This was an interesting book to read. The plot is an intriguing one - someone plans to kill 12 people over the 12 days of Christmas. They claim that all of these victims deserve to die. And they are informing the police of their plans.

It immediately raises questions of what kind of secrets and scandals can be going on in the very small village in which the story is set.

Initially I thought that I didn't like this book, mainly because of the writing style. At times I found it to be a little wooden and clunky. I also felt that it dives into the story very fast, and I didn't feel I had a lot of time to get to know the characters.

But as I kept reading, I found that I did actually want to know what happened and who the murderer was. And although the characters maybe could have been developed better, they were believable and interesting, and I found I wanted to know how things turned out for them too.

I think maybe it is a positive that the story gets going quickly, and you get to know the characters along the way. It may be a personal preference that I found this a little irritating at first - probably many others wouldn't.

The plot means that lots of different stories are intertwined and it is helpful for introducing different characters to the reader. And everyone has backstory that it's interesting to discover. It helps that Annie, one of the main characters, used to live in the village where the story is set, and so she knows people from her past too.

This isn't a very demanding book, and there are lots of books that I have read that I would say are better written. But all in all, it was a pleasant read and a good mystery for the winter months.

Well, I knew who the killer was straight away... BUT that's only because I accused everyone! I kept thinking, it's you, its definitely you, then 10 pages later, no it's not them, it's you! So on and so on! The book kept me gripped, kept me awake reading until 3.30 in the morning and got me picking it up even if I only had time for one page! Not read a book by this author before but I will definitely look out for books by them from now on.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers and the author for the privilege to read this book for my honest opinion

Promising premise - small Cumbrian village with all the usual characters for a whodunnit - someone wants to punish the sinners against a twelve days of Christmas countdown. As an ex catholic I found the concepts of confession and retribution interesting if not totally convincing.

I enjoyed this Christmas thriller. ‘tis the season to read anything holiday related. This book was a nice little break of the fluffy we’re all in love story line. You definitely have a lot of characters to keep track of but I believe the story is told in such a way that it wasn’t difficult.

After relocating from London to a quiet village DI Walker and his wife Annie thought they were on for a quieter life. They weren't to know that a deadly message would be left for Walker with a threat of killing 12 people as in the 12 days of Christmas.

I really enjoyed this book and thought the setting was beautifully described with some colourful characters living there.

My only negative was I thought the ending seemed rushed but other than that I thought this was a very good read. If this is to be the start of a new series I will definitely be reading more.

Annie and James Walker move back to Cumbria to get away from their life in London but James finds that policing in the Lakes is no easier than where he is now, indeed things are a lot closer to home than he would like them to be.

To be honest, I'm just not a fan of this book. The characters are boring, it's supposed to be a thriller but it just isn't and, small point maybe, but there is gratuitous swearing. I didn't love it anyway but the writing isn't great and the plot very thin - I could guess who the murdered would be as soon as I met them but the murders don't even start until halfway through the book.

Generally disappointing and not one I would recommend.

I loved this. I read the sampler in the summer and knew then that I would need to read the full book and this didnt disappoint.
It kept me gripped and guessing and a brilliant read.

I really enjoyed this book and getting to know the characters and look forward to reading more books in the series. I did work out who the killer was and did feel the pace slowed down at the last 20%

This book has a really interesting premise- a serial killer who promises to kill 12 people in the run up to Christmas in the fictional village of Kirkby Abbey in Cumbria. Unfortunately, the writing isn't great, which made it quite awkard to read at times. The dialogue is particularly stilted- it isn't that different from the rest of the prose, so no human would ever speak in that way.

One thing that stuck out to me was a depiction of female on male violence fairly early on in the book, witnessed by the main character James, a police officer. She's not arrested for assaulting him, it's not even commented on. If the genders were reversed, he would have been in the back of a police van. It's such a double standard, and i'm bored of seeing it in media.

Every single character in this book is completely flat and one-dimensional, so it's difficult to care about them being in danger. James is passive in solving the main conflict in the book, he just happens to be in the right place at the right time- I figured out who the killer was way before he did.

Something a bit different for this time of year but it was an excellent read that had me gripped from start to finish.

I enjoyed this mystery as quite light reading. I found it interesting as I am pretty certain that I recognised the village in the story. Certainly it is based loosely on the village I am familiar with. I always enjoyed a story that you are able to "see" in your mind's eye. For once I guessed the murderer.

I was really looking forward to this one as a fun transition from my favourite spooky reads, right into fun Holiday-themed stories. The premise sounds great, with a detective receiving a threat of 12 murders in 12 days over the Holidays....but unfortunately, this novel failed to deliver. I struggled immensely with this read, and I just could not get into it. There was no real suspense, the characters were flat, and the writing was not quite my style. I wish I could have liked this one more, but unfortunately, this one turned into a DNF.

I must confess that this novel wasn't quite what I'd hoped for.

The set up is fun, the idea of a killer planning a murder for each day of the 12 days of Christmas in a small community as the fear ramps up is a good one and I had high hopes for this, especially since I like books about Christmas and it's quite rare these days to find ones that aren't Romance novels.

There are good parts about this book, some of the characterisations are quite fun, and there is a sense of never quite knowing who can be trusted and who can't, and it's not obvious who the killer is for a little while (although with such a small cast with this being set in a small community in the lake district there aren't too many obvious culprits). The village feels well constructed. The motive for the murders when it comes is quite believable too,.

