Christmas Sweets by Joanne Fluke, Laura Levine, and Leslie Meier is a fun collection of holiday cozy mystery novellas.

In the Twelve Desserts of Christmas Hannah Swenson helps a friend to give six children at a local boarding school a happy Christmas by providing yummy desserts. She also helps them solve a very big problem between the two crazy in love teachers.

Nightmare on Elf Street finds Jaine Austen in an elf costume and assisting Santa in order to get a writing job with the local upscale mall. She finds herself in hot water when Santa turns up dead in the middle of chaos caused by her cat. Jaine must discover who did it.

The Christmas Thief finds Elizabeth Stone as a suspect in a jewel heist. She must investigate in order to clear herself and find the jewels.

I enjoyed all three of the novellas. As a long time Joanne Fluke fan I enjoyed another Hannah Swenson story. Laura Levine and Leslie Meier are both new authors for me and I will definitely be reading more from both of them.

If you enjoy cozy mysteries and holiday books then this is a perfect book for you. It is a great introduction to each author and their fun heroines.

Thank you to Netgalley and Kensington Books for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Mystery & Thrillers
Release Date: October 29, 2019

I requested Christmas Sweets because Joanne Fluke's Hannah Swenson series is my go-to for cozy mysteries. There are actually three novellas in this collection, written by three different authors. I'll give my thoughts below.

The Twelve Desserts of Christmas: True to Hannah's innocent, small-town world. She has to rescue the students and staff of a boarding school left behind during the holidays by 1) bringing delectable desserts and 2) solving a non-murder mystery. If you like the series, I think you'll like this.

Nightmare on Elf Street: This follows Jaine Austen (no relation to that Austen, at least as far as I could tell) as she works as an elf at an upscale Mall. There was a lot of fashion and "upscale" references, and a bit of a snooty behavior, which largely turned me off on the story. I think I'll stick to that other elf story, written by David Sedaris!

The Christmas Thief: I enjoyed this novella about Elizabeth, a woman who works at a hotel hosting a millionaire's Yule Ball. She's falsely accused of stealing the millionaire's wife's expensive jewelry. Elizabeth's mom and elderly friend (maybe acquaintance is more accurate) come down to help solve the mystery of who really stole the jewels. I was a bit disappointed to find out that most of the mysteries revolve around Elizabeth's mother, because I thought E was an interesting character.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC.

Loved it!! I have loved everyone of her books and this one was the same. Such a great story that goes back super fast.

3.5/5.0*

CHRISTMAS SWEETS - Available now for pre-order now and scheduled to be released on October 29, 2019.

‘The Twelve Sweets Of Christmas’ by Joanne Fluke is a sweet romantic tale wherein lovestruck teachers, Julie Jansen and Matt Sherwood, have been given the task of watching six kids during Christmas break.

Will Julie and Matt’s relationship continue to bloom, or will someone succeed in sabotaging their relationship? You will have to read the book to find out! :)

Also included throughout ‘The Twelve Sweets of Christmas’ are recipes for all of the desserts mentioned within the story! Yuuuummm!

I plan to bake a few of these during the upcoming holidays, my victims…er…’taste testers’ will be my nieces and nephews, unbeknownst to them at the moment.

Regardless of the outcome, i.e., charcoal briquettes or delicious holiday treats (yeah, your guess is good as mine) I will take pictures of the aftermath...I mean results online when we make them.

In all seriousness, these are great desserts to make with kids. I’m leaning towards making Multiple-Choice Cookie Bars with the kids for Halloween.

Now, where did I put that fire extinguisher? . . .

‘Nightmare On Elf Street’ by Laura Levine was so much fun! If you're looking for a funny who-done-it, look no further. Especially if you, too, are the parent of a finicky feline.

'You’d think after all I’ve done for my cat…she could at least wear a pair of deer antlers for three minutes while I took her picture for my annual Christmas card. But, no, Prozac, the little drama queen, had decided that the fuzzy felt antlers I ordered online were emissaries from the Devil and was determined to avoid them at all cost.’ (I could not stop laughing at how much I can relate to this!)

‘The Christmas Thief’ by Leslie Meier

All set to spend the holidays with her family in Tinkers Cove, Maine, Elizabeth Stone, is devastated when the manager of the Cavendish Hotel she works for in Florida puts a kibosh on her holiday plays. All hands-on deck is needed to ready the Hotel for the luxurious Christmas Ball. When the Sponsor's jewels go missing, Elizabeth is questioned about her ties to a cute mystery guest. Did Elizabeth aide in the theft of the jewelry or is she innocent? You will have to read the book and find out. :)

Thank you, NetGalley and Kensington Books for providing me with an advance copy of CHRISTMAS SWEETS in exchange for an honest review.

