Christmas Crimes at The Mysterious Bookshop was exactly what I didn’t know my Christmas reading was missing! It was so fun to see how the bookstore got worked into each story!

Christmas Crimes at the Mysterious Bookshop is an anthology made up of thirteen short stories by 13 different authors. The Mysterious Bookshop, has for most of its forty-five-year history commissioned an original short story as a holiday gift for its customers as a thank you. The prompts for the story requires that it be set at Christmastime, that it involve a crime of some kind, or the suspicion of one, and that it be set at least partially in the bookstore. Using only this the authors come up with the yearly stories. This is the second volume where thirteen of these stories have been compiled into a book. I'm not going to try and give you a synopsis of each, you will have to read it yourself. The forward is written by Otto Penzler where he talks about these stories and how they came about. A couple of my favourites included Black Christmas by Jason Starr about "soulmates", The Gift of the Wiseguy by Rob Hart about an author whose father was a mob boss who has been in hiding, but comes out to hear his son read from his book, A Christmas Puzzle by Ragnar Johasson where a clerk at the Mysterious Bookshop agrees to help an 80 year old widow solve a puzzle after the shop closes on Christmas Eve, and Sergeant Santa by David Gordon where a pickpocket must find a way to return an item. I enjoyed all of these stories.

When I read that The Mysterious Bookshop commissioned these authors to write short stories to gift to their customers during the holiday season, I had to read this one. I had no idea this bookstore existed and is now on my bucket list for a visit! For each of the twelve days of Christmas, we can read a different short story. Each of the stories included in the collection take place to some extent at the bookstore. It is a collection of mysteries – a mix of cozy to detective and police procedural to noir; revenge, and “thoughtful” gift giving. This would be fun to read this during the 12 days of Christmas and so, can be a great Christmas gift for the mystery fan.

Thank you to NetGalley, Otto Penzler, Penzler Publishers and the Mysterious Bookshop for an advanced copy of this book.

I just could not get into this collection of short stories. I sampled several, but I wasn't interested. And the style of the stories was not was I was expecting - grittier more than cozy.

Thank you to #NetGalley and #MysteriousPress for a free copy of #ChristmasCrimesAtTheMysteriousBookshop by Otto Penzler. All opinions are my own.

This collection was fantastic! It features some really talented writers, and I loved how the Mysterious Bookshop played a role in each of the stories—it really tied everything together. The order of the stories was spot-on, and the book flowed so smoothly. I'm also glad there were two narrators for the audiobook—they both did an amazing job bringing the stories to life.

Now, I’m definitely adding a visit to the Mysterious Bookshop in NYC to my bucket list!

This is the perfect holiday gift for mystery lovers. I love books about books and I love a good mystery. the Mysterious Bookshop in New York City is the oldest specialty shop in the world dedicated to mystery books. For many years, they have arranged for an original Christmas mystery story that they give away to their customers. This book is the second collection of some of these stories. This is not your typical Christmas cozy mystery. Some are thrillers, others are dark and depressing, only a few are cute and cozy. They all have three things in common. There is a crime, it is Christmas time, and at least part of the story, but not necessarily the crime, takes place at the store. Fictitious versions of the store owner, and editor of this book, Otto Penzler even appear in some of the stories. I alternated between the eBook and the audiobook and I loved narration. Both Graham Rowat and Jennifer Pickens do a fantastic job. I received advance copies of both formats from the publisher, but this review is voluntary and the opinions stated are my own. I loved most of the stories in this anthology and found a few new mystery authors to add to my must read list. If you love mysteries, you will want to give yourself the gift of reading this collection.

A nice collection of Christmas short stories! As a short story fiend, I couldn't wait to check these out. As the description states, these revolve around the Mysterious Bookshop in NYC. There are some hits and misses, but it was fun to read a variety of mysteries and authors. A fun holiday gift for the mystery lover!

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC!

