A Christmas Beginning (Christmas Novella 5)

Runcorn, Monk s ex-boss and a bachelor, travels to Anglesey hoping to stave off the loneliness of the Christmas season and the memories of Melisande, the woman he fell desperately in love with.

His efforts are in vain as he immediately meets Melisande s brother, John Barclay, and learns of Melisand's presence in Anglesey. Although a widow, Runcorn believes that Melisande is too far above him in society for him to win her heart and then fate intervenes.

The vicar of Anglesey s sister is discovered murdered and Barclay is implicated in the crime. Melisande, mindful of Runcorn s experience, asks him to help clear her brother s name, even though the official head of the investigation is Chief Constable Faraday, her soon-to-be fiance.

As Runcorn investigates, he learns that life for an upper class woman is hard especially when you are considered unmarriageable. Could this be a reason for murder? And will Runcorn be able to solve the case, and in doing so perhaps win Melisande s heart?

“The tale is redolent with Victorian atmosphere, from the hypocritical snobbishness to the rigid social conventions of the time”

Praise for Anne Perry's other Christmas novellas: 'This brief work has an almost Jamesian subtlety, and with its powerful message of responsibility and redemption - "We need both to forgive and to be forgiven" - it conveys a moral force in keeping with the season Wall Street Journal
Tangled Web
If you don't have a lump in your throat by the time you finish the final few pages, you shouldn't have had all that sherry Yorkshire Evening Post

New York Times bestselling author Anne Perry lives in Portmahomack, Scotland, and her well-loved series featuring Thomas and Charlotte Pitt has recently been adapted for television. THE CATER STREET HANGMAN was watched by millions of viewers when it was broadcast by ITV. Also available from Headline are the critically acclaimed William and Hester Monk mysteries.

Runcorn, Monk s ex-boss and a bachelor, travels to Anglesey hoping to stave off the loneliness of the Christmas season and the memories of Melisande, the woman he fell desperately in love with.His efforts are in vain as he immediately meets Melisande s brother, John Barclay, and learns of Melisand's presence in Anglesey. Although a widow, Runcorn believes that Melisande is too far above him in society for him to win her heart and then fate intervenes. The vicar of Anglesey s sister is discovered murdered and Barclay is implicated in the crime. Melisande, mindful of Runcorn s experience, asks him to help clear her brother s name, even though the official head of the investigation is Chief Constable Faraday, her soon-to-be fiance. As Runcorn investigates, he learns that life for an upper class woman is hard especially when you are considered unmarriageable. Could this be a reason for murder? And will Runcorn be able to solve the case, and in doing so perhaps win Melisande s heart?

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