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Murder By Mistletoe (and Blunt Instrument)
345 pages, Paperback
Published September 3, 2025
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
December 8, 2025
A brilliantly fun festive whodunnit with razor-sharp wit and real mystery
Murder by Mistletoe (and Blunt Instrument) is an absolute delight, a cosy Christmas crime caper that blends genuine suspense with laugh-out-loud humour. James Forbes Smith has created a clever, wonderfully entertaining whodunnit that feels like Death on the Nile reimagined on a snow-swept Alpine wine tour.
The pacing is pitch-perfect. One moment you're enjoying warm, cosy festive vibes and delicious descriptions of wine; the next you're thrown into blizzard-lashed tension, sharp twists, and mounting suspicion. The humour never undercuts the stakes either; it enhances them, making this feel fresh and modern while still honouring classic whodunnit traditions.
If you want a fun, festive mystery with great characters, stunning settings, and plenty of red herrings, Murder by Mistletoe (and Blunt Instrument) is the perfect seasonal read. Pour a glass of wine, get cosy, and enjoy the ride.
Highly recommended
Murder by Mistletoe (and Blunt Instrument) is an absolute delight, a cosy Christmas crime caper that blends genuine suspense with laugh-out-loud humour. James Forbes Smith has created a clever, wonderfully entertaining whodunnit that feels like Death on the Nile reimagined on a snow-swept Alpine wine tour.
The pacing is pitch-perfect. One moment you're enjoying warm, cosy festive vibes and delicious descriptions of wine; the next you're thrown into blizzard-lashed tension, sharp twists, and mounting suspicion. The humour never undercuts the stakes either; it enhances them, making this feel fresh and modern while still honouring classic whodunnit traditions.
If you want a fun, festive mystery with great characters, stunning settings, and plenty of red herrings, Murder by Mistletoe (and Blunt Instrument) is the perfect seasonal read. Pour a glass of wine, get cosy, and enjoy the ride.
Highly recommended
September 13, 2025
am a big fan of contemporary crime fiction so it takes something special now to stand out. Luckily this highly accomplished, taut, fully engaging & highly atmospheric debut novel from Forbes-Smith totally exceeds my expectations.
From ingenious plot devices to rival Christie & a myriad of both eccentric & eclectic characters that will keep you guessing to the very end.
Moretti himself is a uniquely charismatic yet troubled detective whose brilliance is unfortunately often matched by his own vices. The Alps themselves make an incredibly atmospheric back drop the murder & mayhem & as the blood spills you will realise you’ve read late into the night whilst remaining totally rapt.
I can’t wait to see if a sequel arrives to this. All I know is I will be along for the ride & strongly suggest you are too. As the festive season fast approaches this would make an excellent & timely present for the crime fiction fan in your life. Great stuff!
From ingenious plot devices to rival Christie & a myriad of both eccentric & eclectic characters that will keep you guessing to the very end.
Moretti himself is a uniquely charismatic yet troubled detective whose brilliance is unfortunately often matched by his own vices. The Alps themselves make an incredibly atmospheric back drop the murder & mayhem & as the blood spills you will realise you’ve read late into the night whilst remaining totally rapt.
I can’t wait to see if a sequel arrives to this. All I know is I will be along for the ride & strongly suggest you are too. As the festive season fast approaches this would make an excellent & timely present for the crime fiction fan in your life. Great stuff!
December 12, 2025
A great debut from this upcoming author. Brilliant twists and turns and great pacing. I hope there is a sequel to this great read.
December 19, 2025
Really enjoyed this. Great descriptions and flow to the book
December 25, 2025
⭐️⭐️
Martin Moretti is a very interesting and complex character. It was interesting reading what kind of detective he is and how reliant on alcohol he is. A very troubled but a funny and well written character. All of the characters were pretty well written in this book, a really good representation of different people, styles, backgrounds etc.
There were parts that I personally found a little slow and it got a little boring and at points a little too wordy. But this has some very dark and brutal kills as well as some very funny jokes and moments. I really enjoyed the premise of it being set on a wine retreat, something I haven’t read before. A really fun Christmas setting.
I’m not sure if I’ll continue with any more of these books if James writes more but we shall see. The last page with like a Marvel “*** will return” was pretty funny though.
Martin Moretti is a very interesting and complex character. It was interesting reading what kind of detective he is and how reliant on alcohol he is. A very troubled but a funny and well written character. All of the characters were pretty well written in this book, a really good representation of different people, styles, backgrounds etc.
There were parts that I personally found a little slow and it got a little boring and at points a little too wordy. But this has some very dark and brutal kills as well as some very funny jokes and moments. I really enjoyed the premise of it being set on a wine retreat, something I haven’t read before. A really fun Christmas setting.
I’m not sure if I’ll continue with any more of these books if James writes more but we shall see. The last page with like a Marvel “*** will return” was pretty funny though.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews