Stalking Around the Christmas Tree is a delightful, Christmas-themed cozy that is the fourth installment in the Christmas Tree Farm mystery series. Holly is not only busy preparing the Reindeer Games Inn for the holiday season but also busy putting finishing touches on her wedding plans - a wedding to take place on Christmas Eve. While Holly has a way too long to-do list, the rest of the town is preparing for the state's ballet company to arrive to perform The Nutcracker. Oh, and where are the ballerinas and their master staying!? Of course, the Reindeer Games Inn. Holly has it all under control until one of the ballerinas is discovered murdered during the town's holiday parade. Holly and her family and friends are determined to solve this mystery before Christmas and Holly's big day.

Stalking Around the Christmas Tree is an absolute perfect Christmas/holiday cozy. The mystery is intriguing with lots of believable suspects. The regular characters continue to be their quirky, charming selves. I absolutely love Cookie and her goat. I laughed out loud several times. The entire vibe of the farm, the cafe, and the shops within the town is perfect. I feel like I'm in a Hallmark Channel Christmas movie when reading this series. An absolute must for anyone who loves a good holiday-themed cozy!

I was so happy to get an advanced publication of this book from Netgalley , and this is my honest review of the book. I have been waiting for this books release for a while — as I have read the previous 3 books in the series . I love this series of cozy mysteries and the characters . The characters are strongly built - Holly White the main character is a strong , independent, no nonsense woman — I like the friendship / romance between police chief Evan and Holly — the romance is my style as it doesn’t take the main stage in the book and not too much focus on lovey doves mushy stuff -very G rated book for the romance — Evan and Holly work together like great partners in love and on murder cases . I like how the murder stays mostly at the main focus in addition to the threaded storyline from the pervious books of Evans sister Libby —because of this thread it would be good to read the other books before hand grasp the background here. I love that the title is a pun off a Christmas song— and that interaction between the characters seems so realistic — This book really focuses on the feeling of friendship and community — Lovely book ! Highly recommend this cozy mystery series.

If you need some Christmas pick me up. This is your series. It is Christmas all wrapped in mystery and sugar. Such a good story. A dead ballerina. And needing to solve it before the wedding! Oh my. Of course Holly can’t help but get in the middle. But by now everyone is used to her snooping. Except for maybe the killer! If you like cozy mysteries and Christmas this is a winner.

This is the 4 book. Although it could technically be read as a stand-alone I wouldn’t. I would start from the beginning. You get to know the characters so much better that way. There is so much love in the air but it is kept clean.

Christmas in Mistletoe, Maine, is always special; this year is no exception. With an upcoming wedding to plan, charities to donate to, and a booming business to run, Holly doesn’t have a minute to breathe. Things get even more hectic when the prima ballerina, Tiffany, collapses during the town’s annual Christmas parade and is later pronounced dead from arsenic poisoning. Holly immediately starts investigating and finds several clues pointing to a superfan, the choreographer, the Rat King, and the understudy. Will Holly uncover who killed Tiffany?

Stalking Around the Christmas Tree is the 4th book in the Christmas Tree Farm series. You can read this as a standalone book. But, and I always say this, I do recommend reading books 1-3 first. That way, you better understand the characters and their backstories.

Stalking Around the Christmas Tree was a fun read for me. I wasn’t expecting it to be, if I am going to be honest. I am not a fan of picking up books mid-series. In my experience, I usually end up missing something when I do that. But this is a rare case of that not happening. The plot was fast-paced, the characters were well-fleshed out, and the mystery was twisty.

Stalking Around the Christmas Tree’s main storyline centers around Holly and her investigation into Tiffany’s death. The author didn’t veer from this storyline too much and kept it focused on its objective: To find Tiffany’s killer and the motive. The storyline was well-written, and it kept me glued to the book.

