A short story about Bryant and May. Quite an interesting twist and featuring the usual droll antics of Arthur Bryant, but for me the psychology wasn't quite right. I couldn't believe that if a father was sufficiently aware that his son was being so badly bullied, he didn't just pull him out of the school, even if he did have a divorce and business problems to deal with. ( )

I've been curious about the Bryant and May series for a while now and when I saw this short story on NetGalley was it a perfect opportunity to get a small glimpse into Bryant and May's world. Bryant & May and the Secret Santa is a very short story about a child getting scared after visiting Santa at a store. And, fleeing from the store across the street is he run over and dies. Bryant and May are called to the store to find out what scared the boy.

I found the story enjoyable and despite being so short it manage to tell its story very well. I found Bryant and May to be interesting characters and I'm curious about them and I'm thinking about reading the books to get to know them better. I was for some reason expecting a historical crime and was a bit surprised when I realized that the Bryant and May series is taking place in present time. There is just something about the covers to the books that make me think the setting would be perhaps the 50s. That really shows how little I knew about this series. I have to remedy that.

3.5 stars

Thanks to Random House and NetGalley for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review! ( )

In this Peculiar Crime Unit story, Bryant and May are investigating the death of a young boy who ran out into the street and was killed by a bus. It is Christmas time and London is festive and celebrating the season. Unfortunately for Selfridges department store, the death of a customer after visiting Father Christmas has put a damper on the holiday spirit. Bryant and May set out to discover what this boy was doing immediately before his mad dash into the street and what frightened him enough to do it. With Bryant's usual grumpiness the curmudgeon and his partner are able to figure out what caused the boy to dart into the street to his death. Not a real difficult mystery per se, but still an interesting case solved quickly. I am looking forward to more from Bryant and May. I would recommend this to mystery and crime lovers who are looking for a short, quick read that is still a good story with a decent plot.

I received this book from netgalley in exchange for an honest review. ( )

I have never read any of the Bryant & May books, but I have seen them and thought they looked good so I jumped at the chance of reading this short story set at Christmas. It's based around the death of a young boy after a visit to the grotto in a department store. I found it to be a pleasant and easy read but it is exceptionally short and so there wasn't much to get my teeth into and there wasn't much of a twist either. For me, it was almost a taster for the full length books which I still fancy reading. ( )

A witty tale, a bit short and kind of tame for Bryant & May. ( )