Mistletoe Murders

I found this podcast/cozy mystery series as I was scanning for Audible freebies and I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed this trio of Christmasy murder mysteries.

These short stories are set in the small town of Fletcher's Grove (the name is perhaps a nod to Jessica Fletcher from Murder She Wrote which was set in Cabot Cove?) and centre around Emily Lane, the owner of a Christmas-themed shop who sticks her nose into the investigations of a few murders that happen in the small town. On top of the growing body count, there is also the mystery about Emily's past which is alluded to and will keep me eagerly hoping this series continues.

Wonderfully narrated by a full cast - including Canadian actress Cobie Smulders (of How I Met Your Mother and MCU fame), these 30ish minute cozy mysteries are made even better by background sounds which give the stories an audio play feel.

This was an enjoyable series of Christmas cozies with bits of humour and good murder mysteries that are a quick listen - perfect for the busy holiday season when you want to read something light.

My Rating: 4 stars

Author: Ken Cuperus

Genre: Short Story Mystery

Type and Source: Audible Original (freebie), short story

Narrators: Cobie Smulders, Raymond Ablack, Anna Cathcart, full cast

Run Times: The Cookie Crumbles: 38 min, 

Hearts of Ice: 32 min, Walking with Ghosts: 34 min

Publisher: Audible Originals

First Published: November 2022

Book Description from Audible.ca: When Emily Lane isn’t busy running her charming Christmas-themed store, ''Under the Mistletoe,'' located in the quaint tourist town of Fletcher’s Grove, she finds herself compelled to investigate not so quaint local murders. On the surface, Emily is a perfectly lovely, good-natured puzzle-solver and mystery lover. But she is hiding a secret past from everyone in town. And when Emily begins her personal investigations, Detective-Constable Sam Wilner, a smart and attractive local cop – with a crush on Emily that is not completely unrequited – begins to wonder if there’s more to Emily than meets the eye.