET IN THE PUDDING BAG \u0026amp; HERLOCK SHOLMES’S \u003cbr\u003e     CHRISTMAS CASE \u003ci\u003ePeter Todd \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eCHRISTMAS EVE \u003ci\u003eS. C. Roberts \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTHE ADVENTURE OF THE BLUE CARBUNCLE \u003ci\u003eArthur Conan Doyle \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA Pulpy Little Christmas\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003eDEAD ON CHRISTMAS STREET \u003ci\u003eJohn D. MacDonald \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eCRIME’S CHRISTMAS CAROL \u003ci\u003eNorvell Page \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eSERENADE TO A KILLER \u003ci\u003eJoseph Commings \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAn Uncanny Little Christmas\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003eTHE HAUNTED CRESCENT \u003ci\u003ePeter Lovesey \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eA CHRISTMAS IN CAMP \u003ci\u003eEdmund Cox \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTHE CHRISTMAS BOGEY \u003ci\u003ePat Frank \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTHE KILLER CHRISTIAN \u003ci\u003eAndrew Klavan \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTHE GHOST’S TOUCH \u003ci\u003eFergus Hume \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eA WREATH FOR MARLEY \u003ci\u003eMax Allan Collins \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA Scary Little Christmas\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003eTHE CAROL SINGERS \u003ci\u003eJosephine Bell \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWAXWORKS \u003ci\u003eEthel Lina White \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eCAMBRIC TEA \u003ci\u003eMarjorie Bowen \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTHE 74TH TALE \u003ci\u003eJonathan Santlofer \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTHE UNINNOCENT \u003ci\u003eBradford Morrow \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBLUE CHRISTMAS \u003ci\u003ePeter Robinson \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA Surprising Little Christmas\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003eNOEL, NOEL \u003ci\u003eBarry Perowne \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eDEATH ON CHRISTMAS EVE \u003ci\u003eStanley Ellin \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTHE CHINESE APPLE \u003ci\u003eJoseph Shearing \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA Modern Little Christmas\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003eAND ALL THROUGH THE HOUSE \u003ci\u003eEd McBain \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAN EARLY CHRISTMAS \u003ci\u003eDoug Allyn \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTHE LIVE TREE \u003ci\u003eJohn Lutz \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTHREE-DOT PO \u003ci\u003eSara Paretsky \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMAD DOG \u003ci\u003eDick Lochte \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA Puzzling Little Christmas\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003eSISTER BESSIE \u003ci\u003eCyril Hare \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTHAT’S THE TICKET \u003ci\u003eMary Higgins Clark \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eDEATH ON THE AIR \u003ci\u003eNgaio Marsh \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTHE THIRTEENTH DAY OF CHRISTMAS \u003ci\u003eIsaac Asimov \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTHE CHRISTMAS KITTEN \u003ci\u003eEd Gorman \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTHE SANTA CLAUS CLUB \u003ci\u003eJulian Symons \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003e \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA Classic Little Christmas\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003eTHE FLYING STARS \u003ci\u003eG. K. Chesterton \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eCHRISTMAS PARTY \u003ci\u003eRex Stout \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTHE RAFFLES RELICS \u003ci\u003eE. W. Hornung \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTHE PRICE OF LIGHT \u003ci\u003eEllis Peters \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eA PRESENT FOR SANTA SAHIB \u003ci\u003eH. R. F. Keating \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTHE CHRISTMAS TRAIN \u003ci\u003eWill Scott \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMARKHEIM \u003ci\u003eRobert Louis Stevenson \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eA CHAPARRAL CHRISTMAS GIFT \u003ci\u003eO. Henry \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eTHE CHOPHAM AFFAIR \u003ci\u003eEdgar Wallace \u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003eA CHRISTMAS TRAGEDY \u003ci\u003eAgatha Christie\u003c\/i\u003e“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. . . . One of the joys of the collection is how many are delightfully funny. . . . Note that many of these stories turn on simple theft, of diamonds or candlesticks or a lottery ticket; they hark back to simpler days before the modern thriller began to provide endless serial killers and ax murderers for our edification. To read today’s talented crime writers can be a pleasure, but it’s good to be reminded that they build on the work of others whose talents remain undimmed.