Christmas and crime go together like port and stilton. Turkey and stuffing. Sprouts and a cracked window. Indeed, snowbound country houses, mysterious deaths beneath the mistletoe and decadent festive gatherings where everyone has a secret to hide have become familiar ingredients of the seasonal mystery.
Hannah Hendy takes a rather different approach in An Uncommonly Festive Fiasco, the eighth outing for the Dinner Lady Detectives, where Margery and Clementine Butcher-Baker and their team of lunchtime sleuths venture away from the familiar setting of Summerview Secondary School to cater the Ittonvale Winter Festival.
It should be a cheerful seasonal assignment, except the weather has other ideas. A ferocious storm keeps most potential punters and a fair portion of the planned entertainment away, while a fallen tree traps those who did manage to attend in the community hall overnight. Even worse, there’s also a distinctly human threat lurking among the festivalgoers.
When food vendor Elliot is found dead from a serious head injury, sprawled on the floor of Santa’s grotto, what initially seems like an unfortunate accident quickly turns out to be far more sinister. Could the argument Margery overhead between Elliot and a rival vendor provide a possible motive for the attack?
The worsening weather further complicates matters. With the police unable to reach the hall until conditions improve, those present are stranded. This gives Hendy the opportunity to play with a classic mystery setup: a closed circle of suspects, each with their own reasons for wanting the victim out of the way.
The confined setting fosters a sense of claustrophobia without sacrificing the warmth and laughs expected from a cosy crime novel. Hendy understands that the appeal of this kind of mystery isn’t simply the puzzle, it’s the company. And the dynamic between Margery and Clementine drives the Dinner Lady Detectives series.
The pair are not professional detectives equipped with forensic expertise and police resources. They are observant, inquisitive women of more mature years whose everyday experience has taught them a great deal about people. In a setting where everybody has an agenda, that can be just as useful as a badge.
In addition to trapping the suspects, the festival setting also provides plenty of opportunities for comedy. Christmas celebrations are inherently ripe for mishaps, and Hendy highlights the absurdity of festive chaos rather than focusing on a relentlessly grim murder investigation. That balance is important.
Yet An Uncommonly Festive Fiasco doesn’t treat the murder mystery as an afterthought. The increasingly complicated relationships among the festival’s vendors and other attendees provide Margery and Clementine with plenty to investigate. The distinct lack of festive cheer certainly broadens the field of suspects.
The central question is not simply who might have attacked Elliot but what has been bubbling away beneath the surface of the apparently convivial gathering. That is where Hendy’s understanding of cosy plotting proves particularly effective. The best cosy mysteries invite you to look beyond the initial incident and examine the circumstances surrounding it.
A disagreement that initially appears trivial can acquire new significance, while an apparently harmless character can become considerably more interesting once their history is revealed. Margery and Clementine’s investigation consequently develops through the accumulation of small revelations rather than depending entirely upon dramatic twists.
In keeping with this approach, there are a lot of characters with a lot of information to reveal, whether willingly or otherwise. It can be difficult to keep track of them all, especially the characters who are new to the series and particularly during the tumultuous opening scenes. Even the dinner ladies sometimes get sidetracked by all the Christmasiness.
Still, the festive atmosphere is a strength. There is a neat contrast between the cheerful trappings of Christmas and the increasingly uncomfortable circumstances in which the characters find themselves. Decorations and seasonal entertainment provide a colourful backdrop, while the storm outside reinforces the sense that something has gone badly wrong.
But there is no unnecessary solemnity. Even when the investigation becomes more serious – someone has been murdered, after all – the tone retains the lightness that makes the Dinner Lady Detectives series distinctive. The humour comes naturally from the characters and events rather than overwhelming proceedings.
An Uncommonly Festive Fiasco is an enjoyable addition to the Christmas crime shelf: a deliciously chaotic Christmas mystery that combines festive mayhem, amateur sleuthing and a satisfyingly tangled set of motives. Hendy proves once again that when it comes to cosy crime, the dinner ladies are more than capable of serving up a killer investigation.
For more Christmassy crime, try Miss Winter in the Library with a Knife by Martin Edwards, or for another food vending-related mystery try The Dead Can’t Make a Living by Ed Lin.
Canelo Crime
Print/Kindle/iBook
£4.99
CFL Rating: 4 Stars
