Murder Under the Mistletoe: A Canon Clement Christmas Novella

Canon Clement #3.5

by Richard Coles

It is Christmas Day and at Champton Rectory, Canon Daniel Clement and his mother Audrey are joined by the residents and guests of the big house to drink, eat and be merry.

At the festive feast, peace and goodwill prevail.

Until two meet under the mistletoe. One of them falls down dead. And Daniel suspects murder has returned to Champton...

Can Daniel and Detective Sergeant Neil Vanloo solve the crime and catch the Christmas killer?

Genres: Christmas, Fiction, Mystery, Crime, Audiobook, Murder Mystery, Cozy Mystery

160 pages, Paperback

Published October 23, 2025

About the author

The Reverend Richard Coles (born 26 March 1962) is a Church of England priest, broadcaster, writer and musician. Richard Coles was born in Northampton, England and educated at the independent Wellingborough School (where he was a choirboy)and at the South Warwickshire College of Further Education, Department of Drama and the Liberal Arts. He is known for having been the multi-instrumentalist who partnered Jimmy Somerville in the 1980s band The Communards, which achieved three Top Ten hits. He later attended King's College London where he studied theology from 1990. Richard Coles co-presents Saturday Live on BBCR4. In January 2011 The Reverend Richard Coles was appointed as the parish priest of St Mary the Virgin, Finedon in the Diocese of Peterborough.

Reviews

[Anna McKenzie · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was a Secret Santa gift to me, so I feel a bit bad for giving it the lowest rating, but my SS did in fact think they were dutifully fulfilling the brief. I asked for a cosy Christmas crime novel, and you'd be forgiven for thinking that this was one, given its title and the description. But can it really be considered a whodunnit when the murder in question occurs on page 117 out of 141, therefore negating any kind of suspense or intrigue? There's also two separate Agatha Christie namechecks, so it seems clear what the author was going for, but instead got too caught up in describing the mind-numbing minutiae of church traditions at Christmas and forgot to actually flesh out the titular murder. Yawn!

[MJ · Rating 2 out of 5]

Short, but still too many words for a thin story.

[iain · Rating 4 out of 5]

A short book from Richard Cole’s.
A murder mystery that’s a lovely easy read.

A Canon Clement mystery.
Christmas time at Champton Rectory, Daniel Clement and his family and others are all there to enjoy Christmas dinner. Food is cooked and recipes are secret.
A guest ends up dead.. was he murdered??
Can Daniel And sergeant Vanloo solve who has preformed a murder??

[Sifa Poulton · Rating 4 out of 5]

MURDER UNDER THE MISTLETOE is a charming Christmas novella about the social niceties of Christmas.

There is a lot of comedy brought out from the unlikely set of house guests trying to "hold up the side" by partaking of traditions they'd rather not and trying to ferret out the recipe to Audrey's bread sauce. There are, of course, all the peculiarities of Christmas traditions - the manger and nativity show - that Daniel embraces in his "well, I guess we're doing this, but only with reflections from a more traditional perspective."

It's a nice balance of humour to character work. I chuckled a lot, more frequently than I did in MURDER AT THE MONASTERY. It felt like a return to the quiet fun-poking of MURDER BEFORE EVENSONG.

The death in this book is very much an after thoughts, coming toward the end and with not much time spent on it. It did feel a little like it was added to keep with the overall series murder mystery vibes, but that didn't bother me too much. For me, it was more a slice of life to let you laugh at the absurdity of Christmas - a little escape from the potential tensions and retracing of old conversations and traditions of your own family.

[Jake Andrews · Rating 1 out of 5]

It was honestly crap

[Jo Fitch · Rating 2 out of 5]

If a book is only 145 pages long the murder really needs to happen earlier than page 117... nothing happens at all till then. Pretty slow

[Stephen Robert Collins · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is cross between Christmas Carol and P.G.Wodhouse with turkey and venison for dinner with a murder in the party games.
Full of food and funny jokes

[Hannah Rimmer · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a work of literary fiction I enjoyed it. As a murder mystery it fell woefully short.

[Jodie · Rating 1 out of 5]

I have lost my religion due to this book

[Rae · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was only the second Canon Clement mystery that I've read, although to call it a "mystery" is a bit of a misnomer, seeing as all the characters remain alive for about 3/4 of the novella.

Still, it WAS cosy. This could serve as a Christmassy hug, if you don't mind festive minutiae being described.

I was unimpressed by Clement's debut. The books may have improved since he arrived on the scene; I certainly enjoyed this one a lot more, even if there wasn't a lot of meat to the story.

Whether you enjoy this will depend on what you are looking for. If you are after a murder plot with intrigue, suspicions, tension and twists - don't bother. There is none of any. If, however, you want a little festive cheer, this was a low stakes blast of Christmas spirit, with clashing personalities and a rustic feel.

[Polly Perks · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice little Christmas novella for the season.

[Carol Sheppard · Rating 4 out of 5]

A cheerful romp through Christmas with familiar characters. An enjoyable short read

[Beth · Rating 4 out of 5]

A cosy, easy read perfect for that wonderful time of year between Christmas and New Year! I've not yet read any other books in this series but I am now quite keen on hearing more tales from Daniel Clement's rectory. My only complaint is it REALLY WASN'T a murder mystery - the murder was very late on in the story and it was very obvious who had done it and how (although I'm still a bit confused about the 'why'). However, I didn't mind this too much as I could have happily continued reading about the more ordinary details of the Clement family's lives!

