Murder at Mistletoe Manor: A cosy Christmas murder mystery and the perfect festive crime novel to curl up with

by F. L. Everett

‘Tis the season for murder. . . Curl up with the perfect cosy Christmas crime novel for the festive season, a locked-room murder mystery perfect for fans of Agatha Christie, Robert Thorogood and Rev Richard Coles.

‘With echoes of the golden age of crime fiction … very entertainingly done’ The Times

‘Brilliant …A perfect contemporary whodunnit.' Ian Moore, bestselling author of Death and Croissants


Four days before Christmas, twelve stranded strangers gather round a crackling fire, sheltering from the raging storm outside. . .

But their relief is as the snow deepens, the tree-lined avenue winding through the hotel’s parkland becomes impassable. Their isolation is complete.

The next morning, a body is found in one of the luxurious four-poster beds.

As twelve strangers become eleven suspects, who among them has checked in with murder in mind?

And will any of them live to see another Christmas. . .?


PRAISE FOR MURDER AT MISTLETOE

'Brilliantly festive and utterly gripping . . . A whodunnit that’s perfect for armchair detectives.' Yours Magazine

'This yule-fuelled mystery is the perfect read with a glass of mulled wine in front of a roaring fire.' Candis Magazine

'Agatha Christie for a new generation' The Herald

'Murder in a snowed-in country hotel - and a killer with a grudge against the season of goodwill. What could be better?' Faith Martin, bestselling author of The Last Word is Death

'A festive mystery to read by the fire with a glass of mulled wine... brilliantly inventive... will keep you turning the pages well into the night. Loved it.' Catherine Cooper, bestselling author of The Chalet

‘A contemporary locked in whodunnit that pairs well with mulled wine and candlelight.' Woman & Home

'I loved it... a perfect festive read.' Andreina Cordani, author of Murder at the Christmas Emporium

'The perfect whodunnit.' Scottish Field

‘Gripping and atmospheric . . . A killer Christmas read.' Psychologies

Genres: Christmas, Mystery, Book Club, Murder Mystery, Crime, Holiday, Fiction

361 pages, Kindle Edition

Published August 28, 2025

Reviews

[Ana · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this.. Murder, but make it festive..
This kind of stories will always be my favourite. Mystery and Christmas, cozy vibes mixed with sinister intentions and colourful characters, what more could you ask for..

Nick is a journalist out on an assignment, a few days before Christmas. Despite the bad weather, he's determined to go home to his wife and little daughter as soon as possible, but a bad turn leaves him stranded on an unknown road after his car breaks down. He manages to walk to a hotel nearby, where he's fortunate enough to find a room.. The weather is getting worse, there's no signal and the Wi-Fi is down, so he's stranded there with strangers until the weather gets better. But, a body is found and suddenly everyone is a suspect.. Without a way to get help, Nick decides to investigate himself, but can he find the killer before they strike again.. Clock is ticking and there's no escaping...

I loved Nick, he was trying really hard to get to the truth, he took his role of the detective seriously. He did accuse basically everyone, but honestly without a way to verify anything, I would too. He had to trust them, but how can you really trust anyone, they knew nothing about each other after all... His inner monologue did get tiring at times, but I get it.. 

I really liked the mix of personalities we got. Everyone had a secret they were desperate to hide, everyone was suspicious in their own way. I'm not going to talk about them a lot, I don't want to spoil something, but I thought all the characters were compelling and the author did a great job at bringing them to life. I loved some of them, hated others and was conflicted about the rest.. Jingle was my favourite though. 

The story progressed at a great pace, not too slow, but not too fast either. It suited me. 
Was I shocked by any revelations? No, not really.. 
I feel like the author did a great job at leaving clues, they were easy to pick up, but not in a way that ruined the story for me. I loved the comfort of it. 

The setting was absolutely amazing.. An old hotel in the countryside, characters isolated from the rest of the world, snowed in, with all the cozy vibes and Christmas approaching, but a tense and sinister atmosphere..

This was honestly exactly what I needed, even if it was a little predictable. I still had a great time and would love to read more books by this author. 

*Thank you to Netgalley and to Random House UK, Cornerstone for providing me with an ARC.*

[Nienke · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dit was echt entertaining! De perfecte mix van spanning, humor en sfeer. Schrijfstijl (ondanks dat ik het in het Engels las) echt helemaal mijn ding. Heb er echt van genoten! 4,5 ⭐️

[Daniel Myatt · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book should have been a whole heap shorter, but at least the cat and the dog survive...

