R. D. Wingfield. Frost at Christmas (1984) The first Jack Frost novel, with a cutesy title, published in Canada by PaperJacks. My copy is a much-read 2nd hand one I bought at Bearly Used Books in Parry Sound. The title refers only to the time of year. Several crimes interlace, complex plotting is one of Wingfield’s strengths. He’s pretty good on character, too, creating series characters with all the traits that were developed so well in the TV series. Ambience focusses on weather (awful) and work (mixed, with nicely done satire of careerists), and the mean and suburban streets.
A girl is missing, she turns up murdered by accident. A bank heist, blackmail, an ancient crime, miscellaneous misdemeanours, and a rookie DC who is the Chief Constable’s nephew complicate Frost’s life and enrich the novel with the kind of detail that persuades us we are in a real world. Frost suffers a gunshot wound, but will survive. According to the Wiki entry, Wingfield wanted this tale to be a one-off, but was persuaded to leave Frost’s survival open. Good decision for fans of Frost, and for the TV series, one of the best ever. ***
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