There were several secondary storylines in Stalking Around the Christmas Tree. The two main secondary storylines were Holly’s wedding and Libby’s stalker. The author kept both secondary storylines separate from the main storyline and the author did something that surprised me. She kept the storylines separate throughout the book. Did they crisscross? Absolutely but in no way did either storyline join the main one, and I loved it.

The storyline with Tiffany’s murder and Holly’s investigation was twisty. The author did a great job of keeping how the killer was under wraps until the end of the book. I was surprised at who it was and why that person did it. Oh, and how they did it too.

The storyline with Holly’s wedding was sweet. Since this has been a storyline that continued from the last book, I am sure that readers of the series were thrilled with how it ended. I know I was!!

The storyline with Libby and her stalker was sad. Again, this was a storyline the author carried over from the previous book (maybe books?). Once Holly confronted Libby with what was happening, I figured out who the stalker was. It did break my heart a little bit to read the ending scenes (where the stalker is caught) because of why this person did it.

The end of Stalking Around the Christmas Tree was terrific. I loved how the storylines ended. I hope there is another book in the series.

I recommend Stalking Around the Christmas Tree to anyone over 16. There is mild violence, mild language, and fade to black sexual situations.

Many thanks to Crooked Lane Books, NetGalley, and Jacqueline Frost for allowing me to read and review Stalking Around the Christmas Tree. All opinions stated in this review are mine.

Stalking Around the Christmas Tree
Book Four in the Christmas Tree Farm Mystery Series
by Jacqueline Frost


Publisher’s Summary
Tis the season to solve a murder—and innkeeper Holly White knows she’ll have to make her list and check it twice if she wants to catch the killer in the 4th Christmas Tree Farm mystery from bestselling author Jacqueline Frost.

For inn keeper Holly White, Christmas time in Mistletoe, Maine, is the ultimate holiday gift. Business at the Reindeer Games Inn is booming, her wedding to Sheriff Evan Gray is nearly here, and the annual parade is about to begin. The town is lucky to have another gift this year with the state’s ballet company staying for several performances of The Nutcracker. But disaster strikes when Tiffany, the lead ballerina, shows up dead on a float during the parade, the Rat King’s mask nearby. Holly will have to spruce up her sleuthing skills if she wants to catch the killer before Christmas—and her wedding day.

Immediately, Holly discovers that Tiffany had more than a few secrets. She finds out that the star of the show had a super fan that no one knows anything about. And the show’s understudy slips some other intriguing information Holly’s way: not only was Tiffany secretly seeing someone romantically, but there seems to be more than one rat in this company. When Holly discovers a secret passage leading to Tiffany’s dressing room, with footprints leading out; she wonders if this is evidence of a secret lover—or a stalking killer.

With an impending snowstorm and the ballet company on the way out of town, Holly must act quickly if she wants to find the person responsible for this terrible murder. Will she be able to save Christmas—or will her investigation turn cold like the weather?


My thoughts on Stalking Around the Christmas Tree
I’ll say it up front-this is one of my favorite series, even though the murders occur around Christmas. Reindeer Games is a Christmas tree farm Holly White’s family owns and they put their all into the business. There’s the café, Hearth, which Holly’s mom keeps stocked with all sorts of Christmas-y goodies. It’s a life-sized gingerbread house and popular with the locals and the visitors. The farm also has games-reindeer games-in the twelve days leading up to Christmas. Some are indoors, some are outdoors, but all are fun. There is also an inn on the property. Holly is the inn keeper and in this week before Christmas the inn is hosting a ballet troupe from Maine’s capitol. The ballet troupe going to perform The Nutcracker for several nights before returning to the capitol for a final performance on Christmas Eve. It’s all set for a perfect Christmas. But of course, this is Mistletoe and for the last three years a murder has occurred close to Christmas and this year is no exception.

What I like about Stalking Around the Christmas Tree
The setting. Mistletoe, Maine, and especially Reindeer Games Tree Farm, are places I’d want to visit. Frost does an excellent job immersing the reader into the fictional town and tree farm.
The characters. Over the series characters have broadened Holly’s circle of trusted friends. She has a solid relationship with her parents. She’s found a keeper in the sheriff. Her circle of friends includes old and new friends, and those friendships also cross generations.

