This the third Christmas book that I have read by Anne Perry, and I have enjoyed every one of them.

Anne definitely does a wonderful job of describing settings and the characters involved in her books. The words and conversations bring to mind something that could have been written years ago, and she does this so well that I feel as if I could be left in he middle of one of her scenes and feel at home. I like how she portrays her characters—the good guys might have some rough edges; the main character, Mariah, is described as plain and at times not very nice which deviates from the mostly kind, beautiful women in other books.

This book begins with Mariah, receiving a very strange package a week before Christmas. Inside is a Christmas pudding; however, since it was impossible to cut it, Mariah and the butler scoop and scrape the pudding off only to find something else underneath. At that point, I was hooked. I had to find out who was behind this and why. Slowly, she unravels the mystery and brings all the details to life. By the end, everything is neatly wrapped up.

Anne Perry's books are always a delightful read with a very sweet happy ending.

This time I was introduced to a very sassy Mariah Ellison. The story takes place during the Christmas time. 20 year prior, a tragic accident ended a life of Mariah's very good and dear friend, Cullen Wesley. The accident also caused a fall out between Mariah and Rowena, Cullen's wife. And nothing would ever change if Mariah didn't receive a cannonball in a Christmas pudding that followed by a letter from Rowena's grandson. Peter invited Mariah to come back to Surrey and help him "complete" his grandfather's last case that has been hovering over Rowena for the past 20 years.

Our short tempered Mariah is on her way to Surrey, where she reunites with Rowena and her grandson, Peter. Upon her arrival, our sassy grandmother learns the news - Dr. Owen Durward is back in Surrey, to clear his name and... to marry into a very wealthy family. Since Dr. Durward's arrival a very unpleasant rumor being spread around little village. The rumor states that Cullen's death was not an accident, but a horrific murder and the murderer is Cullen's own wife - Rowena. Peter is determined to clear his grandmother's name.

Now, let's talk about a tragedy that took place 20 years prior in a quiet village of Surrey. A 14 year old girl went missing during the Christmas time and was found dead in the woods. A young girl was awfully violated. Owen Durward, a village doctor, was arrested and charged with her murder. Cullen Wesley, village attorney took Dr. Durward's case. During the trial, Cullen came upon a similar tragedy that took place 5 years earlier only a few villages away. And guess who was a village doctor at that time? Coincidence? I think not. Owen Cullen was not arrested at that time, his married lover friend confirmed his whereabouts during the time of abduction/murder of a 12-year-old girl. Right after this dreadful discovery, Cullen has dropped Dr. Durward's case, and hours later was found in his study, dead. The death was considerate an accident. However, Owen has spread the rumor that Rowena has killed her husband, as he refused to defend Owen because Dr. Durward and Rowena were engaged in a love affair. Phew, talk about drama!

England has a very interesting law, a person can’t be arrested and tried for the same murder twice. Dr. Durward has underestimated our little sassy and stubborn Meriah. Peter and Meriah followed Cullen’s steps 20 years later and discovered an unsolved murder in a neighbor village. Queer Dr. Durward was finally brought to justice. This time Owen was arrested, tried and hanged for the first murder he has committed 25 years ago.

This book receives 3 stars because of two questions that were not answered in the story. Who did send Mariah a cannonball in a Christmas pudding? And did Dr. Durward killed Cullen or was his death really an accident?

There are SO many Anne Perry books. This is the first of the Christmas novellas I've read and it's likely the last. Although a short quick read, it's slow and not really a mystery but more of a character study of Mariah, an 80 year old who isn't very nice. This one is for serious Anne Perry fans.

A bit related to the Charlotte and Thomas Pitt series, this is Ms. Perry's Christmas novella for this year. A Historical Fiction murder mystery, one that happened many years ago.

When a mysterious package arrives for Mariah, with a letter that an old friend needs her assistance, Mariah must go back to the past and relive some not so pleasant times.

Mariah has never been the most pleasant person on the block, and here we find out why. A lot of secrets and the power of standing up and telling the truth no matter the consequences.

It was a delightful and short read!

This lovely novella is loosely related to the Charlotte and Thomas Pitt series. Thomas nor Charlotte makes an appearance in this novella, but they are mentioned. It definitely made me realize that I am woefully behind in that series. Evidently, a lot of family changes have transpired since I last read one of the books in the series. I’m thinking I need to go catch up!

The only real relationship this novel has to Christmas is that it is set at Christmas time. However, it is also a novel of justice, growth, self-knowledge, and renewal. The main characters were good friends twenty years ago when a tragic death tore them apart. Can that friendship be renewed and can a twenty-year-old murder be solved? Seeing Mariah’s growth, understanding and self-forgiveness is a delight.