A snowed in manor, a group of strangers all become trapped, and then the murders start.

This book meandered on and on for far too long, and sadly, the twist is far too obvious.

Go read The Sittaford Mystery instead if you want snow, murder and mystery done right.

[Lucy · Rating 2 out of 5]

I can't resist a Christmas murder mystery, but have yet to find a modern one that's not a bit shit.

[Maisie Smith · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 ⭐️Way too long, felt like it was written by AI, guessed the ending before the half way point boooo

[Krissy · Rating 2 out of 5]

(just on the off chance F L Everett is reading reviews.... maybe skip that one. upon a quick reread, it reads pretty harsh oops)

my god. what a sad little book jane.

on nick, the mc: he has the privilege of being incredibly unlikeable and unbelievably stupid. like, pick a struggle. also if i have to hear about his daughter's gummy smile one more time....

on the character of destiny: i wouldn't mind if the whole cast were caricatures of tropes but none of them outside of destiny felt like it so she really just comes across as the author's punching bag for making fun of what they perceive as gen z stupidity. oh nooo she has anxiety. oh noo she's vegan. oh noo she's chosen her own name. kim, people are being murdered.

on colt: having one of your characters acknowledge that it's fucked up everyone was so quick and eager to blame the gay black working class guy doesn't cut it. because yes, yes it is fucked up. and all it amounts to is one throwaway line about how he apparently managed to survive and about how oh so guilty our mc feels about it and how he's going to track colt down and send him an apology letter. bruh. if you're going to do social commentary, commit to it.

on the mystery: i admit, you got me. but was that because it actually was a good mystery or because it was just too convenient for me to imagine that would be the answer? everything was cookie cutter perfect in terms of means, motive, victims and resolution. also why did matilda just suddenly turn into a disney villain? idk. it just didn't feel satisfying.

on the writing: the present tense was jarring at times but i admit this could well be a me issue. what was even more jarring however was how characters talk.

"hello. my name is [first name] [last name]. i am a/an [occupation] from [town]. i have a lovely wife and a baby daughter who i love very much."

"hi there, [first name]. i'm [first name] [last name]. a/an [occupation] from [town]. oh, you have a baby daughter? how nice! i have a grown-up son!"

like..... what

[Desislava Mihaylova · Rating 4 out of 5]

Тихо се сипе белият сняг,
бързо блокира странници пак,
кой ли ги дебне в сенките там.
Май е убиец. Може, не знам!?!

Намерих точно това, от което имах нужда в празничните дни - чудесна cozy mystery. Ако сте почитатели на Агата Кристи, Ричард Озмън и Робърт Торогуд, този роман ще ви хареса. Освен това е написан в много приятен стил и е истинско удоволствие да се чете в оригинал.

Журналистът Ник е застигнат от разразила се зимна буря на път към вкъщи. Във виелицата успява да намери подслон в “Имението Имел”, което е приютило освен своите гости, още няколко странника, като него самия, двама души персонал, едно коте и един френски булдог. Четири дни преди Бъдни вечер те не само се оказват откъснати от света, телефоните и wi-fi сигнала, но и разбират, че сред тях дебне убиец.

[Owen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed reading this. It served as the perfect seasonal read and a welcome palette cleanser during my break from The Winter King.

The writing style was incredibly approachable; the prose allowed me to put up "good numbers" daily, and I found myself flying through the pages much quicker than I expected.

The characters were equally engaging—I particularly liked the protagonist, Nick. However, I did find myself wanting a more definitive conclusion regarding Colt, which felt like a slightly dangling thread.

The mystery itself was interesting enough to keep me hooked, featuring plenty of twists that kept me guessing. I went back and forth on who the culprit was throughout the entire book. It was only right on the cusp of the reveal that I was finally able to piece it all together, which provided a truly satisfying "aha!" moment.

My only real gripe was that the story felt like it went on a little too long. I felt it should have wrapped up sooner, yet the author kept adding additional reveals and twists. While a surprise is great, with each new layer added, the realism the book was intending to portray slowly began to slip away.

Despite the slightly over-extended ending, I’m a fan of F.L. Everett’s work after this and will definitely be checking out more of their catalogue in the future.

[urma · Rating 4 out of 5]

Everyone is suspicious!!!!

[Lot · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5

[Tracey Martin · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love all things Christmas so I had such a great time reading this cosy, festive mystery. It has the perfect amount of suspense, a brilliant mix of characters and a beautiful, atmospheric wintry setting.
The plot is so clever and engaging, each chapter leaving me needing to read the next to get closer to the big reveal.

