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Pennyfoot Hotel #18
Mistletoe and Mayhem
In this Pennyfoot Hotel Christmas mystery, guests and staff alike are coming together under the kissing bough--only to fall victim to a cold-blooded killer...
At the Pennyfoot Hotel, Cecily Sinclair Baxter and her staff are hustling and bustling more than ever. Cecily's dear friend Madeline arrives with her new baby and adds a kissing bough to the festive decorations. Cecily gets in the spirit by kissing the precious baby beneath the bough, believing that the holiday couldn't be getting off to a better start.
But after a footman and a new maid are seen kissing under the bough and turn up dead, the staff is convinced a serial killer is spending the holidays at the Pennyfoot. And when Madeline's baby disappears, Cecily has her hands full desperately trying to find the child. If she doesn't catch this killer in time, everyone's cheer will quickly turn to fear...
At the Pennyfoot Hotel, Cecily Sinclair Baxter and her staff are hustling and bustling more than ever. Cecily's dear friend Madeline arrives with her new baby and adds a kissing bough to the festive decorations. Cecily gets in the spirit by kissing the precious baby beneath the bough, believing that the holiday couldn't be getting off to a better start.
But after a footman and a new maid are seen kissing under the bough and turn up dead, the staff is convinced a serial killer is spending the holidays at the Pennyfoot. And when Madeline's baby disappears, Cecily has her hands full desperately trying to find the child. If she doesn't catch this killer in time, everyone's cheer will quickly turn to fear...
304 pages, Paperback
First published November 2, 2010
30 people are currently reading
414 people want to read
About the author
Kate Kingsbury
84 books568 followersKate Kingsbury grew up in London, England, and at a very early age began telling stories to her school friends during the London Blitz of WW II while huddling in bomb shelters. Kate moved to the U.S. in the early sixties, and had passed her 50th birthday when she published her first book. Writing as Doreen Roberts, (her real name at the time) she published 26 romance novels for Harlequin/Silhouette. In 1991 her first Pennyfoot Hotel book was published and since then Kate has written 35 mysteries, including the Manor House mysteries, the Bellehaven House mysteries(written as Rebecca Kent) and the Raven's Nest mysteries, (written as Allison Kingsley.) Her new series, The Merry Ghost Inn Mysteries debuted in January, 2017 with Dead and Breakfast, featuring a B & B on the Oregon coast. She has one son, Regan, and lives with her husband, Bill, in the beautiful state of Oregon.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 58 reviews
December 30, 2017
Bloody but mostly cozy mystery set in an unconvincingly Edwardian hotel, among people I didn’t give two hoots about, but I suppose that’s what comes of starting a series with what might have been the last book, according to the author’s note. That tears it, clearly I was wrong to imagine that most Christmas cozies could stand alone from their series.
December 9, 2015
Another fantastic and engrossing Pennyfoot Christmas mystery. I love all of the characters and look forward to seeing what situations will be presented in each of the coming novels.
Mistletoe and Mayhem, picks up a year later from the last book. Jumping right into a murder of two of the Pennyfoot servants. More murders occur throughout and it would seem a serial killer has come from London, bringing horror all the way to Badgers End.
The biggest surprise was the possibility that Sir Arthur Conan Doyle was staying at the Pennyfoot, though he stays incognito and is withdrawn. It was fun to think that he had made an appearance in the book. Another big surprise is that Gertie's Dan, has finally asked her something she has waited so long to hear. What happens is quiet unexpected. I hope she and Clive can get together in the future. Lots of action to keep you on the edge of your Christmas seat.
I love these books and highly recommend them.
Mistletoe and Mayhem, picks up a year later from the last book. Jumping right into a murder of two of the Pennyfoot servants. More murders occur throughout and it would seem a serial killer has come from London, bringing horror all the way to Badgers End.
