Book Review: The Case of the Ghost of Christmas Morning by P.J. Fitzsimmons (Anty Boisjoly Mysteries #2)

Stars: 4 out of 5

Pros: Plenty of laughs with a fun main character

Cons: Pacing and suspects could be a little stronger

The Bottom Line:

Murder at Christmas

But when was the victim killed?

Plenty of laughter

A Little Murder for Christmas

I completely loved the first Anty Boisjoly Mystery when I read it earlier this year, and I was looking forward to reading the second, The Case of the Ghost of Christmas Morning.  Yes, I might typically have saved this to read in December, but I couldn’t wait that long, so I decided that Christmas in July was the best time to jump in.

These books are set in 1920’s England.  Anty is a man with social standing who specializes in working out problems for others.  Problems like murder.

This year, he’s planning to spend Christmas with his aunt Azalea, who is a bit of a recluse.  He hasn’t visited her in years, in fact.  When Anty arrives, Azalea informs him that she’s just discovered the body of her next-door neighbor, a man she’d begun to be friendly with.  The victim is a local war hero, and everyone in the village is upset by the news.  Unfortunately, the footprints in the snow make it look like Azalea is the only person who could have realistically killed the man.  Oh, and there’s also the fact that he was seen by many people in the pub hours after Azalea claims she found the body.  Can Anty figure out what really happened and prove his aunt innocent?

The book jumps right in, introducing the mystery in the first sentence.  However, I found it wandered a bit as the book progressed.  Don’t misunderstand, we had plenty of mysterious happenings and a few of them present more impossible problems for Anty to figure out.  But the pacing started out a little weak, growing stronger as the book went along.  The ending explained everything, including those impossibilities that drew me in.

Likewise, the suspects were a little flat.  I didn’t feel like we got to know most of them super well.  On the other hand, some of the other characters really helped draw me into the story.

Neither of these issues were too bad, so maybe I’m being too critical.  I was still engaged in the book as I was reading.  I was curious about how everything was going to be resolved.  And the suspenseful scenes really drew me in.  Maybe I was expecting more from this book based on how much I loved the first one.

One thing that was as good as I remember was the humor.  This book has a very dry wit, and I was laughing for much of the story.  And those suspense scenes I just mentioned?  They had some of the best laughs while still keeping me engaged in the story.

The book isn’t dripping with Christmas cheer on every page, but it does lean into the seasonal fun.  I enjoyed this glimpse at how the holiday was celebrated in England 100 years ago.

If you are looking for a comedic impossible crime novel, you’ll be glad you checked out this series.  Overall, I did enjoy The Case of the Ghost of Christmas Morning, and I’m looking forward to reading more in the series.

Be sure to read the rest of the Anty Boisjoly Mysteries.