What do you think?
Rate this book
Lucy Stone #20
Christmas Carol Murder
"It's Christmas in the small town of Tinker's Cove, Maine, and Lucy Stone - newspaper reporter and mother of three - is excited about her acting debut in the town's production of A Christmas Carol.
Lucy normally loves planning for the holidays, but this year Tinker's Cove has fallen on hard times. With so many residents struggling to make ends meet, Christmas festivities are a luxury some can't afford. But the story's not so bleak at Downeast Mortgage, whose tight-fisted owners, Jake Marlowe and Ben Scribner, are raking in profits from everyone's misfortune. Half the town is in their debt, so when the miserly Marlowe is murdered, the mourners are few and the suspects are many . . .
Can Lucy find the murderer amidst the yuletide chaos? She's going to have to move fast, as there are death threats flying about, not tom mention a ghostly visitor . . .
Bursting with festive spirit, and as comforting as a roaring log fire, this wonderfully fun and cozy mystery from New York Times bestseller Leslie Meier is a delight from start to finish.
Lucy normally loves planning for the holidays, but this year Tinker's Cove has fallen on hard times. With so many residents struggling to make ends meet, Christmas festivities are a luxury some can't afford. But the story's not so bleak at Downeast Mortgage, whose tight-fisted owners, Jake Marlowe and Ben Scribner, are raking in profits from everyone's misfortune. Half the town is in their debt, so when the miserly Marlowe is murdered, the mourners are few and the suspects are many . . .
Can Lucy find the murderer amidst the yuletide chaos? She's going to have to move fast, as there are death threats flying about, not tom mention a ghostly visitor . . .
Bursting with festive spirit, and as comforting as a roaring log fire, this wonderfully fun and cozy mystery from New York Times bestseller Leslie Meier is a delight from start to finish.
272 pages, Hardcover
First published September 24, 2013
368 people are currently reading
2040 people want to read
About the author
Leslie Meier
70 books2,071 followersLeslie Meier lives in Braintree and Harwich (Cape Cod), Massachusetts. She is the creator of 'Lucy Stone', a reporter and amateur sleuth in the fictional seaside village of Tinker's Cove, Maine.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 356 reviews
November 30, 2023
CHRISTMAS CAROL MURDER is the first book I’ve read in this series and I was immediately charmed by the descriptions of life in small-town Maine. I always love it when authors manage to transport me on a mini-vacation for the space of reading their book, and this little trip “down East” to cold, eccentric Maine was fun!
The town is having a bit of a crisis, with tax revenues falling, hours being cut, and people losing their homes left and right. (In that sense, it’s not a pick-me-upper, even though the book overall is really nice to read in that homey small-town way.) When the mortgage company owner receives a mail bomb and is killed, Lucy begins investigating to see who could have the motive to kill him. The trouble is… that’s basically the entire town. This has notes of Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol” including the town play being put on, which is kind of the perfect note of small town quaint!
Lucy digs deeper and deeper. She’s having troubles at home with a daughter intent on rebellion, and is the killer going to strike again! This was awesome and I’ve just found a new series to enjoy!
The town is having a bit of a crisis, with tax revenues falling, hours being cut, and people losing their homes left and right. (In that sense, it’s not a pick-me-upper, even though the book overall is really nice to read in that homey small-town way.) When the mortgage company owner receives a mail bomb and is killed, Lucy begins investigating to see who could have the motive to kill him. The trouble is… that’s basically the entire town. This has notes of Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol” including the town play being put on, which is kind of the perfect note of small town quaint!
Lucy digs deeper and deeper. She’s having troubles at home with a daughter intent on rebellion, and is the killer going to strike again! This was awesome and I’ve just found a new series to enjoy!
December 4, 2022
In Christmas Carol Murder, Lucy gets involved in the local theater, but things take a deadly turn. A miser's house is blown up, and people she know well are acting strange. The holidays are fun, except her daughter Sara is getting friendly with protestors. Money is tight everywhere, and mortgages are being canceled when owners can't make payments. Sadness all around but Meier brings it all together again with some holiday spirit.
February 24, 2014
I usually like the Lucy Stone mystery series. This one had too much politics. The mystery almost seemed to be an excuse for Ms. Meier to air her views about foreclosures, health care costs, student loans, and the economy in general. If I want to read about that I will read the news. I expected a cozy mystery like the others in this series and was generally disappointed. The book was hard for me to get through and a bit depressing.