The biggest surprise was the possibility that Sir Arthur Conan Doyle was staying at the Pennyfoot, though he stays incognito and is withdrawn. It was fun to think that he had made an appearance in the book. Another big surprise is that Gertie's Dan, has finally asked her something she has waited so long to hear. What happens is quiet unexpected. I hope she and Clive can get together in the future. Lots of action to keep you on the edge of your Christmas seat.
I love these books and highly recommend them.
December 6, 2010
GEMS: A cozy holiday murder mystery with a special cameo star character guest. Mistletoe and Mayhem is an easy read that is surprisingly light despite the occurrence of four murders. Out of politeness and not wishing to ruin the guests holiday, the staff of the Pennyfoot do their best to keep the unfortunate events secret. However, this proves to be difficult and soon rumors spread dampening the holiday cheer. In the good old fashion tradition of whodunit mysteries, the actual investigator is an idiot. If left up to him, no crime would ever be solved! Thankfully, Cecily has a keen eye and knack for detection and puzzle solving. It also doesn't hurt that her good friend is gifted with a six sense. Together, they're sure to solve the mystery by Christmas Eve.
FLAWS: Although the characters background are well-developed, the actual motive for the murders is glazed. I believe this is the result of trying too hard to not give away the culprit, but in doing so, decreased the suspense and 'ah-ha' moment. Looking back, there are parts/scenes of the story that are irrelevant. I assume they were included to throw the reader off the trail. Normally, I do not mind, but I felt this wild goose chase was rather benign and left me wondering why some of it was written into the story. I had a few, 'Why am I suppose to care about this?' moments.
Overall, an entertaining seasonal read. Good to curl up with and include on holiday reading challenge lists. Recommend checking out from the library, swapping with a friend -- or scoring at the half-price bookstore. Rather light in mayhem, suspense and complexity.
FLAWS: Although the characters background are well-developed, the actual motive for the murders is glazed. I believe this is the result of trying too hard to not give away the culprit, but in doing so, decreased the suspense and 'ah-ha' moment. Looking back, there are parts/scenes of the story that are irrelevant. I assume they were included to throw the reader off the trail. Normally, I do not mind, but I felt this wild goose chase was rather benign and left me wondering why some of it was written into the story. I had a few, 'Why am I suppose to care about this?' moments.
Overall, an entertaining seasonal read. Good to curl up with and include on holiday reading challenge lists. Recommend checking out from the library, swapping with a friend -- or scoring at the half-price bookstore. Rather light in mayhem, suspense and complexity.
December 30, 2010
This is the first Pennyfoot Hotel mystery for me. I thought the characters were engaging and realistic, but I was very disappointed to spot two big holes in the plot, one of which was in the solution to the mystery. Several loose ends were not tied up at the end and made me feel the book was not well thought out.
January 26, 2011
This was a very light read. I didn't think the writing was terrific, nor did I think that the characters were more than caricatures. I don't think I'll be searching out this author to read more of her murder mysteries. However, there was nothing offensive in the book, and I can see pre-teens enjoying it.
February 2, 2014
The first book I read in this series of mysteries. It wasn't bad or good. Just a nice quick read to fill my time on a snowy winter day. I would read another book in the series.
December 26, 2021
Mistletoe and Mayhem by Kate Kingsbury is another Pennyfoot Hotel Christmas mystery staring Cecily Sinclair Baxter, owner of the Pennyfoot and her staff. The stories are noteworthy for the wonderful, elaborate turn-of-the-century Christmas settings and sense details. They also slightly remind one of the historical period by relating to events and persons prominent then. For example, in this one they are worried that the Mayfield Murderer might have left London and be committing the senseless murders at Badgers End. However, since he is captured during the story timeline, they realize that it must be someone else. Also, Sir Authur Conan Doyle is a guest at the Pennyfoot disguised as James Mortimer from The Hound of the Baskervilles. However, in addition to the murder(s) they have to solve, the reader is interested in the lives of the characters, particularly the staff of the Pennyfoot. Gertie, a maid, has been interested in Dan, and is in turn interesting to Clive, two of the other staff at the Club-hotel. She finally gets Dad to propose, but since he is going to leave and live in London, she rejects him, and Clive gets his hopes up.