3 wonderfully good clean Christmas stories to give you that holiday spirit! 3 different authors, 3 different styles made this one an enjoyable read.

This is a combination of three holiday stories, all of which will make you smile and/or laugh. Joanne Fluke's Hannah is baking for kids left at a private school over the holidays. The kids take it upon themselves to bet on whether or not the two adults will end up engaged by Christmas. What ensues is a competition to keep them apart on the part of the boys and the girls wanting them together. Hannah intervenes when things go bad and a HEA ending ensues!
Laura Levine's Jaine is filling in as an elf at an upscale mall in this one. Not her first choice, but it may lead to a larger gig, so she does the job. There are two Santas that she works with, one a dream, the other spends his time drinking and being obnoxious with the children and Jaine. Needless to say, the obnoxious Santa finds himself dead and who is responsible? Jaine has to figure it out, because it is not her!
Leslie Meier's, Lucy Stone's daughter, Elizabeth is working at a hotel in Florida and hoping to be home for Christmas. When a rich guy decides to throw a huge ball and show off his latest jewel purchase, Elizabeth, ends up working with the party planner. Between that and juggling a budding romance, she is run off her feet. The jewels are part of a photo shoot and come up missing. The last person to deal with the jewels, is Elizabeth! Luckily, Lucy and Miss Tilley make the trek to Florida to help solve the case and get Elizabeth off the hook!
All three stories are fun, quick reads and will put you in the holiday spirit.

This was a great set of stories for anyone who loves Christmas. Ms. Fluke's story seemed more of a romance to me, while the other stories were mysteries. They were short novellas that whet my appetite for more. I received an advanced reader copy from Netgalley for my honest review.

This is a superb collection of three Christmas cozy novellas.

Leslie Meier is one of my favorite cozy mystery authors and her contribution to the collection was outstanding. A more straightforward mystery involving the eldest daughter of her usual sleuth, Lucy Stone. The daughter works at a luxury hotel and finds herself mixed up in a Christmastime theft.

I've read about 20 of the Joanne Fluke mysteries featuring cookie baker, Hannah Swensen. This one is a charming Christmas mystery with an emphasis on the charming. It's been quite sometime since I last read a Joanne Fluke book but this one reminds me of why I enjoyed that series.

The Laura Levine contribution was laugh out loud funny, a mystery involving the antics of a mall's Christmas elf.

Overall, this was one of the best Christmas mystery collections I've read in quite some time. Highly recommended!!

Thank you NetGalley and Kensington Books for the advance copy. What a lovely holiday themed read it has been. Christmas Sweets has it all: cute moments, good laughs, likable characters, good story lines, and last but not least, a wonderful time. Joanne Fluke's story is the cutest of them all. I appreciated how everyone involved made sure the kids, even though they were somewhat mishievous, had a good time for Christmas. It is always a pleasure to return to characters I have followed through the years, starting with Chocolate Chip Cookie Murder. Hannah's adventures are fun to read, and there is always at least one recipe per book that I just have to try. In all, a cute heart-warming mystery.

Next is Laura Levine's story, Nightmare on Elf Street. The main character, Jaine, always manages to find herself in the craziest situations, to our great pleasure. As if working as a mall elf was not enough, she has to deal with an assortment of co-workers who are even worse than her outfit. Jaine's cat Prozac plays an important part in the story, providing many welcome laughs!

Leslie Meier's story is centered around Elizabeth, Lucy Stone's daughter (don't worry, Lucy shows up!). I really liked Elizabeth, it was interesting to read a story through her point of view. I liked some of the reflections that were made concerning the gap between middle class people and the extremely wealthy. I always like when there is food for thought in fiction work.

I highly recommend Christmas Sweets to readers who want to be in a nice holiday mood, in the form of enjoyable cozy mystery stories.

I really enjoy this type of light mystery collection for the holidays. This book includes stories by Joanne Fluke, Laura Levine, and Leslie Meier. All three are older stories, so anyone following the novels will know that things have progressed for the characters since the time of these stories. I have read some or all of the books in all three series, but the book would also be a great introduction for new readers. Happily, all of the stories were new to me, so I really enjoyed the book and would rate it 4.5 stars.

