A Christmas Promise

By: Anne Perry

Narrated by: Terrence Hardiman

It's a freezing winter day in London, 1895, when two young girls have a chance meeting. The pair turn out to have much in common: both are poor, both are parentless. But Minnie Maude, only eight, has even worse problems: the uncle with whom she lived has just been murdered, and if that's not enough, the family's donkey has run away. Her new friend Gracie, all of 13, feels obliged to help her, and so the girls team up to solve the mystery - and find Charlie the donkey. Anne Perry fans will recognize young Gracie as Charlotte Pitt's maid, a continuing character in the author's best-selling Charlotte and Thomas Pitt Victorian mystery series.©2009 Anne Perry (P)2009 BBC Audio

Friends at Christmas

Victorian era England and two little girls . . . and a wise man . . . named Balthasar . . . Gracie and Minnie Maude want to know who killed Minnie Maude's uncle . . . a rag and bone man, and now where Charlie, their lost donkey had gone off to . . . I had to look up the history of a rag and bone man . . . and it broke my heart. The lowest of the low, poorest of the poor, collected discarded rags, bones, metal . . . just about anything . . . from the trash . . . and sold it to others . . . for a pittance. They traveled around, usually with a hook or spike, turning over ashes left from a fire, looking for any tidbit left, going through garbage, anything that might be of worth. Gracie, age 13, goes off each day cleaning houses, but returns to help young Minnie Maude, age 8, at the end of the day to search for her uncle's killer and for the lost donkey. The wise man, Balthasar helps the girls, who meet the Christ Child in the manger, bringing him a gift . . . But the girls receive the best gift ever . . .

Absolutely wonderful Christmas story

I love mystery and all fashion stories this was one that I did not expect but was thoroughly impressed with.

Absolutely Lovely!

This is precious! Well-written and performed. Recommend for a sweet Christmas read. Many, many stars!

So wonderful

Murder and mayhem but a beautiful story in the end. The heart of the meaning of Christmas and how blessings abound

I love the ending.

A wonderful Christmas story. I would highly recommend this book to my friends and my family.