The Twelve Clues of Christmas

By: Rhys Bowen

Narrated by: Katherine Kellgren

Length: 9 hrs and 25 mins

Publisher's summary

Audie Award Winner, Solo Narration - Female, 2014

She may be 35th in line for the throne, but Lady Georgiana Rannoch cannot wait to ring in the new year—before a Christmas killer wrings another neck…

On the first day of Christmas, my true love gave to me—well, actually, my true love, Darcy O’Mara, is spending a feliz navidad tramping around South America. Meanwhile, Mummy is holed up in a tiny village called Tiddleton-under-Lovey with that droll Noel Coward! And I’m snowed in at Castle Rannoch with my bumbling brother, Binky, and sourpuss sister-in-law, Fig. So it’s a miracle when I contrive to land a position as hostess to a posh holiday party in Tiddleton. The village is like something out of A Christmas Carol! But no sooner have I arrived than a neighborhood nuisance, a fellow named Freddie falls out of a tree, dead…. Dickensian, indeed.

Freddie’s merely a stocking stuffer. On my second day in town, another so-called accident turns up another mincemeat pie—and yet another on my third. The village is buzzing that a recent prison break could have something to do with it… that, or a long-standing witch’s curse. I’m not so sure. But after Darcy shows up beneath the mistletoe, anything could be possible in this wicked wonderland.

©2012 Janet Quin- Harkin (P)2012 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

"Katherine Kellgren performs an impressive range of accents: Irish brogue, high-pitched Cockney, fussy American, West Country burr, and more. Kellgren triumphs as Georgi, who is 34th in line to the throne, giving her a refined accent contrasted with down-to-earth sensibilities. Due to the author's light touch and Kellgren's humorous delivery, the many Yuletide deaths in this cozy do not become macabre. The listener just marvels at the mounting 'accidents' amid the bountiful Christmas cheer." ( AudioFile)

Audie Award Winner, Solo Narration - Female, 2014

Surprisingly Entertaining

This book turned out to be much better than I thought. It was a good fun story. I found myself laughing out loud quite a few times while listening to this. This is the perfect light read.

Love Georgie

If you could sum up The Twelve Clues of Christmas in three words, what would they be?

Funny, lighthearted, truly enjoy this series

Who was your favorite character and why?

Gerorgie......Her grandfather - really all of them are well developed characters....Darcy

Which scene was your favorite?

Queenie always doing everything wrong but showing up when its important.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

Reminds me of a female Columbo, not quite put together, everyone overlooks, but he likes it that way, because in the end you realize just how smart he is.

No disappointment

Would you consider the audio edition of The Twelve Clues of Christmas to be better than the print version?

Yes, the performance was excellent. Listening to the writing as spoken by a Brit made a difference

A Light Mindless Romp

A great way to while away a few hours in a kinder gentler (maybe) era. This is a series that I enjoy for light listening. It is effortless and fun. The narration is excellent.

Very Well Done

What did you love best about The Twelve Clues of Christmas?

Good story line, entertaining, liked the voices.

What other book might you compare The Twelve Clues of Christmas to and why?

Phryne Fisher Series

Have you listened to any of Katherine Kellgren’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

One of her better ones, but I have liked them all.

Another great Royal Spyness Mystery!

I have enjoyed all of the books in this series. It's not a time period chosen by many authors but an interesting one. Can't wait for the next one!

Great fun - except for the hunting

A fun, entertaining story. This series is clever - we can all relate to lack of money and being in love with someone who seems like they'll never commit to us but the heroine is a member of the Royal family. The characters and multiple murder mystery were engaging and kept me guessing.
The only thing I didn't like was the hunting scene. Contrary to the author's belief, plenty of upper class people in the 30s disagreed with hunting and 85% of people in the UK now believe it should stay illegal so it's horrible hearing it glamorised.

Cracking Christmas Adventure

Fans of this series will know what to expect... and once again, Rhys Bowen doesn't let us down. For me, this is the best of the Royal Spyness mystery stories so far, which just get better and better with each instalment. Katherine Kellgren brings each character to life wonderfully, and the ending of yet another enjoyable Lady Georgiana adventure is always a sad occassion... until the next one of course!

For anyone new to Lady Georgiana Rannoch, where have you been hiding? Basically 'The Twelve Clues of Christmas' is a light hearted murder mystery set in the English countryside over the Christmas holidays, featuring Lady Georgiana as our heroine and regal amatuer sleuth, who finds herself on the scene of a variety of strange murders. This is very Agatha Christie-ish in it's style, unlikely scenarios and coincidences abound, but it's done with plenty of humour... and there's even some romance thrown in.

All in all, this was a very enjoyable audiobook to listen to, and 'The Twelves Clues of Christmas' is an excellent addition to the fun Royal Spyness series of books.

Lots of fun!

A real English drawing room mystery. Wonderful story well told. The narrator could not have been better.

Another winner

This is the second book in this series I have read and enjoyed both of them. Narration is good and the mystery keeps a reader thinking throughout.