\"\u003cbr\u003e   —\u003ci\u003eThe Washington Post\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e“[A] magnificent collection of any kind of Christmas murder that mystery fans could ever desire.” \u003cbr\u003e     —\u003ci\u003eThe Plain Dealer\u003c\/i\u003e, Grade: A+\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Pure malicious deliciousness.” \u003cbr\u003e     —\u003ci\u003eThe Christian Science Monitor\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“My favorite mystery peddler has put together his best collection ever. . . . If you love mysteries, and enjoy the holidays (or even if you don't), you'll love \u003ci\u003eThe Big Book of Christmas Mysteries\u003c\/i\u003e.”\u003cbr\u003e     —Nina Sankovitch, \u003ci\u003eHuffington Post\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e“Less noisy but just as entertaining as ‘The Twelve Days of Christmas’. . . . Includes many of the best Yuletide whodunits of the past 100 years.” \u003cbr\u003e     —\u003ci\u003eRichmond Times-Dispatch\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e“[Penzler] knows this turf.” \u003cbr\u003e     —\u003ci\u003eFort Worth Star-Telegram\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“A feast of 59 (loosely) Christmas-themed stories for mystery and crime-fiction lovers.”\u003cbr\u003e     —\u003ci\u003eThe Seattle Times\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“None of these arresting holiday tales turns out at all the way you might expect. . . . [The book] could last a diligent reader all the way to Easter.”\u003cbr\u003e     —\u003ci\u003eThe Virginian-Pilot\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“A future classic. . . . Penzler, the prime minister of crime fiction, delivers the goods once again with . . . a collection of holiday whodunits that’ll have you eyeing the department-store Santa with suspicion.” \u003cbr\u003e     —\u003ci\u003eBook Page\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e“More femmes fatales, double crossing and deceit than you can shake a peppermint candy cane at. . . . Entertaining and interesting. It should rightfully become a perennial gift, no matter the occasion.”\u003cbr\u003e     —\u003ci\u003ePopMatters\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Penzler mines the rich vein of American and British Christmas stories from the 19th to the 21st centuries for this impressive collection of 59 short stories featuring authors still in their prime as well as others mostly forgotten by today's readers. . . . A representative and entertaining selection of yuletide stories that mystery fans might like to see on Christmas morn.” \u003cbr\u003e    —\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e“There’s something for everyone. . . . Mystery readers will not be able to resist.” \u003cbr\u003e     —\u003ci\u003eLibrary Journal\u003c\/i\u003eOTTO PENZLER is the editor of eleven other Vintage Crime\/Black Lizard anthologies, including \u003ci\u003eThe Big Book of Pulps\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe Big Book of Black Mask Stories\u003c\/i\u003e, and, most recently, \u003ci\u003eThe Big Book of Ghost Stories\u003c\/i\u003e. He lives in New York City.The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAgatha Christie\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIt seems fitting, somehow, that the “Mistress of Mystery,” the “Queen of Crime,” set numerous stories in the cozy world of Christmas. The great talent that Dame Agatha brought to her detective stories was the element of surprise, and what could be more surprising than killing someone at what is meant to be the most peaceful, love-­filled time of the year? This splendid story was such a favorite of the author that she used it as the title story of her collection The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding and a Selection of Entrées (London, Collins, 1960).\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe Adventure of the Christmas Pudding\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAgatha Christie\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eI\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“I regret exceedingly——” said M. Hercule Poirot.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eHe was interrupted. Not rudely interrupted. The interruption was suave, dexterous, persuasive rather than contradictory.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Please don’t refuse offhand, M. Poirot. There are grave issues of State. Your co-­operation will be appreciated in the highest quarters.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“You are too kind,” Hercule Poirot waved a hand, “but I ­really cannot undertake to do as you ask. At this season of the year——”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAgain Mr. Jesmond interrupted. “Christmas time,” he said, persuasively. “An old-­fashioned Christmas in the ­En­glish countryside.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eHercule Poirot shivered. The thought of the ­En­glish countryside at this season of the year did not attract him.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“A good old-­fashioned Christmas!” Mr. Jesmond stressed it.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Me—I am not an ­En­glishman,” said Hercule Poirot. “In my country, Christmas, it is for the children. The New Year, that is what we celebrate.