I high-key adore Christmas so I thought that it would be fun to come up with a list full of Christmas-themed books, based on the mood you might be in! I don’t think the post needs further introduction, so here it is!
Mood: Stressed
Is the impending holiday season stressing you out? Does your blood pressure rise whenever you hear “All I Want for Christmas”? Are you perhaps feeling a little bit… murderous? If so, you need a murder mystery, stat!
The Mistletoe Murder by P.D. James
If you’re looking for murder-and-mistletoe-themed short stories, look no further. This collection of four stories by P.D. James all revolve around the Christmas season. Out of the four stories, I enjoyed A Very Commonplace Murder and The Boxdale Inheritance most, but all were fun.
An English Murder by Cyril Hare
While this mystery isn’t centred around Christmas, it’s set during the Christmas season. An ailing patriarch has gathered a small group of family and friends to Warbeck Hall to celebrate the festive season. When someone falls dead at the stroke of midnight on Christmas day, it’s clear that something is amiss.
The tone here is wry and knowing and Hare does a great job of poking fun at various aspects of British culture (hence the title). The book is also refreshing in the way it deals with antisemitism, as it’s clearly shown as a negative trait rather than being brushed aside.
Murder Under the Christmas Tree edited by Cecily Gayford
On the 10th day of Christmas my true love gave to me… 10 classic crime stories! This Christmas crime collection contains a variety of stories from various authors, meaning that no matter what your preferred mystery sub-genre, you’re bound to find a story or two to enjoy.
Murder on a Winter’s Night edited by Cecily Gayford
While the title doesn’t reflect it, Santa Claus and the Christmas season in general is reflected in these pages! Not all the stories involve murder, but they all involve crime and a bit of clever deduction. My favourite story in this collection was also the longest – a mystery by Dorothy Sayers starring Lord Peter Wimsey. It’s got missing wills, otherworldly carriages, and a satisfying ending.
Mood: Cosy
If you’ve already got a cup of hot tea (or hot chocolate) in hand and you’re eager to just soak in the Christmas vibes, what you need is a warm story where nothing bad happens. For me, these stories are as comforting as a big mug of hot tea.
Christmas with Miss Read
I really, really need to continue reading the Fairacre series, but in the meantime, can I recommend Christmas with Miss Read as a seasonal book? This is a collection of four stories that are linked to both the Christmas season and Fairacre, so if you like the series, you’ll enjoy this.
A Literary Christmas by the British Library
Here’s another collection of short stories (and poems), this time collected by the British Library. This collection boasts a great number of famous classic writers, from Shakespeare to Austen, including Anne Bronte and P.G. Wodehouse. And since it’s a collection of stories and poems, it’s fairly easy to dip in and out of this book – I’m definitely going to give this one a reread in December!
Mood: Nostalgic
Cozy and nostalgic books are very similar (these books are also cozy to me) but what sets these two books apart is that I read them when I was young and so, they bring me back to my childhood as well.
A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens
What is more classic than this? A Christmas Carol has been made into films, adapted into local (Singaporean) TV series episodes, and of course, popularised the phrase “Merry Christmas”. Even if you haven’t read the original book, the original story has probably somehow been part of your childhood. And even though I found the language here to be slightly more formal/Victorian, I still teared up reading it; the story is just that moving.
The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis
While this book isn’t centred around Christmas, Father Christmas does make an appearance! And more importantly, it’s a wintry book with amazing descriptions of food which also sounds like Christmas to me. At least, that’s how Christmas in books are movies are portrayed.
Plus this was one of my favourite series when I was younger so I couldn’t not include it.
The Puffin Book of Christmas Stories edited by Sara and Stephen Corrin
This is another childhood favourite that gets a yearly reread. The Puffin Book of Christmas Stories collects 14 Christmas stories from classic authors like Thomas Hardy, Charles Dickens, etc. Henry O Field’s famous story The Gift of the Magi is in this collection, as is A Christmas Carol (probably my first introduction to the story), but my personal favourite is Christmas with the Chrystals by Noel Streatfield. This cheery story is imbued with the Christmas spirit and shows how love and laughter can add warmth to any home.
Mood: In Need of Laughter
Finally, if you need to laugh, check out these two books!
Hogfather by Terry Pratchett
If you’re looking for a fun, unconventional Christmas tale, why not try one where Death decides to take over the role of Father Christmas, I mean, The Hogfather. To make things even more fun, we have Death’s granddaughter who’s also a duchess playing a major role in this story. As a fan of Death the character, this was a great book for me.
Jeeves and the Yuletide Spirit by P.G. Wodehouse
Don’t be fooled by the title, there’s more than just Bertie and Jeeves in this collection of short stories! Most of the stories aren’t Christmas themed, but the title is and that’s good enough for me. Since this was one of the first Wodehouse books that I read, I found this to be a fun introduction to his many characters.
Do you have any favourite Christmas-themed books? If you do, please let me know so I can add it to the list!
And if you would like to have this list in a handy PDF format, I’ve created a PDF booklet of this list of Christmas books (sans descriptions) + Advent Calender reviews to usher in the holiday season. You can download it for free here, and as always, I’m open to feedback on what to include next time!
Great list!
I would recommend Virgin in the Ice, by Ellis Peters. It’s a medieval murder mystery that takes place in the deeps of winter. Also, The Dark Is Rising takes place around Christmas.
Oooh, I totally forgot about The Dark is Rising (I should reread that soon). I’ll have to read Virgin in the Ice too!
I think I run through all of these feelings during the holiday season. It’s good to have a book for each mood and these are great recommendations.
Thank you! I hope you have a great Christmas reading season!
Love this! I haven’t read any of these. I’m more in cozy mood these days.
Ooooh definitely try the Miss Read (Fairacre) series if you’re in the mood for cosy. It’s set in the British countryside and just follows life there – I really like it!
I’d forgotten that Father Christmas makes an appearance in Lion. the Witch, and the Wardrobe. I intend to reread those books one of these days.
For me, the image of Mr Tummus and the Turkish Delights are the two biggest impressions I have of the book!
Same on Mr. Tummus.
I went to make a list like this myself and realised I didn’t have any books to put on it 😅 so good job for this one!
Thank you! I spent a year thinking about this hahahaha so definitely had trouble coming up with books!