I have had mixed feelings about some of the newer books in Joanne Fluke's Hannah Swensen series, but this older story, "The Twelve Desserts of Christmas" is excellent. It's a mystery only in the loosest sense of the word, but it's still enjoyable. While providing Christmas desserts for boarding school students who aren't able to go home for the holidays, Hannah has to get to the bottom of why the budding romance between the two teachers staying at the school abruptly fades. There are no murders in this sweet story, just friends helping each other and plenty of recipes for Hannah's delicious desserts.

"Nightmare of Elf Street" by Laura Levine is my favorite of the three stories. When looking for a laugh out loud story, Levine never disappoints me. When trying to win a job writing ads for an upscale mall, Jaine Austen gets roped into filling in as one of Santa's elves. A bad situation gets worse when Prozac wreaks havoc at the mall while there for a holiday card photo shoot. There is a lot going on in this story, including a dead Santa with Jaine the prime suspect for murder. Jaine begins investigating to clear her own name and the story concludes with a hilarious, upbeat ending.

I have read some of Leslie Meier's Lucy Stone novels and I enjoyed this short story featuring Lucy's daughter Elizabeth as the main character. While filling in as the concierge at a luxurious hotel in Florida, Elizabeth is suspected of stealing very valuable jewels belonging to a high profile couple staying at the hotel. There is a large build-up to this even and I really liked seeing Elizabeth at work trying to cater to the whims of the rich and famous. When things start to go wrong, she calls her mother and Lucy and her elderly friend Miss Tilley travel from Maine to Florida to help. I had to suspend disbelief as Lucy encouraged her daughter to break the law in order to prove her innocence. After a dramatic but improbable series of events, the book has a good ending just in time for Christmas.

I received this book from NetGalley though the courtesy of Kensington books. The book was provided to me in exchange for an honest review.

This is another Christmas box set of previously released books from three cozy mystery authors.

THE TWELVE DESSERTS OF CHRISTMAS by JOANNE FLUKE - 4 stars
This was super cute. I loved that it was centered around young kids stuck at a boarding school over Christmas break. I also really liked that there wasn't a murder. Instead it was just a charming Christmas romance.

My own complaint/concern is that the recipes often called for packing the flour into the cup to measure it. This goes against all the things I've learned in baking. I wish the author would add weights to the dry ingredients so the recipes can be consistent when you make them at home. There were a few recipes that sounded interesting but I'm concerned that I'll have too much/not enough flour by measuring by volume and the treats won't turn out right. Can I use the standard 4.25 ounces for flour?

NIGHTMARE ON ELF STREET by LAURA LEVINE - 4 stars
This author was new to me. I liked that it was more of a screwball comedy meets murder mystery. The parts with the cat were hilarious (and I don't like cats.)

THE CHRISTMAS THIEF by LESLIE MEIER - 4 stars
This was so much better than the New Year's Murder I read as part of a different box set for NetGalley. This book focuses on Elizabeth, Lucy Stone's daughter. She's super naive and trusting so of course she's going to be an unwitting accomplice to a jewel heist. Lucy and a neighbor swoop in from Maine to visit and help clear Elizabeth's name. I still don't buy that a part-time weekly newspaper employee has the skills to solve mysteries. She's lacking analytical and deductive reasoning. I guess she must do better when the mysteries take place in Maine? But she is not really the focus in this book so it's fine.

*I received an advance copy of this book from NetGalley and the publisher and I am required to disclose that in my review in compliance with federal law.*

A 3 for one holiday deal in this volume with fun short stories by different authors, all are enjoyable, but I loved Nightmare of Elf Street. Definitely worth reading for a short bust of holiday spirit.

3 of my favorite mystery writers in 1 volume is so sweet!! I loved reading a story featuring Lucy's daughter as the sleuth. Jayne is always fun, however I missed the funny emails that her parents always send her! They were not included for the first time ever! Hannah always makes me hungry. Her story was nice but lacking a mystery.

