I wasn't exactly thrilled by this entry into the Victorian Christmas Mystery series featuring characters from the world of Charlotte and Thomas Pitt. This one featured Charles Latterly, the brother of Hester Latterly Monk. Charles, a recent widower, feeling like a failure whose life has been wasted, goes to Stromboli, a volcanic island in the Mediterranean for a three-week Christmas vacation at a lovely inn near the top of the active volcano. I kept getting distracted from the mystery by the odd relationship between Charles- a 40-something year old widow - and a precocious orphaned teenaged girl. Although the relationship is portrayed as completely benign, I wondered that the girl's guardian was so quick to trust Charles with her well-being. Anyway, *SPOILER WARNING* the volcano erupts a few days into his vacay, killing one of them, and one of the guests staying at the inn is found murdered just before the survivors have to flee for their lives down the mountain ahead of the lava flow. *END SPOILER* I thought the ending was abrupt even for a novella. I read one of these a few years ago - A New York Christmas - and liked it a bit more, but I don't think I'm going to be searching out more of these to read. ( )

Charles Latterly, a recent widower, is taking a vacation on Stromboli, one of Italy’s islands over Christmas. The inn where he is staying is in the shadow of a volcano that has been sputtering on and off for years. He is thrilled to meet Stefano, their host, who is a wonderful cook and tries his best to take care of and calm his guests. The other guests consist of The Baileys, who are a mismatched couple. Mr. Bailey bullies his wife as well as treating everyone else abominably, often baiting them. Colonel Bretherton is an old military man, who seems to care very much about Mrs. Bailey. The Finbars, Roger, an older gentleman who is his great-niece’s guardian, and his precocious niece, Candace, who meets Charles upon his arrival and charms him immediately. The last vacationer is Quinn, a best-selling author who wrote a rather racey book from the perspective of his major character, Lucy, who reminds Candace of her feisty grandmama. Considering this is a novella, Anne Perry does an admirable job of introducing us to her characters and letting us get to know them.

There is a lot of animosity between some of the characters, which plays out at the dinner table during meals. Most involves the obnoxious Mr. Bailey. Quinn and Mr. Bailey often have curt words with each other with Candace coming to his defense and inadvertently causing more issues. Charles tries to be the peacemaker in a couple of situations but is not always successful. Mr. and Mrs. Bailey do not seem to have an amicible relationship and the smitten Colonel must be careful not to intervene in their situation. When Bailey turns up dead, although it is covered up to look like an accident, there are any number of suspects. Of course, that investigation has to be put on hold as the volcano wakes up and furiously begins to spew lava and hot rocks. The mad dash down the mountain and the dead bodies left in its wake bring this story to a fast and furious ending.

This short novella is well-written with descriptions that are very realistic and make the reader feel like they can actually see the beautiful Stromboli. The biggest disappointment about this novella is the fact that, other than being set in the Christmas time frame, there is not much about it that is Christmas-like. The story may just as well have taken pace at a different time of the year as during this holiday season. I have not read any of the Anne Perry mystery series so can not relate to her other books as many of the other reviewers have done but I enjoyed the book as a standalone.

I received a copy of this book from the Mysteries and Crime Thrillers Blog. ( )

Certainly a most novel approach to a Chrismas novel if one considers journeying a distance in a rowboat to spend time on the side of an active volcano. But Perry has again added a murder in a most unique setting. As usual, the detecting is secondary to the circumstances in which all is done. Unusual is the development of the storyteller as a person from a nothing person to a strong person. ( )

Some very interesting descriptions of volcanic eruption in dramatic Italian setting, but for some reason the characters weren't involving. ( )

A good quick read with an interesting setting, on an island of an active volcano. Likeable characters and a good story. ( )