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Ah,” said Mr. Jesmond, “but Christmas in ­En­gland is a great institution and I assure you at Kings Lacey you would see it at its best. It’s a wonderful old house, you know. Why, one wing of it dates from the fourteenth century.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAgain Poirot shivered. The thought of a fourteenth-­century ­En­glish manor house filled him with apprehension. He had suffered too often in the historic country houses of ­En­gland. He looked round appreciatively at his comfortable modern flat with its radiators and the latest patent devices for excluding any kind of draught.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“In the winter,” he said firmly, “I do not leave London.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“I don’t think you quite appreciate, M. Poirot, what a very serious matter this is.” Mr. Jesmond glanced at his companion and then back at Poirot.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ePoirot’s second visitor had up to now said nothing but a polite and formal “How do you do.” He sat now, gazing down at his well-­polished shoes, with an air of the utmost dejection on his coffee-­coloured face. He was a young man, not more than twenty-­three, and he was clearly in a state of complete misery.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Yes, yes,” said Hercule Poirot. “Of course the matter is serious. I do appreciate that. His Highness has my heartfelt sympathy.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“The position is one of the utmost delicacy,” said Mr. Jesmond.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ePoirot transferred his gaze from the young man to his older companion. If one wanted to sum up Mr. Jesmond in a word, the word would have been discretion. Everything about Mr. Jesmond was discreet. His well-­cut but inconspicuous clothes, his pleasant, well-­bred voice which rarely soared out of an agreeable monotone, his light-­brown hair just thinning a little at the temples, his pale serious face. It seemed to Hercule Poirot that he had known not one Mr. Jesmond but a dozen Mr. Jesmonds in his time, all using sooner or later the same phrase—“a position of the utmost delicacy.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“The police,” said Hercule Poirot, “can be very discreet, you know.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMr. Jesmond shook his head firmly.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Not the police,” he said. “To recover the—er—what we want to recover will almost inevitably involve taking proceedings in the law courts and we know so little. We suspect, but we do not know.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“You have my sympathy,” said Hercule Poirot again.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIf he imagined that his sympathy was going to mean anything to his two visitors, he was wrong. They did not want sympathy, they wanted practical help. Mr. Jesmond began once more to talk about the delights of an ­En­glish Christmas.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“It’s dying out, you know,” he said, “the real old-­fashioned type of Christmas. People spend it at hotels nowadays. But an ­En­glish Christmas with all the family gathered round, the children and their stockings, the Christmas tree, the turkey and plum pudding, the crackers. The snow-­man outside the window——”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIn the interests of exactitude, Hercule Poirot intervened.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“To make a snow-­man one has to have the snow,” he remarked severely. “And one cannot have snow to order, even for an ­En­glish Christmas.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“I was talking to a friend of mine in the meteorological office only today,” said Mr. Jesmond, “and he tells me that it is highly probable there will be snow this Christmas.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIt was the wrong thing to have said. Hercule Poirot shuddered more forcefully than ever.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Snow in the country!” he said. “That would be still more abominable. A large, cold, stone manor house.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Not at all,” said Mr. Jesmond. “Things have changed very much in the last ten years or so. Oil-­fired central heating.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“They have oil-­fired central heating at Kings Lacey?” asked Poirot. For the first time he seemed to waver.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMr. Jesmond seized his opportunity. “Yes, indeed,” he said, “and a splendid hot water system. Radiators in every bedroom. I assure you, my dear M. Poirot, Kings Lacey is comfort itself in the winter time. You might even find the house too warm.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“That is most unlikely,” said Hercule Poirot.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWith practised dexterity Mr. Jesmond shifted his ground a little.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“You can appreciate the terrible dilemma we are in,” he said, in a confidential manner.