Mystery Magazine: December 2022

At the cutting edge of crime fiction, Mystery Magazine presents original short stories by the world’s best-known and emerging mystery writers. The stories we feature in our monthly issues span every imaginable subgenre, including cozy, police procedural, noir, whodunit, supernatural, hardboiled, humor, and historical mysteries. Evocative writing and a compelling story are the only certainty.Get ready to be surprised, challenged, and entertained--whether you enjoy the style of the Golden Age of mystery (e.g., Agatha Christie, Arthur Conan Doyle), the glorious pulp digests of the early twentieth century (e.g., Dashiell Hammett, Raymond Chandler), or contemporary masters of mysteryIn this In our cover feature, “It's Always Midnight” by Carl Tait, a peculiar man is observed at the scene of several seemingly unrelated deaths forcing a jaded New York City police detective to uncover the dark connection between the stranger and the fatalities.“The Dust Thief” by Ryan Set in the early 1950s, a bitter travelling vacuum salesman is attempting to try and sell the device to homes around central California. Though he fails at selling any, he discovers that his demonstrations are inadvertently sucking up a thin layer of gold dust.In “Suddenly, Everything Went Black” by Chris Bullard, a detective investigating the missing Von Radium tiara gets smacked on the head a few too many times to make any sense of things.“The Last Noel” by Elizabeth When Grannie Forbes falls face first into the Christmas pudding, no one in the family is particularly sorry, but soon the questions begin. Did someone take a hand to ensure that this was her last Noel?In “Gut Instinct” by James A. Mallory, private investigator Alonzo Probe is feeling pretty good on the eve of 1975. Driving home from his latest job, he spots a former lover manhandled into a car and takes chase.“Five Finger Christmas” by Brandon The holiday season is a wonderful time, but there's always someone who has to go and ruin everyone else's fun …“The Adventure Of The Black Barnacle” by Martin Hill Professor Moriarty convinces detective and next door neighbor to Sherlock Holmes to steal a precious jewel. Moriarty has an even more sinister goal in mind.“The Magnolia Thief” A You-Solve-It by John M. Fran Valentine is at it again, meddling in her daughter Sheriff Lucy’s case.♥ Custom Cover Art By Robin Grenville Evans