December 8, 2013
Looking at the title, you know what this is going to be about, another trite story paralleling the lives of its main characters to those in the Dickens classic. In this case, the story centers around the modern economic recession. While I applaud an author for branching out and taking on such events and issues, this simply doesn't work well for this author or these characters. I must say, I've often found Lucy Stone annoyingly immature and naive. (I mean, how many times can an adult woman use the term "tummy" without seeming ridiculously childlike.) I've been waiting for her to grow as a character, but even as she ages and her children move into adulthood, she continues to devolve and regress. Trying to take on such a complicated issue using a lead character with the emotional development of an eleven-year-old just doesn't work. The issue and the plot become oversimplified and annoyingly self-righteous. Wrap that in yet another dull reissuing of "A Christmas Carol" and this story just becomes one boring and truthfully silly mess of a story. If this is the way the Lucy Stone series is going, then this will more than likely be the last I will bother to read.
December 26, 2019
It is Christmas in Tinker's Cove and Lucy Stone is busy as usual. However, times in the little town in Maine are not easy. Christmas is not going to be a lovely holiday for everyone. However, those at Downeast Mortgage are unseemly celebrating other people's losses. His murder comes as no surprise, and suspects are plentiful.
Lucy does what she does best. She decides to find the killer, even if it interferes with her job, family and even her desire to take classes.
Christmas Carol Murder, by the title alone, reminded me a bit of the Dickens classic. With a not-so-unexpected ghost, the typical twists and turns, and the danger Lucy always seems to find make this a delightful edition to the series.
I have enjoyed this series to-date, and have less than ten left. Since I love cozy mysteries, I am thrilled to have found this series and it holds a warm place in my heart.
Lucy does what she does best. She decides to find the killer, even if it interferes with her job, family and even her desire to take classes.
Christmas Carol Murder, by the title alone, reminded me a bit of the Dickens classic. With a not-so-unexpected ghost, the typical twists and turns, and the danger Lucy always seems to find make this a delightful edition to the series.
I have enjoyed this series to-date, and have less than ten left. Since I love cozy mysteries, I am thrilled to have found this series and it holds a warm place in my heart.
December 18, 2022
⭐️⭐️⭐️ -Audiobook (A quick fun read. I definitely enjoy her newer books more than her older books.)
January 21, 2019
I think this is my favorite Lucy Stone yet, admittedly I haven't read a lot of them, but of the ones I have read, I love this one and how it closely mirrored the story A Christmas Carol. The local community theater in Tinker's Cove was putting on the play. Even the characters of Jake Marlowe, the death of an old town miser who was Ben Scribner's business partner (get it, EBENezer SCRooge, I thought it was cool). If you read carefully, you can pick out the various parts of the plot that are just like the Ghosts of Christmas Present, Past and Future and most importantly, Scrooge's reformation. I love how the local story of the little girl who needed a kidney turned out.
I never guessed the killer until the clues started falling into place in the very last pages of the book! It was an exciting showdown and one that could have literally gotten Lucy blown to kingdom come. It did have a very happy ending, especially for a couple of the people in town. And I loved Miss Tillie's toast at the end, "God bless us every one. Merry Christmas!"
I'm so glad my library had this out in its Christmas display. It took me awhile to get time for it but I really enjoyed it once I read it!
I never guessed the killer until the clues started falling into place in the very last pages of the book! It was an exciting showdown and one that could have literally gotten Lucy blown to kingdom come. It did have a very happy ending, especially for a couple of the people in town. And I loved Miss Tillie's toast at the end, "God bless us every one. Merry Christmas!"
I'm so glad my library had this out in its Christmas display. It took me awhile to get time for it but I really enjoyed it once I read it!
December 21, 2015
In the spirit of Christmas giving, I am rounding my 1½ stars up instead of down.
I was mildly enjoying the small town stories and heading towards a low 3* rating. Then in the ending Lucy Too ridiculous for me to swallow.
I aso found this audiobook's narrator to be not quite to my taste. I am not sure why though - there was no obvious flaw in her speaking voice. If I figure it out, I will come back and add in that information.
I was mildly enjoying the small town stories and heading towards a low 3* rating. Then in the ending Lucy Too ridiculous for me to swallow.
I aso found this audiobook's narrator to be not quite to my taste. I am not sure why though - there was no obvious flaw in her speaking voice. If I figure it out, I will come back and add in that information.
December 27, 2013
Predictable mystery plus bad writing plus lazy, broad characterization equals a mystery I didn't enjoy at all. I can forgive one or two out of the three in a mystery, but not all of them. This was my first Lucy Stone and I don't see myself picking up any more; admittedly, I am not much of a domestic mystery reader. I do like cozy mysteries, but prefer them more in the vein of Louise Penny and Agatha Christie.