[Sally Campbell · Rating 1 out of 5]

Well, at least I now know what bread sauce is and how to make it.

[Nicky Bale · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a lovely Christmas read. Having recently read books two and three I have come to love these characters. I think because I saw the first book on tv it has helped visualise the characters in a different way as it was very well cast in my opinion. In this story the murder didn’t dominate but rather was a part of Christmas Day. I can’t wait for the next novel.

[Liz · Rating 1 out of 5]

Vulgar, common, social antenna, social distance, blue-collar corner, social purdah. Some of the words used in the book to describe class interactions. Such snobs

Hardly a murder mystery, just details of a High Anglican church’s Christmas services and the food served afterwards at lunch, with the death occurring almost at the end and it being solved straightaway.

Set in 1988 or so.

[Amy Stocker · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a quick little novella, set at Christmas (maybe not what I should be reading in sunny April, but who cares?) that I enjoyed more than I did the last book as this was centred fully on all the characters we've grown to know and love.

The death was quick and easy to determine who'd done it and how in my opinion, but no less enjoyable.

4.1/5.

[Melanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A decent festive outing for Canon Clement. A nice little addition to the series with all the familiar characters we have come to know. Recommended.

[Jamie Bowen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Christmas Day lunch is always stressful, but even more so if you’re Canon Daniel Clement whose mum decides to invite all and sundry to it. But one will not make it to the end of the day. Luckily Daniel has solved murders before.

A long setup and plenty of funny moments, but didn’t quite hit the mark for me.

[Arwen]

Book club with Mum 📚

[Kenz Sheridan · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not really much of a murder mystery when it happens on page 117 of 141. Yawn. Next!

[MimLovesReading · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful short read for Christmas day!

[Louise Gibbs · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice Christmas read full of the usual chaos of hosting christmas dinner - plus a murder. The murder happens so late in the story it felt like an afterthought. Enjoyed the story regardless

[Jeromine · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75
A very charming and funny short story where Christmas dinner is the main character.
It felt like Downton Abbey meets Agatha Christie.
The murder is secondary, the mystery quite inexistant, but the ambiance is deliciously on point and you can’t get any more English than this.

[Steph Ollman · Rating 3 out of 5]

A pleasant and cosy story but mainly about Christmas at Canon Clements’ house, the murder is only a very small part of the short book.

[Cecile Lapotre · Rating 1 out of 5]

For a book titled “murder under the mistletoe”, you expect for the murder to happen before the 80% mark. The scene setting took way too long and since it’s just a novel, it feels like that’s all I read, how boring. The only chapter worth reading was the last.

[Nabila Tabassum Chowdhury · Rating 3 out of 5]

My holiday read for this year. This book would have fared much better in terms of ratings and reviews if the title didn't have the word "murder" in it and if it hadn't been packaged as a murder mystery, because it is not. Has it done well in terms of sales by doing so? I don't think it has.

The murder seemed forced, as the death comes at around 80%, in the last few sentences of the fifth chapter out of six. Also, there was no mystery thus didn't need any solving.

As a person from a very different cultural and religious background, I was more intrigued by learning little things about what makes the English way of celebrating Christmas unique. I guess people growing up in this culture would appreciate it too for nostalgia. It also offers a glimpse into English social dynamics, in a subtly critical way. Even the writer's language felt very Englishly English.

I would've easily gone with two stars for misleading the reader/buyer. But I owe it for a few chuckles, as it is funny in places, and also for the cosy feeling of festivities, so, a reluctant three stars.

[Lilypad_doodle · Rating 3 out of 5]

After how the third book ended I was hoping for more about a PARTICULAR couple within the series but its timeline is a bit hazy. I got the vibe its set before the third book but there's also reference to awkwardness that comes from within the third book? Either way it was a nice and funny short that lifted the series back up for me.

One criticism? The mum is a social-climbing, selfish snob whose small amount of charm in the first three novels has well and truly vanished. I would also say that this is the first of the stories where the murderer isn't 'caught' and that felt very much like a comment about social classes. Not in a good way or even a frustrating way but more like in tandam with Audrey Clement's outdated views of the gentry. Really frustrating.

[Lauren · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.75 stars

The title and blurb were a bit misleading. There appeared to be a lack of murder mystery... with the "murder" not happening until the final chapter! Nonetheless, this novella was still a light Christmassy read.

Murder Under the Mistletoe was the first story I have read in the Canon Clement Mystery series and the first book I have read by Reverend Richard Coles. Although I wasn't a massive fan of the lack of murder, I will 100% be reading the other books in this series! The characters were fun, and the writing was engaging. I just hope that the other books have a bit more murder mystery involved!!

[Teagan Owen · Rating 1 out of 5]

If I could give this 0 stars I would. The murder happens in the last 30 pages… and is solved literally immediately after. There’s not a single bit of mystery, there’s no whodunit AT ALL. I don’t even know who the characters are or anything about them. To say the murder was so far into the book I would expect more character building… but all I know is who sat where at the dinner table… the ingredients in the bread sauce… the different food cooked and what the four starters were??? Please god don’t read this book, I beg of you. It’s just pure babble.