Mariah Ellison is Charlotte Pitt’s paternal grandmother. She has always been a curmudgeon – well, not just a curmudgeon because she was mean, spiteful and hateful. In this novella, we learn about her early life and basically what made her who she is today. It is nice to see that a genuinely nice and caring person appears to be emerging.

Twenty years ago, in a small English village, a fourteen-year-old girl was abducted, raped, tortured and murdered. Mariah’s friend, Cullen, an honest, ethical lawyer was set to represent the accused, Dr. Durward. Then, after a visit to another village a number of miles away, Cullen told the defendant he could no longer represent him. The next day, Cullen was murdered, and rumors were spread about his wife, Rowena, having murdered him. Dr. Durward was later tried and found not guilty of the girl’s murder and nothing ever happened with the murder of Mariah’s friend.

Today, that defendant is back in town stirring up trouble for Rowena and her grandson, Peter and also impugning Cullen’s name. Peter sends a desperate message to Mariah for help and the next day she’s on a train determined to help however she can – and to mend a torn friendship with Rowena. The last Mariah saw Peter, he was only ten years old. He has now grown into a man who remembers her with great affection and respect.

Mariah and Peter work hard to solve the murder and bring the killer to justice. Mariah’s unique understanding of someone who is as dark as this murderer allows them to take avenue’s that would not normally have been looked into. There is a short time to be able to find the killer and bring him to justice. Can they do it? If the murderer is really Dr. Durward, he cannot be tried again, so what can they do?

This is an entertaining short read and if you have read the Charlotte and Thomas Pitt books, you will greatly appreciate Mariah’s metamorphosis. She’s still a work in progress, but she’s growing every day.

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"I requested and received this e-book at no cost to me and volunteered to read it; my review is my honest opinion and given without any influence by the author or publisher."

A cannonball in a Christmas pudding? That is just how “A Christmas Return” by Anne Perry begins. Mariah Ellison receives this odd, anonymous gift a few days before Christmas. However, a card arrives with the last post of the day. It is from Peter Wesley; the grandson of a friend with whom she has not seen for some time… Rowena Wesley. A friend whose husband, Cullen, died under mysterious circumstances twenty years ago after he suddenly refused to represent a man accused of the rape and murder of a fourteen year old girl.

Mariah agrees to assist Peter as “it was something, at her age, to be needed-not to be taken in as a matter of kindness. An overdose of charity could kill something inside you.” The ensuing story is the tale of Mariah and Peter attempting to track down the murderer.

This was a quick, easy read and was not gruesome. It had some great moments, although none better than cutting into a Christmas pudding and finding a cannonball. For example, “… over a lunch of Welsh rarebit. There was always something extraordinarily comforting about melted cheese on toast.”

Very enjoyable, especially with the Christmas tie in and Anne Perry reminds us that “because of Christmas, love never dies’” This was my first Anne Perry book, but it won’t be the last.

Release Publication Date: November 7, 2017
Genre: Fiction, Mystery, Thriller & Suspense, Crime, Women Sleuths, British
Cover: Perfect
Source: I received this book from the publisher via NetGalley in return for an honest review. Thank you for the opportunity to read this great book!
Rating: 4 stars

I have found that Anne Perry’s books vary depending on her characters. Her female protagonists are usually outspoken with single minded convictions. 80 year old Mariah, is just the right character for a holiday tale. In the process of solving an old mystery she is forced to dredge up some rather unpleasant memories of her own. This is the perfect little mystery for a snowy afternoon.

Love a good legal book, this one was different since it was a twenty year old case and a grandmother as the heroine. It was unique and a charming read. Really enjoyed the dynamic between the grandmother and grandson.

It was not at all what I was expecting. It was cozy. There were no gory details or hard-boiled detectives. It just wasn’t as Christmassy as I was expecting. Partly, the back story was very heavy; and for me, that outweighed any Christmas spirit. It struck me as being more as an attempt to encourage abused women to stand up for themselves than a mystery book.
I liked the heroine. She is a fun cranky choice for a detective, and I hope she has many more adventures.
Perry did an excellent job of tying it all together at the end, but there was a lot of repetition throughout the whole book. It is really important to the solution of the mystery know and understand the heroines life story, but for so short a book it takes up a lot of the story.
Considering the nature of the crime and the detective’s backstory, it was very delicately written. There was one curse word.
I think I’ll be reading more from this author.
I received this as a free ARC through NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group – Ballantine. No favorable review was required, and these are my honest opinions.