December 23, 2013
My least favorite of the series. Too much of a downer and the lame Christmas Carol parallel is really bad.
October 7, 2013
I did like this one, only the second of the series I have tried. It was the book version of the 80's sitcom socially relevant episode. It is difficult bringing real world problems into fiction because you can't really solve anything in story terms. You just put a spotlight on it and then have to move on with the story knowing you can't fix the problem or it will throw the readers right out of the story because it didn't get fixed that easily in their world. Which makes it a slightly depressing story with the "recession" having made life difficult (cut hours, layoffs, housing crises, general bad economy) for just about every character in the book. The only problem I really had with all the preaching Lucy did about how people could help make things better for each other was when she made the comment that she did all her Christmas shopping online. Great way to practice what you preach about supporting the local economy.
I did like most of the characters and writing enough that I will try another in the series.
I did like most of the characters and writing enough that I will try another in the series.
February 1, 2014
It loosely mimed Dicken's book.
The author went off on bunny trails at moments when all I wanted to know was what was going to happen next.
At one critical point, the potential murderer's thoughts were attributed to his victim. (The editor missed it?)
For a reporter, Lucy didn't seem to actually investigate the back stories of people much, except for the one time she decided to snoop into papers belonging to her husband. Apparently she never heard of facebook or google to search people?
I could have done without the pontificaton about mortgage loans, student loans and health care. It was a bit like being trapped in a news talk show.
I wanted to like this book and it just kept falling flat for me.
The author went off on bunny trails at moments when all I wanted to know was what was going to happen next.
At one critical point, the potential murderer's thoughts were attributed to his victim. (The editor missed it?)
For a reporter, Lucy didn't seem to actually investigate the back stories of people much, except for the one time she decided to snoop into papers belonging to her husband. Apparently she never heard of facebook or google to search people?
I could have done without the pontificaton about mortgage loans, student loans and health care. It was a bit like being trapped in a news talk show.
I wanted to like this book and it just kept falling flat for me.
December 7, 2016
I really like Lucy Stone, she is a very real character (could be that she and her family are aging in real time like the rest of us). This was a fun story that is like Lucy's own version of A Christmas Carol, complete with her acting in a stage version of it. The mystery was good and this was just a good enjoyable Christmas story.
December 16, 2014
This was my first Leslie Meier book. I probably won't read another. It seemed more a way for the author to air her political grievances than write a mystery. It just wasn't for me.
November 24, 2019
This was a little too political for a Christmas cozy for my taste.
December 6, 2021
I went it with rather low expectations and they were met.
It was a cozy mystery, with an obvious parallel to A Christmas Carol. But it felt a bit too contrived and simplistic.
It was a cozy mystery, with an obvious parallel to A Christmas Carol. But it felt a bit too contrived and simplistic.
April 10, 2024
A contemporary adaptation of the old Dickens favorite. The evils of the 2011 housing crisis are remedied through the spirit of Christmas.
Having been a victim of a “short sale” because of that real estate disaster, I really related to the story. It just seemed a little dragged out.
I hope little Patrick has a better upbringing than Lucy’s kids. Sara and Zoe are rude and disrespectful, awful teens that I want to ground and take away their phones - forever!!
Having been a victim of a “short sale” because of that real estate disaster, I really related to the story. It just seemed a little dragged out.
I hope little Patrick has a better upbringing than Lucy’s kids. Sara and Zoe are rude and disrespectful, awful teens that I want to ground and take away their phones - forever!!
December 24, 2025
This was a fun and quick listen on audiobook. I really have to go back and read some of the earlier books in this series.
August 2, 2022
The Great Recession hits the small town of Tinker's Cove, Maine, hard as families struggle to keep themselves afloat in these dark times. Foreclosures are on the rise, people are losing their hard-earned jobs, and some families are suffering through rising debts, wondering how they will pay them off.
Meier's engaging, if not profoundly gloomy mystery, is page-turning and relevant. And the novel will appeal to most of us affected by the current economic crisis.
Amid the chaos, a prominent local citizen, Jake Marlowe from "Downeast Mortgage," a local financing company, is found dead in his Victorian home, a victim of foul play. A so-called present is sent to Marlowe's house, wrapped in festive Christmas paper, a note affixed to the box reading, "DO NOT OPEN TIL CHRISTMAS, bearing deadly consequences when Marlowe decides to open the box before said date. Disaster strikes when the Christmas package turns out to be a homemade bomb.
Who wanted Jake Marlowe dead? His greedy business partner, Ben Scribner? Or an angry entourage of local townspeople whose houses are being foreclosed because of shady financial dealings with greedy businessmen Marlowe and Ben Scribner?