The mystery in Stalking Around the Christmas Tree
There’s mystery upon mystery in this book. The super fan with the large online following and influence, that no one has ever seen. The dead ballerina-why would anyone kill her? The sheriff’s sister, Libby, has become withdrawn and no one knows why. All were well-written, with plenty of red herrings to throw a reader off. Solving one mystery doesn’t necessarily make solving the mystery of the killer’s identity or motive any easier.

Some of the tropes present in Stalking Around the Christmas Tree
Happily ever after
Enticing village
Close relationships.

My thoughts
Stalking Around the Christmas Tree is a tightly written cozy mystery that will keep
you guessing up until the reveal. Recommended.



Thanks to #NetGalley and #CrookedLaneBooks for giving me a copy of #StalkingAroundTheChristmasTree in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

This is one of my favorite cozy mystery’s and I think my favorite book out of the series. We get so much more detail into the life of each character. And this story was so heartwarming.

This is a charming cozy mystery for the holiday season. It’s filled with murder and mistletoe w some romance and holiday cheer. The main character is fun and free spirited which make the story more interesting. This is a festive cozy story that will bring great joy to readers.

I’m so glad this series was able to continue, because I really like the characters and the setting. All the Christmasy things they do in each book make me want to do them in real life. One mystery I guessed the answer to long before Holly did. The other two mysteries I did not. The wedding was perfect and sounded lovely. I can’t wait to read what happens next in these characters’ lives.

This is one of my favorite series so I was very happy to get the chance to read this latest book in the series.

I love the characters and their world. I would love to live in a town like this!

The mystery was very good and actually there is two mysteries that Holly is trying to dolce all the while preparing for her upcoming wedding.

There is enough red herrings to keep me guessing. I sort of thought I knew but it was not clear to the end.

5 Stars and I hope the series continues!

Thank you NetGalley for opportunity to read this ARC.

It's Christmas time again in Mistletoe.

This year the Nutcracker ballet is coming to town with the ballerinas staying at the Reindeer Games Inn.

But when Tiffany, the lead ballerina, shows up dead on a float during the parade, the Rat King’s mask nearby. Holly can't help but investigate...despite having a Christmas wedding to plan.

But when someone starts to threaten her too, will she even make it to her wedding day.

I was so excited to see another Christmas Tree Farm Mystery. This is my favourite Christmas mystery series and the latest instalment didn't disappoint.

The story was quite slow and little bit hard to get through but i enjoyed my time reading this. The thriller aspect really made me interested to know more until the end.

Thank you netgalley and the publisher for the arc!

I love these during December, and know that I have at least one cozy Christmas Mystery Story in my stocking during December. This is the fourth in the series, trust me, if this were real life, and every year off murders occur, would you spend your Christmas here? Yes, they are so much fun, Holly and her family, I love her Mom and Dad who run the lodge and restraunt, and Christmas Tree Farm, Evan, her good looking fiance are finally about to be married, he is the town Sheriff, there will be a murder, or two, that might throw a peppermint into the mix. You must not let little things like Evan not minding when Holly messes up a crime scene or steals evidence bother you, it's like Christmas, one must suspend belief, it makes for a more enjoyable experience. If you like cozy throws, hot chocolate, and touches of Christmas everywhere around your home, you will be enchanted by this warm story of quirky family and friends who gather in a snowbound wanderland just in time for Santa.
I highly recommend it. Thank you #Netgalley

It’s Christmas in Mistletoe, Maine, and for the fourth year in a row, someone is murdered. This time around, the dead woman is the lead ballerina in the visiting production of The Nutcracker. And of course, several members of the ballet and the choreography master are staying at Holly’s inn at her parents’ tree farm.

