Reading | Cosier Crime

December days are made for snuggling up with a good book and a Christmas mystery might be just the ticket. Here are a few of our favourite Cosy Crime reads for the season

Another Little Christmas Murder by Lorna Nicholl Morgan (Sphere)

Set in the run-up to Christmas, this Golden Age mystery has the classic setting of a snowbound English country house party. Young, intrepid Dylis Hughes is driving through Yorkshire on the way back to London when her car breaks down. She accepts help from a passing motorist, Inigo Brown, and agrees to seek refuge at his uncle’s house, Wintry Wold.

Once there, Dylis is surprised by the strange behaviour of Inigo’s (very young) aunt, who has only recently married his much older uncle. Dylis’ suspicions are fully awakened when Inigo’s uncle dies suddenly in the night and other strangers arrive at the house to ask for shelter from the blizzard. Are

all these unexpected guests who they claim to be? Dylis and Inigo decide to investigate, and the result is an exciting mystery tinged with romance, which will keep you guessing until the end.

ALSO TRY: A Christmas Party by Georgette Heyer (Arrow)

The mistletoe is hung at Lexham Manor, but Christmas cheer is lacking among the guests. Perhaps the grumpiest of the lot is their host, Nathaniel Herriard, and when he is murdered, each guest falls under suspicion in this clever locked-room puzzle.

Five more cosy crime novels for keen Christmas bookworms

The Adventure of the Christmas Pudding, a short story collection by Agatha Christie

Mystery in White, by J Jefferson Farjeon

The Santa Klaus Murder, by Mavis Doriel Hay

Carol, by Patricia Highsmith

The Long Shadow, by Celia Fremlin

If you’re looking for a festive read for December, you might enjoy our feature A Winter’s Tale by Miranda Mills in our latest issue. Whether you’re looking for seasonal anthologies, winter feast inspiration, spooky season reads, stories for snow days or childhood classics, there’s a page-turner waiting for you.

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Make | Hand-painted Taper Candles

A simple project to help light up your December table

You will need:

Taper candles (dark colours look most effective)

Metallic gold markers

Candle holders to hold them while they dry

To make:

Using a gold metallic marker, you can create decorative candles to complement your advent candle*, or use for other festive occasions. Stars in different sizes with dots work well, or you can try a foliage and berry motif along the length of the candle. It’s up to you.

Take care not to smudge the bits you’ve done as you go. Put them in candle holders so they can dry completely on all sides.

* See page 18 of our December issue for instructions on how to make the Advent candle, pictured above.

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Tipple | Burnt Orange Cocktail

A take on an Old Fashioned, this tipple makes use of the natural oils in orange skin. As they caramelise under the grill, your kitchen will be filled with warm, citrussy notes.

Makes 1 cocktail

3 tsp granulated sugar

1 or 2 oranges, squeezed (you’ll need 125ml juice and keep the peel)

2 dashes Angostura Bitters

60ml bourbon whiskey

1 Heat the sugar and orange juice in a pan over a low heat. Remove from the heat once the sugar begins to brown.

2 Preheat a low grill and slice a little of the orange peel into garnish-sized strips. Once hot, put the peel on a baking tray and grill until the edges just catch. Take another piece of orange peel and rub it around the rim of your glass, inside and outside.

3 Muddle 1 teaspoon of the sugar and orange juice mix with a piece of orange peel.

4 Add the bitters, stir, add the whiskey and stir again. Pour into your glass and add the remaining juice mix, ice and a piece of burnt orange rind.

This recipe is from our monthly Kitchen Therapy pages by Lottie Storey, which feature seasonal ways to feed body and soul. In our December issue you’ll also find recipes for Leek Tart with Romesco, Sprout Slaw with Dried Cranberries & Crunchy Nuts, Rosemary & Parmesan Biscuits and Individual Bailey’s Tiramisus.

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Playlist | Christmas moments

DJ: Frances Ambler
Image: Adobe Stock

Introducing our December playlist. You can have a listen to it here. Pop it on while you write your cards, unwrap your pressies or just take a moment.
Our December issue celebrates all things calm, all things bright. It’s in the shops from 19 November.
You can have a browse of all our playlists here.

Make | Our Natural Advent Calendar of Promises

December days can race away from us. However, the joys of an advent calender shouldn’t be forgotten and can add a moment of kindness, reflection and calm into a hectic time.

This advent calendar (featured on our front cover) is quick to put together and it can start on any day in December, if you make a shorter version. It works for all ages, too – rather than gifts, you place a promise in each envelope that the recipient can trade in whenever they like. Whether it’s a trip to see some lights, the first pick from the Christmas chocolates or just a nice hug, it’s a lovely way to create memories.

You will need:

Paper
Scissors
Small envelopes, or you could make paper pockets
Decorations (if you can’t find enough dried flowers and seed heads you could use bits of fir)
Washi tape
Fabric, pins, a stick and string, or cardboard and glue

To make

1 Cut the paper into pieces that are small enough to fit in your envelopes.
2 Write a promise on each piece of paper. You can write things like: watching a film together, making them a special pudding, a snuggle on the sofa, a day out somewhere festive, a winter picnic, hot chocolate tasting.... Customise the promises to the person that you’re making them for.
3 Put each promise in an envelope and seal.
4 Start decorating! We used pieces of dried flowers and foliage and stuck them to the envelopes with washi tape.
5 To finish, either stick the envelopes to a piece of cardboard or, as we did, pin them to a piece of fabric, which can be hung on the wall.  Lay the envelopes out first before pinning, to check you’re
happy with the overall look.

Project and photography by Emma Harris

If you like the idea of making an advent calendar with a twist, you might enjoy our feature Calendars of Promise in our December issue.

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