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eHercule Poirot nodded. The problem was, indeed, not a happy one. A young potentate-­to-­be, the only son of the ruler of a rich and important native state, had arrived in London a few weeks ago. His country had been passing through a period of restlessness and discontent. Though loyal to the father whose way of life had remained persistently Eastern, popular opinion was somewhat dubious of the younger generation. His follies had been Western ones and as such looked upon with disapproval.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eRecently, however, his betrothal had been announced. He was to marry a cousin of the same blood, a young woman who, though educated at Cambridge, was careful to display no Western influences in her own country. The wedding day was announced and the young prince had made a journey to ­En­gland, bringing with him some of the famous jewels of his house to be reset in appropriate modern settings by Cartier. These had included a very famous ruby which had been removed from its cumbersome old-­fashioned necklace and had been given a new look by the famous jewellers. So far so good, but after this came the snag. It was not to be supposed that a young man possessed of much wealth and convivial tastes should not commit a few follies of the pleasanter type. As to that there would have been no censure. Young princes were supposed to amuse themselves in this fashion. For the prince to take the girlfriend of the moment for a walk down Bond Street and bestow upon her an emerald bracelet or a diamond clip as a reward for the pleasure she had afforded him would have been regarded as quite natural and suitable, corresponding in fact to the Cadillac cars which his father invariably presented to his favourite dancing girl of the moment.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBut the prince had been far more indiscreet than that. Flattered by the lady’s interest, he had displayed to her the famous ruby in its new setting, and had finally been so unwise as to accede to her request to be allowed to wear it—just for one evening!\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe sequel was short and sad. The lady had retired from their supper-­table to powder her nose. Time passed. She did not return. She had left the establishment by another door and since then had disappeared into space. The important and distressing thing was that the ruby in its new setting had disappeared with her.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThese were the facts that could not possibly be made public without the most dire consequences. The ruby was something more than a ruby, it was a historical possession of great significance, and the circumstances of its disappearance were such that any undue publicity about them might result in the most serious political consequences.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMr. Jesmond was not the man to put these facts into simple language. He wrapped them up, as it were, in a great deal of verbiage. Who exactly Mr. Jesmond was, Hercule Poirot did not know. He had met other Mr. Jesmonds in the course of his career. Whether he was connected with the Home Office, the Foreign Office, or some more discreet branch of public service was not specified. He was acting in the interests of the Commonwealth. The ruby must be recovered.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eM. Poirot, so Mr. Jesmond delicately insisted, was the man to recover it.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Perhaps—yes,” Hercule Poirot admitted, “but you can tell me so little. Suggestion— suspicion—all that is not very much to go upon.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Come now, M. Poirot, surely it is not beyond your powers. Ah, come now.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“I do not always succeed.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBut this was mock modesty. It was clear enough from Poirot’s tone that for him to undertake a mission was almost synonymous with succeeding in it.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“His Highness is very young,” Mr. Jesmond said. “It will be sad if his whole life is to be blighted for a mere youthful indiscretion.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003ePoirot looked kindly at the downcast young man. “It is the time for follies, when one is young,” he said encouragingly, “and for the ordinary young man it does not matter so much. The good papa, he pays up; the family lawyer, he helps to disentangle the inconvenience; the young man, he learns by experience and all ends for the best. In a position such as yours, it is hard indeed. Your approaching marriage——”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“That is it. That is it exactly.” For the first time words poured from the young man. “You see she is very, very serious. She takes life very seriously. She has acquired at Cambridge many very serious ideas. There is to be education in my country. There are to be schools. There are to be many things. All in the name of progress, you understand, of democracy. It will not be, she says, like it was in my father’s time. Naturally she knows that I will have diversions in London, but not the scandal. No! It is the scandal that matters. You see it is very, very famous, this ruby. There is a long trail behind it, a history. Much bloodshed—many deaths!”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Deaths,” said Hercule Poirot thoughtfully. He looked at Mr. Jesmond. “One hopes,” he said, “it will not come to that?”