During the recession, Lucy Stone is shelling out the money she probably couldn't afford otherwise for a little boy named Patrick. Ten dollars for a picture of Patrick and Santa Claus together. A toy car for the little boy en route on a shopping trip with Lucy's friend Molly. And Lucy makes online purchases for the upcoming holiday season. She spends a few extra dollars on organic, natural foods for her daughter, Sara. The latter complaints throughout the novel about how traditional foods are harvested and produced with too many chemicals. But again, even amid the dark period, Lucy still manages to gather her family together for their usual, traditional Friday night pizza dinner. A nice touch, I think, to illustrate family togetherness, something that seems to be missing in many families today.
CHRISTMAS CAROL MURDER is apropos of life's current uncertain financial situation and an exciting entry in Leslie Meier's ongoing Lucy Stone mystery series. Newcomers may find off-putting the tense atmosphere of the novel and the economic travesty the characters face. Maybe because for some of us, the issue of foreclosure and accruing debt hits too close to home. But avid fans of the series will welcome another strong story with Lucy Stone trying to juggle motherhood, accepting a role in A CHRISTMAS CAROL, reporting for her local rag, "The Pennysaver," and tracking down a ruthless killer. Recommended.
Meier's engaging, if not profoundly gloomy mystery, is page-turning and relevant. And the novel will appeal to most of us affected by the current economic crisis.
Amid the chaos, a prominent local citizen, Jake Marlowe from "Downeast Mortgage," a local financing company, is found dead in his Victorian home, a victim of foul play. A so-called present is sent to Marlowe's house, wrapped in festive Christmas paper, a note affixed to the box reading, "DO NOT OPEN TIL CHRISTMAS, bearing deadly consequences when Marlowe decides to open the box before said date. Disaster strikes when the Christmas package turns out to be a homemade bomb.
Who wanted Jake Marlowe dead? His greedy business partner, Ben Scribner? Or an angry entourage of local townspeople whose houses are being foreclosed because of shady financial dealings with greedy businessmen Marlowe and Ben Scribner?
During the recession, Lucy Stone is shelling out the money she probably couldn't afford otherwise for a little boy named Patrick. Ten dollars for a picture of Patrick and Santa Claus together. A toy car for the little boy en route on a shopping trip with Lucy's friend Molly. And Lucy makes online purchases for the upcoming holiday season. She spends a few extra dollars on organic, natural foods for her daughter, Sara. The latter complaints throughout the novel about how traditional foods are harvested and produced with too many chemicals. But again, even amid the dark period, Lucy still manages to gather her family together for their usual, traditional Friday night pizza dinner. A nice touch, I think, to illustrate family togetherness, something that seems to be missing in many families today.
CHRISTMAS CAROL MURDER is apropos of life's current uncertain financial situation and an exciting entry in Leslie Meier's ongoing Lucy Stone mystery series. Newcomers may find off-putting the tense atmosphere of the novel and the economic travesty the characters face. Maybe because for some of us, the issue of foreclosure and accruing debt hits too close to home. But avid fans of the series will welcome another strong story with Lucy Stone trying to juggle motherhood, accepting a role in A CHRISTMAS CAROL, reporting for her local rag, "The Pennysaver," and tracking down a ruthless killer. Recommended.
August 14, 2015
Reviewed by Crystal B
Book provided by the publisher
Originally posted at Romancing the Book
I jumped at the chance to review Christmas Carol Murder by Leslie Meier. I have read other Lucy Stone mysteries and I always enjoy them. Ms. Meier has a way of telling a good mystery story with some humor thrown in. That is my favorite kind of mystery. I like to sit on the edge of my seat but yet get a good laugh or two a long the way. Leslie Meier was very successful doing that with this story.
I love Lucy Stone, that woman can find herself in the middle of more trouble then she knows what to do with. However she always finds a way out of the mess and maybe finds a clue or two along the way.
One other thing I really liked about this book is that it shows the economical hardships that are happening everywhere. It really puts the spotlight on some of the rough decisions people are having to make. Should they pay their mortgage or their health insurance? I like that this story really hits one some tough subjects.
I have a special fondness for Christmas stories and I enjoy reading them any time of the year. So that this is a Christmas story was just a bonus for me. Leslie Meier has done a great job of putting a different kind of twist on the the Christmas Carol story.
If you have read Ms. Meier’s work in the past and enjoyed her Lucy Stone series I think you will enjoy this book as well. If you have not had a chance to read her work but enjoy a nice mystery story with some humor then I would suggest you give this one a try. I think you might like it. I know I certainly did.
