Six wintry novels, novellas and collections
Winter reading is rarely one mood. Some evenings call for candlelit country-house crime; others for ghost stories, snowbound moral dilemmas or a fairy tale sharp enough to glitter. The books below move between festive mystery, literary fable, Japanese folklore, Regency cheer and quiet human drama, so you can choose the atmosphere you want before you choose the book.
For readers who want a winter fairy tale with a literary edge
A princess who has always been protected from the cold discovers that snow doesn’t weaken her at all — it wakes her up. But when she falls for a glassblowing prince from the hot southern lands, she has to choose between love and the icy world where she feels most herself.
Read this if you love The Snow Queen The Green Knight
For readers who want a short winter novella about growing up
Set on a winter Saturday night in post-war Bristol, The Party follows sisters Moira and Evelyn as they leave the familiar world of home for an art students’ party, then a glamorous suburban house that feels both exciting and unnerving. Choose this if you loved Brooklyn An Education Atonement
For readers who want snow, kindness and dogs
This is the one to pick when you want snow, warmth and complicated people. In deep winter in the small Canadian town of Solace, widower Jack’s quiet life is interrupted by two arrivals: an abandoned dog and a badly injured draft-dodger fleeing the Vietnam War. Soon his cabin is full of other people’s troubles, hopes and secrets. It’s ideal for fans of The Holdovers , All Creatures Great and Small
For readers who want festive period-drama comfort
Think Regency Christmas special, snowy village, Twelfth Night ball and a cast full of secrets. Inspired by the traditional carol, The Twelve Days of Christmas brings together linked festive stories set in Merrywake after the Napoleonic Wars, from a lovelorn vicar to three sisters, hidden servants’ secrets and a soldier finding his way home. This is the book for readers who rewatch Downton Abbey , Emma Pride and Prejudice
For readers who prefer winter ghost stories to festive cheer
Not every winter book needs to be cosy. The Snow Ghost is for readers who prefer the chill of a ghost story to the glow of a Christmas romance. This collection of classic Japanese ghost stories gathers tales of haunted tombs, vengeful spirits, goblin-infested caves and supernatural encounters from Ancient Japan. It’s a strong choice if you like Shirley Jackson, Haruki Murakami, David Mitchell, Kwaidan or the eerie, folkloric side of Spirited Away . Read it when you want winter to feel mysterious, uncanny and genuinely cold.
For readers who want a Christmas murder mystery
For anyone who thinks Christmas is better with a country-house murder, start here - and then continue on with Ada's other festive mysteries.
It’s Christmas Eve, 1938, and the guests at Westbury Manor are preparing for a grand festive gathering — until David Campbell-Scott is found dead in the snow beside a pistol, with only one set of footprints nearby. Amateur detective Hugh Gaveston suspects there is more to the scene than there first appears. This is an easy recommendation for fans of Agatha Christie, Knives Out , Gosford Park , Grantchester or Downton Abbey with a murder-mystery twist.
