by Melissa Westemeier
No other time of year offers a wealth of magical moments like Christmas. The beauty of those first snowflakes drifting down from the sky causes us to tilt our heads and stop for a second to appreciate the moment. We nod when the first peal of a bell reaches our ears, comforted to know the tradition of church or charity continues. When dimming the room and turning on the tree lights for the first time, we admire the glow in silent wonder. We keep one eye on the horizon for the Christmas star, schedule tree hops, make candy, and count down December with Advent calendars. The longer, darker days twinkle and shine with fairy lights and we gaze with delight at lavishly decorated store windows, front yards, and public squares. We await our own Christmas miracles, convinced a rift can mend, peace can be restored, poverty can end, and love can reign supreme in our hearts.
Christmas is made even more special because we’ve restricted our access to treats for nearly 11 months and now they appear at every turn. Peppermint bark! Cut out sugar cookies with sprinkles! Peanut butter balls! Chocolate-drizzled pretzel sticks coated with crushed candy canes! Eggnog and hot cocoa and hot buttered rum! We get to play Bing Crosby or Mariah Carey or Andy Williams on endless loops. And the gaudy extravagance of Christmas! Twining tinsel in our hair, wearing garish sweaters, even adorning our cars and desks and bathrooms with holiday swag!
The Christmas season is full of magic, from the giddiness of children receiving a long-desired gift to the reunion of far-flung families. And because of this season’s magical qualities, Christmastime creates an ideal setting for a mystery! I never realized this until I stumbled across my first Kate Kingsbury Christmas cozy. A Christmas mystery? I was hooked when I spotted this book and quickly appreciated how Christmas happens to be a wonderful time of year to kill an annoying relative by poisoning the holiday punch or conking them on the head with a frozen turkey! Initially it seemed strange to think of crime during a festive season, but it makes sense to rob people blind while they’re distracted by holiday errands and event, or murder them or kidnap them. Mistaken identity, fraud, theft, a mysterious stranger lurking around the village square, spooky ghosts haunting the manor’s decked halls, threatening messages, missing gifts or treasures … adding Christmas makes cozies even better!
Naturally, mayhem gets wrapped up by the final chapter and that, dear reader, makes the cozy celebration around the tree with cups of mulled wine even sweeter. The world is set right by Christmas night, further convincing us of the season’s magic as we learn whodunnit, how, and why. A little crime makes this glorious holiday more special (for readers, anyway).
Book four in my Nun the Wiser Mysteries (coming in 2026) blends mayhem and mistletoe, and I cannot wait to join ranks of cozy Christmas mystery writers next year. Meanwhile, I have a stack of Christmas cozies to read because this magical season’s always better when it comes with a cinnamon-sprinkled hint of malice!
ABOUT MELISSA
Melissa Westemeier is a Sister in Crime and teacher from Wisconsin. She uses humor to explore serious subjects, and her published books include the Nun the Wiser Mysteries, which features the delightful Sister Bernadette Ohlson, a retired nun who assists her former student, Detective AJ Lewis (whether he likes it or not). Melissa likes her coffee and protagonists strong and prefers to work barefoot with natural lighting. You can learn more about her at https://www.melwestemeier.com/
