Christmas Eve. While the world sleeps, snow falls gently from the sky, presents await under the tree ... and murder is afoot. In this collection of ten classic murder mysteries from the best crime writers in history, death and mayhem take many festive forms, from the inventive to the unexpected.

From a Santa Claus with a grudge to a cat who knows who killed its owner on Christmas Eve, these are stories to enjoy - and be mystified by - in front of a roaring fire, mince pie to hand.

The trinity cat / Ellis Peters --
The Santa Claus Club / Julian Symons --
The four seasons / Michael Innes --
No sanity clause / Ian Rankin --
The footprint in the sky / John Dickson Carr --
A wife in a million / Val McDermid --
The dagger with wings / G.K. Chesterton --
Cambric tea / Marjorie Bowen --
As dark as Christmas gets / Lawrence Block --
On Christmas day in the morning / Margery Allingham