A Partridge in a Pear Tree - Twelve Deadly Days of Christmas

Hello, I'm Fenella. I live in the North East of England. On the 24th of June 2025, I had a brain haemorrhage and emergency surgery in Newcastle. I spent three months in ICU and HDU at James Cook Hospital before moving into my new home, where I now live with my cat, Artemis, and-soon-my future PAWS assistance dog, Grimm.

Language and cognition are harder for me now, but as part of my rehabilitation I want to raise funds for my recovery, for Ward 24 (who took such good care of me), and for SEDSConnective charity research on neurodivergence and hypermobility.

When I moved in, I found one of my old cozy mystery notebooks: "A Partridge in a Pear Tree-Twelve Deadly Days of Christmas." I don't remember the story, and writing, organising thoughts, and reading are much harder than before.

So I thought it might be fun to share a photo (Daily Clue) from my old notebook each day and to ask you to set me a writing challenge based on that clue. This gives me structure, therapy, and a sense of purpose-helping me to slowly get back to writing cozy mysteries.

This is my 'Mending Mysteries' project. Thank you for joining me on this gentle, hopeful journey-every clue and comment helps support my recovery.

ABOUT THE STORY

On a snowy winter's day, a grieving orchard owner must confront the ghosts of his past in order to stop a killer and save the family business in time for Christmas.