Mavis Doriel Hay was a novelist who briefly illuminated the golden age of British crime fiction. Her three notable works are distinguished by intricate plotting and atmosphere. Beyond her fictional endeavors, Hay was also an accomplished expert on rural handicraft, authoring several influential books on the subject.
Aunt Mildred declared that no good could come of the Melbury family Christmas gatherings at their country residence Flaxmere. So when Sir Osmond Melbury, the family patriarch, is discovered - by a guest dressed as Santa Klaus - with a bullet in his head on Christmas Day, the festivities are plunged into chaos.
A classic mystery novel set in and around the Northern Line of the London Underground. It is now republished for the first time since the 1930s.