Favourite Festive Reads from the authors of The Very Merry Murder Club

The first of December is upon us and we are so excited to share a special blog with you from the authors of The Very Merry Murder Club. There are recommendations from these talented authors for their favourite festive books. How many have you read?

Maisie Chan has chosen The Dark is Rising: “I read The Dark is Rising by Susan Cooper a few years ago around Christmas. It’s a wintery, atmospheric and (as the title suggests) quite dark book. The descriptions were so good that I felt really cold brrrrrrr when reading it.” It’s about Will Stanton who is about to turn eleven. He is the seventh son of the seventh son and we find out he is an Old One (an ancient order of immortals). He has to find the six magical signs of power so that the forces of the Dark will be defeated. If you like fantasy and cold, wintery books then you might like this one.”

Annabelle Sami loves A Children’s Literary Christmas, edited by Anna James – It’s an anthology full of festive stories and poems, plus the book itself is so beautiful! It feels very special and there’s something for everyone inside.

Next up, it’s How the Grinch Stole Christmas which is the chosen Christmas read for Abiola Bello – It’s funny, it’s in rhyme which I love and it teaches children that Christmas is more than presents!

For Robin Stevens it’s got to be The Hundred and One Dalmatians. A beautifully festive story about love, family, togetherness and two dogs pulling a daring heist on the night before Christmas Eve to free their babies from the clutches of a wealthy, fur-obsessed villain. This book is extraordinarily charming – I always knew dogs could talk – and deeply aspirational – I’ve always wanted to live in a house with one hundred and one dalmatians. I also regularly re-watch the movies at Christmas time, and I love them, but I think the book outshines them all.

Dominique Valente always reaches for A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. My favourite Christmas read is one for all ages. It’s one of those timeless books that truly deserve the title of classic. It’s spooky, festive and magical, with its grouchy, Grinch-inspiring main character Ebenezer Scrooge who is visited by the ghosts of Christmas past, present and future and gradually learns to open his heart. I find it gets me in the mood for the season and is always fun to re-read as a cosy Christmas tradition.

The Snowman is undoubtedly the favourite for E.L. Norry. Even though my children are teenagers now, I’d probably say that my favourite festive reads were The Snowman and Father Christmas by Raymond Briggs. They’re both good for reading alone or with others, regardless of age. They’re so imaginative and always make me feel cosy and nostalgic: perfect for snuggling up under a fluffy blanket heating on full blast with a mug of hot chocolate.

Beauty by Robin McGinley is a brilliantly atmospheric fairy-tale retelling. It was the first book I read in one night as a child, so I reread every holiday season for nostalgia, for Elle McNicoll.

Serena Patel always plumps for Dear Santa by Rod Campbell – I love it because I read it to and with my children when they were little and now they read it to their younger cousins. The joy of guessing what could be inside the different shapes gifts and then peeking behind the flap to see what the present is, so much festive fun.

Snow Foal by Susanna Bailey is the story is about Addie, who’s sent to a remote Exmoor farm and finds healing in a wild foal she finds on the snow covered moors. This book is wildly wintery and packed with gorgeous cosy atmosphere. The story is bleak in parts but ultimately full of hope and joy, which is why Nizrana Farook loves it so much.

And finally, from Roopa Farooki it’s the gorgeous scene in Little Women by Louisa May-Alcott when the girls march off together in the snow, taking their Christmas treats to a family in need. When I was little, I loved that there was a book all about girls, and that Jo was a writer, just like me!”