This compilation of suspense stories was fun in that all the stories had to do with the famous Mysterious Bookshop in New York.

As with all story collections, some were hits and others were misses. The Christmas cheer in the stories was a bit on the low side, but I especially enjoyed the stories by Laura Lippmann and Lindsay Faye.

Such a fun wintry mystery anthology! I loved some stories and could have passed on others but overall this is a good read!

Thank you so much to netgalley for the arc of this one in exchange for an honest review!

This book is a collection of short stories that all center around a bookstore in New York around Christmas time. This bookstore is a real place and it all centers around mystery books.

I thought this book was fun! I loved the bookstore at the center of it all and I would love to visit there someday. I also liked the Christmas and winter vibes throughout.

Unfortunately, a lot of the stories were just ok for me. I felt a bit bored throughout and not a lot of them really stood out to me.

This one was a solid three star for me. I loved the bookstore and the vibes but a lot of the stories just didn't standout for me.

This is a delightful and unusual anthology of stories with the hook of the editor’s own bookshop in NYC. In each story there is a link to the store and/or Mr. Penzler. The stories are a cornucopia of themes. There are the various stories of ultimate comeuppance, stories of plots to commit perfect murders that go awry and stories of all the range of human emotions. They are all set around Christmas and are written by very good mystery writers.

I have a real fondness for anthologies. They are perfect to pick up and read in whatever time frame is available or read from cover to cover. I know that these will please the mystery reader who has a soft spot for Yuletide settings. There are even a few with happy endings. Five purrs and two paws up.

Okay I absolutely loved this book! It includes multiple mystery stories that take place during the holiday season. There’s nothing I love more than mysteries and the holiday season, so I ate this book up. This also got points because it includes books and bookstores. This bookstore is special because it only sells mystery books or ones that involve crimes. This book was so special and unique. My favorite stories were wolf trap and the gift of the wise guy.

Christmas Crimes at the Mysterious Bookshop is a nice holiday themed collection of short fiction, edited and curated by Otto Penzler. Released 22nd Oct 2024 by Penzler Publications on their Mysterious Press imprint, it's 288 pages and is available in hardcover, audio, and ebook formats. It's worth noting that the ebook format has a handy interactive table of contents as well as interactive links.

Every year, the Mysterious Bookshop (a real brick & mortar store in TriBeCa) commissions and prints a short story in a nice limited print edition for their regular holiday patrons. Many of them have become collectors' items. So much so, that in 2010, a special anthology of these stories was collected to commemorate them and bring some of them to a wider audience. This is a companion volume and adds 12 of the holiday stories originally published in 2011 to 2022 to the total.

In addition to the top shelf stories (from famous authors writing at the top of their games), the book includes an introduction and some background by Mr. Penzler himself, always erudite, thoughtful, and knowledgeable. The stories are a mixed bag, but all generally high quality (4-5 stars).

Four stars. Well written and darkly delightful. It would be an excellent choice for public library acquisition, home use, and holiday gift giving.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

For those who enjoy a bit of mayhem with their mistletoe

Many a mystery writer has been inspired to set one of their tales at Christmas. In a continuation of that tradition Otto Penzler, owner of the iconic NYC store The Mysterious Bookshop, began commissioning an original story each year by a different mystery author that he then printed and distributed to his customers as a thank you for their support. The tale had to be set during the Christmas season, had to have some of the plot take place at The Mysterious Bookshop, and of course had to have at its core a mystery. This is the second compilation of these tales to be published (the first was Christmas at the Mysterious Bookshop), and contains twelve stories by a variety of authors (some like Jeffrey Deaver, Loren D. Estleman and Laura Lippman will be familiar to many, others like Jason Starr, Lyndsay Faye and David Gordon are perhaps as yet unknown to some readers). Whether you enjoy a fun read with a clever amateur sleuth or a darker tale with someone plotting revenge or redemption, you will find something to your taste here and possibly open yourself up to a new author to add to your must-read list. When it comes to spotting a talented crafter of mysteries, few if any can surpass Otto Penzler, and here are twelve such writers’ work to prove that point. If you have ever been to The Mysterious Bookshop or have it on your bucket list, here is a book that can allow you a virtual visit to the beautiful shop at 58 Warren Street. I enjoyed all twelve selections, with the stories by Laura Lippman, Tom Mead and Ragnar Jónasson being my favorites. Read them one at a time to make the book last or curl up with a whisky or hot cocoa and devour it at one sitting….but be sure to have this in your TBR stack this winter (just be careful if someone else hands you the beverage!). Many thanks to NetGalley and Penzler Publishers/Mysterious Press for the present of early access to this great collection.

