ClimbingSky

Why Baseball, Books, and the Grateful Dead matter

Christmas Mystery

  • Cozy Christmas Mysteries

    Christmas Eve Ghost Stories and Christmas Eve Murder Mysteries are a British tradition, but I am not sure they are such an American tradition. This year, as I was planning out ClimbingSky, I decided to try out this very British tradition myself. Since I need to work ahead to keep up my posting schedule, I Read more

  • SHORT STORY REVIEW: “Dead on Christmas Street” by John D. MacDonald

    It is estimated that John D. MacDonald (1916-1986) sold over 70 million books in his lifetime. He is best known, of course, for his Travis McGee Series. (I have read them all). Any legitimate list of the Best Crime/Suspense writers of the 20th Century would have to include MacDonald in the Top 5. Here are some quotes Read more

  • SHORT STORY REVIEW: “The Murder of Santa Claus” by P.D. James

     “The Murder of Santa Claus” is a Locked-Room Christmas-Mystery (two great sub-genres for the price of one!). It can be found in a volume called Sleep No More: Six Murderous Tales by P.D. James. It is a story told 40+ years after a Christmas Eve murder in an atmospheric Cotswold manor house. P.D. James uses Read more