Book : Christmas Presents
Author : Lisa Unger
Release Date : 24 October 2023

Thank you NetGalley, Penzler Publishers, Mysterious Press & the author for the opportunity to read and review this book.

When I saw this book show up on my recommendations I got so excited because there is not a single book Lisa has written that I do not love & I love a good holiday mystery/thriller novella. Even better, when I’m doing this ARC it is summer time and that’s my favorite time to read holiday thriller.

The plot/storyline was perfection, the character development was perfect and the characters felt so real to me. I loved all the characters that we followed through this story. This book had me guessing all the way to the very last page. Turn after turn there were little twists that I never was right about and you don’t get that comfy mystery feeling you get with some mystery/thrillers…you got this amazing creepy & eerie feeling. I sat down and read this book from front cover to back cover. A fast holiday novella that I didn’t want to put down at all.

I don’t want to say very much about this book because I don’t want to give away anything but will say that you need to scoop up this book and make sure that it is on your TBR. Pre-order and have it ready to go for the fall seasons release! You will not be disappointed.

Written by a talented author, one of my favorites, this book is a page turner. Although the protagonist survived a wicked attack, her friends did not. While running her bookstore and taking care of her father, former sheriff and stroke victim, she wonders about what really happened. A popular author enters the picture. Intrigue and mystery at its best. This book is fiction but reads like nonfiction at times. The story moves quickly with realistic characters. This is not a cozy read. It is difficult to try to determine the ending. This book was sent to me electronically by Netgalley for review. Thanks to the publisher, one of the best, and the much gifted author.

I love Lisa Unger books and her little novella, "Christmas Presents" was a quick awesome read. Great story

It’s nearly Christmas and Madeline, owner of The Next Chapter Bookshop in picturesque Little Valley in upstate New York, is surprised to find one of her favorite true crime authors buying a present for his father in her store. But he’s really there to talk to her, since Madeline is a final girl, a survivor of serial killer Evan Handy. This happened a decade ago and now the famous cold case investigator Harley Granger is restoring the abandoned home of missing sisters while he probes the old crime facts. He reveals something unknown to Maddie: other women have gone missing in the decade since Evan was imprisoned, including one just a few days ago.

Lisa Unger has delightedly decided to join the league of mystery writers who have published Christmas novellas (Janice Hallett has “The Christmas Appeal” and Peter Swanson has “The Christmas Guest” releasing in October 2023 when Lisa’s is due), and this one is perfect. Of course, there will be a big Christmas dinner to end the suspense, but who will survive to be around the table? 5 stars — this might not put you in a holly jolly mood, but it will satisfy a need for a holiday mystery!

Thank you to Penzler Publishers, Mysterious Press, and NetGalley for a free advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review!

Literary Pet Peeve Checklist:
Green Eyes (only 2% of the real world, yet it seems like 90% of all fictional females): YES Steph, one of the victims, had startling sea-glass green eyes.
Horticultural Faux Pas (plants out of season or growing zones, like daffodils in autumn or bougainvillea in Alaska): NO Just the expected snow-covered and decorated trees you’d expect in a Christmas novella.