Christmas Sweets gives us three novellas from three different authors. I was slightly disappointed to find that both the Joanne Fluke and the Leslie Meier stories were older books from these authors. However, since I love Hannah and Lucy I was good with rereading these stories since each was very sweet and set during my favorite time of the year.
The Twelve Desserts of Christmas was a fun and short novella that is mainly a romance with a slight mystery combined. When six students are stuck at the boarding school during Christmas break, two teachers must stay behind to watch them. In order to make the holiday slightly more special, Hannah agrees to make them 12 Christmas time desserts. The kids discover a secret and after a bet is made, the two chaperones must find out who is sabotaging their romance. I love the recipes that were included. The fun and romance were nice too.
Nightmare on Elf Street was a new author and a new series for me. I will definitely be checking out the rest. Jaine is hoping to land a swank new job at the local mall. However, in order to be picked she must first pay her dues. She ends up dressed as an elf helping a nightmare Santa. When Santa ends up dead, Jaine must figure out who did it before and elf may join Santa.
The Christmas Thief brings us back to Lucy Stone, part time reporter/part time sleuth. When Elizabeth Stone cannot come home for Christmas due to a swanky party at the hotel, all the family is disappointed. However, when Elizabeth is accused of a crime, Lucy and her friend Miss Tilley fly to the rescue. Can they find the real culprit and clear Elizabeth's name?
You won't go wrong reading any of these novellas. I received a copy through Netgalley. A review was not required.

What a great book. I love all three of these authors and to find stories in one book was fantastic. I highly recommend these enjoyable shorter stories.

This is a book of three Christmas novellas. In the first, Twelve desserts of Christmas, Hannah is helping out a friend of Andrea's by suppling desserts for a group of kids that have to stay at their boarding school over Christmas break. A cute little romance sparks between the teachers that are chaperoning them. A little mayhem happens in the form of three little mischievous boys. a very cute read.

Next is Laura Levine's Nightmare on Elf Street. Jaine gets a job at a upscale mall as an elf for the holiday season. She ends up with a nightmare of a Santa who scares most of the children. So we the Santa ends up dead, she starts to investigate and of course there is a ton of suspects. It was a nice quick read.

The last installment is Leslie Meier's A Christmas Thief. This story has Elizabeth, Lucy's daughter as the main sleuth. Elizabeth is working at a high end hotel. When expensive jewels go missing from the hotel safe, Elizabeth becomes the prime suspect. Her mother, Lucy and Lucy's friend Miss Tilley fly to Florida to help her clear her name.

All three of these were cute, fun reads. Perfect for the holiday season. I received this book from netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I was disappointed to find out that the Joanne Fluke story was recycled from 2006 and wasn’t really about Hannah Swensen. Hannah and crew were side characters.

The Twelve Desserts of Christmas had a cute story but a bit unrealistic for the compressed romance. I know it happens but I have a hard time believing two new teachers that may have been casually dating the first semester will be engaged by the end of Christmas vacation. Other than that, I thought the mystery was well thought out and it was a cute story overall. An added bonus was the recipes.

Nightmare on Elf Street took some time for the mystery to appear. It is a typical Christmas gone bad in a humorous way.

The Christmas Thief was thought provoking. It also took a while for the mystery to appear. I did not feel that Lucy played a significant part in this story. Rather her daughter Elizabeth Stone with the guidance of Miss Tilley solve the mystery.

All three of these short stories were available before. It's nice that they are in their own book, but I already read them.

4 stars to Leslie Meier's candy canes of christmas past, a novella in the "Lucy Stone" mystery series. What a fun book! It started out a little concerning as 20% into this 100+ page story, there was no mystery yet... but then it suddenly got cooking with tons of side stories. Definite series read.

Story
Lucy Stone is reminiscing one holiday with her children about her first Christmas with her eldest son when they lived in Maine. They'd just moved to town and knew very little folks, having left a cushy life back in Manhattan. Lucy meets the librarian and gifts her a glass candy cane that turns out to be remarkably similar to one located next to the librarian's mother when she was found dead at the bottom of the stairs 50 years ago. Everyone thought it was her TB disease that caused the fall, but her daughter the librarian suspected potential foul-play. Through various intro meetings with folks about town, Lucy puts the puzzle together and learns who she thinks really killed the librarian's mother when she gets her Christmas present from her husband.

Strengths
1. The concept of solving a 50 year old murder is great. And it seems reasonable. No one trying to kill her in the process. It's just a light mystery with the readers and the characters getting the clues all at the same time. I loved the approach.

2. The use of side-stories and meeting new friends works really well as a character study and intro for me. I'm not sure if this is a newer book in the series or an older one, but I definitely will go back and read from the beginning. Great family fun.

Suggestions
None yet... it was that fun and readable.

Final Thoughts
If you have an hour to spare, and just want a light-hearted puzzle to solve, go for this one!

Thank you NetGalley for my arc. I was bummed to discover the Hannah Swensen story was recycled from a previous book. Overall though, it was a cute mix of stories for the holiday season.