The mystery itself is complicated and engaging; there is nothing obvious in the relationships between the four victims, much less between a potential fifth victim.
The story is exciting both for itself and for the continuing saga of the lives of the characters. I look forward each year to the new Pennyfoot Christmas mystery.
The mystery itself is complicated and engaging; there is nothing obvious in the relationships between the four victims, much less between a potential fifth victim.
The story is exciting both for itself and for the continuing saga of the lives of the characters. I look forward each year to the new Pennyfoot Christmas mystery.
December 19, 2018
The mystery itself was fine and it was a quick read. However, I couldn't for the life of me get a sense of the time period it was supposed to take place in. And that was with the obvious hints of a) the advent of cars, b) telephones and telephone operators and c) the fact that Sir Arthur Conan Doyle was in the process of writing and publishing the Sherlock Holmes stories. The characters, however, did not at all seem to be living in that same time period. I also found it lazy that there was a witch friend who had visions so that everyone would know there was, in fact, a murder so that the plot could move forward.
November 29, 2022
I picked this cozy mystery up in a new/used bookstore last year and saved it to read for the holidays. Took me just a few days to read, had great characters and a surprise ending.
I've never read any other books by Kate Kingsbury and enjoyed this one. It can stand alone although this story made me want to read more about the Pennyfoot.
The only negative I have to say is in echoing with others that there is no date at the beginning of the novel to ground the reader. I looked up the description of the first Pennyfoot story and saw that it takes place in the Edwardian era. At that point, I could properly visualize the characters and setting.
In spite of that, I would recommend this book!
I've never read any other books by Kate Kingsbury and enjoyed this one. It can stand alone although this story made me want to read more about the Pennyfoot.
The only negative I have to say is in echoing with others that there is no date at the beginning of the novel to ground the reader. I looked up the description of the first Pennyfoot story and saw that it takes place in the Edwardian era. At that point, I could properly visualize the characters and setting.
In spite of that, I would recommend this book!
December 18, 2021
Four murders at the Pennyfoot in less than a week, but Christmas festivities continue. Most of the story line is about the maids and their boyfriends: Gertie and Dan, Gertie and Clive, Pansy and Samuel, Pansy and Lenny, Ellie and Samuel. Hotel manager Cecily solves the case by noticing a minute detail in a photograph, but the readers are not in on this as the photo is not shown. In a twist, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle is one of the guests, but he is not involved in investigating the case, in fact he is a suspect.
December 29, 2019
This book just did not draw me in - I found myself going to other book between reading this one. Can't say it was a bad story it just wasn't a story for me. None the less it has a mystery that I didn't put my finger on, but I think it was because I wasn't truly into it.
Read
January 8, 2020This one seems to hint that this will be the last of Cecily's adventures into solving murders. She sure does better than the local constabulary... It wraps up the 'loose ends' that one expects to see.
January 8, 2022
Nice seasonal light read. There were some really strong characters. It's not a 4 or 5 star for me because it didn't grab me and make me not want to put it down. Also some of the scenes felt implausible to me. But overall, a fun read.
April 27, 2024
Great story! I was afraid that I wasn’t going to get into it at first, but after the first few chapters, it really got good. Loved the way it’s written, and I always enjoy some humor with my murder mysteries. Will read more in this series.
September 3, 2020
Arg, another Christmas at the Pennyfoot. The story line is old. I feel like I'm re-reading the previous book. I do, though, love the characters!
December 26, 2020
great Christmas read
December 24, 2021
I enjoyed this cozy. Lots of twists and turns and more murders then I normally see but a good read.
Read
December 28, 2021I really enjoyed this possibly last book. Hope I can get some previously published ones at the library.
December 27, 2022
Good book
December 18, 2024
Great story. Kept me guessing to the end.