I love a good holiday mystery and Stalking Around the Christmas Tree was fun. It’s filled with all things Christmassy – The Nutcracker Ballet, presents for charity, delicious goodies, and plenty of snow. There’s enough romance to make me smile, but not so much that it takes over the story. And there’s a murder.

I enjoy the characters in this series. Holly is surrounded by a supportive, loving, quirky bunch of family and friends. And yes, her boyfriend Evan is the town sheriff, which seems a bit of a cheat, but I actually like him and he treats Holly as if she’s capable and intelligent. This can be read as a stand-alone, but reading the series from the beginning gives you a better feel of the relationships and for how Holly’s life has changed over the last four years.

The mystery portion was well done. The story was paced well and the whodunnit made sense and fit with the clues. The secondary mystery of a stalker who is following Libby, Evan’s sister, does a nice job of complicating the investigation.

And the ending was adorable. This would be a perfect December read.

I had never read anything by this author and was drawn in by the lovely cover and the description of the book. I found both the main mystery and the side mystery to be intriguing and complex, and the characters to be relatable and fun.
But despite of sound writing and an interesting plot, I had difficulty getting into the book. It's descriptions are long and detailed to the point of taking so long to read that you are taken out of the story. I ended up skimming most of them to get back to the actual story. I almost put the book aside at one point because of this, but I wanted to see if I was right about certain aspects of the mystery and kept going to the end.
I do appreciate the ARC of #StalkingAroundtheChristmasTree that I received from #NetGalley.

Publishes October 17, which is perfect if you need to catch up on books 1-3. Thus is perfect for Christmas in July 🎄

Read this if you like:

All things Christmas
The Nutcracker
Books that read like a Hallmark movie
Warm fuzziness
Great friends and family
Snow!
All the delicious treats and beautiful decorations

LMK if you tear up too

I love Christmas, and I love good mysteries!
This book was both.
It was the fourth book in the series, and I did not realize that, so it can be read without previous knowledge about characters.
 
I used to read mysteries all the time, but I've stepped back since they can be dark and a bit of a downer. This book gave all the lovely feels of a Christmas story, with very bubbly characters and a tight community, but with a mystery that was not anxiety inducing like mysteries tend to be.
 
My only complaint was about the main character, who is not a police officer, walking around crime scenes and collecting evidence. That was a bit too far, and I couldn’t suspend belief since that would compromise a whole case.
 
But all in all, it was a warm and fussy read that will make this Christmas season even better.
 
Pub Date: Oct. 17, 2023
 
Thank you, @netgalley and @crookedlanebooks, for this lovely book!

I gave Stalking Around the Christmas Tree by Jacqueline Frost (Julie Anne Lindsey) 5 stars.

For inn keeper Holly White, Christmas time in Mistletoe, Maine, is the ultimate holiday gift. Business at the Reindeer Games Inn is booming, her wedding to Sheriff Evan Gray is nearly here, and the annual parade is about to begin. The town is lucky to have another gift this year with the state’s ballet company staying for several performances of The Nutcracker. But disaster strikes when Tiffany, the lead ballerina, shows up dead on a float during the parade, the Rat King’s mask nearby. Holly will have to spruce up her sleuthing skills if she wants to catch the killer before Christmas—and her wedding day.

-------- REVIEW --------
First of all, all books I have read by this author have been amazing, so I knew going in that this fourth book in the Christmas Tree Farm Mystery series would be too. I love the writing and even if it is 34 degrees Celsius/93 degrees Fahrenheit outside right now, it felt like I was in a snowy winter wonderland while reading this book.

I don't want to spoil the plot too much since it is the fourth book. But we got a fascinating mystery and our main character had a Christmas wedding coming up that I could not wait to read about.

I highly recommend this if you want a delightful Christmas cozy mystery series to read for Christmas in July or during winter time.

This book comes out October 17.