Just days before Christmas, twelve guests gather at Mistletoe Manor. The festivities don’t quite go to plan though when one of the guests is found murdered in her bed. With a snowstorm trapping them inside, no phone signal, WiFi or way out, it becomes a race against time to uncover the killer before they strike again.
Nick, a journalist, takes on the role of detective (as did I) now everyone is a suspect.

With quirky personalities and secrets exposed, you don’t quite know who you can trust and I loved how the tensions and interactions between the guests kept me guessing and changing my mind throughout. One of my suspicions was kind of correct, although I just couldn’t quite piece all of the puzzle together. Once revealed it all made perfect sense and I found myself thinking back over the story to see if I missed any clues.

An absolutely brilliant festive whodunnit.

[Naomi Naomi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very cosy (but unsettling), fast written thriller. I really liked the characters and I did not saw the plot-twist comming! Is it the best quality book? no, but I really loved reading it!

[Coco · Rating 3 out of 5]

A bit of a silly one to get me through the festive period. Quite repetitive towards the end (yes we know you’re missing your baby daughter) and guessed the murderer in the first half but still a bit of fun

[Saskia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Je zal maar in een sneeuwstorm belanden, nog net een afgelegen hotel binnenkomen en terecht komen in een onbekend gezelschap waar al snel meerdere moorden plaatsvinden! En je kan nergens heen en met niemand communiceren... brr!

[Rebecca Wilson · Rating 3 out of 5]

22nd book club book - Christmas edition. This had a little bit of pacing issues, BUT I actually enjoyed how it was written. I felt there was a good level of character development, the murderer felt plausible and not out-of-the-blue.

[Kimberley · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this Christmas cosy crime. There was a good mix of characters, a decent plot and a good amount of whoddunit.

We are introduced to Nick, a journalist who gets caught in a snowstorm in Yorkshire, while he's trying to make his way home to London for Christmas. He comes across Mistletoe Manor, where he seeks shelter until the weather subsides. Here, we meet Lorraine & Alan Pinner, Violet Evans, Branson Mitchell & his wife, Penelope, David Foley, a GP, & his daughter Emily, retired Matilda Mannering, Colt Alfred, the chef & Donal Walsh, the hotel manager. This eclectic bunch are soon joined by yoga teacher Destiny, who also finds herself at the Manor after getting lost in the blizzard.

The story kicks off with the murder of one of the guests, and quickly spirals from there. There's no phone lines, no WiFi and no mobile signal, so the group are trapped and forced to try and figure out what one of them are committing murder before any more of them are targeted.

This type of story has been done countless times before, and this one follows in the same vein. I also feel like it was very repetitive; we hear about the guests, especially Nick's, home life over and over again. Nick also appoints himself as 'detective', but I feel like he just haphazardly points the finger without much evidence and he jumps from person to person. The book started really well and I was invested quickly, but I hate to admit, I did start getting bored through the second half.

Overall, it's not a bad story. It's a great little festive cosy crime and a fairly easy read. Just don't expect to be on the edge of your seat.

[John Lee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not an author I knew but reviews that made it sound like my kind of book and so it became my first book of Christmas week 2025.

The scene is Mistletoe Manor a good sized hotel somewhere in the wilds of Yorkshire. The story begins a short distance away where, in a heavy snowstorm, a car finally gives up.  It's driver is Nick a 34 year old journalist on his way home to London for Christmas. He starts walking for help and comes across the drive leading up to the hotel. He is willingly put up for the night.

He meets the other guests, the two staff members and the dog and cat. The snow continues and in the morning they not only realise that they are stuck but the phone lines seem to be down and there is no internet signal. As if this wasn't bad enough, one of the guests has been murdered.

This is a good one for the armchair detective. A closed group of 11 people and the victim and suspicions bounce around the group as clues are found and secrets uncovered.

The charactors are all thoroughly described and you very quickly start forming your own opinions of them.

Nick takes on the role as investigator in a situation where no one trusts anyone particularly after a second body is found.  A discovery towards the end enables him to bring pieces together and a confession gives the reader all the answers.

As there was no big denouement I wonder if the big clue  that pointed me towards the 'baddie' at about the halfway mark was really a clue or just an error. I don't care, I'm claiming it even though I didn't see the why's or wherefores.

Most enjoyable start to Christmas week.