The problems though are many, the main one is that it feels rushed, certainly towards the end. The reveal of the killer comes out of nowhere and doesn't really feel like the detective has actually done any sleuthing to solve the crime. The characters are not too well drawn, we meet a few of them, but apart from being angry at being accused of crimes they haven't committed we don''t get any depth to them, and thus it's hard to care what happens to them. The wife of the main character feels a little throwaway, and there's a sub plot with a family relative which whilst it could be interesting sort of peters away towards the end of the book and doesn't really have any importance in the end. There is also a plot device at the beginning to move the main characters from London to the North which ends up being nothing more than that, I think it's supposed to be a red herring but ends up being pointless.

It's a shame that the book never really goes anywhere, it rushes along at a good pace and is easy to read, but the tension that should be there for a novel like this never really get's going - there isn't enough killing or build up around the fright the community feels to really ramp it up - and so in the end I lost interest quite quickly.

James, a detective in the Metropolitan police, and his wife, Annie decide to move to the Lake District, to live in Annie’s old family house, in search of a quieter life. Within a few days of their arrival, a serial killer starts a campaign to rid the village of those who deserve to die. A host of interesting characters provide the victims and suspects alike.

Writing a successful crime novel requires a closed set and the small Cumbrian village, cut off from the outside world by heavy snowfall, provides the perfect setting. However it is rather far fetched to believe that the local detective and his wife would have connections to everyone involved in this tale. The characters are rather one dimensional and it’s unlikely that a small village school, with only 22 pupils, would have a Headteacher, deputy head and at least one other teacher. I am rubbish at picking up clues but even I worked out who the killer was before the detective!!

This novel is a great read – the pacing is comfortable, it is well-plotted and the story is intriguing.

DI James Walker is ready for a quiet family Christmas in the sleepy village of Kirkby Abbey, Cumbria. He and his wife Annie have recently relocated to the small remote village and it's a big change from London .When he opens an early Christmas present that was left on his doorstep, there is a gruesome surprise and a note inside the package - twelve days, twelve murders - and it isn't long before the first body is found, frozen in the snow...

I always welcome a new police procedural series... especially when it begins with shedloads of suspense that steadily increases throughout. There was never a dull moment in this dark and atmospheric story and I was riveted from start to finish. The characters were solidly drawn, lending credibility to the festive mystery/ thriller. I look forward to seeing more of DI Walker in future instalments.

I received a complimentary copy of this novel from Avon Books via NetGalley at my request and this review is my own unbiased opinion.

Who doesn’t love a snowed in murder mystery set at Christmas? Here is a good one to get you through some of these cold nights. DI James Walker has moved from the big city to village life in Kendal. Coming home one night he finds a package that he thinks is a present and gets a gross surprise instead. There’s also a card inside saying that 12 people will be killed in 12 Days. Can he find the killer before all of these people die? Oh and did I mention that there is a blizzard coming? There are lots of twists and turns in this wonderful whodunit. This is a very atmospheric read. And I recommend it.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book that I received from NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Highly recommend this well written suspense thriller. Tightly written and winds you up to a thrilling climax

"12 days

12 murders

And they all deserve to die"
A serial killer decided to shake up the quiet Cumbrian village of Kirkby Abbey where DI James Walker was getting ready for a peaceful family Christmas
Bodies are being found and it looks like all the victims were sinners hiding deep dark secrets
Every chapter kept me guessing. I suspected each and one of the villagers being the killer and only the ending revealed the shocking truth
I loved so much reading about the victim's thoughts right before they died and I got to like DI James Walker. Would definitely love to read more as this is the first book in the series
THE CHRISTMAS KILLER is the perfect December read for mystery and thriller lovers and not only

“Here’s a Christmas gift for you, detective Walker. My very own take on the twelve days of Christmas, complete with a dead partridge. Twelve days. Twelve murders. Twelve victims. And they all deserve what’s coming to them.”⁣⁣⠀
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Welcome to the tiny village of Kirkby Abby, where secrets run rampant and everyone has something they are hiding. It’s your typical small town filled with gossip, drama, and this Christmas, murder. ⁣⁣⠀
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This was a fun Christmas season murder mystery that I really enjoyed! I loved every part of it from the small town drama, and characters, to the detective work. I wasn’t sure who the Christmas Card Killer was until the end.⠀This was a sold mystery, that kept my attention, and had me going through the suspect list over and over trying to figure it out! ⁣⁣⠀
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This is a must read Holiday season Mystery! ⁣⁣⠀
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Thank you to @netgalley for a copy of The Christmas Killer in exchange for an honest review. ⁣⁣⠀
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Another #netgalleynovember2020 read complete. The story is about James and Annie who move away from London after no longer feeling safe after someone who James helped put away is released from prison. What they were hoping for was a quiet Christmas then mysterious Christmas cards and a murder is committed. Can James work out who the Killer is ?

I was quickly hooked into the story and trying to figure out who the murderer could be. It was a fairly quick paced read. The suspense of the story is built up till the end and the killer is revealed. I hope that we do get more stories with James and Annie. Overall a great read which I really enjoyed especially as it wasn’t your typical Christmas read.

I received a review copy from netgalley in exchange for this review.