Mariah Ellison gets a mysterious package postmarked from Haslemere. Later that day, she gets a letter from her friend’s grandson, Peter Wesley that Owen Durward is back in Haslemere and that his grandmother needs her help.
Mariah travels to Haslemere to see what her friend Rowena needs and finds that Durward is questioning why Rowena’s husband, Cullen Wesley, removed himself from being his lawyer 20 years ago when Owen was being tried for killing a 14-year old girl from the village. Shortly after removing himself from the trial, Cullen is found dead and Owen is acquitted of the little girl’s death. Neither death is solved and questions still swirl in the village.
To further his innocence, and likely to seek revenge, Owen is back in the village and raising suspicion that Rowena was the person who killed her husband. The investigate brings up thoughts for Mariah of her abusive husband and the pain she endured during her marriage. As Mariah wrestles with these feelings, she works with Peter Wesley to find evidence that Owen was involved in the little girl’s death.
I always enjoy Anne Perry’s Christmas novels that she publishes annually. This was the first one I had read that featured Charlotte Pitt’s grandmother, Mariah Ellison. I found it enjoyable. Like all Perry’s Christmas stories, it is short and therefore the mystery aspect of the book is fairly uncomplicated. But the human aspect of friends, family and healing makes for an enjoyable read.

Books and novellas by Anne Perry are always most wecome! This year, the author's Christmas story gives the reader the opportunity to get to know Charlotte Pitt's grandmother, Mariah Ellison, better. Mariah struggles with her own past as she tries to right a past injustice. Mariah is human, flawed, strong and admirable, much as we all are. Anne Perry writes with compassion and understanding. A great holiday gift for any fan of this author's series. Highly recommended.

Mariah Ellison, a toasty-tempered grandmother, is on the loose. Her old friend was murdered twenty years before, and now the man he was defending in court is trying to defame Cullen's name. Not if Mariah can help it! She works with Peter, Cullen's grandson, to solve the twenty-year cold case in time for Christmas and to clear her old friend's name.

I found the story interesting and engaging throughout. Mariah is a likable woman, and so strong that it's almost pathetic to hear her speak of her bad marriage. Peter is a frank, enjoyable young man, determined to do what he can for the grandparents he loved so well. The two work together very well. Does the bad guy have a chance?

Thanks to the publishers for a review copy. A favorable rating was not required.

Anne Perry returns this holiday season with a Christmas novel featuring the grandmother of Charlotte Pitt. Perry's series about Charlotte Pitt and her husband are among the most popular historical mysteries. Charlotte's grandmother, Mariah, was introduced in a previous novel. She is a crotchety old woman very grumpy and angry at the world. We come to find out she was basically tortured for years by her cruel and twisted husband.
In this holiday novel she is sent a plea for help by the grandson of an old friend. She is called to aid the woman who married the man that Mariah actually loved. Can she over come her jealousy and help this woman while also mending her own heart and soul?

Anne Perry is a fabulous author as anyone who reads the mystery genre already knows. This book doesn't fail to meet the expectations.

This is my first Christmas book by Ms. Perry, and reading it makes me now want to read the rest of her Christmas books. It is a good mystery, and at the same time, about friendship. This book is aptly named for its wonderful ending.

4 and 1 / 2 stars

Grandmother Mariah Ellison receives a strange gift by post. It is a cannon ball wrapped in a pudding. This brings back old memories of twenty years earlier. Cullen Wesley was murdered. This crime was committed and it drove a wedge between two former friends, the victim’s wife Rowena and Mariah.

She then receives a card from Peter Wesley, the grandchild of the murdered man begging for her help. Of course she’ll go. Mariah hopes to heal the rife between her and Rowena and return to being friends once more.

It seems a man named Duward who was acquitted of the murder of fourteen-year old Christina has returned to the village. Ostensibly to further prove his innocence (for there are some who didn’t agree with the verdict), and to find out who really did kill the young girl.

After meeting Peter, they set about planning their strategy. It appears as though Peter has a suspect in mind already. Meanwhile some people are suggesting that Rowena was responsible for the death of her husband. Determined to prove her innocence, Mariah sets about to do just that. Peter and Mariah discover that Duward has not been honest and he was involved in blackmail.

In an exciting conclusion the truth is revealed and the rift between the two women is healed. A lovely Christmas gift.

This book is well written and plotted, as are all of Anne Perry’s novels. Ms. Perry’s writing is engaging, easy-to-read and flows nicely. I enjoyed the story and reading my first Mariah Ellison book. I’ve read Ms. Perry’s other novels, but this is my first Mariah Ellison book.

I want to thank NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group – Ballantine for forwarding to me a copy of this delightful and easily read book for me to enjoy.