December 15, 2025
4 ⭐️
I want to devour this series! The more I read, the more invested I am in the characters. Can’t wait to read another one. :)
I want to devour this series! The more I read, the more invested I am in the characters. Can’t wait to read another one. :)
January 1, 2017
A quick, light read for the holidays, I read the entire series during December.
June 26, 2013
Cecily Sinclair Baxter loves just about everything involving Christmas - decorating the Pennyfoot, celebrating with family and friends, caroling, giving gifts, even her friend Phoebe's disastrous pantomimes. The one thing she doesn't like is that the Pennyfoot seems like a magnet for murder during the Christmas season. Cecily hopes this Christmas will be murder-free but her hopes are quickly dashed when a member of her staff is murdered. Even worse, more murders quickly follow and Cecily fears a serial killer is loose at the Pennyfoot. Cecily vows to stop the killer before Christmas is totally ruined.
Like Cecily, I love Christmas and part of my holiday ritual is reading the latest Christmas Pennyfoot Hotel mystery. "Mistletoe and Mayhem" is a delightful addition to that holiday tradition. All of the favorite characters are there: Cecily and her husband Baxter, Madeline Prestwick and her husband Kevin, Phoebe Fortescue and her husband Frederick, as well as the household staff - Gertie, Pansy, Mrs. Chubb, Michel, and Samuel. Visiting them feels like visiting old friends. While this is a cozy mystery, this entry is a tad "bloodier" (for lack of a better word because it's not really bloody or gory at all) than other entries in the series and the body count is higher than usual. The mystery is well written and plotted and there are more than a few surprises along the way (without giving anything away I loved the subplot involving one of the guests!) Readers will have a good time trying to figure out who the killer is and author Kate Kingsbury provides plenty of suspects. Kingsbury also gives lots of hint as to who the killer is but the identity of the killer may still surprise many readers as will the (sad) reason behind the murders.
Kingsbury says in her introduction to "Mistletoe and Mayhem" that she isn't sure there would be more Pennyfoot books and accordingly she wraps up several ongoing storylines from the series (mostly the romantic storylines) but ends the book on a bit of a cliffhanger. Fortunately, on her website and Facebook Kingsbury says she is writing another Pennyfoot book (yay!) and it will be interesting to see how she resolves the cliffhanger. In the meantime, enjoy this year's trip to the Pennyfoot.
Like Cecily, I love Christmas and part of my holiday ritual is reading the latest Christmas Pennyfoot Hotel mystery. "Mistletoe and Mayhem" is a delightful addition to that holiday tradition. All of the favorite characters are there: Cecily and her husband Baxter, Madeline Prestwick and her husband Kevin, Phoebe Fortescue and her husband Frederick, as well as the household staff - Gertie, Pansy, Mrs. Chubb, Michel, and Samuel. Visiting them feels like visiting old friends. While this is a cozy mystery, this entry is a tad "bloodier" (for lack of a better word because it's not really bloody or gory at all) than other entries in the series and the body count is higher than usual. The mystery is well written and plotted and there are more than a few surprises along the way (without giving anything away I loved the subplot involving one of the guests!) Readers will have a good time trying to figure out who the killer is and author Kate Kingsbury provides plenty of suspects. Kingsbury also gives lots of hint as to who the killer is but the identity of the killer may still surprise many readers as will the (sad) reason behind the murders.
Kingsbury says in her introduction to "Mistletoe and Mayhem" that she isn't sure there would be more Pennyfoot books and accordingly she wraps up several ongoing storylines from the series (mostly the romantic storylines) but ends the book on a bit of a cliffhanger. Fortunately, on her website and Facebook Kingsbury says she is writing another Pennyfoot book (yay!) and it will be interesting to see how she resolves the cliffhanger. In the meantime, enjoy this year's trip to the Pennyfoot.