These twelve tales are just like the twelve days of Christmas song. A short story for each day. The Mysterious Bookshop is a real place which wrote stories every year. It was hard to pick just one story I received a copy through Netgalley. A review was not required.

Edited by Otto Penzler, Christmas Crimes at the Mysterious Bookshop: Twelve Tales of Seasonal Suspense Set in the World’s Oldest Mystery Specialty Store offers readers a grand collection of holiday murder and mystery short stories by noteworthy, award-winning and international bestselling authors, including Jason Starr, Lyndsay Faye, Loren Estleman, Ace Atkins, Rob Hart, Laura Lippman, Jeffery Deaver, David Gordon and Martin Edwards.

Some of these Christmas tales are treasures that take you back to the golden era of crime fiction. My favorite is A Christmas Puzzle by acclaimed Icelandic author Ragnar Jónasson. I felt as if I had discovered a lost manuscript of Christie or Marsh. The pacing, the subtle clues, the climax…perfection!

Aficionado of misdirection and the locked room mystery, UK author Tom Mead offers readers a fun holiday twist on an old theme in Hester’s Gift. Though other reviewers may give more details in an overview about the story, I don’t want to lay out any clues before your eyes reach the actual page.

Each of the stories has a different feel to it. In fact, Laura Lippman’s ironic tale, Snowflake Time, seems like it could be ripped from the headlines.

I own several of Penzler’s previous collections and enjoy pulling them out each year. This one is no exception. I highly recommend Christmas Crimes at the Mysterious Bookshop. While I received an advance reader’s copy from The Mysterious Press, courtesy of NetGalley, I’ve already purchased a digital version so that I can re-read these wonderful stories.

The stories are great.....really great. But the sentiment......stories written exclusively for the customers of the bookshop and previously only read by them.....it makes them even better.

What can be more fun than stories written for Christmas that involve crime and mystery. Short stories written to give customers as stocking stuffers, the caveat is that the story must be related to the bookshop.

Included are stories by Laura Lippman, Jeffrey Deaver and Ragnar Jonasson.

A real treat for those seeking a little crime in their holiday season

This was a fun approach to an anthology of short stories and centering the mysteries around Christmas peaked my interests. Add the incredible cover and I was excited to dig in. While I enjoyed many of the stories, they weren’t all winners. This is a great cozy read for holiday themed mystery lovers.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy.

The Mysterious Bookshop, which is an actual place in New York, and Otto Penzler the owner has commissioned an original short story as a holiday gift for customers, written exclusively for the store and never published elsewhere, but now we call have a chance to read some of the stories. This collection includes 12 unique short stories written by well know mystery writers between 2011-2023, all take place in New York City and include a cameo of the book shop. A standout story for me was the one with Catnip revenge—it peaked the strangeness level for me, and the story about the father who came back out of witness protection for his son’s book reading, was moving as well. This book contains something for everyone who likes a good mystery ranging in styles from cozy to police procedurals and portrays a different state on the festive season. The writing of all the stories are very good -- some will hold your attention more than others but it depends on the type of mystery you like .

Thank you to NetGalley, Otto Penzler, Penzler Publishers for this ARC . This is my honest review.