Book Review: "Murder After Christmas" by Rupert Latimer

The British Library Crime Classics Collection is really a treat to read and every time they release something new, I make it my business not to miss it. So far, I think I only have one more to read before I have completed the series (for now) and yet, I cannot wait until they have more. For me, the British Library Crime Classics Collection is always a great series to read during times such as Christmas and when the colder season sets in as they can be great for settling down with a cup of coffee when the weather is too chilly.

This particular book in the series is entitled: Murder After Christmas by Rupert Latimer. At first, I thought that this was going to be every other Christmas murder mystery in which everything is cold and dark as a symbolic juxtaposition to the season and what it means. However, I was very wrong and realised that, in difference, this book is a lot funnier and more darkly comical than I initially thought. The cast of characters may be many, but they are each individual and none of them could possibly be confused with anyone else in the book. It is probably the one thing about this book that held it together by the seams.

This book is about a Christmas that many characters are going to spend together and they decide to invite over their uncle. They invite him over and even though a lot of people are not too keen on him being around (and even talk about murdering him), they get on with it and the uncle, though unreasonable, makes sure he can have a good time at Christmas. On Boxing Day though, he is found dead by some family members. The entire story starts to unravel as every single person seems to have a motive for murdering this strange (and in some cases, estranged) uncle. The stage is set for a series of questions in which we find out each person's raw hatred for a man they seemingly don't know as well as they once thought.

The backdrop of Christmas makes it even darker as we know, there is not a lot of sun at Christmas time. We get these strange footprints in the snow, a part of the atmosphere that could only be created by the Christmas backdrop and then, put up against these weird decorations such as snowmen and lights - it makes everything seem really out of place. The Christmas feeling of happiness mixed with the poison really adds to the strangeness of the story as Christmas is supposed to be a happy time and yet, everything is going horribly wrong and it really is one thing after another.

From wives, to cousins, sons to friends - we see every single person and their motives for hating each other, hating themselves and most importantly, hating this uncle. A book which is packed full of motives and plans, this crime classic is hilarious in the fact that there are these jokes that cut through the tension as a form of comic relief and it is hilarious in the fact that everyone is running around - the atmosphere, chaotic. Add all of this to the fact that there are eerie silences and footprints in the snow and you have a classic straight out of the British Crime Literature Golden Age.

All in all, I thought this book was a perfect example of blending genres together and using the backdrop of Christmas, the jokes and the dark atmosphere really creates a great novel which is fun to read and great for the holiday season.