22nd December 2025

[Charlotte · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall, this was a very exciting read. I sat down to read only two chapters, and four hours later, I was already 75% way into the book. I just kept on wanting to turn the page to find out new details in the hope that I could solve the mystery myself. There are plenty of clues sprinkled throughout that allow you to work out who the murderer is, and I had a lot of fun trying to size up suspects to see who might have done it. About halfway through, I'd figured out most of the conclusion, and it was enjoyable to see it all come together.

After a while, I did notice that a lot of it began to feel repetitive. It all just becomes a cycle of eat, sit in the drawing room, find clues, sleep, repeat. The clues were interesting enough, but I wish more could've been done in the house, instead of just being sat in the drawing room all the time.
Once the ending did hit, it felt like it went out with a whimper rather than a bang. After the stakes being so high, it all fell a little bit flat for me.

[Halli · Rating 3 out of 5]

An enjoyable Christmas murder mystery read.

I have never read anything by this author before and chose this book solely based on how cute I thought the cover was. Big snowy manor house at Christmas time, mix in a murder mystery, that sounds like a good read to me.

While I did enjoy this book, it wasn't one of my favourites. I honestly found the main character Nick to be pretty bloody annoying, jumping from conclusion to conclusion with little to no evidence. Like I guess the author was trying to make it seem amateurish but he was ridiculous, He accuses people based on the most ridiculous things over and over again and it honestly got pretty tiresome. Surely someone who investigates crimes as a reporter would have a little bit more common sense? The ending was quite obvious as well though I still enjoyed how it all came together.

[Leona Taylor · Rating 2 out of 5]

This month’s book club pick was Murder at the Mistletoe Manor, and unfortunately it was a disappointment. I went in expecting a festive, gripping whodunnit, but the story didn’t quite deliver.

The pacing was a major issue, the book could easily have been cut in half without losing anything important. Much of the plot felt padded with unnecessary detail, which slowed things down rather than building suspense.

Overall, while the setting had potential and the festive theme was appealing, the execution fell short. I expected more twists, tighter writing and a stronger payoff. Sadly, this one didn’t live up to expectations.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a really cozy and exciting read! The atmosphere was great, although it dragged a tiny bit in between and took me a few days to read, but the last 100 pages were gripping! I actually was able to guess who was behind everything fairly early and was correct, but the revelation of it all and the whole puzzle pieces coming together was still very satisfying and exciting:))! I had fun guessing and following clues & I really liked all the different characters & little secrets they had :)

[Beachcomber · Rating 4 out of 5]

A festive closed room mystery (not fully locked room, as only one of the murders qualifies) set in a hotel during a snowstorm. A decent plot with some twists and turns to keep you guessing, and I did partially guess whodunnit which is always satisfying!

I received a free ARC copy of this via NetGalley and the publishers in return for an unbiased review.

[Peta Jayne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book. A disparate group of people are snowed in a hotel the week before Christmas, as they are killed off the journalist amongst them tries to play detective with mixed results. Likeable characters, a light plot, and very entertaining.

[Samantha (A Dream of Books) · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars… review to follow

[Chloe Jones · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an OK little Christmas thriller.
I guessed a large part of the end from pretty early on so it wasn't super surprising or an on the edge of your seat sort of thriller. I also found that some of the descriptions seemed to be repeated multiple times throughout the book which really got on my nerves.
A nice change from the standard Christmas romance though

[Richard Howard · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't know why this is being marketed as a 'cozy murder' book, as it has three quite shocking murders. The atmosphere is very claustrophobic and there are plenty of red herrings, although the author does play it fair. However, I found it fairly easy to work out who the murderer was mainly because the author kept trying to shift suspicion away from them. Still, it is a fun read.

[Prytzilini · Rating 4 out of 5]

Godt med litt julemord

[Sophie Appleton · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 ish - did like it but it dragged on & annoyingly I did guess the murderer about half way through … wouldn’t say it’s obvious necessarily.

[Kayleigh Buttery]

I haven't gave this a rating because I DNF'd it. I just couldn't get into it. Honestly, the interactions between the characters felt SO unrealistic and over the top. I love that it was unexpectedly set in my home town and close by, but why are these characters acting so familiar and open with each other when they've only just met!? I don't think I've ever been in a hotel where complete strangers dine, hang out and socialise with each other. More likely they would retire to their own rooms!? Maybe it's just me 🤷🏻‍♀️

[Amy McLaughlin · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good festive murder mystery. I had no idea who the killer was. The days were a bit repetitive but I didn’t want to put the book down cause I was enjoying the story