Thank you, Net Galley and Crooked Lane Books for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CujF_74rYRt/

Stalking Around the Christmas Tree was absolutely amazing! I loved it from start to finish. This was my first Christmas Cozy Mystery and I'm glad I didn't wait until December to read it. I loved the small town of Mistletoe, Maine where the story was set. It is a small town devoted to the holidays. Holly White, the main character, works at the Inn there and helps run Reindeer Games tree farm with her parents. They also run the Hearth cafe in town. Holly's fiance is the town sheriff and they are getting ready for their wedding which is coming up fast. Plus Holly is getting ready for Christmas, running the Reindeer Games and wrapping gifts for charity. There isn't much time for anything else, but when Tiffany, a ballerina, who is in town for a performance of the nutcracker, turns up dead, Holly can't resist getting involved.

In spite of there being a murder in town, this is where I want to spend Christmas. The people that live in the town are sweet and fun, including a group of older ladies who call themselves The Swingers (because they swing dance) and some adorable busybodies who run the local shops. Everyone cares about Holly and just wants to see her happy and settled.

As Holly looks into the murder, her fiance, Sheriff Evan Gray, becomes worried that the murderer may target her too. There is no stopping her though as she wants this all wrapped up before their wedding.

I give this book 5 stars as it had lots of twists and turns, a wonderful town with warm Christmas cheer and a sweet romance. What more could a person ask for?!

Stalking Around the Christmas Tree by Jacqueline Frost is a marvelously written mystery with holiday flair.

Will Holly figure out who killed the ballerina before Christmas Eve?

Holly White
Holly is our sleuth in this murder mystery set right before Christmas in Mistletoe, Maine. Although investigating isn't her primary occupation, it does seem that she is quite good at it. She also assists her parents with running their Christmas tree farm, and she runs the inn on the farm. But that isn't all that Holly has going on. She volunteers for numerous events, has all her regular holiday things to get done, and is getting married.

I like Holly. She has a big heart and enjoys life and the holidays. I love her curious mind and love of a great sweet treat.

The Mystery
This story is like the ultimate Christmas village. They have the Nutcracker ballet in town for the week; there is a parade, massive events, reindeer games, YouTube shows being taped, and tons of fabulous shops like a fudge shop, wine shop, cupcake shop, so many shops. Oh, did I mention the snow? This town has the Christmas spirit. Well, except for the fact that they have had a murder during the holidays for the last four years. On the bright side, they always get the culprit.

In this mystery, the lead ballerina, Tiffany, is murdered, but who could have done it? They don't know any of the people in the ballet, and they will leave on the 23rd. Holly and Sheriff Evan have to figure it out and still make it to the altar on time. Let's not forget the snow and blizzard conditions that continue to be in the forecast.

Five Stars
Although this is my first time reading one of the Christmas Tree Farm Mysteries, I thoroughly enjoyed it. The close-knit community and entertaining townsfolk make for a sweet read. The sleuth and her fiance are believable and likable. I will definitely be reading more of this series.

My rating for Stalking Around the Christmas Tree by Jacqueline Frost is five stars. I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a fantastic holiday mystery.

I voluntarily reviewed an Advance Reader Copy. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Thank you for dropping by! I hope you enjoyed this review of Stalking Around a Christmas Tree by Jacqueline Frost.

Until the next time,
~Jen

If you would like to see other reviews like this one, check out Baroness Book Trove.

This is the 4th book in this series and it can easily be read as a stand alone however I have added the first three books to my tbr because I adored this book. It has everything I wanted in a cozy Christmas mystery close knit family and friends, descriptions of great food, a tidy mystery, the right amount of danger, adorable named characters who are eccentric ( I mean what name is better than Cookie Cutter for a Christmas book), and characters who agree with me that the Nutcracker is a bit creepy. I want to visit Mistletoe Farms and play Reindeer Games this book was amazing and even caused me to get a little teary at the end. I can't wait to read more in this series.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for selecting me to read an advanced copy of the book. Please keep sending me books by this author they are amazing.