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMr. Jesmond made a peculiar noise rather like a hen who has decided to lay an egg and then thought better of it.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“No, no, indeed,” he said, sounding rather prim. “There is no question, I am sure, of anything of that kind.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“You cannot be sure,” said Hercule Poirot. “Whoever has the ruby now, there may be others who want to gain possession of it, and who will not stick at a trifle, my friend.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“I ­really don’t think,” said Mr. Jesmond, sounding more prim than ever, “that we need enter into speculations of that kind. Quite unprofitable.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Me,” said Hercule Poirot, suddenly becoming very foreign, “me, I explore all the avenues, like the politicians.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMr. Jesmond looked at him doubtfully. Pulling himself together, he said, “Well, I can take it that is settled, M. Poirot? You will go to Kings Lacey?”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“And how do I explain myself there?” asked Hercule Poirot.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMr. Jesmond smiled with confidence.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“That, I think, can be arranged very easily,” he said. “I can assure you that it will all seem quite natural. You will find the Laceys most charming. Delightful people.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“And you do not deceive me about the oil-­fired central heating?”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“No, no, indeed.” Mr. Jesmond sounded quite pained. “I assure you you will find every comfort.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Tout confort moderne,” murmured Poirot to himself, reminiscently. “Eh bien,” he said, “I accept.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eII\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe temperature in the long drawing-­room at Kings Lacey was a comfortable sixty-­eight as Hercule Poirot sat talking to Mrs. Lacey by one of the big mullioned windows. Mrs. Lacey was engaged in needlework. She was not doing petit point or embroidering flowers upon silk. Instead, she appeared to be engaged in the prosaic task of hemming dishcloths. As she sewed she talked in a soft reflective voice that Poirot found very charming.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“I hope you will enjoy our Christmas party here, M. Poirot. It’s only the family, you know. My granddaughter and a grandson and a friend of his and Bridget who’s my great-­niece, and Diana who’s a cousin and David Welwyn who is a very old friend. Just a family party. But Edwina Morecombe said that that’s what you ­really wanted to see. An old-­fashioned Christmas. Nothing could be more old-­fashioned than we are! My husband, you know, absolutely lives in the past. He likes everything to be just as it was when he was a boy of twelve years old, and used to come here for his holidays.” She smiled to herself. “All the same old things, the Christmas tree and the stockings hung up and the oyster soup and the turkey—two turkeys, one boiled and one roast—and the plum pudding with the ring and the bachelor’s button and all the rest of it in it. We can’t have sixpences nowadays because they’re not pure silver any more. But all the old desserts, the Elvas plums and Carlsbad plums and almonds and raisins, and crystallised fruit and ginger. Dear me, I sound like a catalogue from Fortnum and Mason!”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“You arouse my gastronomic juices, madame.”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“I expect we’ll all have frightful indigestion by tomorrow evening,” said Mrs. Lacey. “One isn’t used to eating so much nowadays, is one?”\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eShe was interrupted by some loud shouts and whoops of laughter outside the window. She glanced out.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“I don’t know what they’re doing out there. Playing some game or other, I suppose. I’ve always been so afraid, you know, that these young people would be bored by our Christmas here. But not at all, it’s just the opposite. Now my own son and daughter and their friends, they used to be rather sophisticated about Christmas. Say it was all nonsense and too much fuss and it would be far better to go out to a hotel somewhere and dance. But the younger generation seem to find all this terribly attractive. Besides,” added Mrs. Lacey practically, “schoolboys and schoolgirls are always hungry, aren’t they? I think they must starve them at these schools. After all, one does know children of that age each eat about as much as three strong men.”The Most Complete Collection of Yuletide Whodunits Ever Assembled","brand":"Vintage Crime\/Black Lizard","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46301826941157,"sku":"NP9780345802989","price":32.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9780345802989.jpg?v=1767738359","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/products\/the-big-book-of-christmas-mysteries-isbn-9780345802989","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}