Book provided by the publisher
Originally posted at Romancing the Book
I jumped at the chance to review Christmas Carol Murder by Leslie Meier. I have read other Lucy Stone mysteries and I always enjoy them. Ms. Meier has a way of telling a good mystery story with some humor thrown in. That is my favorite kind of mystery. I like to sit on the edge of my seat but yet get a good laugh or two a long the way. Leslie Meier was very successful doing that with this story.
I love Lucy Stone, that woman can find herself in the middle of more trouble then she knows what to do with. However she always finds a way out of the mess and maybe finds a clue or two along the way.
One other thing I really liked about this book is that it shows the economical hardships that are happening everywhere. It really puts the spotlight on some of the rough decisions people are having to make. Should they pay their mortgage or their health insurance? I like that this story really hits one some tough subjects.
I have a special fondness for Christmas stories and I enjoy reading them any time of the year. So that this is a Christmas story was just a bonus for me. Leslie Meier has done a great job of putting a different kind of twist on the the Christmas Carol story.
If you have read Ms. Meier’s work in the past and enjoyed her Lucy Stone series I think you will enjoy this book as well. If you have not had a chance to read her work but enjoy a nice mystery story with some humor then I would suggest you give this one a try. I think you might like it. I know I certainly did.
January 13, 2015
The similarities between this tale and another more famous one are no accident. In fact, half the fun in this entertaining cozy is spotting the parallels. People in Tinker’s Cove are preparing for Christmas, despite the problems that are plaguing some of the inhabitants. When one of the stingiest citizens receives an anonymous gift that blows up in his face, things become even more tense. Now that his partner is threatening to foreclose on more homeowners, it seems like he definitely needs a push in the right direction to find the real spirit of Christmas. Is Lucy the one to do it? This cozy is more than just a mystery – it tackles some social issues as well. A good choice at any time of the year, but especially at Christmastime.
March 15, 2021
Another quick, palate cleansing read. I always love just slipping back into Tinker's Cove to catch up on what's going on!! This time around, times have been hard, employees at multiple businesses have lost hours or even their jobs and homes are bordering on foreclosure. With Christmas coming, tensions were high for so many. So when one of the top executives of the town's mortgage company is killed by a letter bomb, people have some mixed feelings. And when his business partner carries on with his "no exceptions" policy...Christmas spirit becomes even less evident. The local theater decides to present "A Christmas Story" in order to possibly raise funds for the most needy, with Lucy as Mrs. Cratchit. Sometimes fiction parallels fiction.
November 20, 2017
I read Cosy Mysteries as an escape from every day life. I have read much better books than this one. This was full of health issues, politics and nasty name calling, something I can honestly do without, especially since it was a Christmas Cosy. I don't think I'll be reading any more of her books. I also just sent a message to the author telling her that calling us redheads "freckle faced carrot tops" was uncalled for. Bah Humbug! 2 Stars
January 1, 2016
Fun to read but I so disagree with the premise
I am a small town employee and a taxpayer and geez Louise this writer is nuts.
I love Maine too but not a town with
Mcdonald's in it.Get real.
I am a small town employee and a taxpayer and geez Louise this writer is nuts.
I love Maine too but not a town with
Mcdonald's in it.Get real.
June 29, 2020
This is a charming spin on a old classic. I enjoy reading about Lucy’s investigations. She can sometimes be a little nosy and get herself in to dangerous situations but she is likable. The mystery is fast paced with several twists and turns.
October 7, 2013
It feels like you've had a visit with a good friend when you finish a Lucy Stone book. I always look forward to the next one.
October 9, 2013
Leslie Meier reinvigorates a classic Christmas story, making it relevant for our time. Her ending is more than satisfying and will put anyone in a warm-hearted mood for the holiday.
July 17, 2016
I rarely stop reading a book before it is finished, but I just couldn't make it through this one, even though I tried several times. I found it to be trite and preachy.
December 28, 2016
Lots of real world problems affect the town of Tinker's Cove - it was a good mystery.
January 5, 2022
I like that sometimes Lucy Stone goes beyond a cozy mystery into something a bit edgier and socially relevant. While investigating the murder of a local Scrooge (literally a local Scrooge; the plot of the book largely mimics A Christmas Carol, which is being presented by amateur actors in Tinker's Cove) the story brings in a lot of the injustices of underhanded mortgage practices that cause foreclosures, ensuring profits for the lenders and huge losses for the borrowers. And at the heart of the story is Lucy and her daily family dynamics, as well as her large circle of friends.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 356 reviews