December 7, 2015
It's Christmas at the Pennyfoot Country Club. When a footman is found dead in the gardens it appears the annual Christmas curse has struck again. The doctor and constable agree it was a tragic accident, but Cecily suspects otherwise. At the same time the new young maid is reported missing. Soon there will be more murders and Madeline's young baby will disappear. The local constable thinks everything can wait until the New Year when the Inspector returns from his trip France. Cecily has other ideas. She doesn't plan to sit idly by while staff and guests and friends are threatened and murdered.
These books are hard for me because I really don't like Cecily or her husband Baxter. Yet, I keep coming back to this series at Christmas. There is a predictability in the Christmas festivities - there will be a Christmas show led by Phoebe that will be a disaster, there will be Christmas Carols in the library near the Christmas tree, there will be tasty Christmas treats, and there will be an intriguing murder to solve. I really do like most of the supporting characters, but Madeline is my favorite. There are adequate clues, though some are withheld until near the end. There are a couple of red herrings. I really wish I liked the two primary characters better, but with supporting cast and some predictability I find it a fun Christmas mystery.
These books are hard for me because I really don't like Cecily or her husband Baxter. Yet, I keep coming back to this series at Christmas. There is a predictability in the Christmas festivities - there will be a Christmas show led by Phoebe that will be a disaster, there will be Christmas Carols in the library near the Christmas tree, there will be tasty Christmas treats, and there will be an intriguing murder to solve. I really do like most of the supporting characters, but Madeline is my favorite. There are adequate clues, though some are withheld until near the end. There are a couple of red herrings. I really wish I liked the two primary characters better, but with supporting cast and some predictability I find it a fun Christmas mystery.
December 20, 2012
This Christmas mystery has all of the elements a cozy should have. It is a very cute book that leaves you wanting to read more about the characters. If you read a cozy expecting it to not be fluffy, you are reading the wrong genre! It is meant to be fluffy and cozy and not deep. People who criticize cozies for these reasons must not know that that's what cozies are.
Mistletoe and Mayhem is set in the southeastern coast of England in the Pennyfoot Country Club. The curse upon the Pennyfoot awakens and dead bodies start turning up left and right. Of course, this would never happen in real life, just like Jessica Fletcher would never have as many murders happen around her as she does. That is the joy of reading. You leave reality behind and just pretend that it could happen. We would miss the characters if the murders happened elsewhere!
I really enjoyed the characters in this book. The cameo appearance was great :) (I did figure out who it was right away but it was still cute.)I really loved the twins bugging everyone. The murderer was not immediately obvious, so that was nice.
If you like cozies, you should read this one!
Mistletoe and Mayhem is set in the southeastern coast of England in the Pennyfoot Country Club. The curse upon the Pennyfoot awakens and dead bodies start turning up left and right. Of course, this would never happen in real life, just like Jessica Fletcher would never have as many murders happen around her as she does. That is the joy of reading. You leave reality behind and just pretend that it could happen. We would miss the characters if the murders happened elsewhere!
I really enjoyed the characters in this book. The cameo appearance was great :) (I did figure out who it was right away but it was still cute.)I really loved the twins bugging everyone. The murderer was not immediately obvious, so that was nice.
If you like cozies, you should read this one!
February 12, 2012
This was a good mystery, but there is a definite problem with believability. Who would ever go to such a hotel with so many murders on the premises? We as readers like a bunch of characters so much and we want them to go on in further stories. This is the first book in this series I have read. But surely a hotel with so many murders at Christmas as to have the "christmas curse" would be out of business. Or at the very least I would close the hotel myself over christmas just to save lives. Because of this and because i did not find the characters that engaging I don't think I will read the next one. Too bad because the plot itself was good.
November 26, 2010
I always enjoy the Pennyfoot Christmas mysteries. The characters are rich, and I particularly like the maid Gertie.
Like all the books in the series, there are holiday festivities intermixed with murder. I think what makes it work is how Kingsbury somehow gets the reader to care about all the recurring characters.
Like all the books in the series, there are holiday festivities intermixed with murder. I think what makes it work is how Kingsbury somehow gets the reader to care about all the recurring characters.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 58 reviews