Christmas Stalkings
- Cover
- CHARLOTTE MACLEOD - COUNTERFEIT CHRISTMAS
- REGINALD HILL - THE RUNNING OF THE DEER
- ELIZABETH PETERS - LIZ PETERS, PI
- MEDORA SALE - ANGELS
- JOHN MALCOLM - THE ONLY TRUE UNRAVELLER
- DOROTHY CANNELL - THE JANUARY SALE STOWAWAY
- BILL CRIDER - THE SANTA CLAUS CAPER
- PATRICIA MOYES - FAMILY CHRISTMAS
- EVELYN E. SMITH - MISS MELVILLE REJOICES
- ERIC WRIGHT - TWO IN THE BUSH
- MICKEY FRIEDMAN - THE FABULOUS NICK
- ROBERT BARNARD - A POLITICAL NECESSITY
- MARGARET MARON - FRUITCAKE, MERCY, AND BLACK-EYED PEAS
- Back cover
A Christmas Stocking
Full of Praise for
Christmas Stalkings
*
*
*
“A fine gift for any mystery fan, a package of holiday
goodies you can devour without giving a
thought to calories.”
—
DPI
“A good way for mystery buff to satisfy their need
to read a good yarn even during the hectic
holiday season.”
—
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
“The yuletide cheer and seasonal mayhem wrapped up
in these 13 tales make a package suitable for any
reader’s Christmas list.”
—
Publishers Weekly
“I can’t think of anything better to put in mystery
readers’ stockings than
Christmas Stalkings.”
—Virginian-Pilot
“Only the most hard-boiled Scrooge will “bah,
humbug” this baker’s dozen of new mystery short
stories from an interesting collection of holiday elves.
MacLeod’s collection
is
a fun read—and a fine
introduction the work of 13 talented writers.”
—Booklist
“Something to put under the tree for your favorite
mystery addict (or yourself).”
—
Washington Times
“Christmas Stalkings
will provide mystery buffs several
hours of reading enjoyment during the holidays or on
a cold winter’s night.”
—
Milwaukee Journal
“Every bit as entertaining as
Mistletoe Mysteries.”
—
Chicago Sun-Times
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Other Christmas Pleasures
Edited by
Charlotte MacLeod
MISTLETOE MYSTERIES
PLEASING, PERPLEXING MYSTERIES
FROM ACCLAIMED AUTHOR
CHARLOTTE MACLEOD!
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Christmas Stalkings
COLLECTED BY
CHARLOTTE MACLEOD
THE MYSTERIOUS PRESS New York •Tokyo • Sweden
Published by Warner Books
A Time Warner Company
If you purchase this book without a cover you should be aware that this book may have been stolen property and reported as “unsold and destroyed” to the publisher. In such case neither the author nor the publisher has received any payment for this “stripped book.”
CHRISTMAS STALKINGS
“Counterfeit Christmas” by Charlotte MacLeod. Copyright © 1991 by
Charlotte MacLeod. “The Running of the Deer” by Reginald Hill. Copyright © 1991 by
Reginald Hill. “Liz Peters, PI” by Elizabeth Peters. Copyright ©1991 by Elizabeth
Peters. “Angels” by Medora Sale. Copyright © 1991 by Medora Sale. “The Only True Unraveller” by John Malcolm. Copyright © 1991 by
John Malcolm. “The January Sale Stowaway” by Dorothy J.
Cannell
. Copyright © 1991
by Dorothy J.
Cannell
. The story appears by arrangement
with the author and the Jane
Rotrosen
Agency. “The Santa Claus Caper” by Bill Crider. Copyright © 1991 by Bill
Crider. “Family Christmas” by Patricia
Moyes
. Copyright © 1991 by Patricia
Moyes
. “Miss Melville Rejoices” by Evelyn E. Smith. Copyright © 1991 by
Evelyn E. Smith. “Two in the Bush” by Eric Wright. Copyright © 1991 by Eric Wright. “The Fabulous Nick” by Mickey Friedman. Copyright © 1991 by
Mickey Friedman. “A Political Necessity” by Robert Barnard. Copyright © 1991 by Robert
Barnard. “Fruitcake, Mercy, and Black-Eyed Peas” by Margaret
Maron
. Copyright
© 1991 by Margaret
Maron
.
MYSTERIOUS PRESS EDITION
Copyright © 1991 by Charlotte MacLeod All rights reserved.
Cover illustration by Mark Hess
The Mysterious Press name and logo are trademarks of Warner Books, Inc.
Mysterious Press Books are published by Warner Books, Inc. 1271 Avenue of the Americas New York, NY 10020 - A Time Warner Company
Printed in the United States of America
Originally published in hardcover by The Mysterious Press. First Printed in Paperback: December, 1992 10 987654321
Scanned and proofed by
ebookman
version 1.0
CONTENTS
CHARLOTTE MACLEOD - COUNTERFEIT CHRISTMAS
REGINALD HILL - THE RUNNING OF THE DEER
ELIZABETH PETERS - LIZ PETERS, PI
JOHN MALCOLM - THE ONLY TRUE UNRAVELLER
DOROTHY CANNELL - THE JANUARY SALE STOWAWAY
BILL CRIDER - THE SANTA CLAUS CAPER
PATRICIA MOYES - FAMILY CHRISTMAS
EVELYN E. SMITH - MISS MELVILLE REJOICES
MICKEY FRIEDMAN - THE FABULOUS NICK
ROBERT BARNARD - A POLITICAL NECESSITY
MARGARET MARON - FRUITCAKE, MERCY, AND BLACK-EYED PEAS
-
COUNTERFEIT CHRISTMAS
It was in 1978 that Professor Peter Shandy introduced me to Balaclava Agricultural College and its traditional Grand Christmas Illumination . . . at which he behaved disgracefully, as anyone who has read Peters and my first collaborative venture,
Rest You Merry,
can attest.
Since that time, I’ve served as Peter’s Ms. Watson in seven other adventures, but I’d never been invited back to Balaclava at Illumination time until this odd situation cropped up. I did expect the dauntless agronomist and the possibly even more dauntless President Thorkjeld Svenson would have got all the bugs worked out by now, but it seems that the best-laid plans of mice, men, and even the Illumination Committee can still go agley.
Deck the halls with boughs of holly,
“
Fa
, la
la
la
la
, la
la
, la
la
.”
Professor Peter Shandy of Balaclava Agricultural College found the carolers’ injunction as superfluous as that inane string of meaningless syllables tacked on after it Every house on the Crescent was already as bedizened as it could get, for Yuletide was rife and the annual Grand Illumination was not only heard all over campus and down in the village but could also be seen, smelled, touched, and even tasted, if you got close enough.
During most of the year, the open space encircled by eight faculty dwellings, including Peter’s, was placid enough; merely a grassy sward kept in seemly order by the trusty men of Buildings & Grounds and appropriately bedded out here and there with flowers of spring, summer, or fall, depending. Came the holiday season, however, and the usually by then snow-covered Crescent erupted into a festive welter of illuminated Christmas trees and quaint gingerbread
houses cut from plywood and assembled by the trusty screwdrivers of brawny students, who then donned oversized elf suits and flung themselves joyously into the time-honored Yankee pastime of turning an honest buck.